Lavender Lemonade
A poem by Holly Payne-Strange

Lavender Lemonade

You hold my glittered soul entirely in your hands.
And I want to thank you for tending to her so gently.

I hope it’s not too heavy for you.
I hope it reminds you
Of lavender lemonade,
Of your favorite flowers,
And jokes rated 9/10.

You’re doing so well.
I know you can’t really see that.
I know you struggle to forgive yourself.
I know you’ve made mistakes.

But damn baby. Who hasn’t?
You hold yourself to such an impossible standard
Like you’re about to be judged
By crowds and lions
At the colosseum’s greatest show.

You are strange. Odd. Atypical.
You do not act the way others might expect.

That does not mean you have failed.
Or that you have done anything wrong.
Beautiful things are often surprisingly resilient.

Storms weather seashores,
Waves beating against the rocks
And pebbles pulled into the ocean.
The whole landscape fractured, altered, changed.

Yet still the glory remains.
Because some things,
Some rare and magical things,
Really are that good.

You are one of them.
And I am too.
And when you stand before those lions
You will not be alone.

About the Author:

Holly Payne-Strange (she/her) is a novelist, poet and podcast creator. Her writing has been lauded by USA Today, LA weekly and The New York Times. She has had her poetry published by various groups  including  Door Is A Jar magazine, In Parenthesis, Dipity Lit Magazine, and will soon be featured in Academy Heart and Red Door, among others. She’d like to thank her wife for all her support.

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