Author: Charles B. Snoad

Be Not Afraid

Charles B. Snoad

I’m a humble fish
In a coy pond
At the edge
Of a river
Where the wind
Runs wild.

Fish is a noun.
Fish is a verb.

I’m a man
Speaking
Like a fish
Out of water.

No. Wait.
I’m silence
In motion.
A blank sage.

Neither noun
Nor verb
Nor fish:
A blank sage.

I’m a thin blade
Of short grass
At the edge
Of a river
On the verge
Of collapse.

But I’m not afraid.
For I have fallen
Apart before.

Yet here I am.
With you.
Be not afraid.

All together
Here we are.
Be not afraid.

Carry My Soul

Charles B. Snoad1 Comment

Depression = Anxiety wants to end Anxiety.
Once and for all.

Mania = Anxiety is up all night.
Perfecting a poem about Anxiety.

PTSD = Anxiety hurts Anxiety.
Anxiety blames himself for creating Anxiety.

This is how
My day begins.

This is how
My life goes
Wrong.

This is how
I fall apart.

Trying to control
Forces out of my control.

Trying to control
My need to control
Forces out of my control.

This is how
My body grows
Too weak
To carry
My soul.

How To Fall Apart

Charles B. Snoad

Be the perfect student
The perfect employee
The perfect perfectionist

Everyone needs to like you
Everyone needs to know
You’re smart and kind
And organized and in control

Sacrifice joy to maintain
The illusion you’ve got
Everything under control

Happiness hurts
You need to feel safe
You know it’s impossible
To always feel safe
Yet all you want
Is to always feel safe

You have a body
Protect your body
Scan your body
Is your body safe?

Don’t let anyone
Hurt your body

Be a robot
The perfect robot
A robot has no body
A robot needs no body