Hungry

Poem by MJP Ryan

That black snake of sorrow

is winding around my heart tonight

fangs puncture the soft tissue

as its tail curls around my intestines

I can feel its tongue flickering in my chest

the thick meaty body coiling around itself

inside my torso crushing all inside of me.

only my tears sate the snake's appetite

but I cannot let them flow

I want to weep

to howl at the world

to scream to vent

to give voice to my fear and anger

to the pain in my soul

but sorrow's scaly body

holds me in check

squeezing a rictus smile to my face

and a cheery lilt to my voice

while it quietly sinks its hungry fangs

into my broken heart.