We sit in a circle in a small white room
as we try to ignore the motivation posters
Splashed across all the too white walls
He's here for a near lethal suicide attempt
She hears voices in her head and loses control
Ben in the corner has a problem with severe OCD
While Kendra over there hasn't eaten in a month
And I'm here for slitting my wrists after my dad
Raped my in my own bed for the tenth time in a week
The counselor in the room starts asking us questions
We speak in quiet tones with voices that we've learned
Are never actually heard or listened to with care
The counselor says things like "it'll be okay in the end"
and "things will work out for you" and other silly platitudes
But we've learned that things aren't okay in the end
and that things never have a way of working out
There'll always be that hopeless depression and those
voices screaming too loud in your head and another
compulsion that's ruining your life and just one more
pound too lose becasue you'll never be thin enough
and one more night with dad entering your room
and invading your body and life in the worst way
All the counselor at this mental hospital is offering
are stupid little bandaids that will never be able to
stop the pain or cover the wounds we harbor inside
Author notes
I chose option one with the sub-option of i.
My username is frostany
A contest entry
- Assortment of Options-- titles, word bank, quote, etc. by The.Stars.Go.Blue.
750 points, ended December 19, 2008, 23 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Please tell me what you think
Comments
-
this is very deep. when i was in this hospital, i went through therapy like this, and now at home, i still do, 3 times a week. it m ust have been very hard for you if this is a personal experiance.
-
Second stanza, sixth line "raping my" should be "raping me". Last stanza, first line, I'd change that to "All of the counselors" instead. It'll sound better. And I don't like how you're lacking punctation... it would seem much more pointed if you added them.
Anyway, straying from those few technicalities... I'm really saddened by having read this. I have seen a lot of poems in this contest that have strong emotion, but this is truly... sad. I don't know another word for it. I relate well to more than one person in that room. Anyway, good job on your writing. -
Sometimes stupid little bandaids are all folk have to give. I've no idea what it might be like to be in a hospital like that but I certainly have empathy for those who are...many trying to escape the fog, back in to the sunlight. Sad indeed.
Adding your comment:
