Granada

Within these apartment walls Depression looms, Permeates, destroys. Its sterile white walls Are oppressive, Even claustrophobic. Silverfish slither Across white ceilings, I pray they don’t drop Into my mouth As I sleep. I lay on my roll out sofa, Praying that the foul odor, Is just my neighbor’s Trash laden home, And not my neighbor. Last time I saw him He was wraithlike I haven’t seen him lately. I tried everything, To brake This prison’s hold, But all was lost… The ceiling caved-in. Nothing but rafters And roaches above. This dark and dingy tenement The west side slums. I hide Behind closed drapes, So no one can see My despair. My head sinks low, And my tears fall To my feet And bathes, Another bug. A hairy caterpillar inches Across my naked white toes. As desperate as I am, To escape this ruin. I watch as it climbs, The edge of the curtains Until it disappears, Behind the drapes And out the broken window. With a silent prayer, I follow it, And peel back, Mold encrusted blinds, Letting in an eruption of light, Like the strike of a match. It burns right through me, Searing depression From my body, With rays of Divine Mercy. My eyes adjust There in front of me Life is magnified. Orange colored blossoms Shining in the sun As delicate as gossamer. Leaves in a warm summer breeze Glowing from within As they danced their praises. The tiny caterpillar Reared his forelegs, He laughed at the spectacle, And flirted with a butterfly.