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Writer's pictureJenny Penland

A Flame By Any Other Name ‣ The day she learned the difference.


That strange stage of heart ache

Half past one and heart break


You know when the train’s coming

How fast it’s going

And that you’re standing

Where it’s headed

But instead

You stretch out your hand

And under the sand

Bury your head in

Below the tracks and

Drown out the facts

To warning bells,

You dance the dance

Chance after chance

Singing the song

Go along

To get along


What a tired trance

Of bombshells and quells

That numb your sense

Of right and wrong


Cause there are worlds

Between the words

“Settled” and “content”

And despite his range,

you can’t interchange

"Relent" with "consent"


So don't quibble over significant

Instead, realize the significance

Between mincing words

And the words you mince

"Ego" versus "confidence"

"Resolution" versus "resolve"

The sand line drawn:

Evolve or absolve

And don't forget

When it's dissolved

It was always in his hands

To solve

Remember your "imposition"

You want someone to want...

Someone who wants you

Someone to tell your stories to

To tell your stories about

Someone who craves you

Braves, slaves, ungraves you

Someone who droughts the doubt

Cause he’ll always be tough

You’ll never feel enough

He cant see you,

Never did,

Frankly couldn’t

If he wanted to


And besides,

A flame

By any other name

Will still burn you

Just the same

So swallow it in stride

Cause you'll never be satisfied

You’d always have to hide

The best of you inside


Wondering how much

You don’t see or know

Or what changed

And was it you?


It wasn’t.

You know it wasn’t

It’s not your fault,

But it’s still true

Cause there’s no unwriting

No matter how you push it off or

Push it down

There’s no unhearing

Or unseeing

Or unfeeling

The "goodbye," now

Its the heady I’m done

It’s the know your worth

And then add tax

It’s the this will never work

So go ahead and

Strike the match


Light the fuse

Pull the pin

Yeah, go on now,

Toss it in


Take cover

Under another

And unlearn it all again.




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