tethers

I was inspired to write this poem by the following lyrics, from Buffalo Springfield's song "For What It's Worth" Paranoia strikes deep/ Into your heart it will creep/ It starts when you're already afraid/ You step out of line, the man come/ And take you away

languishing within the
recesses of her mind
the thoughts crystallize,
forming a block of ice

floating between synapses,
the lazy path it takes
somehow grates on her nerves

reaching over the edge and
peering into the vast depths,
she searches for a sign
to show her the way...

a glimmer of light
a path, perchance,
that might reveal
her true self.

instead of the path, she finds the past:

her passions held at bay,
always at the whim of others.
a slave to her surroundings,
held fast by unseen tethers.

no one seemed to understand
as well they shouldn't

her life, however grand -

filled with friends (acquaintances),
loving parents (unconditional stressors)
relationships (she cannot fully love)

- is, to her, a lie.

all around her, happiness and joy
people enjoying life without a care

while she sits back and watches,
not wishing to invite others in
only for them to leave, disappointed.

her life, shriveled and small,
has shrunk to the point where
any act of kindness is suspect,
friends seem scarce,
enemies abound.

mountains out of molehills
does not teach responsibility.
guilty until proven innocent
does not encourage improvement.

mistakes happen, we are only human -
this is what we should be learning.

an eye for an eye, as gandhi said,
will leave the whole world blind.