Organ Systems | Teen Ink
  1. Home
  2. Poetry
  3. Free Verse
  4. Organ Systems

Organ Systems

June 19, 2014
By ChrisJ PLATINUM, Rochester, New York
More by this author
ChrisJ PLATINUM, Rochester, New York
24 articles 15 photos 289 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.&rdquo;<br /> - Martin Luther King Jr.

View profile

My heart feels like a cancerous lung—
flooded with tar and festering with abuse,
oozing the pain of rejection into my bloodstream.

My arms feel like broken legs—
torn muscles burning with lactic acid residue,
my sense of touch demolished.

My spine hangs like a falling tree—
branches of vertebrae rotting from pollution,
the pollution of my delicate organ systems.

My brain does not know how to think—
rather, it sits like a chicken’s egg,
an egg stepped on before hatching.

The blood, tissues, organs of my infant body
smoldering in the heat of day,
burnt to a crisp on the sidewalk of the sun.

Will I ever live?

© Melissa P., Oley, PA

Post a comment
Submit your own

Similar Articles

Previous Next
Poetry
Doll House Living
By sgrace SILVER
West Chester, Pennsylvania
sgrace SILVER, West Chester, Pennsylvania
5 articles 22 photos 18 comments
View profile
Poetry
Death At Your Door
By sHaDoWnInJa PLATINUM
West Jordan, Utah
sHaDoWnInJa PLATINUM, West Jordan, Utah
31 articles 0 photos 3 comments
View profile
Poetry
Alice
By Keasbey GOLD
La Habra Heights, California
Keasbey GOLD, La Habra Heights, California
12 articles 0 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I will no longer pray on my knees, to a god who&#039;s left me so many times. I will no longer pray on my knees, to a god who won&#039;t answer my call.&quot;

View profile
Poetry
leap
By carreyelaine GOLD
Arlington, Tennessee
carreyelaine GOLD, Arlington, Tennessee
12 articles 4 photos 1 comment
View profile
Poetry
unnamed
By Mew13 SILVER
Princeton, New Jersey
Mew13 SILVER, Princeton, New Jersey
5 articles 0 photos 0 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;If there were to be a universal sound depicting peace, I would surly vote for the purr.&quot;<br /> (Barbara L. Diamond)

View profile
Poetry
That Dreary Day
By jessicaah GOLD
Huber Heights., Ohio
jessicaah GOLD, Huber Heights., Ohio
12 articles 17 photos 29 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I say what I want to say and do what I want to do. There&#039;s no in between. People will either love you for it or hate you for it. &quot;

View profile

JOIN THE DISCUSSION

This article has 5 comments.

Magistra said...
on Jul. 5 2014 at 8:53 am
Scientifically graphic images--so effective, since they are personal and painful, yet one cannot turn away. The ending made me flinch, which I think was the intent! Marvelous!
ChrisJ PLATINUM said...
on Jun. 29 2014 at 7:09 pm
ChrisJ PLATINUM, Rochester, New York
24 articles 15 photos 289 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.&rdquo;<br /> - Martin Luther King Jr.

View profile
Thank you for your uplifting words. I'm glad you liked my poem!
HudaZav SILVER said...
on Jun. 29 2014 at 12:27 pm
HudaZav SILVER, Toronto, Other
8 articles 6 photos 390 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Nothing is impossible; the word itself says &#039;I&#039;m possible&#039;!&quot; -Audrey Hepburn

View profile
Why doesnt this piece have more comments? This poem is amazing, and I ompletely agree with McKay. You grasped my attention from the first line to the last. Well done!
ChrisJ PLATINUM said...
on Jun. 24 2014 at 3:30 pm
ChrisJ PLATINUM, Rochester, New York
24 articles 15 photos 289 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.&rdquo;<br /> - Martin Luther King Jr.

View profile
I truly appreciate the uplifting comment, Mckay. Thank you very much and I'm glad you like my work!
Mckay ELITE said...
on Jun. 24 2014 at 1:36 pm
Mckay ELITE, Somewhere, Virginia
146 articles 0 photos 2230 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.&quot;<br /> &mdash;Apple&rsquo;s &ldquo;Think Different&rdquo; commercial, 1997<br /> &ldquo;Crazy people are considered mad by the rest of the society only because their intelligence isn&#039;t understood.&rdquo; <br /> ― Weihui Zhou

View profile
My heart feel like a cancerous lung—This opening line grasps my entire attention, stirs my emotion, and shakes my dormant muse. The whole poem is a banquet of grostesque images and poignant emotion. I can't decide which stanza I loved most: they're all equally marvelous. Great to know you're still writing amazing poetry, my friend. Congratulations on the Editors' Choice for this piece; well deserved. 5/5