Oil black that runs below,
Blood of hearts when lifeless squeezed,
River night in ceaseless flow:
Souls of men by tyrants seized.
Bridges cross and so do we;
Some shall fall and all shall rot.
None untouched, or living free:
Souls of those in currents caught.
Darkness swells, I swim in vain,
Fighting deep for every breath;
Giving in despite the pain:
Soul of one now doomed to death.
04.16.19
Waking up this morning,
Climbing out of bed;
Staring in the mirror
At my sleepy head.
Going through the motions,
Packing up my stuff;
Trusting in the notion
That I can be enough.
Enough all on my own,
Enough to do my tasks,
Enough while all alone,
Enough! Enough! Enough with all the masks.
Crushed by all the sadness,
Pushed beyond my strength;
Caused by my own selfish
Need to self-sustain.
04.09.19
Computers surround me here in my head,
I can’t keep this up anymore.
I want to go home and climb into bed,
What am I doing this for?
Is there a reason beyond my own will
For me to keep going like this?
For days to go by with life sitting still;
Where is the joy that I miss?
Forward they tell us, we cogs in the wheel,
So moment by moment we grind.
So slowly each day we can’t really feel
When our souls have left us behind.
Serious thoughts and wrinkled up faces
Are all that I see when I dare.
Are we just here to fill these blank spaces?
Why do I bother to care?
Albiet these thoughts are not really present;
Creeping below out of reach.
Creeping my conscience away from the question:
“Who was I fashioned to be?”
07.03.19
Nathaniel West Clark 