Saccharine Crumbs

Poem..

Small hands play with round rice crackers that slowly

Turn from full bodies of moons to crescents, bite after bite.

 

The crackers laughs along with the boy, with the carnival's lights

That eat the night away, with every second, bite after bite.

 

Tiny palms reach for the bashful stars, as the moon weaves

A blanket of fireworks that envelopes him, bite after bite.

 

The artificially butterscotch sky gently swirls, like a lost kite

Who has found the iridescent pangs of seclusion, bite after bite.

 

Small hands littered with crumbs of the past realize

The futility of indulging his sorrow with snacks, bite after bite.

 

The caramel apples held by children, lovers, friends, sprites

That sway along society’s path, mocks him, bite after bite.

 

Tiny hands that once held crackers, now hold cigarettes

Because just maybe, for a second, he’d feel alive again, bite after bite.

 

The smoke leaves his lips easier than his name does, forgotten, quite,

Amos, feels a miss, as he begs the soot to gnaw his lungs, bite after bite.

 

So he no longer has to speak, so that just maybe, he can disremember

The clique of candied men, who took him that night, bite after bite

 

The shadows of four men blending with his, as they took turns,

Five shadows becoming four, then three, then four again, bite after bite

 

As he watches, just a few feet away, caramel apples, bobbing up and down,

Laughing at his muffled mouth, mocking his inability to scream, bite after bite.

 

But apples cannot smile, nor laugh, he has to remind himself, just as the past

Can hurt him no longer. Yet the nightmares continues to ravish him, night after night

 

As the children’s laughs play tag with his insecurities, he can only laugh,

Because he can no longer return to the festival - no longer pure, bite after bite. 

Reviews

[Shy Joe]

This piece confuses me a bit. I am not the brightest fellow for sure, but I found this poem hard to follow. From what I gather this is someones journey from toddler to old age and the apples represent his stages in life? Sorry for my ignorance. I believe this one is over my head.

[Soma-ko]

No need to apologize, I guess my poems tend to be more obscure whether I mean it or not, but I'm glad you asked in any case!

This poem is about a boy that was raped, how he recollects the memories of that event, and how he no longer feels able to return to society. I guess the apple threw you off, because I don't mention a festival anywhere (which I've just noticed :O, the entire poem was set near a carnival type place, but it seems I forgot to put it in...).

I hope this helps the understanding of the words I used a bit better now!