“Shadow” Poem of the Day (2022)

“Shadow”

By Ashley O’Hare

For two decades,

I have lived with my eyes

squeezed shut.

If I opened them,

I would have to look around

and accept that my shadow

still stalks me.

I’m too slow to outrun it.

I’m too scared to turn and face it.

So I choose to live

in a bleak void.

My cheeks

have long since forgotten how to smile.

My gut

refuses to speak its mind.

So I stay here

alone

where I can’t be found.