J. I. Thomas F. | + Follow Poet |
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Breaking Spirits

Suspended, caught in spider webs and flailing helplessly.
Immobilized, locked down within a matrix I can’t see. 
Destroyed, my panicked thoughts are fading to a subtle throb.
Annoyed, I cannot see which dial to turn. Which switch? Which knob?

I choose this—why do I choose this? Freedom seems so very sweet.
Yet my actions bind my limbs and throw my body at your feet.
My guts are wrenching, my heart is clenching, and I cannot sleep.
If I didn’t have all day to swoon, who knows how much I’d weep? 

You knew me when my intellect and confidence were true.
Take pride, and know that both of them were broken due to you.
You knew me when my eyes drifted o’er you at first pass.
Now I dream about you even as I pray at Mass.

Can I pretend to stand erect and independent now?
If I am to tell the truth, then I cannot see how.

2 May 2016

Copyright © J. I. Thomas F. | Year Posted 2016

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Yoo Yo Date: 7/2/2016 6:51:00 AM Hey James, Also who do you refer to through out. Is it god or to a girl? Login to Reply J. I. Thomas F. Date: 7/2/2016 9:12:00 AM A girl as "Now I dream about you even as I pray at Mass" indicates. Thinking about God at Mass is pretty usual. Thinking about a girl as one prays to their creator is ... interesting, I feel, and easily worth a line of poetry.

Yoo Yo Date: 7/2/2016 6:48:00 AM James what exactly is the setting of your poem Login to Reply J. I. Thomas F. Date: 7/2/2016 9:14:00 AM Wherever I walk.

Yash Mehra Date: 6/30/2016 6:08:00 AM I think the latter part of your comment is right. I was referring to the theme, the central idea of the poem. Login to Reply J. I. Thomas F. Date: 6/30/2016 7:07:00 PM Thank you for the interest, and I'm happy I could help!

Yash Mehra Date: 6/29/2016 6:50:00 AM this is a master piece,, but i cant seem to identify the genre. Login to Reply Yash Mehra Date: 6/30/2016 1:52:00 AM

Yash Mehra Date: 6/29/2016 6:42:00 AM James Fross, can you please help me identify the genre of Breaking Spirits? Login to Reply J. I. Thomas F. Date: 6/29/2016 12:35:00 PM Well, it's both lyrical and a sonnet, if that is what you mean ... it is also clearly a love poem, one about being trapped and humbled and finding oneself in need of another. If that's not what you're looking for, I'll need some further clarification.

The Grahamburglar Date: 5/3/2016 12:05:00 PM Hey James, welcome to the soup. I hope you find as much inspiration and encouragement from this site as I do. This is well constructed and I particularly like the closing couplet. Login to Reply J. I. Thomas F. Date: 5/3/2016 3:40:00 PM Thank you, my good man. I'm still working my way through your cache. It's a pleasure!