Graphic by Nick Griffin
one misconceives the desert
as a barren, lonely wasteland
when in reality
it is an ecosystem teeming with life
adapted to exist in the harshest conditions
in between strict dichotomies
i exist; not a boy, not a girl
as a creature strange and untamed
that maybe you can’t comprehend
yet i thrive
in between an idea and its completion
i exist; i am a person in progress
i continue to collect scars
then heal them
rinse, repeat
in between the lines of every beautiful thing
you write for someone else
someone softer, more convenient, easier to love
someone fuller and more real
i exist
i begin to understand
why you cannot water me
yet finally i recognize
while you may not love me,
someone else does
for in between who i am,
and who i want to be
there is a liminal space, an arid land
where no flowers seem to bloom
yet i am not alone