I Can’t See Any Light

Some days are darker than others
Some are just pure darkness
I can’t see any light
Can’t seem to find a switch
We’ve all been there
Had our house of cards collapse
Watched in slow motion as it fell
And there was nothing we could do
Just watched and waited
Maybe we were already thinking
About how to pick up the pieces
About what we could salvage
Other times we just sat there
Our cards an unmanageable pile
And we got up and walked away
Thought to ourselves
I can’t see any light
All that work seemed wasted
There’s nothing left to see
Nothing left for me
And then that damn nagging voice
Whispering, “just try again man”
Pick up those cards
Shuffle the deck and start over
That house of cards can be built
When the days are dark you listen
But on pure black days you don’t
You kick the table leg
Find a reason to blame the dog
Or the wind, or the something else
You let the anger out of its cage
Maybe yell at the darkness
Fill a glass and then fill it again
Pace around in frustration
The cards continue being cards
But you haven’t realize that yet
They will wait until you do
They’ve all been played
And you are no closer to a solution
That is unless you cheat
Use some tape or glue
Maybe sneak in a staple or two
But it’s not a real solution
Just a short term fix
And the cards will fall again
It’s the way cards are
The deck seems stacked against you
And you still won’t accept it
How many times have you tried
Every build ending in failure
Cards disconnected on the floor
Remember that other deck you had
It was a long time ago
Those were really bad cards
Lucky if you got two levels high
You eventually got rid of them
And for a while you stopped building
Card houses seemed like a waste of time
But then this deck just found you
You weren’t looking but there it was
Somehow it has a better feel
So you started building houses again
These were different and stronger
Not perfect but when it fell
It didn’t fall completely
And you felt unafraid to make repairs
To restructure and reconfigure
Working extra hard every day
Building even on the darker days
But then the darkest day came
An open window and the huge wind
Never felt a breeze so strong
Whipped in and the house was gone
Cards scattered and some torn
The deck no longer usable
You fell to your knees in anguish
Crying out in despair
I can’t see any light
Now realizing that this time
The cards wouldn’t be collected
Couldn’t be collected
And the house nevermore
Nothing remains to be seen
Just the pure darkness

Additional Reading by R.J. Schwartz

Visit the author page of this writer on this website

Published Works Available on Amazon

The Lover’s Thread, Poetry of Love and Romance

Poetry of the Human Condition, The Ups and Downs of Modern Living

The Creative Exiles an anthology of poems: Let the Words Speak

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R J Schwartz

I write about everything and sometimes nothing at all.I'm fascinated by old things, rusty things, abandoned places, or anywhere that a secret might be unearthed.I'm passionate about history and many of my pieces are anchored in one concept of time or another.I've always been a writer, dating back to my youth, but the last decade has been a time of growth for me.I'm continually pushing the limitations of vocabulary, syntax, and descriptive phrasing.

Latest posts by R J Schwartz (see all)

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