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Monotonous Beauty

Arid Solitude On The Desert Train

By Kelli Sheckler-AmsdenPublished 2 years ago Updated 2 years ago 3 min read
Monotonous Beauty
Photo by NEOM on Unsplash

Trudging through a life of trials

Like sand tumbles through an hourglass

Wading through a sea of smiles

Paying tolls, on life's bypass

*

Searching for a buried treasure

Once laid deep, far from my grasp

Punishment of my heart's possessor

Broken like, a binding clasp

*

As dry and fragile, as my spirit

A land to match my every mood

I cry of thirst, but no-one hears it

My ribs, like boulders, now protrude

*

Roaming this desert, scorched with anguish

longing for a place to rest

A mirage appears, I fade in vanquish

A wishful dream, I manifest

*

No footprints left, they've all been covered

As if, I'd never passed this way

Beneath its weight, I'm being smothered

If I survive, I cannot stay

*

To find a refuge, free from evil

The me, I've somehow, left behind

Take the playbook from the devil

Change my world, change my mind

*

Create a way out of this desert

Change my ways, to change my fate

Wipe away, my shame and hurt

Before I find out, it's too late

*

Longing for the mirage, waiting

The one that tales are told about

The one my courage, is sustaining

Wiping away all fear and doubt

*

An optical illusion, refraction of the light

The apparition of a daydream

Giving hope that it's alright

nothing close to what it seems

*

The sand stretches, and goes on forever

a vast and cruel, monotonous beauty

Granulated, fine grains, flitter

sifting, textures , harsh and gritty

*

My mind races through my choices

filtered, like the sand, passing along

A hundred thousand fragmented voices

fill my mind, with desert songs

*

This is not the path I would have chosen

mere consequence, of where I've been

A penance for the words I've spoken

left longing for the evergreens

*

The whispers in the summer sky

call to remind me of my past

The arid solitude drifts by

another season's life, forecast

*

I hear the whistle of a night-train

I stand and wait, to get on board

A familiar tune, plays its refrain

the cost to ride, scarcely afford

*

I hear the rumble, as it draws near

it wails and screams, upon the tracks

The howling fills my heart with fear

it shows no mercy as the rails clack

*

A passage for the lost and broken

tickets for ones, left behind

A voice for the souls, unspoken

a seat saved for the ones declined

*

A hollow moan drifts ore' the dunes

an eerie cry, that few know well

A long black train, under the moon

breathlessly whisper, destination, hell

*

"All aboard", the conductor shouts

the sand scatters, under shuffling feet

Boarding as the moon fades out

a fate too soon, I'm bound to meet

*

Drifting tumbleweeds, unharnessed

a ghost in flight, as the wind blows

Awakened when the sky is darkest

helpless to control, where I will go

*

I fear at last, my time is fading

The joy of life, I've only skimmed

Into the depths of sand, I'm wading

My heart and vessels gently tinged

*

I never thought I'd find a place

more haunted than here, in my heart

Where fear and sadness find a place

And sever every sacred part

*

But in the desert, lost and frail

Like elements, tossed to and fro

A surrendered soul, memories impaled

A sorrow deep, like none before

*

Goodbye cruel world, no blood or violence

I drift alone, without a friend

Engulfed in the desert's parched silence,

I was nothing but another grain of sand in the wind.

AdventureHorrorShort Story

About the Creator

Kelli Sheckler-Amsden

Telling stories my heart needs to tell <3 life is a journey, not a competition

If you like what you read, feel free to leave a tip, I would love some feedback

Find me on twitter @kelli7958958

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Comments (3)

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  • Cathy holmes2 years ago

    Wow. This is epic, my friend. I absolutely love it!

  • I feel like Peter as he said to Jesus, "No! This could never happen to you!" Especially when I know that this is at least in part where life has landed you. Still, I cannot help but feel that for you this night train, for all the gloom it foreboding it holds for you, actually intends to carry you to a better place where love is faithful & grace abounds. May your Thanksgiving & all your days be filled with blessings, Kelli. My best to you.

  • M2 years ago

    This poem is so magnetic but dark at the same time. Thank you for sharing it.

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