On This Side Of Lonely Poem by Saydra Basta

Lonely is not a big enough word
Lonely doesn't tell what lonely is
It says only "one"
But doesn't count
For the million ways that one can be
Silent
Terrified
Desperate
Enraged
How do you fit it all in six letters?
But perhaps it is better this way
When someone who hasn't seen your side of lonely
asks What's wrong with you?
And you want to shriek and sob and release all the noise trapped in you
That which you struggle to keep at bay
You can simply shrug
and say
I guess I'm just lonely