EROS AND THANATOS
Only we will ever know
The sadness of our love
Like stone climbing ivy
The ramparts far above
What waters it will wake
A cold indifferent lake
Thrashing in the shallows
Crashing in the waves
Smooth, a shell abandoned
Tangled in the weeds
Soft and supple moss
Growing on the trees
What wounded prey to follow
What forests we will stalk
On paths beaten narrow
We alone have walked
A war of resistance
Beaten into dust
Only we will ever know
The sadness of our loss
Potential is not a promise-
and that's all I've seen in you.
I've given every opportunity-
but you've never followed through.
(You once) treated me with kindness-
but I deserve much more.
I deserve a kind of love-
I've not experienced before.
See, I deserve consistency-
and I deserve the truth.
And I deserve my wishes-
(and all of) my dreams to come true.
I've come to learn from my mistakes-
that patience gets you nowhere.
Not when one's committed-
(to serve) themselves; although it's not fair.
(I) love you for many reasons-
and I'm not sure that will change.
But you've shown me by your choices-
you don't love me the same way.
Choices aren't mistakes-
see, they are conscious trains of thought.
You choose to make decisions-
that you know leave me distraught.
So, since you choose to hurt me-
instead of fixing what you've broken...
I choose to walk away-
my sense of worth has been awoken.
Am I a cut-up? Ask my wife
~ Who just got out her carving knife
No one is home.
The address is returned to sender.
The user you desire to speak is no longer available.
To send a numeric page please press five now.
Ferment in the waiting room of life.
The catacombs of the mind are empty.
From the grave they will not rise.
The life you once knew is now fleeted.
You're out of time.
Exhale. Inhale. Exhale again.
False memory is not gospel.
Queue the piano, and bring in some coffee to go.
Crack a smile.
Adjust your tie.
Goodbye.
Is our true love was going anywhere?
After traditional local fun fair
Nothing does compare, with the teasing scare
Where we share, our mature teen age affair
Passing written notes, from pens we borrow
Wonder about future, unknown horror
Sunny blue skies? After we say goodbye?
Studying college courses are new try
Meeting new friends, saying, he’s a nice guy
Semester we wander getting credit
Attend class confessing "should have read it"
Or the other excuse, “I don’t get it”
Compass directs one to the campus bar
Healing wounds from the bloody mark grade scar
Is our true love was going anywhere?
After traditional local fun fair
Nothing does compare, with the teasing scare
Where we share, our mature teen age affair
Passing written notes, from pens we borrow
Wonder about future, unknown horror
Sunny blue skies? After we say goodbye?
Studying college courses are new try
Meeting new friends, saying, he’s a nice guy
Semester we wander getting credit
Attend class confessing "should have read it"
Or the other excuse, “I don’t get it”
Compass directs one to the campus bar
Healing wounds from the bloody mark grade scar
And making out with a long neck lone star
They told me love was gravity.
Something gentle with a terrible pull.
So I fell-
into your hands, your warmth,
the little red universe of your heartbeat.
And for a while
I thought this was it.
The house.
The ring.
The photograph
where we are both still smiling.
All those beautiful things we are taught to want.
I held them like petals,
careful not to bruise what I loved.
But petals fall.
And red fades.
And somewhere between reaching and holding too tight,
I became the moon—
always turning, always returning,
giving you
the light side of me while something darker grew behind my back.
It’s cruel really, how something so profound can be so gentle
I still love the life I imagined.
I still love the person
I imagined beside me.
I just don't know how to keep the dream
without losing
the girl
who dreamed it.
I hate the way you make my heart skip a beat each time you smile.
I hate that blue twinkle in your eye when you're about to speak.
I hate how my skin tingles when you gently stroke my hand.
I hate the way you rush to greet me because you say you missed me so.
I hate that music in your voice each time you're saying something sweet.
I hate the slight curl in your lips when you're about to say you love me.
I hate the way you call me sweetheart as the moon's about to rise.
I hate how natural it is for your arms to wrap around my shoulders.
I hate how calmness falls upon us when words are nowhere to be found.
But most of all, I hate the way you make it hard for me not to love you back.
Contest: The Unseen Poetry
Prompt: The thing that was never said
Sponsor: Sotto Poet
She had to leave the country suddenly.
Niether she nor I chose for it to be this way.
There was this thing that was never said.
There is an aching inside the soul when there's
Someone to whom you never got to say goodbye.
I did not realize it at the time,
But in short order, I was certain that
The relationship was not meant to be.
Still, there was this thing that was never said.
Strangely enough, a similar occurrence happened
A second time. There was a brife romance that
Did not continue for very different reasons. We
Were like a plane that never got airborne. The
Love was intack, but the facts quietly spoke and
said, 'No'. We parted company and chose not
To say goodbye.
Again, for different reasons, under different
circumstances, there was this thing that was
never said. We never said, "Goodbye".
leaf-peeping pastime panorama
the deeper the colors, the better the view
superior to any artificial diorama
a lovely excuse to spend time with you
wrinkled leaves fallen from trees
stare long enough, you will see faces
my heart of hearts truly believes
each loved one leaves memory traces
I remember I fell through that wooden floorboard.
I was careless where I stepped, and the weight of my mistake made me fall right through.
I remember the embarrassment I felt... it nearly broke my self-esteem.
I can hear them use their traitorous tongues.
I remember I walked carefully over those wooden floorboards.
I see their eyes glare and hear the whispers of people who judge me for treading so cautiously.
I am wary of what they are saying. ..of what they may think.
I walk confidently around that wooden floor.
I am aware of their judgements and their hateful glares.
I don't care what they think.
I no longer have to tread so carefully.
I can run free.
I remember...
The dance of the two sexes,
Two poles in balance,
Does not take a rocket scientist
To figure out;
Men get the most attractive women
They can afford
While women get the richest men
They can attract…
Does it matter
If they ever really understand each other?
Apparently not.
(9/14/26)
In the late 60's it was.
In an old mansion on the
Northwest side of town.
For a brife period of time,
In a city filled with crime,
A story unfolded that would astone;
A short saga with a pleasant memory.
She was in town on a summer mission.
He was there completing his education.
The two Were drawn together romantically.
Without the presence of neither deception
Nor subtlty, it all happened rather suddenly.
Both, working in a home for wayward men,
Saw each other every now and then.
Their favorite meeting place was in the chapel
That became their llittle haven and sanctuary.
Their relationship in the hour glass of life
Appeared and disappeared rather rapidly,
But they left a mini story worth reading about.
They were pure and virtuous; and never did
They even embrace or kiss. Today's youths
Could be well served by their model.
Their best times together were spent in that
Little haven listening to a Christian radio
Program called 'Nightwatch'.
They both learned the meaning of
Self discipline, curtailed emotions,
And controlled passions. These lessons
Were learned in their getaway place,
Their little haven, their Holy Place.
They say energy never dies
but never said it'd stay for the entire ride
hand in hand, losing their minds
Even in the darkness
there's nowhere to hide
thought that when their worlds decided to collide
the pain would finally subside
Did they ever really try?
or did they just shut down inside?
countless excruciating tears they've cried
yet still numb
from losing so many loved ones that died...
time after time after time
consuming lust filled emotions
had them drowning in eachother's souls
but fears fueled the endless lies
that their bruised egos told
slowly making their hearts turn cold
so unaware of the true dimension
they belonged in
a place they created together
as their souls continued
intertwining & binding
defining forever
manifested their own demons
trying to protect themselves
from expected cruel intentions
boy, were they relentless
made nothing but a huge mess of this
love & desire
mixed with fear & anger
created an unextinguishable fire
adding fuel to the flames
whenever he was inside her
one anothers new drug
they couldn't get any higher
Written September 10, 2026 for Your Personal Poetry Wheel Challenge
Challenge Dates: September 7, 2026 - September 12, 2026.
Verified by HMS.COM / 8 - 8 - 5 - 5 - 8
***************
Relationships bloom in the hush,
Where solstice stomps its purple flush.
No anger, no storm,
Just calmness in form,
A feather of love in the crush.
Relationship Categories
Definition | What is Relationship in Poetry?
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.
Related Poetry Forms
affair, marriage, exchange, communication, accord, rapport, liaison, contact, link, tie, relation, alliance, similarity, tie in, homogeneity, affiliation, pertinency, ratio, network, nearness, proportion, affinity, interconnection, analogy, relevance