Understatement Poem by David Harris

Sometimes we say something
and then ask ourselves
why the heck did we say that.
Our mouth went in one direction
while our mind went in another.
When someone asks
what we meant by that
we feel a bit bemused
and can’t give an answer.
We do it all the time,
putting our foot in our mouth
and wish we had left it where it was
standing on the ground.
I once went out with a girl
in my very younger years,
who when she dumped me said
“I love you and I don’t want to hurt you
which why I’m packing you up.”
That statement makes no sense.
If you love someone, so much
you’d want to be with them all the time.
As for not hurting them.
Whenever someone leaves
the person, who is left always feels the hurt.
Now that is what you call
an understatement.

29 May 2008