fair warning kiddo
the future is bleak
once deemed a promising man
i now roam the streets

i did my time
sold my soul
life dealt me an unforgiving hand
and so you find me here outside your door

a word of advice little girl
beware of those out there
who dance with the devil
and lure you into their lair

be not a forgotten one
be not like me
be not a once promising woman
singing her tale of woe to another in the streets

less an insatiable desire
for something that cannot be held
more a wistful cry
for the elusive self

an awakened need for integration
hidden beneath the searing wounds of twin flames

slender and weak
deathly pale fingers creep

counting monsters instead of sheep
escapes neither breath nor scream

pinned down in punishment
whispers of seduction

unclear silhouette threatens sanity
spilling nightmares into reality

curiosity as bait
changed in its wake

once a breadwinner
with the devilish talent
to charm like a salesman
and bend all at will

now a voice dismissed
forced to yield to distrust
as dignified frames shatter
and past glories wane

milk & honey too turn sour
while decayed scraps
and poisonous fogs
do the trick

a cancerous lie?
an obscured truth?
or both?

the pale finality
questionably entwines
selfish peace with
lingering unrest

wielding the power
to give life
and take it

manic angel
launches from the shadows
knives and jars

mothers
fathers
friends and lovers

forgotten nurturer
secretly cries out
using conduits

poison
milk &
honey

graceful dreamer
patiently yearns for
the final alignment

it looms above
like a shadow detached
aching to be made one

it puts on a macabre performance
like the weyward sisters
in threes who come

malevolent thief
it preys on fear and tears
leaving scraps for a laugh

it fogs the mind
till inward-turned
is a knife sharp

at long last
it takes a bow
with fiendish glee

crimson curtains
echoing applause
a triumphant finale