THE DARKNESS HERE
Candice James
Copyright 2009
The darkness here isn’t safe.
I’ve been rusting in the rain so long
I’ll never feel new and shiny again.
My seasons in the sun
Are only a faint memory,
An occasional glint on the horizon.
Gone in the blink of an eye.
My ears have resonated with
The most beautiful music.
Music too beautiful to allow
The listener to remain sane
And yet I cling steadfastly
To the sanity I haven’t quite become.
Love’s been good to me,
But I’ve spent too many midnights
Watching for the wind,
Listening for a star.
I’m weary of searching in the dark,
For the needle in a haystack,
Equipped with only a worn out flashlight
And a battery caked with corroded anodes.
Shafted only in the palest of moonlight,
I glimpse something wandering at the edge of my vision,
Too close for comfort.
The darkness here isn’t safe,
Isn’t dangerous,
Isn’t much of anything,
Except, where I don’t want to be.