My Reason Poem by Kyle Schlicher

i like to feel
the
hurt
on my body
bruises
deep
unseen

today
i will touch no one
sterile
is
my isolation

i push myself
to
the extreme
and
then
beyond

peel back the layers
of
contentment
and
witness the raw
bleeding

you have nothing on me

i am no longer
with you

you have grown old and stale

i breathe the air
of
the
oppressed
and
have lived their ordeal

i get up early
to
wait
for the pain
i know
is
coming my way

i cannot take it easy
and
grow old
safely
in place
with
the others
i must push
against
the
resisting wall

i need the hurt

i want the pain

with them
i walk straighter
faster
toward
that
light
at the end of the day

(8-28-2016)