Dull raindrops leaving trails down the glass
As they land in my mug brimming with
Feelings of missed opportunity and swatches of colors
That have all bled into something of a cloudy grey

Clouds that hold demons at bay behind sheets of rain
Fires that burn in the cold quiet mornings
Pronounced and protruding slowly it comes to me

Sinister thought crimes that etch themselves woven lines
Plots long forgotten and discarded memories
Pronounced as it seems, still slowly It inclines

And out from the shadows painted by steady hands
Carved out of mistakes, they know from the memory
Creatures are calling me, out from the darkness
Festering innocence offers me a reply

Each one was made from the stroke of a pen
And what sort of unknowns have I begun to deify

They were made for me

They call my name, still taunting me

All I can do to stay here a while more
Ending my efforts in each ignored symphony
Along the back wall and in every corner
As soon as my back is turned, they all start whispering

I try and hide away

Still, I hide away

The forest is shrouded by miles of brickwork
Fast talking incongruity
Of iconography, smoke stacks birthing machinery

That's how it starts

And here I hide away

A comfortable bed, with the fine touch of feathers,

The warmth of heaven, where my body would meander,

I could dream of anything, anything at all
Of beauty, of lust, of bliss, of all
Of happiness I have always wanted to clasp
But with these worn-out hands, povery is all I can grasp

I can dream of nature, that is wishing to pass through me
Of the tying clouds, with each turn turning gloomy

My hands can wrap over all of the flowers
Each of their petal, with my touch in delight
But with my shattered eyes, all I can give them is fright

Only in my sleep, I become a dreamer
While I am awake, I feel worse than the reaper

My scent disgusts even the winds
That break upon me
Like my shattered dreams

And though my dreams and my comforts are all in a nap
The stale street and its cold is all I can have

My feet sloshed through the rain-filled mud as I ventured closer towards the wooded labyrinth. I was drawn to the idea of ending the raven’s era, as he cut through the sky, heading towards the all-known border. I felt that with each footstep made, a part of my world would erode. The moon bellowed, revealing my figure. Throwing caution to the way I ascended the mountain, I had to destroy this apparition for I could not take his taunting glare any longer.
Approaching the cliff-side, I could hear my lover’s voice beckoning me from beyond the grave. My sanity was fading into oblivion, madness taking its place. I watched the raven descend to the angelic statue that over looked metropolis. Gripping the revolver with a burning passion and aimed at the foul, as I pulled back the receiver and placed gentle pressure on the trigger, my lover came to me. I could see his face and a flash of desperation… I knew I needed to be with him for this life was no longer worth living. I retracted my aim and placed the barrel firmly between my lips, closing my eyes. Click. The silence had come.

No color,
no warmth from the cold weather,
no charisma,
no freshness,
no love just loneliness,
no cover from the rain,
no drain for the tub,
no food in the cupboards,
no water to drink,
no end to the war,
no cooler for the heat,
no ice to make water colder,
no rivers flowing,
no flowers growing.

All is bleak,
all is dark and crawling.

Bleak that's all.

**© By Amanda D Shelton

It was time to turn back and face reality. He was dead and was never coming back. I was never to see my reflection through his golden brown eyes or feel his warm tenderly kiss still softly pressed against my forehead. This truth was hard to swallow and even harder to believe. Never again would I be in his warm arms protected from the harsh world surrounding us. I would give anything to only just take a short glimpse back at the paradise we once shared for I was the happiest I had ever been, with him by my side. He was my home. My safe place; my haven.

I staggered up and stood there in melancholy- gazing aloft at the city laying among the horizon before me. It thrummed vibrations of a steady heartbeat. The lights flickered and it all fell to bleak darkness. The silence had come to grieve alongside me. I began clenching to the warmth condensing through my coat.
The presence of his reassuring touch emerged but not in human form. Closing my eyes I felt him dancing through the sharp breeze. I turned, hoping to catch a glimpse of the man I once loved. There still, sat the raven... his beady eyes ushered in a certain familiarity as his stature resembled that of the Angel of Death, engulfing an almost palpable enigma.
His lingering touch began to fade. The azure sky sunk through the dreary bleach that once dominated the atmosphere. As the raven took flight he projected his deathly caw that rung at my eardrums. The sun shone, a golden globe. All was tranquil for now.

The minute you turned away from my kiss,
I knew that something was terribly wrong,
The air in the room was so still,
the silence lasted a little too long.

Our eyes were trained on different places,
Mine were on you, yours were aimed down,
Tears started to well up in mine,
In that moment I began to drown.

Love is painful, love is quick,
To forgive despite a broken heart,
When you're in love with someone it
Doesn't matter if they tore you apart.

Forget the bad memories because
I want to remember us at our best,
I'm going to look back at the times,
We smiled, and throw out the rest.

Life isnt a thing to be wasted,
but lately I've been spending my time,
Thinking about things i cant have,
and putting my words into rhyme.

I wanted you to stay longer,
I thought you loved having me near,
How do I survive without you?
I need so much more than just one year.