By Mark A. Leon

Through the words of Vedder and Cohen a melancholy journey follows in this endless pursuit of solitary confinement

Depression, my friend

Like the warm embrace of these straps and padded walls, you never leave my side
Faithful, obedient, piercing

Even in beauty, I am ugly in your eyes
A failure destined for eternal void

With the temper of a band of ravens you stare through the emptiness in my eyes

Tired
Pathetic

I hear Buckley screaming “Hallelujah” as he floats upstream
A leader falls in the blood of his dream

Darkness is the only happiness
Without sight, everything is so clear
Picture it, perfect clarity
A diamond in the violent cloud of coal

Intellect dulls the knives and feeds rationality
Yet, is life rational with chaos all around?

Sometimes it is hard to hate when hate is so easy

Once again, I lay alone questioning an existence written in a book without answers