Your kindness is conditional
Present when it is convenient
When I fit into the scheme of things
As you define them
Without my participation
Or taking me into consideration
But you are cold callous and cruel
When the tide changes
Withdrawing your affection
As the waters
Recede from the shore
Leaving me stranded
On the beach
Alone
And exhausted
From yet another betrayal

©2019 by Loolwa Khazzoom. All rights reserved. No portion of this article may be copied without author’s permission.

Love
Is eternal
Not ephemeral
Not withdrawn
When things are difficult
Or painful
Or confusing
But extended
Like a steady reliable stream
That flows
Self-sustaining
Regardless of circumstance

©2019 by Loolwa Khazzoom. All rights reserved. No portion of this article may be copied without author’s permission.

You fail not only to rise to the occasion
But to recognize it as such
Churning in the same choices
Going nowhere
Dragging me down with you
By default
So that my powerful strides
End up treading water
Instead of propelling me forward
Into the Stream of Life
And I must leave you behind
in order to stay alive

©2019 by Loolwa Khazzoom. All rights reserved. No portion of this article may be copied without author’s permission.