You Helped Me Breathe

A poem...

Aidez-moi à respirer, ma chérie.

I'd forgotten how
to breathe
my chest stitched into seams
where I tried to sew together
my broken heart, with broken dreams.

But I never learned to sew,
so the patches of my coat
where I'd stitched my heart
upon my sleeve
was falling apart
because real things
cannot be fixed with make believe.

Arabelle...
Aidez-moi à respirer, ma chérie.
You once saw the best in me
I still wish you well.

Paris will be lucky
to have your grace
your art
your smiling face.
You're more than a flower-girl
you're the reason the world
continued to twirl
when I'd spent years
simply trying to make it spin
again...
...thank you.

I know I said Bonifacio
was close enough to heaven
for any man;
and to see me go
once again
was never part of the plan.

I guess that Parisian apartment
meant for two
will have one less occupant
I hope your dreams come true.

Vous m'avez aidé à respirer à nouveau, ma chérie.
My Arabelle...
I wish you well...
Now forget me, love, I plea.

Author's Note

If anyone needs a translation of the French feel free to ask.
My spelling and grammar may be off. I learned it in bits and pieces and was never that great lol

Reviews

Again I am overwhelmed here with a passion that only you can make/create my friend, what a beautiful flowing ode to Arabelle, she is a miracle, been, and I know why, you really learn to breathe again, after all ...

I like your French language in perfection woven as a beautiful sound like alternating in between your English and you named the right emotion ... in your recurrent path of hiking ;)
Tu fais Arabelle belle, dans tout ce que vous écrivez, ils doivent avoir été une grande puissance ... : )

“I know I said Bonifacio
was close enough to heaven
for any man;
and to see me go
once again
was never part of the plan.”

Did the character went to Corsica?
Just an elusive love, that seemed not to be true, for true love, set’s free,
And travels, by in every breathe, both take, on distance… You’re very good at your
Style and I shall come by more… Tu fais belle poésie…
And sorry for the double one, reviewed from my phone, lol, you know all about it ;-)

- Elisa

[Wakeofahero]

Well done! Always a pleasure to read your work!

[Southern Cross]

What a beautiful piece this is. It gave me chills to read it not only once but many times over. I have been in love rehab for months now and the heart eventually does heal on its own I wish you happiness beyond the broken dreams. You seem like a forgiving, caring soul. Your poetry touches the heart of those fortunate to have love's experiences....with good or bad memories, love is all encompassing.

[Knightingale]

I'm starting to look forward to your reviews. You're right. It is all encompassing. I know most people don't like reading stories on here, but I was wondering if you could look at my first journal entry. Its short, I swear lol

[Southern Cross]

LOL I was going to then said ugh a loooong piece..Funny I have a short in my head but know how everyone hates reading the long ones. O.K. here's the deal..I'll read yours but you have to promise to read mine if I ever post it. :)

[Knightingale]

Sounds like a deal. I'm looking forward to reading yours. I read a couple people's shorts on here hoping for the same courtesy but it never happened lol

[Southern Cross]

Smiling here...Don't ya just hate those that constantly request a read and never bother to return the favor? I had to turn off my read requests due to that very same reason Besides,we are both Southerners ...have that Southern hospitality going for us. I loved the peace and I did snicker at a few of your lines..so a Romantic comedian of sorts you are.

[Knightingale]

Lol no one else has caught the humor yet. And yeah I know what you mean. I've only been on this site for a few days now and I learned that quickly. Read ten poems and maybe one will read one of yours. And then leave a review like "i liked it" lol I use my phone to write everything I do, and it won't let me send read requests anyways lol

[Southern Cross]

There are some great writers on this site. I have made a handful of constants and long to read their every words. I have been gone all summer traveling and probably will get back to writing again seriously in a few weeks. Having too much fun kayaking and living La Vida Loca right now..I reserve my late nights for reading and conjuring up poetry in my vortex of a mind. I wish you luck in your upcoming novel. I always have trouble with the middle . I can jump start a great beginning and dash down to the ending but the "bridge" always leaves me blank Hence, the reason I haven't written a novel yet.

[Knightingale]

Middles are difficult. I just let my characters do stuff even if it doesn't sound interesting. I can always go back and edit and take out later. I was writing travel guides for a while to fund most of my travels. I'm honestly on here looking for inspiration because I'm avoiding real life. I've only been home for a few days and I've been trying to stay away from a few old faces until I get my head straight. Living twenty minutes out from town helps lol

[Southern Cross]

LOL I travel constantly to the remote to try and clear my head. I avoid real life by reading novels like till 3 am..My head is now straight but the downfall is I can't write anymore. I'll read others poems till I get reinspired :( or find a new muse which is doubtful as I have become too much of a realist ...though I preferred being a "dreamer" and hopeless romantic

[Knightingale]

Remote places are wonderful for that. I hike and mountain climb to clear my head. Or listen to foreign locals talk local gossip. I dream often but never because of muses. My ex said she was my muse. I told her muses tend to come and go of their own accord. We only find inspiration if we're looking for it. Like all good things in life.

[Southern Cross]

True true...sigh... you are more talented than I..I hike mountains all summer and also listen to local gossip. It's the only way to get the feel of a place.

[Knightingale]

Exactly. And talent as a writer, especially in poetry, is not a comparison. That's like comparing the value of one person's experiences to another's. It's simply a matter of how well we appreciate those experiences. It's that appreciation that breeds great poetry.
And I have a fascination with people. I love hearing their stories, their strange colliliquisms, their experiences.

[prachi prangya agasti]

beautiful indeed... and heartfelt...

[MindyRuby]

"because real things
cannot be fixed with make believe."

Nicely said.

[Knightingale]

Thank you :)

[MindyRuby]

Really, I liked the whole thing. I was curious to know if you sent her the poem. :)

[Knightingale]

No I haven't. I want her to move on. We both had plans for Paris. But my I'd been pushing off some things I needed to do here for some years. And there was a dispute with her brother that got out of hand. I told her to go to Paris and that I needed to head back home. Our lives just took us in different directions. My place is here and I didn't want her giving up her dreams following me blindly to the States. Now I'm just trying to figure out what I'm doing with the rest of my life.

[Knightingale]

Sending her this would just make things more complicated..

[Judy Basmaji]

Wow that was beautiful.. it's so full of mixed emotions that got through. The imagery was original and creative, and even though I only understood bits and pieces of the french, it was a wonderful touch that made the poem all the more enchanting and romantic for me. And I love the name Arabelle. My favorite line: "Now forget me, love, i plea." Excellent :)

[Knightingale]

This was directed towards my ex who I just recently left back in France. Arabelle was her full name, though I usually just called her Ari.

[BillTemple]

i know a little french but it is not necessary to feel the emotion in this wonderful piece. It was a pleasure to read.

[Knightingale]

Thank you. That truly means a lot. Arabelle is the ex I was telling you about. She's in Paris now, pursuing her painting. I'm glad you enjoyed this.

[BillTemple]

very much so

[Angel]

To be honest, I don't speak 'French at all...but I can make out, sort of, what you're saying.
I feel the sadness in this poignant piece. I love the imagery, especially in the first stanza...sewing up a broken heart with broken dreams...magnificent!
Although the French did kind of throw me off a bit, I still enjoyed this beautifully crafted piece very much.

[Knightingale]

Thank you. As always, I love hearing your thoughts on my work. This is sort of to my ex. I won't likely send it to her, because I'm hoping she'll be able to move on. But it's the things I wanted to say before I left, in the rush that I did.

[Angel]

The girl you left in France...
"Help me to breathe, my cherished one"?? Something like that.

[Knightingale]

Very close. Cherished one, or darling, or sweetheart, or my dear. It can be all those pretty much. Its a title of affection. And yes. She lives in Bonifacio which is on the coast of the island Corsica. Its quite a distance from Paris lol I ended up there through circumstances not of my own accord. I believe God must have had_it planned for me, because I surely didn't lol

[Antoñyo]

"Help me breathe, darlin (my love)" I'm thinkin,...or feelin'
Awesome write, vivid read...another "Wow"
Thank you

[Knightingale]

You got it write. I didn't know you spoke French. Thanks for the kind review. It means a lot.

[Antoñyo]

Ha! I don't speak it, just recognized moi and respirer, put two and two together...and don't like being defeated when it matters...This piece mattered.
You're very welcome

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i really like this...you tell a really good story through this poem...obviously you are quite adept at storytelling...and you also wrote a very nicely done poem here.

nice subtle rhyme scheme...

phrasing is delightful...

jacob

[Knightingale]

I try and keep the rhyming subtle. I don't want it to be the focus. I'm glad you enjoyed this. It means a lot.