Hard to love the world
Shattered glass strewn haphazard in dusty piles of lost opportunitiesKneeling amidst the wreckage Scraped knees, hunched shouldersUnseeing eyes staring blankly, unfocused, half-closedThe audible sound of pounding heartThump thumpThumpThump thumpInterspersed with ragged breathing Each inhale shorter than the one beforeEach exhale accompanied by watery gasps A keening, half-sobHalf-resigned sighReach down to pick up a larger piece […]
Unwanted
Graphene is a carbon compound that is extremely thin—the smallest layer that can be made with it is the width of just a single atom—yet has more than 100 times the tensile strength of steel. It is also incredibly fragile; the smallest disturbance can cause it to break. And unlike steel, graphene can’t be “healed” […]
The Never-Ending Nightmare
It was October. Days started out with a chill, the previous day’s heat having snaked away overnight. Dew-stained ground and the sharp scent of rural air assaulted my nose as I slowly made my way through the field beside my house. Two dogs wandered purposefully ahead of me, straining at their leashes, noses buried in […]
I suppose you’ll do
Squinted eyes peer through parted drapes The darkness ill-illuminated in suburban streets A half-hearted growl escaping bared teeth Indecision Unable to determine if the approaching shadow Is friend or foe Body tense Neck hairs standing on edge, tail curled in agitation Short, rapid breaths escape As a palpable anxiety rises like the wafting steam from […]
Twelve Thirty One Twenty Twenty Five
This is a prompt I made last year towards the end of the year. As the end of the year approaches, many people write down a list of resolutions that they hope to keep during the following year. Instead of listing out all the things you want to accomplish, pretend it’s December 31st 2025. Write […]
Monologophobia
The prompt for this poem was to write something with no repeating words. This was my attempt. Predilection towards brevity Succinctness impossibly bound by language Predisposed to glaring incomprehensibility Lacking sufficiently diverse expression From whence concise communication might flourish Long-winded rambling necessitates itself Verbose properties challenging linguistic mastery Oppositional desires war between brief exchanges And […]
Big boys don’t cry
You’re age five and fall off your bike and scrape your knee so you start to cry. And mommy says, “Suck it up, big boys don’t cry.“ You’re age six and hyperactive and sent to a mental institution for kids. You’re scared and alone and afraid of the dark and want to go home. You […]
Temptation
Tick-tock Tick-tock The second hand on the clock ticking away Tick-tock Tick-tock Seconds blur into minutes blur into hours Tick-tock Tick-tock The seconds counting down, the only sound aside from harsh breathing Shaking, a sick feeling bares down like the weight of their expectations Stirring, reaching blindly for another taste of freedom Tick-tock Tick-tock Ragged […]
Always second best
Bottle of cheap whiskey sitting on my desk Ruminations of how I got to this point Screaming into my pillow because I’m dead inside Screaming into my pillow because I’m too old to punch walls Screaming because this has built inside of me for so long And I don’t know how to let it out […]
Two days
Lump of breath catching in my chest and it hurts It hurts to breathe and it hurts to think It hurts to know that what we’ve shared is almost over It hurts to look at you and see what I’m missing in my life Blurry vision as tears streak down my cheeks And you don’t […]