Though thrown about

a fear of judgement can be quite restrictive

Traded to the peddler
for an undisclosed amount,
woven by the heddler
who never forgets to count,
stolen by the writer
distilled for inspiration,
captured by the painter
confined to coarse creation.
Tossed around and broken
although it's labeled "fragile"
abused and overspoken,
those not among the agile
Twelve more years of mourning
sentenced through and out
tangled in the mooring
and melded in the grout.
They must become ideal
to not be claimed for measure,
must put down what they feel
or succumb to constant pressure.
It is a rite of passage
to be molded by the form-
held captive by embassage
instructed to conform.
Even love is smoothed over
when passion mortifies:
throw insight in a folder
use darkness as a guise.
When allowed diversion
is inhibited by cost,
then masked, compressed conversion
is doled out to the lost.

32 lines
written for the Writer's Cramp: 6/20/26