Poem Reworked: Elixir Labelled Hope

  Elixir Labelled "Hope" 

The world sold me a sticky syrup...

snake oil...in a bottle labelled "hope".

I was assured by crooked smiles this magic elixir

would assist this "me" to cope; 

it could numb and put an end to pain, 

taking away all fear;

and it could make all moments bothering me

 simply disappear.

 

So, I took the bottle in my shaky hand

and opened up the cap.

I lifted the glass to my mouth

as the world around me clapped.

I swallowed down the sweetened water,

leaving not a drop.

It burned my throat, caught in my chest,

 and made my breathing stop.

Dizzy with the effect of it,

my being began to spin 

and I was pulled so quickly 

from the moment I was in.

I was carried to a pleasant time 

 that existed up ahead,

 a wonderful place of joy and bliss

where fantasies were fed.

I left the pain I knew  in the moment,

the one I left behind

and in this new time Life matched my desires.

It was so very kind.

 

I could have staid in this new place forever 

but the high soon wore away

and once sober, I was pulled back into reality, 

back to the present day.

 

Here, I found myself facing the world of twisted smiles

with an empty bottle in my hand.

 The weight of existence fell on my shoulders

making me heavy once again.

 

Voice trembling with the effort, I held out

the drop-less bottle to ask for more

of the sticky syrup, the magic elixir

I would, like most humans, come to adore.

I knew then that I was addicted to

this thing in the bottle labelled "hope,"

and that if I ingested it daily, 

it would become nothing more than dope.

Whatever it gave humanity, I learned,

 would simply never last.

The solution it offered was not real 

and the high wore off too fast. 

 

A knowing voice inside me whispered

in a tone so soft and sweet

that my preference list was never something

Life was here to meet.

The magic elixir is not what is needed 

in order to get by.

What we need is reality, 

to embrace what's real without the high. 

A sober moment has its blessings

despite the pain and grief,

 acceptance and allowance of what is 

could bring us true relief.

A potion can never save u. 

It cannot give us what we need.

Once we realize the beauty of this moment, 

all humans could be freed.  

 

So, I put the bottle on the counter

And turned to walk away

with hesitant mind I began to open

to the beauty of this day.

I observed as mind surrendered to the truth:

The only way out of pain is through.

I opened my heart to the life in front of me.

There was nothing left to do.

My head then cleared, and the forgotten breath

dropped back into my chest

I found the peace I longed for.

Finally,

my soul could rest.

© Dale-Lyn, 2024