Dégringolade

“Crawling Man” by Buen Calubayan

I need sleep
painless rest
sweet escape
a soft silent
cocoon shut
away from
sick noise of
a world come
to madness

I need some
dull moments
of deafness
to suffering
cries of my
kind caught
and gnashed by
the teeth of
perversion by
godless libidos
of violence
by gunmen
and gangsters
corrupt in
their creed
of rank hatred
irrational
soulless
deliberately
cruel

all the poor
bleeding voices
who scream
in the night
the uncountable
terrified
innocent
victims of
every base
instinct our
deeply flawed
species can
wreak on itself

moral mayhem
whose sounds
haunt my
elderly ears
fighting evil
requires a
stalwart a
younger and
healthier man

I have outlived
my bravery
leaving me
wallowing
achingly tired
and weak
and afraid
where was pride
now lives shame

I am wretched
and ruined
my warrior self
long since come
to his finish
my battleflags
shredded to
ribbons by
father time’s
merciless scythe
I need sleep
painless rest
sweet escape