Rob Ostrom | OL02 | Fall 2021

Anahi’s Favorite Poem

You say you cannot handle my depression

But tell me how do you think I feel?

When you can leave whenever you please but

I am with me no matter where I go;

no escape from this flesh it is my home.

You can decide which days to love me on,

I must love me even if I’m collapsing or I will crumble

and I did crumble at your feet once before,

a state of vulnerability you labeled insufferable

but how do you think I feel?

I am the one who suffers in this skin,

You are just the bystander, on the outside looking in

Yet you only managed to barely scratch the surface of my severity.

I’ve seen it all

Sat front row in every devastating fall,

But I’ve also flourished

and if you cannot bare the intensity of my decline,

You won’t stand a chance amongst my uprise.

By: Keira Vanderkolk

1 Comment

  1. jaeggerpendoley

    Wow, thank you for this Anahi, “When you can leave whenever you please but I am with me no matter where I go; no escape from this flesh it is my home.” This is stunning/beautiful/haunting to me. My aunt has bipolar/schizophrenia and we joke about how she is my daughter/sister rather than my aunt. From the many conversations I have had with her for the past 20 years or so this is very much how she feels. I myself have dealt with severe anxiety along with mild depression and a large majority of this poem hits home with me. Beautiful! Thank you again! ❤️

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.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