my favorite chapter

and so i laid down to rest in my bed under the soft duvet, reaching over to my nightstand where i collect my comforting treasures

and pick up my favorite chapter of the book i visit most

flipping through the creased and wrinkled pages well loved across many moon cycles

caressing the single tear stains that lay across the borders

until i get to the page with the corner that stays turned down

and i reread the passage about a girl who loves a boy

and the boy loves her back

and he laughs at her jokes and strokes her hair

and whispers kind things as they lay together hand in hand under the stars

playing songs that remind them of the past and invigorate their future

my eyes trace the letters as i rehearse the passage out loud, reading on ceremony but feeling from memory

reliving the dreams it implanted when the page was freshly turned

soaking in the last few moments of hope

until its time to sleep and start the day again

when the memory is done, and i’ve gotten my fix

i close the book and place it carefully back on its altar

as a tear rolls down my cheek

joining the stained pillow where my head rests each night

ready to do it all again tomorrow