Poetry for a Purpose

Hangman's Noose

2006-05-04T12:05:00.000+01:00

Hangman's Noose

Hanging by a rope, suspended mid-air,
naked, cold and helpless.
Who can save you now?
Face-down, about to hit the ground,
juxtaposed between heaven and hell,
life and death.

Someone has saved you – the rope? …
Tied tightly around your naked ankle.
Gripping you, not letting you fall.
But still, you are helpless.
Destined to hang there for eternity.
The spotlight forever shining on you,
a strong, persistent beam.
Penetrating through to your very soul.
A never-ending interrogation.

You have no face, your expression blank.
There are no emotions to show.

Inquisition

2006-04-26T15:16:00.000+01:00

Inquisition

I stand, quivering, like a
fragile, frightened shadow.
X marks the spot.

It's like an interrogation -
the bright light is boring a hole
deep into my skull,
dulling my senses
and blackening my sight.

An impartial crowd heckle
as the jury fire comments at me.

There is a long pause.

Finally
the judge passes sentence
and it is all over.

The verdict stands.

Durch die Ruhe

2006-04-12T23:54:00.000+01:00

Durch die Ruhe

Listen.
Can you hear
the incessant
metrical pulse?

It permeates the
deafening
silence.

Piercing my soul
like the sharp
sensation
of a gun
conquering a tender young earlobe.

The pain, quickly subdued
but the memory, everlasting.
Like the aural soundscape surrounding us.
That persistent rhythm.
More complicated
than the ticking
of a clock
or a room
full of machinery.
Yet, as melodious and comforting
as a freshly-composed symphony.

Life has no melodic structure,
only a rhythmic pattern
repeated over
and over,
until you reach the final
cadence.

Living in Your Head

2006-04-06T01:54:00.000+01:00

Living in Your Head

I watch as you cradle her,
your arms frail and ghost-like,
holding her as if she was your own.

Nobody can tell what you are thinking.
You are locked away in your own little world.
Someone has thrown away the key.
It is lost in the dark depths of time.

Are you happy in there?
I wish I knew.

You sit for hours
rocking her gently,
hushing the voiceless child
into an endless slumber.
Never tiring.
Never giving up.

The things you must have seen!
Those memories locked
deep inside your mind,
unable to escape,
like prisoners
held against their will.

You look straight through me
but there’s still life in your eyes.
That much I know.

Alone

2006-04-05T02:16:00.000+01:00

Alone

His face sank as he realised nobody was there.
He looked everywhere,
hoping, wishing.
But nobody came.
He stood alone for a few moments
then moved into the bustling crowd.
Never to be seen again.
He asked himself why nobody had come to meet him,
But why should they? Nobody ever came.
Today wasn’t any different.
Today was just another day.
Another day that he was alone.
Another day that nobody came.
A single salty tear fell down his cheek.
Nobody saw it and nobody ever would.

Synchronic

2006-04-04T17:17:00.000+01:00

Synchronic

Alone, it all makes sense to them
but together they fall out of time,
like an old clock which fell behind and was no longer of
use to anyone.

The chimes stopped working.

They fell silent like a small voice during the night
which nobody can hear
because it isn’t there.

They cannot function together,
though independently they are on fire.
Burning with creative passion.
In the heat of the moment, nothing else matters.
A world of her own.

A cry is let out.
She turns around and sees her own image
staring back at her.
Together they fall out of time.