You Are Rich

Festered lament maddens me
Why must the despair of my heart’s desire
Truly enlighten me? 
I rested among the sick and lame
And found myself no different from the rest
For a troubled mind holds endless poverty
Penniless regret marks as a sickness no doctor can prescribe
For the bottles of balm are empty
And medicinal hope grows angry
I derived my madness from creativity
Revealing the remains of my humanity
‘Cool off, child’, I heard a soft voice whisper
But can’t you see I live off the flame?
It asks for no nickel or dime!
But it seeks to destroy all the same
The small voice returns at times
And often my heart listens
But we all listen
And only believe in the inevitability of pain 
I speak of the majority
Not of you
For you are blessed and beyond disgrace
You have a life—a beautiful face

And most of all, you are rich
With attributes I can only dream of 

You are rich with life and purpose
Holding inscrutabilities I can only wish to understand
You lift me without touch or care
Disposing me from your treasures
Because though you meant no harm, 
You are rich with blessing
And must remove all possible threats
So my festered lament
Remains an enlightenment

I can say I am rich in poverty
But you are forever rich
In Mystery

What hurts the most is knowing
I may be wrong about you
For you are so obscure in this mind
And as empty as I am I wish to be filled
In your richness
But we all are filled to the brim in the end
And sometimes I cannot distinguish the good from the bad
There is nothing I wish to discard
So I hoard in constant deficiency and despair  
And I hoard the idea that you are beyond compare

That you are rich
And always will be richer
Than me—or he
Copyright © | Year Posted 2013


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Date: 9/7/2013 9:18:00 AM
Are you saying that it is tough to be passionate? If so, then you are truly rich in your own right. Be well.
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Date: 9/5/2013 6:39:00 PM
Genteel poverty. Money and looks, ah what a combo. Got neither. Great poem and I agree with the sentiments below you are rich in more ways than you know. Always~Kilmer
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Date: 9/5/2013 12:38:00 PM
NO ONE CAN TAKE AWAY YOUR ATTRIBUTES YOUR CHARATER SHOWS WELL IN ALL YOUR WRITES LOVE YOUR POEM XXX DAVIDSCOTT
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Date: 9/3/2013 12:50:00 PM
Laura, i like how rich one can be when living in mystery... an awesome one...Linda
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Date: 9/2/2013 4:59:00 PM
Massive!!!! To be rich in heart is to truly be a philanthropist of humanity. Very, very hard hitting lines!
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Date: 9/2/2013 1:06:00 AM
I had to read this 3 times.... And each time I get to the end I get so lost in the mystery and context of it all. Excellent! I love it. :o)
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