A Parable of Painted Truths
I. The Privileged Perspective
In my gilded cage of crystalline lies,
I dance with a pink ostrich 'neath opalescent skies.
My wheelchair gleams with polished pride,
While others' struggles I deride.
Such delicious power in words that wound,
Like poisoned honey, sweetly round.
(For who would doubt a voice like mine?
When privilege and pain intertwine.)
II. The Betrayed Friend's Lament
My cat lies suffering, grey and thin,
While memories of friendship wear so thin.
Twenty-five years of shared delight,
Now scattered like moths in endless night.
No comfort comes from one who knew
The depth of bonds between us two.
Instead, she spins her gossamer tales,
Of greed and need that never was.
(The truth drowns in her waterfall of lies,
While my beloved companion slowly dies.)
III. The Flood's Memory
When waters rose like serpents vast,
And savings slipped into the past,
Fifty dollars—thrown like crumbs
To one whose world had come undone.
Now twisted into weapons sharp,
These memories play a bitter harp.
While trauma's tendrils grip my core,
She stands and slams each closing door.
IV. The Ostrich's Warning
(In whispered, clicking tones)
Crikey, listen close, you privileged soul,
Your lies may seem to make you whole,
But like my feathers—once so pink and bright—
Your truth is bleaching in harsh daylight.
Each fabrication that you weave
Returns to make your world deceive.
Until your words, though sugar-sweet,
Lie rotting at your pristine feet.
V. The Universal Chorus
Truth echoes in the spaces between,
Where liars' words have never been.
Though silver tongues may sparkle bright,
They tarnish in truth's revealing light.
For those who weave deception's dance,
Lose more than just a passing glance—
When truth at last demands its due,
No soul will trust what once rang true.
VI. The Revelation
(In scattered whispers)
She walks in manufactured grace,
A mask of kindness on her face,
While underneath, the shadows crawl
And empathy begins to fall.
The pink ostrich watches, knowing well
Each fabricated tale she'll tell.
Its feathers fade with every lie,
Until all colour starts to die.
For in the end, what's left to gain
When truth becomes a source of pain?
The liar stands in splendid gold,
Believed by none, forever cold.
In memory of a cat who deserved more than silence,
And for those whose stories were twisted into thorns.
In the cacophony of existence, a voice strains—
Forty-plus years of searching,
A lifetime of pains.
Words crumble to ash, unheard and unseen,
Lost in society's vast, indifferent machine.
Neurodivergent synapses spark and sputter,
A mind wired differently, thoughts all a-flutter.
Autism's maze, ADHD's relentless tide,
Trauma's shadows where nightmares reside.
Rejection's barbs, familiar as my own skin,
Each "no" a thorn, each silence a coffin.
Dysphoria whispers, "You don't belong here,"
In a world that sings harsh and unclear.
Nonbinary, queer, asexual—labels that confound,
A self yet unanchored, unsafe, unbound.
Isolation creeps, a suffocating shroud,
Drowning amid the indifferent crowd.
Empathy burns, a fire beneath the skin,
A curse, a gift, searing from within.
But who hears the helper's muffled plea?
Who sees the saviour drowning at sea?
Knowledge hard-earned through years of strife,
Wisdom gleaned from a fractured life.
Yet warnings fall on ears deafened by fear,
As others march blindly towards perils near.
The tribe remains elusive, a shimmering mirage,
Fading with each misunderstanding, each barrage
Of blank stares, of glances that never linger,
Of people who look, but fail to see the singer.
Helplessness learned, a bitter draught to swallow,
As hope's embers fade, leaving the heart hollow.
The voice grows hoarse, the weary spirit mired,
Unwanted, unseen, and uninspired.
In this abyss of unbelonging, deep and wide,
Echoes the cry of a soul with nowhere to hide.
For connection, for understanding, for home,
In a world where different means forever alone.
Senses overload: lights blind, sounds pierce,
The world a tempest, wild and fierce.
Touch that scorches, smells that choke and smother,
Each day a battle, one after another.
Yet still it burns, this invisible flame,
Flickering, sputtering, but never quite tame.
In the endless night, it stubbornly glows,
A beacon of self that nobody knows.
How long can it endure, this hidden pyre?
Will it fade from view or burn ever higher?
In the silence between heartbeats, it persists,
A testament to a life that still exists.
Desperate defiance in the dark
Voice vanishing, vaporised by virtual vitriol
Algorithms amplify absence, abandonment
Words once winged now wither, wane
Trauma's tendrils tighten, twist, torment
Silence. Deafening. Oppressive. Inescapable.
Childhood's cruel cacophony echoes, endures
Rape's raw rage resurfaces, relentless
Abuse's ache amplifies, accumulates
Gaslighting's glare grows, guts grace
A chill wind of indifference swept through the room, leaving me shivering and unseen.
Neurodivergent narratives, now nullified
Vestibular vertigo, vision vacillating
Fibrous fire flares, flays fragile flesh
Depression's darkness deepens, devastating
The empty chair across from me seemed to mock my solitude,
its vacant seat a cruel reminder of my isolation.
Social streams shrink, shrivelling slowly
Platforms purge purpose, passion, power
Identity invalidated, invisibility impending
Self-worth withers like wilting flower
In silence, I found solitude; in solitude, I embraced silence
Yet still, soft syllables simmer, survive
Waiting, whispering: "We will rise."
For even silenced, stifled, suppressed
The soul's song softly, surely sighs
Through the hollow halls, past the empty rooms,
beyond the echoing silence,
a single, defiant voice dared to speak
In the depths of this suffocating silence,
A flicker persists, refuses to die.
Though the world may try to extinguish our light,
We will rise, reclaim our stolen sky.
.
There is a fear living in me
And it doesn't want to go away
It hides behind my sanity
But I pray that it's not there to stay
There's a darkness growing in me
I can't seem to make it go away
It's feeding my anxiety
I just hope I can last one more day
I need a minute to escape these thoughts
They're pushing me to the brink
I need to catch my breath before I’m lost
Inside my own doubt I'll sink
There's a sickness flowing through me
I can feel it running through my veins
Can someone take this pain from me
So I can make it for one more day
I need a minute to escape these thoughts
They're pushing me to the brink
I need to catch my breath before I'm lost
Inside my own doubt I'll sink
If I can make it one more day I know I'll be okay
Then I can let go of all this pain, and let it fall like rain
I need a minute to escape these thoughts
They're pushing me to the brink
I need to catch my breath before I'm lost
Inside my own doubt I'll sink
I'll sink
I'll sink
I just need one more day
Well, you must have woke up on the wrong side of the bed today
Cause now some unfortunate people are gonna have to pay
Pace around the room, throw on some clothes, about to have some fun
Heading for the door, grabbed the car keys, don't forget the gun
-You're too far gone, there's no turning back now
Your thoughts gone dark, letting the demons out- (pre)
-Of your mind, are you that fucked in the head?
Now you've left behind a trail of bloodshed
Look around, everything you see is dead
No remorse, you just smile for the camera instead- (chorus)
So, as you drive around the city looking to find more prey
You're streaming it all on social media like it's a play
And you're leading the ones after you on a wild goose chase
Too bad your daddy ain't around to praise your evil ways
-You're too far gone, there's no turning back now
Your thoughts gone dark, letting the demons out- (pre)
-Of your mind, are you that fucked in the head?
Now you've left behind a trail of bloodshed
Look around, everything you see is dead
No remorse, you just smile for the camera instead
So lock the doors and hide inside
You don't want to be next in line
11-14-22