Do you have an enemy,
Or are you lucky to be free from
That tyranny of a poisoned heart
That cannot forgive from the start?
Chances are, though,
It is easy enough to see,
That more than likely you do
Have an enemy.
Next, friend,
Let’s look and see,
What creates someone
So wicked or dastardly
As your accursed and wretched
Enemy.
Might even be—heaven forbid—
A bloody frenemy?
So, what did this villain do
To warrant such a devilish distinction?
Did they think a thought that
Throttled your sensibilities?
Did they veritably vote different?
Did they dress too differently,
Talk too softly,
Boast too proudly,
Support causes you couldn’t comprehend?
Did they go by Jack instead of Jill?
Did they dress too pretty
To be playing
Upon the
Hill?
Was it that their view of God
Was too gracious than
The God given to you?
Is that then what sullied your view?
What did, in all honesty,
This enemy do
To
Cause you to open hate’s gate,
To pump the bellows,
To stoke the exacerbating
Emotions charring your
Once open and
Lively heart?
Furthermore,
Can this enemy be blamed
Anymore?
Is it this enemy
Causing you
To horrendously harbor hate within?
Is it this enemy,
Frenemy,
Or whatever you
Are sayin’ to me,
Living inside your head,
Rent free?
Isn’t the rent up to the landlord?
Cannot the tenant eventually be evicted—
Not judged or mistreated,
Just restricted?—
And I am not meaning
The enemy living free
In your head space, your own economy;
Rather, the hate,
Which arrives as a friend
With a plate,
But once we eat the dish
We find we wish
For a different fate and,
Sometimes, just sometimes,
It turns out to be a little too late.
But
I believe that it is never too late,
So long as we breathe,
To grow back love
Where there was once hate;
When that becomes
One’s resurrected state
From the death that
Would otherwise become fate,
Then freedom
Will not hesitate to recreate
Life in full and abundant ways
Throughout the rest of our days
Where love always guides
And the heart never strays—
All the rest of our days—
When we take our last breath
With the swinging of the scythe;
The master stroke of death.
“Ah! But therein,” say you,
“Lies the ultimate enemy,
“Certainly no frenemy,
“The coldest villain
Shrouded in the darkest night—
“Death, the horrid sight—
“Who comes with terrible might
‘And steals away our right
“To live!”
But,
Truthfully,
What right to life have we,
And who left us
Heir apparent to such buffoonery?
As for death—
The cessation of life—
Is death to blame,
As if death designed life?
Quite the contrary,
Life necessitated death,
And,
What a gift
From a friend
Not a frenemy,
Certainly no enemy
To those of us who wish to be free
Of dealing with a world hellbent
On teaching us to see each other
As the enemy.
Again,
Death is not an enemy
For those who long to be free
Of vying for the scraps they see
Falling through a skimpy sieve—
Death is only an enemy
For those who long to live.
© 2025 Tristan Robert Lange. All rights reserved.
-
Author:
Tristan Robert Lange (
Offline) - Published: March 27th, 2025 08:51
- Category: Unclassified
- Views: 20
- Users favorite of this poem: arqios, sorenbarrett, Poetic Licence, rebellion_in_sanity
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Comments10
Floored… sinkholed… blackholed even 🙏🏻🕊
Thank you, my friend! I am very glad it delivered! Very much appreciated! 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
Wow! a wonderful poem that lays it out. It makes the case for how we create our own enemies and how hate eats us from the inside out. That even death can be a welcome friend. Deeper than the story and words is the message. The key is given as to how to live life free. So nicely organized and worded it is profound in its wisdom. A fave for the message given
Humbled! Thank you, Soren, for your time and humbling/inspiring feedback. So very much appreciated, as always! 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
Excellent write Tristan
Thank you so much, Tony. 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
You're welcome
Avoiding the brain's traps in its enormous labyrinth. "Falling through a skimpy sieve" is exquisite. I really liked that image. Speechless. Cheers.
Indeed. Thank you so much my friend. I am humbled and glad it delivered. 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
Or an enerfreny? Same as frenemy? I'm talking rubbish probably. lol.
It would be interesting to see what an enerfreny would turn out to be. Might be the same, or it could be a cosmic and mutilated monstrosity from some H.P. Lovecraft tale. 🤷♂️🤣
What a wonderful write, the enemy within, how we nurture hate ourselves and feed it untill then it takes us over and imprisons us, that we cannot think anything different, loved the read
Indeed. Thank you so much, Tobani. I am humbled, my friend. I am glad it delivered and you enjoyed. Have a great evening! 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
You are very welcome
Brilliant, I'm blown away!
Thank you, my friend. I'm humbled. Much appreciated! 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
I got a feeling of being dragged in front of the mirror and a voice telling me to open my eyes and to open my mind. The treatment of death is masterful. In my humble opinion it is one of the finest pieces - accessible yet deep as an ocean
Wow! I am humbled, friend! I am glad that the poem delivered and so very thankful for your gracious and encouraging words. Much appreciated, as always! 🙏🖤🦇🐦⬛🦇
Absolutely my pleasure
A fine write. Nicely done.
Thank you so much, Tom! Much appreciated, my friend! 🙏🖤🦇🐦⬛🦇
Sometimes, often even, death is more welcoming than those who claim to care for you
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