Poem: Secrets
By: Dovile Mark
His job was to collect secrets
Finding out who had access to the information
Learning to make friends
I knew where the secrets hid
Stacked up like delicious cookies on top of each other
In a jar on a high shelf
He listened to me
Secrets trickled
Stack of cookies getting smaller till only the crumbs remained
I broke the last cookie into pieces
I admit
To make it last longer
Like a hungry skittish dog that runs away when no more food remains
I knew he was unlikely to stay
I offered to bake real cookies for him, for us
With chocolate chips and maybe even crunchy macadamia nuts
He declined
A year and a half later he was back
I recognized the smile
There was a new jar of secrets he said
On a higher shelf this time
I asked if he would hold a ladder for me to climb
He said he would be too out of place
Trusted I could do it on my own
I climbed up, placed my hand into the new jar of cookies
They were still warm
Tasted too good to share
I ate them all
***
Dovile Mark was born in Lithuania and now spends time between Maryland and Hawaii. She enjoys working as a writer, filmmaker, actor, puppeteer and stunt performer. Her poetry and stories have been featured in several magazines including “Poet’s Ink” and “Main Channel Voices”. She has performed live at many venues in Europe and US including theaters, literary festivals, jail facilities, hospitals and Stoop Storytelling Series at Center Stage in Baltimore.