The Tortured Poets Department Prologue
At this hearing
I stand before my fellow members
of the Tortured Poets Department
With a summary of my findings
A debrief, a detailed rewinding
For the purpose of warning
For the sake of reminding
As you might all
unfortunately recall
I had been struck by a case
of a restricted humanity
Which explains my plea
here today
of temporary i n s a n i t y
You see, the pendulum swings
Oh, the chaos it brings
Leads the caged beast to do
the most curious things
Lovers spent years denying
what's ill fated
Resentment rotting away
galaxies we created
Stars placed and glued
meticulously by hand
next to the ceiling fan
Tried wishing on comets.
Tried dimming the shine.
Tried to orbit his planet.
Some stars never
align.
And in one conversation,
I tore down the whole sky.
Spring sprung forth with
dazzling freedom hues
Then a crash from the skylight
bursting through
Something old,
someone hallowed,
who told me he could
be brand new
And so I was out of the oven
and into the microwave
Out of the slammer and into
a tidal wave
How gallant to save the
empress from her gilded tower
Swinging a sword he could
barely lift
But loneliness struck at that
fateful hour
Low hanging fruit on
his wine stained lips
He never even scratched
the surface of me.
"In summation, it was not a
love affair!"
I screamed while bringing
my fists
to my coffee ringed desk
It was a mutual manic phase.
It was self harm.
It was house and then
cardiac arrest.
A smirk creeps onto this
poet's face
Because it's the worst
men that I write best.
And so I enter into evidence
My tarnished coat of arms
My muses, acquired
like bruises
My talismans and charms
The tick, tick, tick of
love bombs
My veins of pitch black ink
Allโs fair in love and poetry
Sincerely, The Chairman of The Tortured Poets Department
