Living, Upended

walled isolation
     when a relationship hits hurdles
     gripped by the unfamiliar 
     a stillness that caves in on us

our small spoonfuls of conversation lack direction 
      closed pod, defensive
my near muted pleas to break free of holding back
      for nothing good brews in brooding

sucker punch of speculation 
      health shifting
      the enemy, a diagnosis
      to map variables, unknowable 

our dreams having no scale
de-stabilized by no surety of self
     we hide behind silence like a well placed curtain
     balancing on slippery rock sickness
                              life altering

words perishable
    numbing
a fall-to-pieces stillness
    like a windowless white room that traps the urge
                                                                           to breath





Poem composed: October 31, 2021

Copyright © | Year Posted 2021



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Date: 11/6/2021 6:21:00 AM
Brian, good poem and congratulations on your win in my "S" Contest ~ peace and tranquility _ Constance
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Sambourne Avatar
Brian Sambourne
Date: 11/6/2021 6:25:00 AM
Thank you, Constance. The harsh stillness after a cancer diagnosis was not a popular take in your "S" competition but I am not displeased with the final result. Best wishes, Brian
Date: 10/31/2021 10:25:00 PM
this is my fave of all your writes cos I know it....the title is great and the rest of the descriptions....the end line... wow! I woke from a nightmare once where white walls were caving into me...yeah, i woke gasping for breath...my father witnessed it and I attributed it to the enclosed space of the sailboat i was living in at the time...this write really brings it back :)
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Sambourne Avatar
Brian Sambourne
Date: 11/1/2021 7:10:00 AM
Thanks very much, Susan. I hope that you are free of such nightmares of enclosure now. Be well. Brian
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