in all of us
there is a thing
missing
there is an ache–
an unspoken vacancy
in the eyes’ glossy shimmer
there is a sunny-day sparkle
that doesn’t shine
there is an absence
while visiting other worlds
or worlds passed
there is a ring-planet place
we’d all rather be
but of which no one speaks
there is a wish
we’ve all had
and still have
and have kept
shrouded
there is a thing
clandestine
which we’ve held–
nestled in the bosom
of our heart’s shadows
bringing it out at night
to admire, and caress–
when the lights are dim
there is a thing
we see missing
in others
and which others
see missing
in us
as we drive, and shop, and work
and pray, and fuck
there is a part of the smile
even those smiles
a bit too wide
that is never given
and we don’t say a word
about this ache
never in a lifetime
it is ours, alone
..an older poem, rewritten.
Eric … this touches me to the core. May I please reblog?
I’d be honored. Thank you so much for reading this.
Oh yes. This.
I knew I wasn’t the only one.
It deserved more recognition than a smiley.
Well, thank you, o’ gatherer of thoughts.
Reblogged this on Love Letters Lost at Sea and commented:
This poem brought me to tears … and if you know me, you know that is rare. He describes something I’ve never even attempted to put in words. Please visit Eric’s blog and give him the praise he so richly deserves.
Oh Eric, this is beautiful and so so true. Wow, it made me tear up.
Thank you so much, Vic. Shhh… I might have teared up a bit too whilst writing it. Don’t tell.
You’re welcome. I won’t tell anyone. <3 🙂
Stunning
Thank you, Rita
You are most welcome
Whoops.. hit send too early. I really appreciate you reading this.
So very beautiful and profoundly true, Eric. Touched me deeply. Thank you for sharing.
You’re welcome 🙂
There is great truth in this post! I can see by messages it has resonated within many.
A few it seems, yes, and even one is enough to make it worth sharing. Thank you so much for reading this.
If you don’t mind re-blogs I would be happy to do the same. I don’t recall having asked before, but it’s something I enjoy doing. 🙂
Yes, of course you may 🙂 and thank you for offering.
Reblogged this on Busy Mind Thinking and commented:
I am still fairly new to this site, but love the variety in writing!!
Oh, you slayer
Flaying me open
Ripping my heart right out
Holding tight with your realness
Making me see the terror of unlove
The trembling caress of thine worst enemy
Indifference pales in comparison to
This
Slow
Death
To nothing
Immobilized by the nothing
Eric, that is for you. I want to crawl inside your poem and burn out the pain.
I’ll just be in shattered pieces, over here, for a while.
This is beautiful. Thank you, and thank you for sharing yourself so openly. I don’t even have words to express.. I hope your day is wonderful, filled with daydreams of sunny meadows.
Thank you, friend. I hope you have a day filled with the wit of your child, are loved unconditionally by a tiny human, and notice many things through his eyes.
There are some things I have been aching to say, you said a few of them…. thanks for an insightful perspective
Thank you for reading, and being kind enough to comment 🙂
I suspect that during the writing and rewriting of this poem, and perhaps in the in between, you found something. I sense it, and want to find it too. merci
I might have– but every time I find something, I seem to misplace it again moments later. Thank you for reading this. I like the tone of your poems. Quite a few songs on your blog too it seems. Looking forward to reading more.
Forgive me for being so bold. I love your writing, but I find it to be sad. So many of your pieces touch on emptiness, impossibility, aching need. I think these emotions allow us to write, a pouring forth of feeling certainly, but I wonder if you’ve ever experienced happiness? Have you ever loved a woman completely and allowed her to love you back? Have you ever felt overflowing emotion from watching a sunset over a valley and teared up for the sheer beauty if it? Have you laughed and giggled after a grand night on the town with great friends who help fill the loneliness ? Have you snuggled with your loved one and felt so complete that you could just die at that moment content? I’ve aches, plenty of them, and your writing touches a deep chord, but I wish you some beauty in your life. I’m going to join the parade and wrote you a poem. Look for it on my page later.
Thank you, and there’s nothing to forgive in being bold. I peeked at the poem you wrote and will comment there as well. You’re right.. a lot of the pieces are sad. Some are silly. Some are thoughtful. Some are (admittedly) obscure. Some make a point that hasn’t been stated. Some tell a story. And there isn’t any way to really know a writer based on one piece. We are all of those things, and more. I’ve thought about it and I don’t think that happiness is our natural state. It exists. I’ve had happiness at times, and find some in each day, but I don’t think it is a permanent thing. It visits us in moments. And it isn’t black or white, happy or sad. There are places in between. I think most of us live there, in between, most of the time. Just my take on it tho. To give some perspective, a lot of these pieces were not written on the day posted, and there have been some difficult times. Some are older than others, but still represented that moment in time during which they were written. I do find beauty in life, heaping barrelfuls of it– but oddly, I seem to find it in both happiness and in sadness, and everywhere in between 😉 That said, I’ll mix it up a bit and post more of a mix. This is not all that I am. No single poem is, nor should be.
Thank you for the response. Funny that everything you said I do agree with. I was never a believer in happiness as a true state, but I’ve felt it. I just was wondering if you felt it too, or you walked around in a persistent state of emptiness;)
Emptiness.. No. Not always. Tho there remains the issue of the ache. I even wrote a poem about it 🙂 Lol
From my perspective, its about the not striving for certain moments and trying not to hold onto “good” or “bad” emotions/states of being. They all ride in and ride out. Sometimes it’s harder to remember that than others. This stream of comments was the needed reminder that I too experience them in this way. Thanks. To
Whoops. That was supposed to say, “thanks to the both of you for that.”
You’re welcome 🙂 I’m glad you found that reminder here. I know I often need to find it myself, or just find myself, or something like that 😉 Good morning. I hope your day is wonderful.
Reblogged this on "A Curious Mind".
Yes, I am familiar with this ache. Funny that for so long I thought it was only me. Thank you for your insight, now I know I’m not so all alone. I guess the ache makes us think we are. ❤️ enjoy your day! (I’m grateful to have caught the Reblog, missed this the first go ’round).
We’re never as alone as we might feel at times, at least in regard to feeling alone. That’s universal. It’s funny, since I wrote this poem, all the others seem to be a paler version of it, no matter the subject. Enjoy your day as well. I hope it’s beautiful 🙂
Eric, this is so true. I do agree we are never truly alone. When in the right place I can feel the energy of others around me. Loneliness is that ache. Lack of companionship is a harsh adjustment to make. ❤️ I hope you also have a great day!
Thank you, miss Tiffany 🙂
You’re welcome, Sir!
Oh, Eric. I have come back to this poem time and time again to weep at its truth. I may finally have something to post again soon after 5 years being absent. I hope you are well and we can communicate through prose again!