Alcoholism Poems

Colonizing Mars

Your car fishtailed in the slush
that was already 
beginning to freeze,
as if you couldn’t wait 
to get away after
dropping me off at
the library 
on Christmas Eve.

I had just started reading
the books I checked out
when the librarian
flashed the lights before closing
and I found myself
back on the street again,
at twilight, 
waiting for you.

The snow was falling faster

O holy desi daaru

O holy Desi Daaru,  
We are frail, flawed beings,  
Thirsting for your bite,  
Yet unworthy of your kiss.  
Your smoky fire fills my chest,  
A brief reprieve from the ache,  
For a moment, I forget my brokenness,  
But you leave me empty,  
A shell of who I

The Craving

As a boy Charles fished on the Thames riverside
He had a songbird, a dog, but life took a slide
His father got him a dead-end job in a Scottish town
It became a vortex bringing him down.

He got married young, soon nine kids to feed
His job barely paid; how could he get freed?
He illustrated books, still not

Hows Your Dad

A young man, once a driver,
Accused of killing,
Left unheard
Was thrown into a cell,
They say he got what he deserved
His girlfriend, just a young girl,
Was torn up, and distraught
She sent him lots of flowers,
Letters, and poems on a card
But he just sent them back,
And broken was her heart
He told her older brother to finish what they

Recluse

‘I’m a failed Muslim. 
I drink raki now,’ he says. 
A bottle twinkles 
on the upturned orange box. 
 
On the unmade bed, 
a punch-drunk pillow 
lurches in a sea of ruptured quilts. 
 
‘I never pray,’ he adds, 
as hawk-eyed Ataturk 
retreats to an ascetic frame 
and glowers at the room. 
 
And we

A Fellow Poet Wrote Her Obit In 2020

She said that the stars were listening.
She said that her gift was a curse
but that was four years ago.
She said that she hoped
we would understand.
She added that she was proud
that her daughter had a child
but daughter had stopped speaking with her/

She never mentioned a date
or possible cause of death.

This summer, four years later
 she told

Baby's First Brush with Alcoholism

It runs in the blood, you know.
The mind may forget, but the body remembers
There are things you'll try to shake and fail for years
Etched in the nerves for generations to come

Love you grandpa
You ol' whiskey-soaked lush
You've got three daughters and three grandkids who won't touch the stuff
So clearly, the responsibility fell to me

It's extra bitter

A Lone Man’s Plight

Beneath the churning skies and wrathful sea, 
A lone man wails into swirling agony.
Each crashing wave, a relentless assault,
Mirroring the chaos of his inner tumult.

Beneath tempestuous heavens, alone he fights,
His vessel, both refuge and dungeon, a conflicting plight.
A shattered rudder, no course to absolution found,
Adrift on a storm’s fury, lost in madness profound.

Wailing winds weave

alcoholism

I have never known
him to be a drunk until~
I saw him sober
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                                           

Memories of a Storm

It rolled through last night,
began at dusk.
A glass of wine while sitting on the porch
and the distant  thunder began.
 
The sun shrunk away,
almost in fear it seemed.
The songs of birds quieted,
and the trees began to move.
 
Without much notice the once blue,
moved to the other side, it’s gray.
That which seemed light by day,
was now dark and heavy.
 
With

In This River We Drown In Light

In this river we drown in light
A doorway blocked from me
Yet open to dry eyes

I can only hear your hands
Clutching that splintered wood as water
Rushes to ears like war

I cry at the notion
Of you stepping through that white door
Frame as you sip whiskey
In the next room over from me
Tv mumbling comforts

Felines Anonymous Or Fa

              Dearest kitty, you drank my wine last night.
              No wonder, you avoid the bright sunlight !

            

Bolivian Marching Powder

Running fast,
the most beautiful of 
bullets.
Sarcastic 
but always classy.
The lights are up now,
 I bid you adieu'.
Thanks for the memories and the ever present inspiration,
seeing so much love 
It is for you.
Nothing hurts now 
but our hearts,
but like the brilliant,
 flash of energy you were,
 you never quit looking out for me ,
 nor I

In His Laugh

In the shadows of my mind
There is a memory of you, laughing
Despite the pain that hung like a curtain
Shading the windows of your heart,
Stopping the light who glistened
Just beyond your feelings,
Where doubt told you to disregard
The gentle touch of its shafts,
Promising energies that would silence
All the grief that followed you

In my memory, you are laughing
But

Whine Bottle

Written by Gail DeBole
on July 7, 2015
Updated Feb. 22, 2023

At first...
          Cheerfully shared for liquid celebrations
           For all of the right reasons.

And then...
           Abruptly emptied to

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