2 Poems by Frances Koziar

Darkness and Dreams

I dreamed that my painting was about to fall

and I woke with a gasp, but when I dream

of being your prisoner again—back in that house—or of

the nameless murderers who hunt me when you

grow bored I wake silently, slipping my eyes open as subtly

as the tendrils of darkness that crept into my mind—they

are your shadows, stretching their bony fingers across the years

toward me, as if somewhere, far beyond us both

is the sun



Phantoms and Relics

Sometimes when I go to bed

it feels like I am walking into battle;

I know what waits for me, there in the gathering

dark, I feel the eyes, patient and ready. Throughout the day

the Fears come, the Hurts cluster, the Memories are triggered

and they all settle into the dusty corners of my room, pushed aside

by the light, they inch closer when silence falls, given form

by the ethereal glow of the stars, they come ready

for their chance to sing


Bionote

FRANCES KOZIAR has publications in 10+ literary magazines, and is seeking an agent for a diverse NA/YA fantasy novel. Her poetry has appeared in the Voice of Eve, Breath and Shadow, and an anthology by the Poetry Institute of Canada. She lives in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
Author website: https://franceskoziar.wixsite.com/author