Contributor: Shirley Jones

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I covet misfortune,
it's a black obelisk of damaged
psyches that tower over me
as I try to pick up the pieces
from the last emotional storm

I worship worry,
it's a barrier of bondage
tightening around my heart
as I try to break free from the malaise
that threatens to suffocate me

I bow, bereft of all feeling
watching it wither away
like leaves in autumn
and are blown away
and forgotten


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Shirley Jones-Luke is a poet, writer and educator from Boston, Massachusetts. Ms. Luke has an MA in English and an MFA in Creative Writing. She has been published in The Voices Project, Raising Mothers, ENUF and the Creative Ezine.