deepundergroundpoetry.com
Hyena
you had a gaze
like a love letter to the dead
funeral throat vespers in a sodium blur
wishing you could walk down the stairs,
for an inkling of control
like the wayward calf subdued by hyenas,
you are still very much alive
when the liquor
tears your life apart
like a love letter to the dead
funeral throat vespers in a sodium blur
wishing you could walk down the stairs,
for an inkling of control
like the wayward calf subdued by hyenas,
you are still very much alive
when the liquor
tears your life apart
Published 12th Nov 2022
| Edited 15th Mar 2025
All writing remains the property of the author. Don't use it for any purpose without their permission.
likes 8
reading list entries 4
comments 7
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12th Nov 2022 10:07pm
13th Nov 2022 11:24am
I just lost someone to addiction yesterday.
Another legal substance: cigarettes
A lifetime of abuse doesn't end well
Get this
Another legal substance: cigarettes
A lifetime of abuse doesn't end well
Get this
13th Nov 2022 8:04pm
Man I'm sorry to hear that. It's a surreal thing to watch someone struggle with substance abuse.
9th Dec 2022 5:59pm
I was over hearing a conversation with two of my friends about addictions. One made a point the all may be in some way addicted to something. The other friend didn't quite agree but they did of course agree that some are deadly.
9th Dec 2022 10:58pm
True. We live in a culture of vice. Just coffee and soda alone...
Thank you for reading.
Thank you for reading.
21st Feb 2023 4:54pm
Dear Grae,
Thank you for sharing this poem. Addiction has a lasting impact on everyone around it not just the addict/alcoholic. I am sorry for what you are dealing with or have dealt with. I saw an interesting Ted Talk recently which may be of interest. If you google Rat Park Ted Talk, you will find it. It's based on a study about addiction in the 1970s done by Bruce Alexander. (About a 15 min video) At the end, which I thought was very interesting, Johann Hari states the opposite of addiction is not necessarily sobriety but connection. As a daughter of alcoholics and one myself, I can tell you when I feel disconnected, I will reach for anything I can connect with that will numb the pain. Addiction is painful and debilitating. Amy Reed wrote the following, "Imagine trying to live without air, now imagine something worse."
Anyway, Thanks again for sharing and I wish you the very best. Bless,
Mel
Thank you for sharing this poem. Addiction has a lasting impact on everyone around it not just the addict/alcoholic. I am sorry for what you are dealing with or have dealt with. I saw an interesting Ted Talk recently which may be of interest. If you google Rat Park Ted Talk, you will find it. It's based on a study about addiction in the 1970s done by Bruce Alexander. (About a 15 min video) At the end, which I thought was very interesting, Johann Hari states the opposite of addiction is not necessarily sobriety but connection. As a daughter of alcoholics and one myself, I can tell you when I feel disconnected, I will reach for anything I can connect with that will numb the pain. Addiction is painful and debilitating. Amy Reed wrote the following, "Imagine trying to live without air, now imagine something worse."
Anyway, Thanks again for sharing and I wish you the very best. Bless,
Mel
21st Feb 2023 5:25pm
The disconnect is something I've felt since I was young. A drinker myself, but not on the level of the person I'm writing about. The alcohol does amplify the feeling. It's weird how it becomes such a routine thing. I will check out that Ted talk. I love what you've posted here. Thank you for this thought provoking comment.
