Poetry

No Words

How do I tell you when I’ve lost the will…

Photo by Shelby Miller on Unsplash

How do I tell you
When I’ve lost the will to move
Lips, tongue, teeth, finger-
Tips tapping, trying not to fall
Dead as doornails —
Fingernails —
Claws clenched,
Like teeth straining
Not to loose the scream —
The gutteral, never-ending, heart-rending
Cry that rages up from where
No words exist.

How do I tell you
That I’ve lost the will to move
Legs, lungs, hands, arms, eye
Lids, shuttered windows to the weary
Soul — shattered —
Squinched shut
Against the cheerful mourning
Light-defying darkness, black abyss —
A howling, screeching vortex —
Fast-track to a void where
No life exists.

How do I tell you
That I’ve lost the will to move
Head, breasts, shoulders, one left
Foot. Whispered word-music fails
To animate the right, as we trip together —
Listless, spent…