We read poems laced with vitriol,
hoping they will heal us.
But we don’t need those poems of hate
that spur us to self-deprecation.
We have ourselves for that.
We plunge off the cliff,
sinking into the choppy waters below,
because they are warmer
than the biting wind above.
We don’t need their poems.
They tear us down,
then, while we’re on the floor
gasping for hope,
they lean in and whisper love yourself first,
and we call it motivation,
to cover the bruise they left behind.
We soak up their toxic words,
believing them the cure
for our battered souls,
when in truth
they only make it harder
for us to come up for air.
Break free from the toxicity.
Poems can rise from curiosity,
from gratitude, from love.
We do not have to dive into the darkness
to find inspiration,
nor read by the smallest light
for morsels of connection.
We don’t need poems that hurt us
to heal us.
-
Author:
M.E.M. (
Offline) - Published: November 4th, 2025 16:05
- Comment from author about the poem: Created/Edited/Finalized: 11/4/25 | Inspired by r. h. sin’s book “rest in the mourning” AND the reviews left for the book on Goodreads.
- Category: Unclassified
- Views: 5
Offline)
Comments2
I understand your point of how some poems bring us down and others lift us up. You have expressed well the need for some to read the uplifting yet many that write sad poems are suffering themselves and I can not tell them to pretend that they are not. Nor would I want to seal their lips so might I suggest that we read those things that make us happy and that we enjoy. It is just a suggestion. Love your idea of writing with consideration of the reader, it would be a nicer world if we were not all so self centered and considered others, but it is not a pretend world so we take the good with the bad and the vinegar makes the honey sweeter. Nicely done.
Thanks for your feedback. Honestly I considered some of the comments to be very pretentious and went off of those.
You are most welcome over the years I have found all types of people as poets on this and other sites and as in all art there are good and bad, audacious and humble, fake and real.
Great write - some points of which echo my own.
First and last lines are usually enough for me - there are many topics I don't want to engage with:: pro war, he/she done me wrong, too many daises and buttercups, direct advice and....
Not sure about the vinegar and honey, but Soren (above) makes some good points.
I was in the middle of rereading the book and felt like I was being put down and flipped through and found most of the poems were pulling at the negative to be positive and right then and there I decided I don’t really want to read poems that put me down in order to then make me feel better.
From my POV I think you made the right decision. Take care.
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