Author Information
9. Between Broken Paths and Stars
Finding solace under the Southern Cross, where memory becomes a constellation. Image by Midjourney v7.
Between Broken Paths and Stars
For Millie and Mr. Kitty, my guiding stars
My very being flickers, who can trace
This self I bear, a star about to fade?
This vessel, home to sorrows,
finds no space But vertigo, a mind in light and shade.
This unjust world, its balance cracked and lost —
Yet still I am — I live — though tempest-tossed.
Into the storm of cold, dismissive eyes,
Into the swirling sea of disbelief,
Where documented, earnest, unheard cries
Find no safe harbour, no shore, no relief.
All that I cherished dissolves into mist,
My Millie murdered, her comfort now unkissed.
I tread on broken paths none comprehend,
Each step through searing flame, a daily pain.
Authorities watch with dispassionate lens,
Their coffers full, while I shoulder the blame.
I labour through days of unyielding strain,
Yet cannot shed these shackles of disdain.
I yearn for havens where compassion dwells,
For quiet corners where truth might gently bloom;
Instead, I find but empty, hollow shells
Of systems built to seal a spirit’s tomb.
Medical reports stack high, unread, unseen,
While hunger gnaws where solace might have been.
If those who govern, those who feign to care,
Choose wilful blindness as they watch me fall,
Why not complete this suffering laid bare?
A kinder end than no response at all.
The noose of neglect tightens day by day —
At least speak truth as you all turn away.
So let me rest where honesty prevails,
The earth below; above, celestial skies.
No more false promises or hollow tales,
Just peace at last when this tired spirit flies.
Yet as the dusk descends, a gentle gleam —
Your soft green eyes, my Mr. Kitty, like a waking dream.
They are the lanterns in this gathering gloom,
A steadfast glow that sorrow cannot quell.
Your purring presence warms this fading room,
A tender love, a deep and sacred spell.
And in this love, release finds soft embrace —
No stark farewell, but entry to a grace,
A dream within a dream, a starlit, sacred place.
Your love, a light that time cannot erase.
