The lament of letting people, precious or otherwise, down—humanity’s consistent occurrence. In pain, we continue to pass on agony, and alone we grieve.

Anguish by Sadje

A sharp pain I felt 
Like a dagger plunged 
Deep into my heart 
The anguish, the agony unbearable 
I teetered, held out my hand for support 
It met empty air……… 
 
There was no one there 
To hold my hand, to console 
This aloneness has taught me a lot 
A valuable lesson to rely 
Only on myself and myself alone 
The pain still hurts sometimes 
But the anguish has died down 
My courage has lulled it to sleep

What have we done? by David Guerrieri 

I am not quite sure exactly what 
Some parents expect of their children 
In terms of success and failure 
Because of course each individual is unique 
In their own belief system developed through life 
Though I do know exactly what 
Some middle-aged men and women 
Expect of their parent’s, which is 
Love and Understanding that 
Love and Understanding means more to them 
Than any award or prize, delusions of wealth 
And superfluous measures of success 
Handed down from Great-Grandfather to Grandfather 
Then Father to Son who’s soul purpose it often seems 
Is to belittle the latter, like some draconian wheel 
Turning itself in circles, only to cause 
An endless cycle of fear and inferiority 
Leading nowhere fast, leading nowhere good 
On an endless road of resentment and ill worth. 
And we don’t ask for this. We are born to this. 
We are flesh and bone 
Fueled by the imperfections of our father’s 
Father’s, father’s son 
Who one day will understand he did nothing wrong 
Oh Mother, dear mother 
What have we done?