Shhh,
Whispered from your very own lips
To quiet your very own emotions
For your brother might wake if you don't
Quiet, for they might hear your thoughts
Don't think
Don't move

She
Used to look at you,
In that way that possessed you
That frightened you
That took hold of you and caressed you.
That captivated and enlightened you.
A drug, you could say,
She,
Was a drug.

E..
Enough? Nonsense.
Elude, as usual, all of your
Desires, guilty pleasures.
For what are they?
Past times?
Missed opportunities?
Lost fantasies?

Air
You felt it on your skin
Swimming through your every strand of hair
Injecting lotus streams through your conscience.
Finding their way to that place you know
Or used to know?
A dream perhaps,
A past life?
What is that room you see
When the air meets you again
The room that returns in your head like a memory
And you think
"When have I been there?
Why do I only feel this when the air runs through me?"

Share
The memories you hold
So dear to you
Or throw them away?
What, now, is the best choice?
Have you forgotten that it's not all about you?

E-
Estranged beliefs
The ignorant bliss of
Refusing to acknowledge.
Entities that appear as old friends.
Old?
...
Friends?
Escape your mind for a while
Relax in your arms

Sheri
I remember you.
I remember your walls breaking for the first time
I remember your darkest, most selfish moments.
I remember your most pathetic and manipulative guilt trips.
I remember your break down, your turning point.
I remember your effort.
I remember your improvement.
I remember your achievements.
I know you.
Thank you
For letting me know you

You

You are every bouquet left on graves.
You are the prayers of grievers. You are
the naïve spectators pretending, the tears
of those who haven’t lost. You are eyes
forcing yourself to look away. You’re the addiction
of a mother sitting on a trunk that hides medications.
You are the choice to overdose.
You’re the fear of two orphaned children,
wondering where they will be forced to go next. You
are the tragedy. You’re a simple combination of pills.
At the funeral they pray your death is like a novel, memorable yet learned from. You are like a novel. Events that end in a planned conclusion.
You are that second before the last pill, the medication,
an array of medication, a combination of medication, the last breath. You are the ***** of your husband’s soaking
into the carpet. You are a cry of a child
caused by the scare of a naïve nightmare.
The entire graveyard grieves with you.

...

I read at the University of Kansas during their Undergraduate Reading Series. Read more about this event here:

http://shannonathompson.com/2013/02/11/my-undergraduate-reading/

In the wispy glow of dusk
he came

mazing through years of husk
memory groped his name.

Then I remembered.

Though drew us apart fate
once we were very close

inseparable classmate!

Seemed so empty
even an hour without him
more together more the happy
we bonded too in dream.

Shared we two
same liking and taste
loved to do
living without the rest.

I have come to close a deal
in his eyes was sadness spread
hope you remember still
the promise we made.

I remembered.

when we last met
he said

*let’s seal this with trust
must come to meet his heart’s pal
the one departing first.

You see, every girl you involve yourself you see a bit of yourself in her, whether it be that she was crazy, fun, broken, or *****, and you ******, cried, sang, and drank with each one of them.
After they left, you can see a bit of yourself leave with them or you're not effected.
Now you can drink on the balcony until a new piece of you comes by and you can ****, cry, sing, and drink all with her all over again.

Bite me;
show me your inner
anger.
Inflict on me
the power
of your emotions.
I want to feel
your pain,
take away
your sadness,
and live through
your pleasure.
-JRM

I searched for nothing
& On the ground is where I found it
I was astounded at how loud
all of it sounded
Nothingness
Like a crowd with no boundaries
I found out the hard way
Like I got hit in the knees
With a hammer
******* her
& All of these seasons
I'd have better reasons
If I had two hands to believe in
I'm tangled in strands
Strangled and clamped by her breathing
I'm damaged by dampness
thigh handling freedom
I breathe in again
Just until I breathe out
Still filled up with nothing
It's pouring
out
of
my
mouth

I want to cry
And fall apart
But I must be a brave soldier
And silence my heart