Artists Unite Issue

by Joy Leftow

You avoid me because
you know I know
your secrets
the thoughts that make you ill
I know how you feel

Sometimes you utter nothing
at all & the tv gets louder
to drown the sound
of my words, my voice
a discarded memory
of what’s left unsaid

We don’t discuss
what I think is wrong
as I record the trail you forge
with the sound of your voice
hollow in my veins
while I follow you from room
to room echoing your thoughts
fill the room’s silence
I hear thunder clap
in the distance

You say the echo is loud, too clear
and I bisect & categorize
each of your thoughts
while my unsaid words
follow the curve of your hips
As you move to and fro worrying
I’ll disparage what you say

I listen, record your flow
of your words, you want me
to share my  observations
I do; For you they only personify
my excellent clinical skills

your firm lips cover my unspoken words
a poor excuse, a moment in time

Your eyes hold back tears
you stare and ensconce your soul
why should you share
to recreate the pain
I don’t exist for myself or you
your mind’s eye is a reflections in glass
and none of it is real