The Shell

(a poem)

Beneath the smile,

the laugh,

the jest,

the kindness,

the comradery,

the humility,

the generosity…

the understanding…

the hopefulness…

~

There was a lone voice screaming for reprieve.

There was a lone voice screaming to be heard.

There was a lone voice screaming for the end.

~

There the voice screamed,

stifled and suffocated,

until pain turned to rage,

and it shattered all within,

leaving only a hollow shell,

that in the pursuit of goodness,

emptied its own self.