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542 · Nov 2017
Weeping Man
KarmaPolice Nov 2017
Weeping man
All alone
Reading text
Upon his phone

No eye contact
No face to face
Her distant words
Lacking grace

Flowers dumped
In public vase
Intended ring
Reflects his face

He walks away
To numb the pain
Mixing bourbon
And weak *******

To lap of love
By means of gold
A strangers flesh
He needs to hold

Broken dreams
An empty bed
Missing wallet
Pounding head

Drunken walk
Lacking grace
Finding flowers
In public vase

Weeping man
All alone
Walks the street
Miles from home
538 · Oct 2019
Empty Chair
KarmaPolice Oct 2019
Creeping up
A silent foe
Breaking him down
Nice and slow

Crushing all
Hopes and dreams
Bravery fading
silent screams

Fighting on
War and peace
Just to get
A partial release

A little confidence
Suddenly lost,
One step forwards
The ultimate cost

Walls built
A safe distance
Hiding the world
From his existence

A man in a cave
Keeping away
Building the courage
To battle today

Invisible injury
A runaway train
Mental illness
Significant pain

Weakness…
It's how it's perceived
Colleagues find…
It hard to believe

Trauma consumes
His fragile mind
He seeks a spot
That's hard to find

Lack of remorse
Absent support
Pushing him
To obvious thoughts

Away from the public
Away from the noise
Away from the world
He said his goodbyes

Discovered alone
Discovered too late
Discovered the body
Discovered his fate

Tears shed
Guilt ridden hearts
Talking history
Picking him apart

Realisation
Lack of due care
Former colleague...

Empty chair

By Darren Wall
It's World Mental Health Day today. I have changed an old poem that speaks from the heart. Although I have never had the intention, I have seen the damage it can have on families.

I'm grateful that the world acknowledges Mental Health each year, but this illness should not be confined to a day. Awareness, support, empathy and understanding should be instilled in us all every single day.

Colleagues, friends and family. We need to support each other to reduce the number of suicides in the world.

Speak up, communicate and prevent the trauma affecting the families that lose someone they love.

Take care all ***
536 · Feb 2015
Cold Heart
KarmaPolice Feb 2015
Why do I feel so cold?
Years pass, the longing to hold you..
..Is gone

My beautiful flower
Decomposed into the soil..
..No tears

The sun leaves me behind,
A stranger lies beneath,
Once a devoted wife,
Now an historic cheat,

I want to forgive you,
Time has twisted my heart,
No answers to my prayers,
Too long we’ve been apart,

One day our paths will cross,
I will lie amongst you once more,
Your weathered memory concealed,
By unforgiving moss
495 · Jan 28
Sirens (Revised)
KarmaPolice Jan 28
His senses hold him prisoner,  
Overwhelmed and alone.  
The walls are his burden;  
The light, too much to bear.  

The soaked linen of yesterday’s news,  
Stained with fear from battles before—  
An old uniform hangs alone,  
Boots polished beside paper awards.  

Headlights cast broken shadows,  
Each a spectre of the past.  
Empty scotch bottles and cigarette burns  
Mark a slow crawl to solitude.  

Light burns through a slither 
His heart beats through the walls.  
Strangled by the sirens  
That triggered him before.  

He needs to be cradled,  
Yet no hand reaches for him.  
He sways back and forth,  
A pendulum of grief.  

Screams, muted by paralysis;  
Silence pervades the void.  
Fractured by a rasping breath  
And a crescendo of emotions.  

The warning bells pass—  
They did not come for him.  
His fragile breath of sorrow  
Whispers to an empty room.  

By Darren Wall ©
I previously published this under Sirens (Alternative), but I wanted to try and grab the readers attention better.
477 · Feb 2016
Break the cycle
KarmaPolice Feb 2016
Broken window,
Damaged door,
Tempers rising,
Personal war,

Clenched fists,
Raised heart,
Eyes bulging,
A man apart,

Words fail,
Closed ears,
Red mist,
Own fears,

Locked door,
Black eye,
Help me,
She cries,

Angry man,
Local law,
He resists,
Once more,

Overnight,
Changed heart,
Apologetic,
New start,

Spilt glass,
Angry man,
Beaten wife,
Changed plans,

Courage found,
To walk away,
And escape,
His drunken ways,

New life,
No fear,
Only joy,
Draws tears,
KarmaPolice Feb 10
A moment of solace  
Destroyed by the sea,  
It's pulling me under,  
I cannot break free.  

I cling to the boat,  
My grip starts to fade—  
The storm rages louder,  
It’s time to be brave.  

A torrent of water,  
Crushing my chest,  
Pinning my body,  
Stricken of breath.  

My mind is a storm,  
Fear pulls me deep—  
I watch as the shadows  
Swallow my sleep.  

I hear my name  
As you call for me,  
You settle the noise,  
The storms and the sea.  

All light disappears,  
My vision is blurred—  
A violent squall  
Is all that’s heard.  

Then—a faint whisper,  
A break in the roar,  
Your voice finds me  
As I reach for the shore.  

By Darren Wall ©
The third part, Revised.
427 · Jun 2014
Thomas Rose (Chapter 2 & 3)
KarmaPolice Jun 2014
Chapter 2

The coffin lowered, deep in the ground,
No words spoken, not even a sound,
Dropping the flower, tossing some dirt,
Hate for my mother, hiding the hurt,

Standing with strangers, under foster care,
Temporary love, but I needed her there,
A shoulder to cry on, she led me away,
To the solitary car, for the funeral that day,

Hoping a new life, would help me succeed,
From a life in squalor, that I used to lead,
But I’d cry every night, as I slept in my bed,
Life before drugs, swimming round my head.

Three months passed, I started to heal,
Medicated trauma, life was surreal,
Normality of life, returned in time,
No fear for the future, away from the grime,

She pulled me through, the difficult years,
Calmed my anger, understood my fears,
Anna loved me, like I was her own,
Yet they interfered, robbed me of a home,

Do they not realise, what they have done?
Halting my progress, before it's begun.
I wasn't aware, of the corruption involved,
A child bought, for a palm laced in gold.

Identity changed, stolen from the dead,
The place of my birth, reads London instead,
What could I do, no family was traced,
The son of a walker, tragically misplaced.


























Chapter 3


When the door closed, her face changed,
From a look of joy, to sudden rage,
Shouting at someone, for reasons unknown,
With a *** in one hand, shouting at her phone,

Grabbing my luggage, throwing it aside,
"A new one", she said, "another boy"
Her call cut short, as she grabbed my arm,
Weighted by gold, and it's various charms,

Virtually dragged, to a room upstairs,
A boy lying on his bed, as smoke fills the air,
"That's your room", she said. "Now sit down",
"We'll talk later, I’m heading up town"

The boy stares, like I'm waving a flag,
Flicking his ash, as he stubs out his ***,
She shouts at him, but he laughs in her face,
"Leave us alone", he said, "give us some space",

My nightmares starting, all over again,
Tears down my cheek, feeling the strain,
The window is closed, as my eyes burn,
From funny cigarettes, I was to learn,

"What's your name boy?, I won't ask again,
Answer me you *******, tell me your name!
Those tears will change, as I'll inflict some pain,
Upon your weak skin, now tell me your name...."

Stumbling words, interrupted by laughter,
I'm pulling your leg, it's not pain that I’m after,
His drug filled grin, and heavy red eye's,
Reached for a draw, and grabbed his supplies,

"Sit with me mate, and have a little smoke,
Ignore her downstairs, she's a practical joke,
If you stick with me, you will be okay,
Your life will be better, if you follow my ways,"

Michael was his name, an orphan like me.
A tragic accident, killed his family.
He was just a child, when he landed here,
Hardened by life, a boy without fear,

No one realised, this home was a front,
Each child was used, by a shameless ****,
They were sent out, like a pawn in his play,
As he gained power, through his criminal ways

Survival, is the way it has to be, and the drugs?
....will make life easier for me.
KarmaPolice Feb 10
I break the surface  
As the water recedes,  
I'm no longer fighting,  
Washed up in the weeds.  

I search for the voice  
That guides my return,  
Breaking the sand  
Where the tide has turned.  

I crawl like the waves,  
Retreating, then strong—  
I stand on two feet,  
Though the journey is long.  

I walk for the hills,  
The sun escapes me,  
The night draws in,  
Moon lights the quay.  

I see you waiting  
On the pier alone,  
You never gave up,  
Guiding me home.  

The pain in my heart  
Washed out at sea—  
A burden released,  
As you comfort me.

By Darren Wall ©
The final revised part.
390 · May 2019
Post Traumatic Stress
KarmaPolice May 2019
Waking to the trauma
That yesterday brought
Locking in the guilt
And the battles I've fought

The triggered event
Overloads my senses
Occurring each night
Breaking defences

The fights that I have
Invisible to your eye
My heart is strong but
My mind wants to die

Shutting down
My brain cant digest
The repetition
Of Post Traumatic Stress

Waking to the trauma
That yesterday brought
No memory of nightmares
Just the pain that they cause

Darren Wall
378 · May 2014
Thomas Rose
KarmaPolice May 2014
Chapter 1
?

Most children my age, have a place called home, ?
Parents or siblings, they are never alone,
Have their own room, with clothes on their back, ?
Food on their plate, piled in a stack, ?

Well educated, a wealth of close friends, ?
But for me?. It is hard to pretend, ??
Eating scraps off the floor, no water or food,
A derelict home, no light in the fuse, ?

No brothers or sisters, not a friend in sight,
Forgotten by the world, I lay here tonight.
Dishevelled clothes, trainers hang of my feet,
Winter descends, snow following sleet, ?

Tiles missing, the wind sets a chill, ?
Huddled in the corner, I await her still. ??
She walks the street, hour after hour,
Collecting the funds, for an ****** flower,

I can sit here all night, yet she will fail to return, ?
I'm second to addiction, I have soon come to learn, ??
Pain in my stomach, freezing I stare, ?
The door creaking, but no one is there,

Sirens in the distance, I wish they'd find me,
Too weak to get up, too dark to see, ??
Twenty four hours, I lay here alone,
Shivering in cloth, through to the bone,

Tears fading, they serve no use, ?
They cannot save me, from years of abuse.
Commotion outside, unable to shout, ?
Too ill for fear, impending blackout, ?

Door kicked in, they rush in and see, ?
The fear grips the room, as they find me. ??
In the hospital, I awake alone, ?
No mother beside me, I should've known, ?

A woman attended, called me by name, ?
I knew that my life, would never be the same.
First part of my book. Not for the faint hearted.
360 · May 2024
Stripped
KarmaPolice May 2024
Their freedom granted by bifurcation
Roots severed from the family tree
They mourned the living, in brief
Discarded the wither and blight

Shed no tears to the fallen branches
The stench of phantosmia remains
Spring can't mask the memories
The wretched guilt shows no bark

The sap leaks through each season
The moss where blossom should be
Old wounds cast in the amber
Preserved for the life of the tree

Half dressed in a dawn chorus
Juxtaposed by muted decay
A lowly woodpecker knocks
Broken by a solitary shrill.

By Darren Wall ©
KarmaPolice Feb 8
I'm drifting out to sea,  
Where the storms brew,  
At peace with the thunder,  
Entranced by the view.  

The lightning leads,  
As my eyes fixate—  
The violent storm  
Communicates.  

I can't hear your cries,  
I can't feel your pain,  
Blind to your attempts  
To save me again.  

The sea crashes,  
I’m dragged from the shore,  
Trapped and alone—  
To fight this harsh war.  

I'm lost in the storm  
That silences your plea.  
Don’t cry for me now…  
This fight is in me.  

By Darren Wall ©
Im not keen on my original poem. I've made changes in order to help it flow better.
330 · Apr 7
Writers Block
KarmaPolice Apr 7
A blank book
Stares back at me
An unwritten verse
Of poetry

My future novel
Full of events
Leather bound story
Missing contents

A clear mind
Dogged by history
Halting the flow
Of this
unfinished mystery

Months of regress
A total non-starter
A comedy of errors
Missing the laughter

Passion reduced
Barely a simmer
A future best seller
Lacking it's winner

By Darren Wall ©
328 · May 16
The Ruins (Incomplete)
KarmaPolice May 16
I stumbled upon it—
this ruin, veiled in ivy,
its ribs of stone strangled
by nature’s lace.

A withered door hangs
on one iron thread—
the last breath of smiths
dressed in oxide.

Fractured silence beckons
childish will to explore.
Danger wrapped in lichen,
blight decays the frame.

Dense fog dulls the raven’s
black wings—set the tone.
Moss-laden windows,
sinew stripped from bone.

To be continued....

By Darren Wall
It's incomplete, a work in progress.
300 · Feb 2020
Hidden
KarmaPolice Feb 2020
I'm hidden by barriers
That you cannot see
I'm trapped and alone
But you can see me

I'm muted by noise
That you cannot hear
My screams fall silent
But you know I am here

I'm frozen by fear
Yet my body will hide
The trauma and pain
Leaking inside

I'm fighting the past
To keep history confined
My ignorance clear
I've wasted your time

Messages cease
Friendships break down
Burden too much
To stick around

I'm hidden by barriers
That you cannot see
I'm trapped and alone
Now you've left me

By Darren Wall
265 · Feb 3
Awe
KarmaPolice Feb 3
Awe
A winters stare,
Beautifully resonates in the air,
A clear sky, a frozen pitch,
I wonder if the beauty,
will last more than a few minutes,


The snapping of a twig,
which was once part of the untouched view,
A graceful swan as muted as I am in awe,

Gliding by,


Looking over by the hill,
The mist breathing through the grass,
as I pause once more,
The grandest of oaks, silhouetted by the rising sun,
Grips me to the core,


Only in England…


Say no more.

© Darren Wall
A really old poem, I wanted to share again.

— The End —