all my teeth fell out the other day
and my tongue lost its taste
it was unsure how to handle itself
and grew numb and heavy
inside the remains of my mouth
speaking -- without much choice --
stopped being a priority
and my jaw hung loose
with the weight of words unsaid
i decided the best course of action
would be to become a writer
perhaps a poet
and maybe i could get the weight
out apart from conventional means
so i typed and typed
and deleted
and retyped -- such is the life of a
terrible writer, i'm sure you understand --
until i finally closed my eyes and knew
that i had found what i had always
needed to say
i wept tears of joy
for my discovery
and also ones of regret
for not being able to speak out
and preach to the world my sermon
i opened my eyes and peered into
the screen
mouth agape
overwhelmed with its own uselessness
i looked onto the screen
and found it blank
a mistake -- i knew --
had been made
clicking undo yielded no relief
there were no words
and it was then i realized the truth
the mistake was my own
words alone
do not carry weight
they are only conduits
through which emotion
translates itself from
the heart unto the brain
to give them power
is to take away from the act
men are scared of thunder
for it speaks a common language
but true fear lies in the lightning
i was a fool for becoming a writer
even more so a poet
but now, smiling -- toothless and swollen --
i will sit in silence