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Open Poetry #16
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Keith Morgan
Member
since 2001-10-29
Posts 114
Md

0 posted 2001-10-31 08:41 PM


Breaking The Silence

I want to tell you a story
You must listen carefully
Or my soft-spoken words will pass you by
There was once a little boy
With big brown eyes and chocolate brown skin
His dimples were deeper than a crater
Smile wider than an abyss
A single mother gave him love
A single mother gave him her trait
A smile is what he spoke
A frown is how he wept
Growing up with that smile
His weapon against the world
His hope for an answer
Not quite knowing how to ask
He spoke only when necessary
Listened only with necessity
Words became his nightmare
His worst fear in life
Attacked by misunderstanding
Stalked by non-communication
Burdensome this condition
His left-brain inflicted
An excessive amount of Dopamine
His books say is the cause
Foreign these words are to a child
Real the pain they have caused

As a teenager things got no better
Still haunted by visions of words
Challenged more by life each day
Therapist he would entertain
Answers they could not ascertain
The quiet guy with a smile
What he became known as
Few friends he entrusted
Ignorant foes he encountered
“A quiet man is a dangerous man”
That is what they whispered
“I am not a bad guy”
He thought to himself
“One day I will tell them
When I find the words”

A grown man now
No closer to finding his words
But closer to finding himself
Speaking less frequently
Observing more acutely
Trusting very cautiously
Reading almost fervently
Imagining often vividly
Absorbing reality
Understanding the cause
Finally accepting himself
Fear of verbal speech
Turned to strength of self-expression
Speaking but not literally
Expressing his thoughts artistically
Beautiful tattoos on his body
Tell a story much like mines
Life vs. Death
Hope vs. Despair
Written words would become powerful
An alternative to spoken
His poetic words
Speak a lifetime of missed chances
And a  future of self-discovery

This is where I end this story
Because this is where my life begins
A better understanding of life in general
Has been the key to accepting my infliction
To embrace it as a gift
You see, stuttering is something I cannot change
But I can control it
Sometimes I let it roam freely
Confident I am it’s master
Fluent words of strength
I command it at a moments notice
Inside I am still the smiling boy
But outside is the man
Facing my challenges
Breaking my silence

Marcel

© Copyright 2001 Keith M. Morgan - All Rights Reserved
Magnus
Deputy Moderator 1 TourDeputy Moderator 1 Tour
Member Laureate
since 2001-10-10
Posts 14135
South Carolina, USA
1 posted 2001-10-31 08:49 PM


Keith....if this is of yourself....You are
learning well how to express beyond an
affliction that causes so much grief by
those who endure it.  You have penned many
feelings and thoughts within this message.
A very powerful message to all of us.

Thank You for sharing.

Sunshine
Administrator
Member Empyrean
since 1999-06-25
Posts 63354
Listening to every heart
2 posted 2001-10-31 08:52 PM



How brave this is...to be a person who stutters...when they try to hard not to...

this, I know...

thank you for this...

Keith Morgan
Member
since 2001-10-29
Posts 114
Md
3 posted 2001-10-31 09:03 PM


Thank you.  Having suffered so long from the impediment I have just recently learned how to deal with it.  I hope this piece will help others.
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