Of These Chains

I hear the click
The tumblers turn
Feel the grip release
At last

The shackles fall
From my wrists
The metal teeth
Release their hold

The mournful scream
Of rusted protest
By the reluctant iron door
Echos in this cage

A pale white shadow
Crawls over the dirt
Resting itself tiredly
Across me

I lift my eyes
To the emanation
The brilliance of a new dawn
Fills the empty sockets of my vision

It’s time to leave the dust of the past
Behind in this rusted  iron casket
But I don’t leap into the radiance
Which lies ahead, quietly beckoning

I stay where I am gripping the rigid steel
Moving my thumb against the familiar metal
Of these chains that once held me
Do I really want to let them go?

My eyes trail my wrists and ankles
There are still scars and bruises
From where the chains cut into me
I put some cloth between the spaces
To cushion their stubborn grip

I can still feel the holes and divots
Worn into these chains by years of rust
My tears once streamed down my face
They dripped off and continued down the links
These chains caught my every tear every time

I had come across a shank once
In my boredom, I had carved into my chains
Etched dazzling designs straight from my soul
On my right shackle, a poorly done lightning bolt
And on my left, an elegant vine reaching around my wrist

Because of these chains I am no one
I have no relief, no color in this place, and there is no sun
While in these chains, I am but a lonely prisoner
Nothing but worthless in the eyes of my old friends

But I beg you, please, don’t take these chains away
Let me take them when I go, let me carry them with me
I can’t take them. The burden of their weight is too much
But if I let go of these chains now will I see them again?
Can’t I just hold on a little longer?

I’m breaking free of these chains but
Let just one link remain
Just one part of these chains
That have become a part of me

I’ll tear of one for me to keep
A little trinket in my pocket
To save the memory

Its’ tiny metal presses against me
As I leave my seat running
Into the glorious sunlight

The weight of those chains
Still bear down on me
Even now in this new house
I can still feel the dead weight

I am often reminded of the pain
I once felt all those years ago
The blood and bruises are gone
But the raw memory stings

Now it seems
I will never be free
Of these chains