Unseen

by Cheryl Merrick

As beauty that is unseen
in a vision-less world,
lies love in a heart that knows
only competition.
Frightened people huddle and scurry,
driven by a fear that never ceases;
“If I don’t control others, they will control me!”.
The fear escalates.
In a desperate effort to protect the fragile soul,
all weapons are employed:
intimidation and guilt,
manipulation and denial.

Sadly, the bearer of love
retreats from this bristling arsenal of fear.
Support, love, and deep concern
has been endlessly offered,
to be only apprehensively fended away,
for the inhabitants in this cold, bleak world
can only interpret others’ actions by their own.
“I must be in control,” they cry,
fearing domination.
And so, living in a world of their own making,
in anxious competition,
and intense loneliness,
they endure a harsh life,
without the softening glow of friendship,
or the nurturing warmth of love.