The Power It No Longer Held

She took a trip down memory lane of yesteryear,

Back to her hometown, to the church that brought her so much pain,

Where so many memories are housed in between the pews and the altar,

And where she left her sanity in a time gone by.

**

She rolls up to the car park, now full of weeds, cracks and with a lack of future,

Desolate, and lonely,

She gazes at the outer walls of the house of memories,

Pockmarked, broken windows, cracked facade and abandonment.

**

As she pulls upon the old wooden door, hinges creak and groan in denial,

They attempt to dissuade her entry, but she persists,

With a teetering groan the hinges let go and she swings the door wide,

Allowing sunlight to swamp the dusty air that swirls like a mini tornado.

**

She gingerly steps inside, her shoes clacking upon the dry wooden floor,

Tapping out her hesitation,

Her gaze falls upon upended pews, an old bible discarded in the aisle,

The atmosphere one of desolation and more importantly, innocuous in its decay.

**

She tiptoes a step or two, showering in the dust that swirls through the air,

And her heart lightens,

The memories dampen,

To be finally bedded down without its power to continue to torture.

**

She smiles at the arrogant beauty of the crumbling walls, the missing altar,

And the loss of sacredity that cloaks the antiquated ruins,

Removing the ability to further torment and gathering in closure,

As she understands it’s just a broken man-made building that stands before her.

**

She sits quietly, learning to love the ambience of age that surrenders to her,

As once she surrendered her soul in between past sermons,

Both physical structure and internal fortitude merging to become whole once again,

And she feels the sigh of relief she expels gather courage, to forgive this space she now occupies.

**

She rose, lighthearted and in peace,

Wishing the old building a silent farewell,

Seeing it for what it is, as it stands forlorn and broken,

A taking back of the power it once held, now just a derelict space destined to be forever forgotten.

This poem was written for Roadkill Society (a Medium Publication) Poetry Prompt #1 and the prompt is as follows :

The Prompt

Write a poem inspired by a place that used to be full of life but is now abandoned.

Originally published on Medium