Frank Poole

Floating silence All is still, but me Hurtling endlessly Plummeting toward nothing Falling from nowhere I don't know what sent me My form travelling the void Released me to tumble In emptiness Am I falling, Or does all fall around me? Is the crash to come, Or will I linger endlessly? Never landing Never hurting I can't stop, my arms Reach toward nothing I spin Uncontrolled Dizzy from the stars In my eyes This they call space is that More and more of it So tiny I am A speck, less How dare I feel important How dare I feel whole I'll die of hunger, loneliness, despair I'll end long before I cease Or have I already died? It has to hurt more than this But what if this were not my time? Where would I begin? A wagon ride, a cable car, Moonlight floating asea A small child reaching for raisins Smile, they mush in his mouth Were decisions made, unmade Would I face this gaping hole? Or would I turn toward the light, Left not right 'Til my ship regained its keel? Am I so small as to be unseen? Breath so shallow it leaves no warmth? And oxygen seems not to care Would it know if I expire And will it matter In any case? It hardly seems fair A lifetime of choices Leaving me to blame Because I ate strawberry Instead of chocolate And why did I ever reach Beyond my grasp? If only I were someone else In the shade of An apple tree Picking daisies for her sweetness Launching into words Familiar Laughing, they cry Dare not Interrupt this... My stomach churns I couldn't have been so foolish How Was I this blind That now My last meal roils My faint breath Strains And thoughts Tie In knots...This poem, meant to be a metaphor for depression, was inspired by my daughter's reaction to seeing the lifeless body of Frank Poole floating away in "2001: A Space Odyssey". Written January 10th, 1999 © on Aug 08 2001 10:48 PM PST, Rich Brents   0 • 1