I might stay up for a bit
As she walks and waves goodnight
We both know that I'm lying
On the couch again tonight.

This confused young man
Has grown up
Into a bitter old man
And the years seem to get faster.

There is no help
Even when one reaches out
This black dog on my back
Is strangling me now.

Shallow breaths
Disrupted naps
Just trying
To relax.

She screams at me
I'm not doing my job
As a father, a parent and a partner
I am half the man they all need.

I have plain responses
Eventually I snap
As my only defence
Is "*******", back into my shell.

If this black dog doesn't **** me
Something else will.

Excess consumption of poisons
Just to numb the pains
I give them all a kiss goodnight
With eyes, like **** holes in the snow.

Men don't cry
They internalize the frustration
As I have been taught
Through vacancy of peers.

This fragile silly man
Nudging 40, somehow
Never dealt with his demons
So he has become them all.

Silently slumber with a head full of thunder
Cringe through the noise and the fog
Twist and contort and wake up tomorrow
Grab the leash, and walk the black dog.