I arrive, enthusiasm laden
With hope for the day.
I arrive, piles of paper, corpses of previous hope, strewn about my desk
A battlefield of futures.
They arrive, demands to be met work harder try again lead on redo be different be consistent.
Steal hope, murder ambition, attack joy and punish the weak,
You’re not good enough, they can’t read
You’re not good enough, they don’t eat
You’re not good enough, they don’t sleep
You’re not good enough, you don’t read, sleep or eat.
I take it, bury it, down a dark lane
Its form forgotten, its memory a plaque
Its sneers no more
It’s nightmares a celebration.
They arrive, infinite demands
Weak in spirit and strength I offer myself
They sup and ask for more
Never enough, never good enough.
The mud is churned where the shells arrived
The trench is foul and filled with filth
Casings litter the ground around
I drop down into the dark, just enough room for two.