A weird poem that I am working on, looking for some feedback. A man cannot feel anything. |
-Harry Quite Contrary- by Keaton Foster I once knew a man A circus freak show Of a human being If there ever was one His name was Harry quite contrary He had a most peculiar Deeply woven confliction Harry quite contrary Could not feel Not a damn thing Absolutely nothing at all Those of us who knew him Felt for his inability to feel The surreal travesty of his life Was neither a gift nor a curse It was a decision he kept making The mindset of his existence A personal choice brought to fruition Because you see as a young man Harry quite contrary Went through so much hell That he on his own accord Simply shut down his ability to feel An unparalleled case of mind of matter And pain over self-expression Many years would pass Many lifetimes would expire But Harry quite contrary Refused to allow himself to feel Even if the slightest of ways It became his job A character in a sideshow act That traveled around the country Performing insane feats of What should have been debilitating theatrics People would pay a pretty penny To see Harry quite contrary mutilate himself In the most grotesque and horrific of ways People would come from miles around To see Harry remove his own skin They would watch him insert instruments Of pain into orifices of the crowds choice They would often challenge Harry To do increasingly more brutal acts Acts that would leave any other man Laying on the floor, screaming in horror But not Harry quite contrary He would not allow himself to feel Expression was just not his thing For many years Harry quite contrary Traveled around the country I would often visit him When and if he came Within close prolixity of my hometown I was never one to miss his show I became a friend that he could depend on For the utmost support For many years he never did ask He just shook my hand And assured me that he would be back And each year he would show up But then, one darker show Than ever before Harry quite contrary Seemed for a moment or more To show the smallest sign of pain The crowd screamed for a refund They were sure that the man Known not to feel was indeed Feeling everything full bore Outside his tent hung a sign that read Guaranteed to amaze Like the true showman he was Harry quite contrary somehow Managed to save his performance By assuring the audience That he was absolutely fine They settled down, they cheered As Harry quite contrary Took his most final bow After the tent was cleared After the show came to an end All that was left was Harry and I Standing in the middle of his tent As soon as he was sure it was clear As soon as he was sure I was The friend that I claimed to be He fell over in sheer agony Whispering for God to end his miserable life Praying for forgiveness of all that he had done Not to himself, but to everyone else he had loved I thought to flee, to find help But as I watched Harry I knew help Was what he needed and wanted least of all As Harry quite contrary laid at my feet The tortured life of his being began slowly escaping I said nothing as he further labored in pain I said nothing as he expired from his wounds I remained silent as his truth came to bear Harry quite contrary felt it all Every damn bit of every experience He had ever had in his lifetime For many years he was able to hide it To cover it up under the guise of showmanship On the day that he died All of the abuse, both self-inflicted And inflicted by others came to a head As a man Harry quite contrary was quite brave As a human being, Harry was doomed… Harry Quite Contrary Written by Keaton Foster Copyright © 2012. |