Tag Loss

Atonement

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IMG_1342

They say that full thickness burns are painless
though the epidermis never truly heals.
Tight scars engulf you –
if you’re lucky, you survive the onslaught.

Me, I look exactly as I was before,
so the immolation must have been minor,
or so others say.
Scratch beneath the surface
and you will reveal the echoes of what was said, or worse –
left unspoken.
The air still hangs heavy between us,
leaden, oily, ready to ignite.

Oh, we had a spark alright
but left uncontrolled
with no firebreak between us
inflagration was inevitable.

To all, to all, but us.

Lurk – Magpie Tales

freyathewriter 12 Comments

highway

They think that I only have myself to blame, those who look upon me from afar. They, who are safe in the knowledge that their lives are sorted. They gaze upon me. They see only what they want to see.

Once, in the glory days. I was like them. From high on my pedestal, I judged, I commented, I highlighted the shortcomings of others. I was sure I knew it all.

Oh, how times change. Here I am, eking out my existence on the periphery. This underpass is my home, for tonight at least. Tomorrow, I move on, as always. Tomorrow, I sit with my hand out, waiting for coins to be tossed in my direction, as always.

I move on, but I don’t move far. I circle the town, spending my days in the streets where my former friends still shop and eat and drink. They see me. I am the only person static in a frenetic, non-stop world. They see me. They resent me. I am the reminder that life can turn on you in an instant.

I am the conscience they would rather not have.

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Here’s my latest entry into Magpie Tales. I don’t know why this picture of cosy winter socks took me down this road. Sometimes, the muse is slant-eyed…

Please visit Magpie Tales for more creativity – you know you want to!

The Girl – Magpie Tales

freyathewriter 9 Comments

socks

The Girl had given up long ago. You could see it in her eyes.

She had decided – as young girls often do when life turns on them, viper fast and twice as deadly – that self-protection was her only option.

She pulled up her drawbridge. She armed her battlements. She opted for ‘No’ when she desired ‘Yes’.

Oh, The Girl’s life was safer, alright. How could it be anything more when she had turned her back on the world? How could she take risks with her arms folded tightly across her chest and her hands clenched into tiny fists?

She looked, but she did not see. She observed and noticed nothing.

She turned inwards. She defended herself from anyone and everything.

And so, she disappeared.

————

Here’s my latest entry into Magpie Tales. I don’t know why this picture of cosy winter socks took me down this road. Sometimes, the muse is slant-eyed…

Please visit Magpie Tales for more creativity – you know you want to!