overwhelmed by the burden 

of reciprocalgenerosity

a pang, an anxious smell, 

the sense of what childhood felt like

tiramisu, creamy goo, 

live laugh love 

like death from above

trigger habit, sunny meditation, 

why did i feel 

so undeserving of love

get a kingfisher peacenik 

from a funky beatnik

a bus comes to pilot us back

fifty times bigger than we needed

happy valentine’s day. i hope it wasn’t alienating for you. i hope you have romantic love in your life, if you want it. but more important are the other loves. self-love. love of your fellow humans. love of the animal kingdom and the plants that nourish us. love of the sun and the stars and of the weird place that the universe is.

growing up autistic is confusing and traumatic. being loved is difficult when you have low self worth. but everyone deserves love. every human, every plant, every creature, has intrinsic value.