Exclusive Ink

Author: lwortley

  • PUZZLED (SHATTERED)

    by KEITH

    The impacted hand shattered like glass with
    the loud crunching sound of a potato chip
    with the wild static pain sent through the
    nerves sending a frenzy of spasms evenly through the
    whole arm
    his eyes swallowed by tears but are held back like
    the Hoover Dam
    His heart pulsating as that of a rabid rabbit feeding on
    a fleeing carrot
    With the mind engulfed in rage as a saber tooth
    tiger in a tar pit
    Blood tackling the floor with a loud echo like a
    jackhammer’s banging voice pierces his ear
    The animalistic instinct drives his porcelain-like hand
    into the remorseless apparatus
    By the cause of a heartless father who bruises him
    the eye’s dam shatters
    For the sixteen-year-old is really a fragile five-year-old
    though his breakdown shows

  • WHEN IT HAPPENED

    by A.J.

    I heard the bone breaking
    in my friend’s arm. As I watch
    him walk bent over away I see his
    disfigured arm dangle away
    bouncing off his side.

  • BREAKFAST

    by A.J.

    Waking up to sizzling bacon on a Saturday
    morning makes me aroused like sunshine burning
    in my eyelids. I can imagine the taste
    of the bacon and the smell the grease and
    the pop of it. My stomach rumbles in anticipation.

  • SPEAK

    by PAULA

    speak to me
    when the dirt and gravel are
    drowned out
    and I can’t hear the ambulance sirens
    two blocks away
    wailing
    for a chance
    to be
    speak
    to the crackles of a leaf that never
    had a chance
    the drops falling
    on an aluminum mailbox
    that are a medley in themselves
    the tiles along a fence
    a paradox of paradise
    home to three cats and
    a gypsy in a flower pot
    warm crackles
    light up even
    the burnt-out stars
    God’s footprints are my radio
    echoing across a polluted atmosphere
    the booming, the air fronts
    warm and cold alike collide.
    opposites attract, and when they meet, they’re fire
    in the sky
    smoke on the horizon
    in my mind I can
    feel he soaked socks
    clinging to my feet
    as I pranced about
    on my porch

  • BETTER TIMES

    by PAULA

    Times were better when
    goldfish went to heaven
    and not to the sewer system’s
    pipeline
    When, being home didn’t seem
    like a chore
    When doing chores was expected
    and you never knew what a
    whore was.
    There comes a time in every
    adolescent’s life
    When they hear the truth
    about Santa Claus
    When they lie awake
    and can’t sleep due to
    the yelling in the next room
    When claws are gnawing at
    your insides, trying to decide if
    one drink will hurt them
    If on night is too long,
    too cold,
    better spent
    alone.
    If one hit will rock your
    world
    and leave it spinning
    or leave you begging for more.
    Kids, don’t be so ready to find a
    love
    To lose your parents’ trust
    Let your grades plummet
    Don’t give up
    because once will never be enough
    and just when you think you’re done
    your past pops right back up
    in your face
    and your drawn toward it
    again
    Your stuck
    between wheat you love
    and what you’ll never get enough of
    So hang in there
    don’t give up
    don’t give in
    don’t let the other side win
    When they say the grass is always
    greener
    it’s a lie
    Once you cross over
    you’ll find
    that shiny green grass
    wet with morning dew