Sometimes I love my reflection.  
Other times, he's just a bad friend—fixing his lips like he's about to interrupt me before I get my thought out good.  
When I stop speaking, so does he.  
What do you expect? He's me. ****.  
In truth, the bills are paid, and all current business is handled. But something is missing. It’s obvious. He just looks and shakes his head—my reflection.  
I'd be lying if I said I didn't care.  
I've gotten used to the silence that follows me. It's peaceful.  
When I make it home after a long day, if I touch something, I know where it is.  
If I cook something, I know there's more, even if I don't eat it all.  
He sits back and watches all of this.  
My reflection. Half the time, I pay him no mind. Sometimes, it's better that way.  

But sometimes, I wouldn't mind a bit of noise

Within the void your absence made,
I wandered lost, in shadows stayed.
Yet in the silence, pure and deep,
I found a self I longed to keep.
A hidden flame, a quiet light,
Born from the depths of endless night.
Within the void your absence made,
I found myself, no longer afraid

How nice of you to come visit me,
I wondered who was at the door.
Rarely does anyone come to call,
So please, pardon the dreary decor

Of course, there are cherished memories
That answer to my beck and call;
Some make me smile, while others bring tears --
You may wonder why I keep them all

Well, memories reflect reality --
Long ago, Hope's idle dreams fled;
I haven't seen or heard from them since
(I'm beginning to think they're all dead)

But I'll not go searching for lost dreams,
Nor on their return will I dwell,
For dreams are precarious footpaths
That can lead us to heaven . . . or hell

Fate writes the script for Life's theater,
And assigns our last curtain call;
Foolishly, I thought I was in charge . . .
Now I laugh as I roam Memory's Hall

There are times I draw back the curtains
Just to see what goes on out there;
But your world is no better than mine,
With its endless turmoil and despair

I like to think I've found asylum
In a world so devious and cruel,
Then Fate laughs and scornfully taunts me . . .
It's true, there's no fool like an old fool

But solitude offers safe harbor--
Yes, my flag of surrender's unfurled!
Please, leave if I cause you discomfort ---
But if you stay . . . . .  welcome to my world

In my solitude, I glimpsed a light I could not escape,  
Your laughter danced softly over my shoulder,  
Like the time I said I could never paint—  
And you, with a tender touch,
Held my hand and said,  
"I am the greatest masterpiece you'll ever create."  

I lost my way in your gaze;  
You told me it was I who brought you to life.  

White paint was out of reach, so my canvas stayed untamed.  
Red ran dry, so I bled deep to paint you unstained.  
Your hair brushed in black, a portrait unchained.  
I shaped your hands to mirror mine,  
So when I sought comfort,  
Yours would be the warmth I craved.

But now I search in desperate despair,  
To find the sketch of you in the back of my head.
It was all in my mind—engraved.  
So when I rot and fade away,  
You will remain beyond decay.

Silence sounded soothing & sagacious
Time stood still...Solitary stayed selfish & superstitious.
This, tingled senses; that bell tolled & manifested a macabre Misery.
Since solitude strengthened a spot;
Mine own nightmares grew into one Succubus, filled with immorality - ****** desires...
Somewhere, somehow, I'm a lingering loner looking for love - a sentiment that never dies!
Life ended, memories remained copious;
Silence suffocated & since, misery concluded,
My addiction added a fastidious aura - some kind of flirtatious facade.
All donating a desolate & oblivious tragedy.

~ A. Rose

An oracle stands
alone in her stone grotto —
Solitary lamp

-Fickle Friends

Who will help me up when I fall?

I have no friends, no one at all...

when the echoes of harmony leave the heart’s chambers,
when the ears ring between extremities of silence,
when the hallows shudder into a lull,
when the birds sing out of tune,

we shall muse together again -
my sweet bitterness.