To Yield Soft Words... by Wayne TateMoments like this
rarely come to me...
Soft eyes...
reflective tears
body bent,
rent and raw...
with words violently
slamming themselves
back and forth in the dark din
I am scared to ask
but I need an answer...
How do you define with a pen
the wet and wrenching rhythm
that no longer recalls warmth,
nor courage?
Should we risk all
while seeking the significance
of ourselves?
Digging our desperate,
and frantic heels into the
fleshy core of our hearts
while softly screaming...
Please...don't leave me...?
Attached by the threads of sadness
Held together by the breadth of a pulse...
that beats its own thick cadence
before it realizes its mistake
and finally turns to beat you...
Do we hold onto lovers
begging them not to feel what we feel,
or hear what we say to ourselves
as our once proud souls grow
a darker shade of blue...?
The murmurs...
the whispers..
telling you that blood is blood
regardless if it comes from a river
or is squeezed from a stone.
Within this love...
Feeling...
Believing...
Capturing the senses
that are not your own.
Embracing the heat
that claims your skin...
touching every string
that connects the "you"
to "them"
…and that is your pain...
That as you
soundly sink into the arms
of the one you love,
wishing them the sweetest of dreams;
in the peaceful hours you share
before the dawn;
pressing your feathers
further back into their cage...
Completely scared out of your mind;
you will remind yourself...
that no matter how connected
your heart may feel...
no matter how much you love
the touch and warmth of the lie...
...you will always dream alone... 05/27/2009 Author's Note: I have to thank Sarah Wolf for this piece. I asked her to give me 5 words and a mood and she delivered
5 words: courage, loss, sadness, dream,lie
The mood: despair
- Thanks for the inspiration Sarah :)
Posted on 05/28/2009 Copyright © 2024 Wayne Tate
Member Comments on this Poem |
Posted by Sarah Wolf on 05/28/09 at 12:23 PM Wayne... I am never the best on posting comments... but I will tell you this... It made me cry... Thank you so much... You are a beautiful writer. I am printing a hardcopy to cherish and keep. You are good... very good... Thanks again... |
Posted by Kris Mara on 05/28/09 at 01:12 PM one of the the great things about it is that no one would ever guess that you were prompted to include certain words -- meaning, it comes across very honestly, very raw, full of the vulnerability that makes us human and in a context that is so relatable and real...like the poetics of real words and emotions (does that make sense?)... |
Posted by Chris Sorrenti on 05/30/09 at 02:49 PM Good capture of how we rely on others to maintain some sort of sanity, or lack of it, and yet (barring religious beliefs and prayer) each of us is still very alone. |
Posted by Genevieve Sturrock on 06/05/09 at 12:34 PM congrats on POTD! i would not have guessed you were given prompts for this poem. what came across the strongest to me is the feeling of not liking oneself....which is the core of the despair, i suppose...but something that i can relate to much more than i care to admit. |
Posted by Kris Mara on 06/05/09 at 02:07 PM Congratulations on POTD...this is truly an incredible piece.... |
Posted by Kristina Woodhill on 06/05/09 at 03:51 PM The emotion you inject into this is palpable and wide ranging. "Should we risk all
while seeking the significance
of ourselves?" - such a key human question. The being alone part does chew at us, doesn't it. Amazingly well done from prompts. I would not have guessed that.
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Posted by Kristina Woodhill on 06/05/09 at 03:51 PM OH, and a fine POTD! :) |
Posted by Alison McKenzie on 06/05/09 at 05:11 PM Wow. I've never read any of your stuff before, and kicking myself for not having stumbled across your library before now. Because. This - truth - slammed into my awareness with such impact, I'm reeling. Things like, "while softly screaming... Please... don't let me live alone...?" and "How do you define with a pen the wet and wrenching rhythm"... It's like you peeled beyond the layers of convention and reached DEEP to reveal this - truth. A VERY worthy POTD! And now I get to bookmark your library for after I finish my final paper in my writing class which is due in less than 24 hours, but from which I am distracted by the brilliance of your work. |
Posted by D. James McKee on 06/09/09 at 08:45 AM “...as our once proud souls grow a darker shade of blue...”
Wow! Elegant and gritty, an amazing portrait of what it means to love...
what it means to be human.
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Posted by Clara Mae Gregory on 06/17/09 at 03:13 AM This is an incredible, awesome piece of writing....and you nailed it.
I love your work. |
Posted by Glenn Currier on 08/06/09 at 03:13 AM What a great idea to spur the creative juices and what a brilliant result. You capture the whirlpool of human relationship and love and the ultimate human reality. Very creative piece, Wayne. Thanks. |
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