The Tiny Moth

by Jesse Shanks

The chains of uncertainty
Are wrapped around my shoulders
The weight of unfulfilled desire
Hangs down like heavy boulders

The handcuffs of misery
Chafe my wrists like knives
The leg irons of loneliness
Hold me fast when the pain arrives

But like Atlas held the sky
A crushing burden like none have known
Immutable I bear my lot
Until the day I turn to stone

I wait for the tiny moth
To flutter on my brow
Only the love of the tiny moth
Can help me keep my vow