Cell Door Magazine - Poetry - So Alone by Karl Chamberlain

So Alone

E-Mail by Karl Chamberlain Bio / Address

So Alone

So alone.
my soul sighs with solitude
silence, the whispered wish
slips down the depths of a
wishing, "well..."
caressing the dry stones
weeping for all the years
so alone

A yearning for a touch so tangible
my hands caress the cool concrete walls
my arms encompass the rough, vinyl pillow
seeking some sign of life
my own breath rebounds, my own heart echoes
coming back to me

My soul slips the barrier of body
swelling with need
kindness, a healing touch,
grasping any form;
the warm clasp of hands,
a caring hug, beyond sublime: divine

I can feel my soul stretching out
a lazy cat caught in a sunbeam
seeking that soft, drowsy warmth
seeking a kindred spirit, sunlight
melting through cold concrete
warmth shivers through the steel skeleton incarceration breathes life into
the bony shroud of death

Shuddering within the cocoon
the sweetest slumber awakes screaming
pounding out the rhythm of a heart
against the immoveable, hard heart

A concrete wall: apathy, ignorance, and fear
the revered trinity:
sodium thiopental,
succinycholine,
and potassium chloride;

The ultimate embrace of man
ritual exorcism of the
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
ripping them from this mortal coil;
our greatest victory, at last,
naught

So alone.