Poetry: #130 Simple Thoughts 18-20

Where Poems Begin

Continuing the mini-series!

I’ll be dropping these between collections and sometimes in addition to the weekly, so get used to more poetry type drops in the near future!

Simple Thoughts 18

Punishment to self. Punishment for exhaustion. Punishment for trying. But never trying enough.

Comments

That’s a dark thought! And yeah, it’s related to “Simple Thoughts 17” from Poem Drop 129. It’s an emotional and gritty poetic thought, but it’s no full-length poem. It’s a statement, a quote.

If I had to give the idea a little more special sauce (space to breathe), I’d go with something like:

Punishment.
To self.
For all exhaustion.
Punishment.
For trying,
But never enough.
Never enough contentment
Never enough compassion
Never enough exploitation
No sense but resentment.
Punishment,
Of self,
To self,
For self!
Exhausted of pain
Punishment,
Ripping my heart out for you!
For me!
And all I want, is to be,
Something…more than a memory.

Turns out I’ve got some of that emotional place still hidden away in my subconscious, what do you think?

Simple Thoughts 19

Whether there is a hell or not, this isn’t it even if it seems like it.
At least Heaven is worth looking to, and we all know this isn’t heaven.

Comments

There ain’t no poetry in this, I’m just spitting thoughtful reality!

Seriously though, some thoughts aren’t necessarily required to be poems. I’m sure with an hour I can construct a poem around this thought, and if I do, I’ll share it. For now, let this be an example of how a thought can have potential, but how the poet may not have the inspiration to be the vessel.

Am I right or wrong? Better let me know in the comment section…

Simple Thoughts 20

Sacrifice, a requirement of all life. Lasting light, marked by something hidden inside.

This would be a great line or two in a poem’s stanza. Or perhaps the refrain or recurring line(s) in a poem or song.

Much like the previous example, this is one that I have no inspiration to explore as I write this poem drop. However, there is a lot of potential here. What thoughts or words does this line inspire in you? Share them in the comment section and perhaps we can write something, remotely and across space and time, together!

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Another poem drops every Saturday and there’s short stories, essays, and What the Book Podcast drops too