Exertion
Pushes me
Within a crowd
A light burning on
Amidst the volume
Frenetic
Fatigue chases me
Weighing on my words
Turning my food
To dust
In my mouth
But, oh, the bliss
Of solitude waiting
A chance
To spit out
The bitter ends
Of every murmur
And every distraction
That tears
At my mind
My lungs released
From the vice-like grip
Of crowds and others
And the chaos
Of being
I breathe
At last
I find the air
I hold my freedom
To my heart – Caroline A. Slee