The 1st by Eli Oko 

And I prayed that my prayer be heard.

As he mentioned all the reasons I felt we should walk away 

He concluded that he didn’t know what to say

But I felt the letters form in my mouth of what we should do

And as they bubbled forth I looked up to my patchy ceiling and said cut me loose

As the light flickered between my tears 

I screamed leave me here 

As the pen hit the board and I wrote down the points he raised

I fell further into my sadness, heart and soul grazed 

I put the phone on mute and prepared for the worse 

I agreed and choked on the words 

He said I love you and you are the one 

I wanted to write to remember

But all space was gone 

And as the board filled up with the doubts that he sings 

All the words that he found

Doesn’t he know that words are my favourite things 

So why utter such stuff when you know I will hear

And from my favourite lips, so you know I will care 

The ones that you used to say “I’m nothing but yours” 

Are now the lips that have wrecked me at sea and spat me on shore

I’m not leaving, I’ll heal from the hurt

waiting for my answers

Praying that my prayers be heard. 

We just scrabble about

Using any words that we like 

Not realising it’s worth 

It seems I’m always finding reasons to remember

the 1st.