Home

One Soul, Knowing Another

by Ken Harnisch

Here I stand, stripped of all encumbrances
As naked to you now as I have ever been
Shorn of all pretense and intent
Seeking naught from you
Than what you have already given me
So many times before
It is my loss and failure both
That the thing you gave so willingly
I most casually turned aside
As if it meant nothing to me
But that was before my heart was flayed
My soul was seared
My wisdom born in the resulting flame
I have always needed you
The words to say it loud eluded me
Perhaps, in all honesty, they still do now
You see, you have a power over me
Which I resent
And sometimes hate
And in the secret precincts of my mind
I dream at times of scurrying away
Like something in a dream of yours
A shadow sensed but never seen
Ethereal and departed
Already forgetting you
Way before you’re gone
But, why lie… I do so know myself
And in those same precincts
Where you are today dismissed
Burns a most tender love
An insensible yearning
A voiceless need for you
That I would no sooner surrender
Than I would my life
And if I must have you quietly
Or not at all, so be it
Silence is golden, somebody said
Somebody very wise, no doubt.

01/18/2002

Posted on 01/18/2002
Copyright © 2024 Ken Harnisch

Member Comments on this Poem
Posted by Melissa Arel on 03/07/03 at 07:09 PM

I was flipping through your archives and found this.. touching and beautiful, Ken :)

Return to the Previous Page
 

pathetic.org Version 7.3.2 May 2004 Terms and Conditions of Use 0 member(s) and 2 visitor(s) online
All works Copyright © 2024 their respective authors. Page Generated In 0 Second(s)