Dementia Daze Poem by Simone Harriman

Dementia Daze

Rating: 5.0


Far away from a familiar reality
In some recurring nightmare
Of paralyzing inertia
My mind empties its armoires
Damp with silverfish and camphor balls

Inside a frail shell of mottled chalk skin
Stretching over blue hollows and sliding
Into foreign boxes of polished ivory
All my glue is disappearing

Eddying agitated for rescue or reason
There is no itinerary
A dead neuron floats by
Familiar eyes me defiantly
I become beached on an island
Inside a sad lonely cloud
A stranger wades over

I am led to a vast void
And abandoned on the brim
I fear I shall never be found
Balancing at the brink
I'm looking out a mildewed window
Storm rain taps and scrapes her nails on my nerves
Leaves sweep and cower in corners
A wild branch flays a wailing ghost

Nothing makes any sense
Seated inside a windswept atrium
Why am I crying?
My mind is closed as a coffin
I just want to go home
Long bones are combing my hair
While I'm swallowed alive in catacombs
Etherised thoughts tangle, blur, and decay
From no-one to no-where to nothing

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Tango 13 March 2022

Sounds just like the dreams I have

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David Desantis 04 April 2022

What an amazing poem. Very sad though. Dementia is something I've always feared. This really captures the loneliness of it as one eventually becomes lost in their own soul.

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Bri Edwards 17 April 2022

Did you know? 'A type of cupboard, cabinet, or wardrobe - originally used for storing weapons.' (3rd definition I found for 'armoire') bri ;)

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Bri Edwards 17 April 2022

You've supplied me with a description of this poem (sort of) : 'Nothing makes any sense' I wonder how accurately and how often the poem reflects the 'feel' of dementia, IF one can feel it. bri ; (

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Bri Edwards 17 April 2022

Perhaps YOU, my friend, ARE demented? : ) About 4 years ago, around age 69, I found myself about to 'return' a carton of milk to a cabinet (true) . [cont.] ...

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Sochukwu Ivye 06 December 2023

This evocative poem delves into disorientation and introspection, painting a vivid picture of emotional turbulence. The yearning for home and the unraveling of thoughts create a powerful exploration of inner struggles in a surreal landscape.

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Bri Edwards 17 July 2022

five stars here, from me.

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Bri Edwards 17 July 2022

While I'm swallowed alive in catacombs Etherised thoughts tangle, blur, and decay From no-one to no-where to nothing'

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Bri Edwards 17 July 2022

'Familiar eyes me defiantly' Hmm? What does this mean? It seems some word(s) is/are missing.

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LeeAnn Azzopardi 17 April 2022

I lost my Mum to dementia I truly understand this poem Bravo!

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