This poem is taken from the second part of the book, Desolation and Epiphany, the one that focuses on renewals, revelations, happiness, and laughter:

Manifest

I had a dream last night,

the same one I have every day,

where only the two of us

Smile as we sip our coffee,

Laugh over lunchtime,

Break for our own time,

Dance after dinner,

Snuggle until we sleep.

Then, I have that dream again,

of when only I dreamed of this life,

until it became our beautiful reality

and neither of us could imagine a better one.

When you picture your ideal life, what do you see? What does the everyday look like? Maybe you’re traveling across the world on a wild adventure. Maybe you’re enjoying a quiet life in a simple home. Maybe you’re bathed in light soaking in fame and fortune or maybe you’re bundled up with a family who loves you dearly. Maybe all of these things are part of your dream, but for many people, this ideal is just that, a dream. When we’re struggling, such a life can seem so far away, even impossible at times. Even if we fight every day to make our world better than the last, it can sometimes feel like we’re not getting anywhere at all. But someday, you may find yourself living in that ideal reality you once dreamed of and remember this moment, the moment your dream was so far away, and realize you did it, you made it. I dare you now to hold that vision in your mind and let it give you strength to build your ideal life until that moment comes.

This faith is the core of “Manifest” and a theme present in the Epiphany half of my upcoming book. If this poems speaks to you, look forward to more hopeful verses that explore joy and overcoming darkness.

If you recall the previous preview poem from the first half of the book, “Sadness helps me sleep”, you may have noticed that “Manifest” has some clear references to that poem. In the previous one, the speaker felt hopeless and lonely and had only “dreamless rest,” but in this piece, the speaker believes in a better future with someone and “had a dream.” This synergy is intentional and numerous other poems in the second half resolve or reference ones in the first.