Writing and Photography by Jeff E. Brown

A thrum.
Felt first, then audible like an eternal tone.
Threatening as it endures
And defies your attempts to quell it.
It’s a manifestation
Of everything in your head.
The trauma, pain and the dread.
All of the anxieties and loathing
Collected together,
As if to make it easier
To break me down.
Inside out. First the mind, then the body
Comes tumbling down, a husk of a man.
Destroyed by the pieces that never fit
And the ones designed to engulf
Whatever piece of you that might be working right, that you hoped might
Make you better, that you hoped might
Lead to love and that finally let you down
And left you here. Alone with the remains.

© 2022 Jeff E. Brown. All rights reserved.