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The Tug That Roars Within Me

My biggest weakness is my desire for obsession
My want to be fully engulfed in my aeipathy for another person
To give them all of me
And more, all I want to be
To gladly abandon any other potential 
To blind myself 
To neglect anything else that needs my attention 

To forsake my goals and any progress I've made toward them
For the sake of being consumed by the feeling of being in love
To hold tight to someone long after they are gone. 
To fixate on an idea
I do this to my detriment 

I remain stagnant in a moment long past
And feel it still, as real as it once had been 
My disposition to sacrifice the current moment is my undoing
I abandon the things that need tending to
I die to all future moments 
I could easily live the rest of life as a court jester
Playing the role of Romeo on the stage of my own mind

Copyright © S. Lee Bentley | Year Posted 2026

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Date: 3/15/2026 4:00:00 PM

Many "romantic" poets succumb to obsession. I especially love your use of the word "aeipathy". I imagine this poem would cut straight to the bone for many ... I note one of your tag words "mental health", many great writers, poets, artists, musicians have to be obsessed to create their beautiful obsessions and many suffered mental health disorders and declines. All your poems should strike a chord of empathy for many here ...

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