Bittered Sweet

Wow... this is one of your best that I have read... the line breaks are phenomenal... smooth flow... carries me along... made me come back to the beginning when I reached the end... read it over a few times... to be sure I didn't miss anything...

Howdy.  
I want to mention using the picture as a prompt,  because I had the picture saved for this before I started writing it.
This write is a mosh of ideas that stirred in my head a few days, all the while reading material from others, off and on.  Which influences my directions many times. Yet I'm trying to stay conscious of writing too lengthy.  
I am very grateful for the wow!  This write was all over the place, and took some work to get it "readable". So thank you.

I also read this a couple of times.
My favorite is the section
about the moon. How true it read. About it seeing it all before.
How the color bled out over time. Really poetic!

The whole piece is sad with small tidbits of humanity.
Trying to get her to smile one more time.
Trying to warm her with hands with your breath.
Saving the shoes! LOL

Great piece you!!

The shoes were going to be in this write since before I started writing it all out.  In my head, it was more of an impactful reason.  But this way turned out okay.  
 And just a note. I left this write without male-female roles being identified.  It's gender neutral purposely.  Two "close" friends can be of any combination out there.  So I had that in mind.  Even as I call them "lovers the once",  It's left vague on what they shared.  
 
And yeah, that pale ass moon.... It's lost all color by now.  Generic!  

Thank you much for your enthusiasm in here!  I like how you mention many times, the parts I didn't think were all that.  You do that a lot,  call out what even I may overlook in my own writes.
That's pretty keen of you.

I'm with Adelphina. I particularly love the stanza about the moon. I'm not sure I'm going to express this right, but I felt like I was reading this poem by moonlight. There's a spiritual / mystical quality that transcends daylight.

Spectacular.

Thank you, Pink.  
Unfortunately, what inspired me to write this one was there were two suicides of people I knew recently, and although I wasn't close to them, there were people who were.  It sucks.
I dwelled on it and eventually this write took shape.  I'm not the most empathetic with suicide. Because it causes many victims that live on.  Ya know?

Ooof, the smile covering sadness like a bandage.... that got me. I mean, it all did - your way of spinning a story through images is just so good - but that bandage-smile. Damn. I've seen it; I've worn it.
Wonderful write.
❤️k

Hey K,
Yeah, I was going to expand on the smile part, as in using it as a mask, to hide my frown or something . But I'm working on trying to shorten my writes a bit, so some details must be cut out.  
I get way too engrossed in my stories!  
Thanks for the nod and letting me know this write has some impact.

I suspect you could make an entire separate poem about the smiles you mentioned in this one. More of a reflective piece than a story, perhaps...

Lord I dunno!  Lol. I have a couple things jotted down for now, just notes really. But maybe I will see about your idea.  
I appreciate your enthusiastic comment.  Motivation is shared!

I might have song lyrics percolating around this idea. You've inspired me!

This is simply stunning work, Styxian.  Breathtakingly austere and haunting, leaving me to ache in that deep place of resonance.  Beautifully done, as always 💖

Thank you so much Luna. I purposely left much of the emotion out of this write, and was thinking along the lines of masked indifference (but not meaning it).  
I'm horribly bitter towards suicides.  Maybe it's the fighter in me, I dunno.  So many people fight like hell to make it, and yet some become overwhelmed and let go. It's a hell of a final decision.

You've had so much experience with heartbreak but you ease the reader in and often what I would call a soft landing or not a total breaking of limbs.  One can't help to feel your pathos and hope for better relationships ahead .....

You challenge our hearts Styx

More phenomenal writing !

Captivating painting

It's storming here, and the internet is off and on.  Of course!  

Thanks for your input, Gary. This write isn't as personal as I wrote it out. It's more creative thought process than actuality.  Some recent suicides were on my mind, talking to one of the family members, etc.  I was after the "coldness" that some survivors adopt, to deal with their loss.  Because we have to keep going.

Personally, I'm a great place in my head. This write is not reflective of my own current events.  I just like to write scenarios.  Ya know?  

I stole the pic from a friend's page. LOL.  It fit what I wanted.  

You’re fucking kidding me with the imagery. One hit after another. Holy shit, the agony was gorgeous.

This is one of those lines I want to throw shit over - because I wish I’d thought of an image like that.

“I will pry an old smile
from you
and then fold it
down the middle
like a pocket knife
to stuff in my pocket.”

Uuugh! So goood.

And even describing heartbreak you use that incredible romanticism. All hail the King of Hearts

Hey woody.
It's about time you showed back up in DUP.  

The line with the folding pocketknife was the last line I added.  It isn't "exact" in the way I wrote it. But it gets the gist down. Ugh, I get stumped sometimes with what to write to capture what I want.

I was after the frustration of dealing with suicides, for survivors.  This is a bit of a spin on it, I know. But it's not typical at least.  Just because I may not be living through a situation doesn't mean I can't have thoughts and feelings about it, obviously.  Suicide sucks!   It actually makes me mad.  The "loss" hits later.

Thanks a bunch, you. I hope you're up and at em!  

We can't save the cold who do not wish to warmly live for the Spring thaw.

Beautifully written.

Thank you!
And you are right.  I may be wrong, but it seems like more people give in nowadays than in the past.  And yet so many survive through insanely difficult struggles, and become stronger for it.
 
Stephen Hawking was beyond human intelligence in some areas.  Yet he had such severely limited physical ability.  What a great example of mental evolution.

Love Hawking!

It brought tears to my eyes. I can only read your work in moderation. So emotional for me, sometimes too much.

Hey, I'm so sorry that I missed this comment til now.  Crazy (but good) days lately for me.
  I truly appreciate the impact of your comment. All themes aren't always cheerful. But they can still have emotional value, yes?  
  I hope you can find some energy to keep reading my stuff.  Because I enjoy yours a great deal.

Thank you!