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Ladderwords
Ladderwords
Mar 20, 2010 ⭐ View statistics (Premium feature)

I Agree When Drunk. I Leave in Tears (A Visit to a Korean Death Day Ceremony)

we should not be able to sup

engagements while in drunk

heat

 

chemicals divine

us  glorious

on the wrong side of

a coin in liquid

confidence because

 we out drink our idiocy

 

connect the numbered dots

in awkward sequence to

pattern the twilight

of tomorrow in eclipse

sobriety

 

there is no oracle for

after taste hydrochloric regret

in the mirage of right choice

 

prey to melt your brain the stubborn

ship navigates through mundane pain

groping for icebergs to crash against

 

my search for stillness hits me

 

invited to a death day ceremony

for Korean grandparents while

my grandfather expires in a hospital

 

there I kneel

stuck

bout the berg

 

tears floating on remnants of alcohol

a shallow sea took me two deathbeds

— Ladderwords, Mar 20, 2010

About This Poem

About the Author

Region, Country: Jeju, KOR

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Critiques

Ladderwords

Ladderwords

16 years 2 months ago

Was I drunk? No, but I was

Was I drunk? No, but I was nursing a nasty hangover from the Korean soju I drank at the ceremony. I was trying to eek out the words through that nasty blockage. A rewrite will be forthcoming I think .... especially the ending.
arja

arja

16 years 2 months ago

…hmmm, ;) i think i like

...hmmm, ;) i think i like the ending this way, but i'll stick around for the changes you'll make.. :)
judyanne

judyanne

16 years 2 months ago

so sad

like this write, so many good lines. 'we out drink our idiocy' 'tears floating on remnants of alcohol a shallow sea took me two deathbeds' i especially felt tears from me again so sad to be so far away from an important event. love judy
Ladderwords

Ladderwords

16 years 2 months ago

Thank you for your kind

Thank you for your kind words. I got news recently from back home that my grandfather made a miraculous recovery just hours before he was predicted to pass on. His kidneys got a jolt of life and started back up again. When I told my Korean coworkers about this, they claimed it was a miracle, blessed upon me by god for going to the death day ceremony. I agreed for the sake of communication, but I've never been one of the faithful ... it's funny how a different perspective on emotional events can reshape your ideology.
arja

arja

16 years 2 months ago

..it’s TRULY a miracle!

..it's TRULY a miracle! wow... so how's your grandfather now? I agree on the later part of your comment.. Well, .."change is the only thing that's constant in life.." I can't remember where I read/heard that but its actually true.. ..as for the poem, I like this one better.. ;)