Not being believed
Triggers spiral
Into the abyss
Of loneliness
Hopelessness
Vast empty space
Of meaninglessness
Am I worth fighting for
I claw my way back
To my body, my mind, my soul
To shut ignorance down
Ignorance is death

© Rossana Reis, 2018

You are standing
Somewhere
On my left side
I am lying down
In my cap n gown
My left hand reaches
For your absent right hand
Your right hand emerges
Into my searching left hand
You gesture gibberish
Into boundaryless space
My eyebrows crinkle

I twist my body
Towards you
And my right hand calls
For your left hand
Both of your hands
Tremble gestures
Into intangible air
My shoulders, neck
And muscles tense
Around my coiled spine
My whole body creases
My heart beats faster
My skin flushes

I inhale and exhale
And ask you to sit
Beside me
You sit beside me
I ask for your hands
To travel with mine
Your humbled hands journey
Into the palm of my hand
And onto the rugged terrain
Of my fabric covered body
My brows unwrinkle
My lips curve up
Your hands paint
A familiar landscape

I uncontort my body
My spine uncoils
And I gently let go
Of your left hand
Your hands stroll
Into my left hand, arm
And onto the smooth plains
Of my blanketed body
My body untenses
My heart slows
My skin cools
My body is calm
My body is mine

©️ Rossana Reis, 2018

When you ask to dive
Into the depths of my soul
It's too much too heavy
I revise my story
Into a weightless version
Of my unbearable pain
I carry my own load
But there's too many of you
And one of me
I end up carrying yours
What happened to each one
Carrying their own load
And to each one
Carrying each other's burdens

© Rossana Reis, 2017

Alive

‪I feel wIth my hands ‬
I connect with my heart
I play with my thoughts
I live in all my truths
and change the world

Vivo

Eu sinto com minhas mãos
Conecto com meu coração
Brinco com meus pensamentos
Vivo em todas as minhas verdades
E mudo o mundo

Vivo

Siento con mis manos
Conecto con mi corazón
Juego con mis pensamientos
Vivo en todas mis verdades
Y cambio el mundo

© Rossana Reis, 2017

sick n disabled queer n trans folx of color

i love you from our intermittent intimacies
between tactile signs, texts n emojis
love letters, healing hugs n your energies
you fill the empty spaces in my heart
n brighten the darkest parts of my soul
i feel full when holding space together
trading spoons to hold each other up
you are worthy of all the stars, moon
n hearts in the sky
I love you

_\m/

© Rossana Reis, 2016