By Troy A. Johnson
PROMPT—No one noticed ...
Dreary was the day, as was every day—
Hidden was my joy, a muted survivors joy
Relentless was time, it left me beaten and bruised
Memories ran rampant through my mind
They left holes where self love used to be
Today was a good day, like someone used to say
Woke up smiling and ready for the day
I made it halfway through before I thought it odd
Took a walk to the beach, which I never do
Sat down on a nice rock and inhaled the salt air
I felt content and at peace, it reminded me of
Someone I used to know, someone lost long ago
The very next day, I opened my eyes up and at ‘em
As they say, but this dark feeling came over me,
I said uh oh, some days you wake up and you don’t
Know what you don’t know, climbing out of a hole is
Hard work, when you feel the world has greased
The sides, so you trudge along and keep God in
Your heart, and hopefully on your side
The Pain of the Living is the second greatest pain,
But Death in not the first, life defining tragedies are
Surly the worse curse, not all have the wherewithal
To weather their greatest storms. We pass them
Lying on the street with a bottle in their hand, you
Think if that was me, I’d rather be dead, the wiser still
Think, there but for the Grace of God. Remember this,
The Pain of the Living leaves souls rising above just
Blowing in the wind, still attached but fighting very hard
To reenter within, the real battle, as hard as it is to really
Understand, is for Man to truly have empathy for his
Fellow Man, with love and grace blessed from up above
The Pain of the Living can be helped with empathy and love.
T. A. Johnson has always referred to himself as a Scribbler, a scribble here, a scribble there kinda guy, nothing too fancy, just what he calls 'Matter of fact Poetry' and stories that tickle his fancy. He values his family over all, and as a man that has lost a child, that opening of an unhealable wound has colored his work for many years. T. A. Johnson likes to say, 'I'm just an ordinary guy, spinning an ordinary yarn.' He writes from Long Beach, California.