Will and Lyra – May 2020

Catherine Heath

May 2020

You’re my Will,

My courage,

And strength––


I am your goddess––

(She is haunting;

He is fierce

And undaunted.)

Together for all time,

We will never die:

Vampires,

Not zombies

(And that’s the way we like it.)


He moves in music,

In poetry, 

In engineers––

We create his beautiful song

In our own image;

Homage

To his terrifying greatness.


I am your Lyra,

Your madwoman,

Your unruly girl

Who is never gone.

(You called me back,

As I knew you would,

As you always do,

With your terrifying force

That I could not live without).

We will not live in other worlds;

We will destroy the world,

And find god,

And love. 


Heaven is not up above,

But right here,

In our hands

If we care to see.


You’re not my father

(He would never let me go)––

I can hear him shouting

Even across time and space

(He was so loud).

We always hear

When we love;

He shows it with his actions––

Not his words,

And that’s what makes him a god

Among puny mortal men.


And that’s why he always wins in the end––

Not he who is the most brutal,

But he who waits,

Luring her towards the dark

For all time. 


I know you by the glint of your knife,

With which you slay beasts,

And demons;

Terrifyingly handsome.

Women fall at your feet,

And men hate you––

But I know you.

You are my muse,

And that’s love at first sight.


She was a goddess;

Men wrote her poetry,

Gave her offerings,

And fell at her feet.

But when I saw your eyes,

They saw right into my soul––

And finally,

To my surprise,

Finally, 

I was whole. 


People were mean to me,

But I forgave them,

Because they were mortals––

And I know all the artists,

And psychopaths,

(Because I am both).


I’m not failing;

I’m waiting 

(and working),

And that’s the crucial difference.

That’s why they will never catch me––

Before they even realise,

I’m already long gone.


If they scream at you––

He’s a madman!––

You know you’re doing something right.

(The clever criminals

Don’t ever get caught.)


I always win,

Because I can wait;

I can wait the longest––

I have patience,

And love,

Which is something you will never understand.


I will cut off my nose to spite my face,

Because I always win in the end.

He is my willpower

(And I am his sunshine).


I blame them,

Because they were weak,

And small.

They did not nurture your gift

(And I’m from a loving family,

So I will destroy them all). 


When you raise glorious children,

Everyone is jealous,

And tries to kill them.


He’s the best man,

And the best person––

That’s why I chose him.

(A good mother protects her kids,

And a good father

Tries to kill her

If she hurts them.)


I’m not lazy;

I’m waiting

(Waiting for the right moment)

To strike;

To lunge––

Right at her throat,

Right in for the kill

(Because if given the chance

I always will).


Always marry the scariest person,

(Because if anyone hurts you,

And he wants to kill them––

They’ll never even see it coming).


Credit: Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash