Sadness Drips Like Water
A Poem
Sadness drips like water from my eyes and pours onto the streets, flooding
A wellspring of emotion tethered to me is released into the stream
Late at night, my eyes are a faucet as the drips roll down my cheeks and soak me through
Sadness drips like water from me to you because it’s the only way I can stop the pain
Even when I shut off the main water source my sadness drips without remorse
I look at the pool around me that started with a drip and realize how long I’ve been leaking
Sadness drips like water and I am the source
This poem was inspired by a passage from a poem in the book of poetry, Burning In Water Drowning In Flame by Charles Bukowski. I find myself highlighting words or passages that move me every time I read, no matter what I am reading. When I find the highlight that projects to a poem, I don’t read the source again before I write, I just allow the nerve to be touched. And then I spill my words.
A snippet from the poem, straight on through, where I got my inspiration:
sadness drips like water beads in a half-poisoned well, I know that my chances have narrowed down to almost nothing — I’m like a bug in the bathroom when you flick on the lightswitch at 3 a.m.
© Jonathan Greene 2020
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