*****

Recorded Reading (1:12): https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/tvd4zrj7p03mqw5fh6rhj/It-is-Ourselves-We-Miss.mp3?rlkey=mub9kjuvlv1uxgaow7vxueb2v&dl=0

*****

It is Ourselves We Miss

How often do we disrespect the word!
We say what we think others wish to hear
Not pausing to remember once ’tis heard
Unto ourselves we have been insincere

What harm doth it, we mental shrug and ask,
To speak contrary to our honest thought
If by such means in social glow we bask,
Our popularity so cheaply bought?

The price we pay is nameless anxiousness
Which gnaws away at us from inside out
A feeling of unease, subtle duress
Which makes us wonder what it’s all about

We’re lonely, and we suffer just for this:
It is ourselves, our inmost selves, we miss

*****

Until removal of the stalker/targeter/vandal/arsonist following her allows her to approach any landlord ~ even for a private parking space ~ and to begin once again to create professional connections and to rebuild her life, this poet presently lives homeless and at a fraction of her nation’s poverty level ~ still working seven days a week to contribute to her society, however.

Arts patrons may visit http://www.UgiftABLE.com , using code #72D-31S, or choose to send a personal check to the poet’s ABLE account. It takes about two weeks for the poet to be notified of your patronage.

Thank you for supporting quality in the fine arts.