This Mortal Coil Poem by Boston Kelley

This mortal coil I am bound in;
wrapped in its embrace I can find no escape.
A gruesome flesh I am housed in;
oh, if only I could be free of it!
Within the coil is found pain unbearable;
this flesh houses misery as a servant.
It seeks to fulfill my depressing needs
and urges me on toward further grief.
Whisper to me, it may, for its voice cannot
be shut out; the coil burns with fiery intensity
with every passing second.
Seek me out and you will find me
with thick tears streaming down my cheeks.
Try to console me and guttural sobs
will be the source of my reply.
Break me, this grief will do, and I shall fall
weak and helpless; burn me, this coil does,
and I will be left as worthless ashes.
What worth could be found in such a grievous
state? Who would take pleasure at such misery?
Only a sadist or psychopath would delight
in misery for it is their lifeblood.
A thousand scars this sadistic grief leaves
on my body and many more are marked on my heart.
Fragile heart, do I possess, that breaks
with each mournful thought.
It is weaker than glass and more vulnerable than
an insect; a sensitive nature it contains.
Let this mortal coil be unbound and my soul transcend
these grotesque limitations, for I am like a poor prisoner
taken captive in war.
These chains bound me to a miserable existence;
an unfortunate life they promise me.
Greatly does this mind long to escape this body
and ascend to the great beyond; what I would find
would stand above everything in this world.
Earth's promises and many blessings offer little,
yet they are taken with such great delight.
Let me be free of this prison, loosed from my shackles
to find freedom from this agonizing flesh
and seek heavenly blessings.