1. You don't pick the game, it finds you
2. When it comes, you'll know.
3. It feels like there's cement in your bones
4. Like you're an old house creaking to life with dust in its windows
5. You try to breathe and come to life
6. But the air never reaches deep enough to do anything
7. And so you drudge on like a member of the Donner party
8. Looking for some ambrosia to warm the cold in your ribs
9. But you never find it and go blind from staring into the winter desert
10. No flowers can grow here
11. It feels like your batteries never charge and sleep does fuck-all
12. Your eyes will always look that purple and baggy
13. No matter how much water you drink your mouth is always dry
14. You might love that food but you can't eat it
15. Because your stomach is just as tired as you are
16. Colors will eventually fade, let me tell you, that's the hard part
17. The violets are grey
18. The primroses are beige
19. The daffodils are black
20. Your favorite color won't matter once you stop eating
21. The bed is where the vampire can't bite you, it's warm there
22. So stare at that wall, it's just as entertaining as the TV
23. Don't be shocked when you begin to wonder if you can feel pain
24. That's the vampire whispering again, you will wonder though
25. Would you feel a burn? A cut? You haven't felt in so long
26. But don't do it. No matter what.
27. Go back to the garden you've tried to grow
28. Dig your fingers into that soil
29. Try to smell the silt
30. Realize that you have dug too deep for those long-gone memories
31. Now the hole is five feet deep and you need to get out of there
32. If you dig much deeper, it will be too late
33. Do not feed the worms below
34. Call the medicine man and tell him of your Devil's Gambit
35. The noonday demon has a hold on you, but it's not too late
36. And so, take the pill to end the game
37. The vampire hates the smell and he will leave
38. The noonday demon won't find you fun anymore
39. When you can see the colors of spring again, you'll know
40. You won.
YOU ARE READING
From the Soil
PoetryThis is a collection of poems that I wrote for a poetry class, many are experimental. Some poems contain themes of depression, death, and trauma recovery. I hope you enjoy my work! I am open to critique.
