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Parasites, These

Parasites, these
unremembered memories
unbidden guests
made themselves at home
within my breast

And suckled in silence
‘til lifeblood waned
vitality drained
only traces remain
of who I was

Now I have become
an ungracious host
shadowy ghost
in a hollow shell
with nothing to feed
these guests’ great need

Odd sensation of wriggling
I feel them digging
their way out of my skin
as alarmed I view
their fight for survival
breaking through

Parasites, these
obtrusive memories
no longer silent
swollen full of violent
past imagery
painful to see



(NOTE: This is NOT a new write- I actually wrote this in 2015, but I thought it might give someone else an idea for the "Remembering What You Want To Forget" Poetry Contest)...

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Agnes Krampe

Date: 10/5/2018 6:53:00 AM

Wow, unwanted memories as parasites, that's a great image!

Rhona Mcferran
Date: 10/5/2018 1:13:00 PM

Thanks! It was the most vivid way I could describe the horror of being "invaded" by obtrusive memories that had been repressed for years...

Caren Krutsinger

Date: 10/5/2018 4:00:00 AM

"as alarmed I view their fight for survival breaking through" - yes, these parasites are trying hard, but you can stand firm my friend. Visualize putting them into a bucket, and drowning them. After they are dead, dig a hole, and fill the hole up with the dead parasites. Still with me? Plant a beautiful bush there, so something good can come out of them. Wait, something good did. It is YOU!

Rhona Mcferran
Date: 10/5/2018 1:15:00 PM

Aaaawww, you are so sweet, my friend! ;)