by Caleb Ely

Like a soldier wounded in the army,
So am I.
Like a scar left from a bad cut,
So am I.
Like a foot filled with pain when dashed against a heavy object,
So am I.
Like a child hurt upon tripping,
So am I.

Like rubble crushed,
Tree broken,
Lightning struck,
Feelings upset,
Bee stung,
Garden untended,
Wound untreated,
So am I.

How I wish to be healed,
To have my infirmaries removed!
Yet the only one who can fix them
Is the one who caused them.
Why would I ask for help from the one who hurt?
Why would I seek treatment from the inflictor?

Because I love them,
And wish to gain some of their love in return.
Because I love do I try to return,
Because I love do I withstand hurt,
Hoping one day, love will wash all the pain away.

Caleb Ely, writing under the pen name of Ladson, is a junior at Georgia Southern University where he is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology. Writing poetry was never something Caleb considered doing, but what started in 2015 to express thoughts and emotions has since become one of his methods to spread a positive, thoughtful, or heartfelt word to any who will listen and understand.