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Best Poems Written by Sarah Oliver

Below are the all-time best Sarah Oliver poems as chosen by PoetrySoup members

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Details | Sarah Oliver Poem

The House I Live In

I spend my days walking from room to room
Each room has a different color 
The red, the blue and the yellow

The blue room is where I practice drowning
The spirits there take turns choking me
It’s where I spend most of my time

The red room has walls filled with holes
The windows are smashed out and I use blood to write on the walls 

No one can hear me scream in the red room 

The yellow room is where I look outside
And imagine what the sunshine feels like
In the yellow room I’m not sick
Nothing matters in the yellow room 

Oh, my wife lives here too
Her room smells like flowers
The walls are soft grey and 
She has a special spot for me to lay my head

She spends her days walking from room to room too
Painting the walls white for me
Silencing the spirits
Plucking me from the water I submerge my head in

I gave her shackles and she wears them as jewelry 
They look beautiful on her, I think 
It’s a good thing I guess, since I can’t find the key
But she doesn’t know that
She spends her days walking from room to room 
The sound of her shackles lull me to sleep

Copyright © Sarah Oliver | Year Posted 2017



Details | Sarah Oliver Poem

The Girl of My Dreams

She wasn’t what I envisioned for myself at all

A constant reminder of my failure

She always looks right into my eyes and tells me that I wasn’t enough
The Doctors gave me a pill to make her go away 
But she still visits me while I sleep
I can hear her tip-toe around my bed
Her skin is white as snow and her hair looks like a spiders web
Her hands freeze me as she claws at my side
I cant breath
She’s pulling me into her watery grave where I left her
I’m drowning
I’m so sorry! Come here let me fix your hair
Come here let me wipe your tears
I’m so sorry
I should have never been a paramedic
The truth is I can’t save anyone from drowning
Not even myself
You can live here now 
Safe inside my head 
Come lay beside me
You can sleep in my bed

Copyright © Sarah Oliver | Year Posted 2017

Details | Sarah Oliver Poem

Drowning In the Kiddie Pool

My uniform is pressed and my boots are polished, I’m a good Paramedic
I’m ready to start my day
I filled the kiddie pool with water last night; it should be cold enough for me now
I’m not totally sure why I need to lay in it, but I guess I’ll find out once I’m there
My uniform is pressed and my boots are polished, I’m a good Paramedic 
I lay back into the pool with my body half in and half out
My head floats slightly and my hair is weightless around me
I can’t really breathe
This feels like drowning
Wait, why am I here? How did this happen?
Just stand up! You’re drowning in a foot of water
Just stand up!
My uniform is pressed and my boots are polished, I’m a good Paramedic
My co-workers pass by and can see my shining boots
They keep on walking past me
One stops to see what I’m doing
Just stand up, he says, its not that bad
Just stand up, it’s so simple
I can’t move, I don’t understand why I got here 
The doctors come and whisper under their breath
They look blurry through the water
One tells me this is just who I am now
I guess this is my new home
Take these pills, and just lay back 
Take these pills and just accept your new life
Take off your uniform you don’t need it anymore
Can’t they see I’m drowning?
Wait wait! Somebody please, just pick me up
I’m drowning
It’s so simple
I’m drowning
Just lay back
I’m drowning
I did this to myself
It’s so simple
I was a good Paramedic

Copyright © Sarah Oliver | Year Posted 2017

Details | Sarah Oliver Poem

The Beautiful Bridge

She calls my name before I sleep 
There are precisely 997 steps to get to her
If I leave now I can make it before the sun rises

She calls my name before I sleep 
I have to see her 
She knows what’s best 

She calls my name before I sleep 
I feel her cold cement against my face
Her metal rails stand tall to keep me safe

She calls my name before I sleep 
I never understood why others chose her
The truth is that she chose them

She calls my name before I sleep
Come close to me, she says
I can save you 

She calls my name before I sleep
I sit on the edge and let her hold me
She whispers in my ear to finally rest

She calls my name before I sleep
I wish she could just push me
Please, just push me!

Wait

What if I fall and it’s not enough?
What if she’s not as tall as I think she is?
What if I am doomed to live a life in a hospital bed instead? 
What if it’s not enough?

Maybe then, they’ll see your pain
She whispers 
That will be enough

Copyright © Sarah Oliver | Year Posted 2017


Book: Radiant Verses: A Journey Through Inspiring Poetry