Grief — I am the taker
I am the taker of logic,
the stealer of normal.
I am the devourer of intelligence,
bringer of grey fog.
I am the leecher of creativity,
making your thoughts thick and slow.
I am the consumer of all
that make you feel evolved.
I am the force that returns you
to your primal nature.
I need all the things I take from you
so that I can remove your final illusion…
Control.
I force you into a raw state
exposed and vulnerable.
I need blood and bone and frayed nerves;
all raw material for my work.
I cast out all “civilization” in you,
I need your screaming, howling animal.
You can not hold onto fragile things
least you damage them.
Death is a primal force of nature,
not to be trifled with lightly.
It can not be met with silly platitudes,
or dissipated with logic or fairy tales.
You need to see the inevitable truth
of your tiny existence.
No mantra or trinket around your neck
will stop the Angel of Death from
laying you out on your ass.
I am the enabler,
keeping the pieces safe.
I make it possible for you to hang above the breach,
and not be consumed.
Such a fine line between you and them,
but I am the captain of this glass-bottomed boat.
So, howl you dejected animal,
get all the poison out.
Claw and scratch and scream and bleed,
until you can barely call yourself human.
Let that rage and unchecked emotion go,
like radiation from a nuclear blast.
Then, when you can’t scream anymore,
take a step back.
I am the reclaimer,
here to lead you by the hand.
It may take a while,
we’ll locate those shed pieces of humanity.
We will find them along the way,
back to civilization.
They may fit differently and feel strange,
you are not quite the same animal.
I take the blame,
along with the rage and anger.
In time you will see
I’m the one keeping you,
from falling into the pit.
I play my part,
both foe and friend.
I lead you there,
and bring you back.
Not to where you started,
but several miles down the road.
Don’t look back,
you can’t recover that time.
I am grey because I am the side of death
closer to the light.
I am the taker.
