Bleed in silence

Bleed in silence

Take the medicine

Swallow the pill

Choke back the tears

In shadow

Watch life

From a broken window

Wrapped in an old blanket

Rescued from a charity shop

Gift aid

In king size

Who has been sleeping

In my bed

Trace the grime

With a fingernail

It is an easy choice

For the homemaker

To cover the hole

With cardboard

Paint it red

A fitting tribute

To the pretty boy

Who rolled into town

With a dream

Lost his way

In the meantime

Was found washed up

On the far side

With his innocence

Strung out

In flashing lights

Around a mirror

In a shared bathroom

With a cracked basin

And sharps bin.

Perfected a grimace

That looked like a grin

In the half light

He looks better at night

Plays guitar in a Gin house band

Sits when he can’t stand

Plays a mean blues

For a white boy

With no name

A millennial story

Of lost potential

And little glory.