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literature
Turn the light on
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Literature Text
Turn the light on
by Merrique Lynn Richelieu
Turn the light on
A stranger thinking aloud
In a language no one can understand
Pick me up and hose me down
Left alone on the shores of a dark land
Turn the light on
Destroy all the shadows
Shining it brighter than the surface of the sun
Turn the light on
Burn all the shadows until there’s nowhere to run
Burn away all the shadows
Show what’s going on below
Buzzing between my ears—
Can’t keep living on thought control
Listening to the pumping of machines
Wide eyes open still unable to see
Hearing words but not a single meaning
Rest my heart’s desperate beat
Ramming hard against my bones
Keep them from nipping my feet
Burn away all the shadows
Kisses still linger
From nights long buried
Things I can’t forget
That dig their claws into me
That was what I get for wishing
Branches dancing in the wind
And in truth, I’ll never be dirt-free
Shadows festering within
Turn the light on
Shining it brighter than the surface of the sun
Turn the light on
Burn all the shadows until there’s nowhere to run
A heart that glowed like a lightning bolt
Take it from its box locked up tight
It was enough to make me not go
Hold the taboo up to the light
With nothing left to hold
I should just let you go
You left me alone in this town
Condemned to navigate starless skies and rotten inns
A stranger doomed to think out loud
Beside creatures looking through me with their bony grins
Rest my heart’s desperate beat
Ramming hard against my bones
Keep them from nipping my feet
Burn away all the shadows
Shining it brighter than the surface of the sun
Burn out my eyes until there’s nothing left
Burn all the shadows until there’s nowhere to run
Burn the light so bright that I can finally see
by Merrique Lynn Richelieu
Turn the light on
A stranger thinking aloud
In a language no one can understand
Pick me up and hose me down
Left alone on the shores of a dark land
Turn the light on
Destroy all the shadows
Shining it brighter than the surface of the sun
Turn the light on
Burn all the shadows until there’s nowhere to run
Burn away all the shadows
Show what’s going on below
Buzzing between my ears—
Can’t keep living on thought control
Listening to the pumping of machines
Wide eyes open still unable to see
Hearing words but not a single meaning
Rest my heart’s desperate beat
Ramming hard against my bones
Keep them from nipping my feet
Burn away all the shadows
Kisses still linger
From nights long buried
Things I can’t forget
That dig their claws into me
That was what I get for wishing
Branches dancing in the wind
And in truth, I’ll never be dirt-free
Shadows festering within
Turn the light on
Shining it brighter than the surface of the sun
Turn the light on
Burn all the shadows until there’s nowhere to run
A heart that glowed like a lightning bolt
Take it from its box locked up tight
It was enough to make me not go
Hold the taboo up to the light
With nothing left to hold
I should just let you go
You left me alone in this town
Condemned to navigate starless skies and rotten inns
A stranger doomed to think out loud
Beside creatures looking through me with their bony grins
Rest my heart’s desperate beat
Ramming hard against my bones
Keep them from nipping my feet
Burn away all the shadows
Shining it brighter than the surface of the sun
Burn out my eyes until there’s nothing left
Burn all the shadows until there’s nowhere to run
Burn the light so bright that I can finally see
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I worked on this poem for a little while. Actually, I started the draft on June 18th. I checked. A little over three months, not bad. Considering I spent up to three years on poems before publication, that's very fast work for me. It's not any of that "I'm so sad, don't save me 'cause I can't be what you need" sort of dribble it was before. I just felt an irrevocable sadness. When I speak, it's almost as if my words can never reach across. How I feel I had to learn a whole other language to communicate with those around me. How I feel I was dumped in this town without a torch to light the way. It's simply the loneliness of this long-distance walker. I wonder how things could have been if I ran away when I had the chance. I wonder what kind of woman I would have been. If I could have kept my hardened courage and gone on feeling like no one loved me and that I was better off alone depending on myself. I wonder. As always, I'm open to comments. I hope you enjoy the poem.
© 2013 - 2024 m-richelieu
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