An Ode To Strangers
By Phoenix Tori
You are something new
Someone my life never had before
But the moment it did
I knew I wanted more of you
You who I’ve always been told to ignore
Don’t bother them
Don’t listen to them
Don’t leave with them
Don’t talk to Strangers, Victoria
But all I want to do is listen to you
And the stories you could tell with my mind
If I could only put them to words
Yet I sit,
Ready to tare the page from the spiral
Pack the pen into the pencil pouch
And shut down the laptop
Because you’ll always be a stranger to me
When a blank page stands before me
I am standing in a crowd of strangers
Pushing past me
Starting out on stories I may never start myself
Because I am too afraid to talk to you
Awkwards silence when we sit face to face
My words race to find their place between my fingertips
Pencil or keyboard
Seemingly neglect my lips
Why does talking to you feel so wrong sometimes?
You are a stranger’s face fleeting in my mind’s eye
Existing in no other world than mine
I am the only one who can tell your story
So, don’t be a stranger to me
I love talking to you
Even if most of our conversations are silence sometimes
But when you crack a smile
I’ll know we’ll probably be here for awhile
And my fingers will hurt from writing about you too much
But it will never be enough
Afterall,
A Writer’s mind is always filled with Strangers