Old Friend

Image created by Gemini – Imagen 3
Old Friend
by Louise Gallagher

Hello, old friend.
I see you
your shadow hunched
dark and brooding
in the mists of doubt
that crowd my mind
when I dare to step
beyond the comfort of these walls
we’ve built together
believing, they will hold me safe
from living
free
from doubt.

I sense you
my friend
lurking
withered arms outstretched
waiting
to catch me
leaning out
beyond the edges
of this uncomfortable box
I inhabit
because I hold tight
to the fear
of stretching beyond
the things I’ve always done
so that I can stay
close to you.

I feel you
old friend
fighting
to keep me safe
when safety is not what I need
to live
fearlessly
beyond this cage I’ve built
trapping me
in believing
here
is where comfort lies.

The truth lies,
my friend,
in believing
I am alone
when I plunge
heart first
into the unknown
because,
the truth
is always felt
in your hands
on my back
ready to lift me up
when I dare
to let go of doubt
and fly free.

13 thoughts on “Old Friend

  1. Elgie,

    Great poem .. in two parts.
    The words we read – wonderful.
    The words ‘between the lines’ are harder to read, but I can see there is something there, but the risk of reading those wrong, I’ll bite my tongue … and only this:

    You’ve learned many times and have the experiences and evidence to prove that YOU are your strength – that when help is needed, you are strong for others … you are supportive, wise and ‘don’t own other people’s problems’ and they don’t own or control you
    And those are two things – we cannot control the feelings of anyone else; that’s their turf. We all have enough of a challenge managing what’s between our ears and on our plates. To add ‘figuring out the inside of someone else’s head is a foolish folly’

    Cheers,
    Mark

    Liked by 1 person

      • Yes, it gets crowded when we have two people in one head; I’m currently in ‘break mode’ in my relationship (not my choice) so it’s crowded still … and I’m hoping someone comes back one day to say ‘break is over’ … so my conundrum is ‘will I feel the same way then?’ ….

        Like

Your comments create a beautiful circle of reciprocity. Please do comment.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.