Past Blinking Twice
by Michael Doyle

Some say forgetting is a gift
It's a way past the rift
Between personal rationalization
And what allows you past sensations

The ones that we cannot forgive
And yet it is that we must live
However, far past the threshold
That our senses won't allow told

Lying there in a puddle of blood
We forget we survived crawling from the mud
To become something somehow stronger
And each day of life allowed us longer

We had to become ugly and mean
To evolve into stronger human beings
But most of all, we had to forget to be nice
To do these things without blinking twice

There is no amount of fear or sorrow
That will get us through to our tomorrow
When and if we remember what we've done
Things unthinkable to have happened to anyone

The knife blade caresses but does not cut
Past the truths of the unwilling gut
The last laugh belongs to those strong enough to live
The struggle is found when we forget  but don't forgive

A threat is raised to those no longer nice
A cheer is spoken to those who blinked twice
A remembrance that the best part of life is living
And in this rage, decided there was enough forgiving

This thing, half-ignored but passed off as therapy
We'll never likely never find a cure for me
It's the endless discussion that goes on forever
Yet, somehow, someone thinks it's clever

(c) February 5, 2025   Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved