I’m a bit broken
Words rarely spoken
The truth
Tastes so bitter and strange, clay emotions.
Barely alive
Rotten inside
Dead to a world
Where I once loved and thrived.
Cursed with routines
Obsessive dreams
Compulsive acts
Mask stifling screams.
Speculate, ruminate
Gnaw, then regurgitate
Cyclical sickness
These images dominate.
Falling apart
An effortless art
Yet smiling serenely
As I play the part.
A role on a stage
A turn of the page
You don’t even know me
Bird trapped in a cage.
Battered and bruised
Torn and abused
This was my past
Now my present, reused.
Infected, rejected
Defective, Subjective
I yearn for release
From this pain undetected.
For I’m a bit broken
Words finally spoken
Praying they free me
Desperately hoping.
Are you a bit broken?
All feedback and comments gratefully received?
Black Thoughts 
That is a brilliant poem Stephen. I think we are all a little broken in our own little way.
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Thank you. I suppose we are.
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Yes, in some ways… I suppose like all of us. I love the song “Beautifully Broken.” Offers hope in our brokenness. Thank you for sharing this loving poem and image. You are gifted with words 🙏🏻
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You’re welcome. Thank you very much 🙂
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Typo above… it’s supposed to say “moving poem”.
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I think “loving” is fitting, too. (Nothing says “love” like letting someone know you feel their pain.)
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Very good point! Thank you for sharing that. I would agree 🙏🏻
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What an outstanding poem. Regardless of a person’s degree of brokenness, these words will surely resonate. Thank you for writing and sharing it.
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You’re welcome Deborah. Thank you so much for your kind words.
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Yes we are all broken! I don’t read very many blogs, but the title of your poem caught my eye this morning, it was the first one in my inbox. Are you okay? I know you probably have loved ones, and the church, and of course Jesus! Maybe I’m reading too much into this? But are you okay?
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Yes, I’m fine thank you. This was written more from a point in my life a few years ago. I have a great family around me. I stopped going to church almost two years ago.
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I am so glad you are not suicidal! I simply could not just tell you how beautiful this poem was and not inquire as to your safety :-). I am not sure how stopping going to church 2 years ago affected you and your health, but it makes me sad to think that you are doing better apart from church than you were in it. Love to you!
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Thank you. Don’t be sad. I’m in a much better place now 🙂
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But I’m certainly glad you’re in a much better place now. I have such a wonderful church I cannot imagine life without my church family and support. Not all people have access to such awesome communities, though, and I understand that. Still makes me a little sad, sorry :-)!
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Was this after the run? Yes we are all broken. My daughter lived in Japan and told me that objects that are broken (like vases) are put back together and the cracks lined with gold. They see brokenness as beautiful. This is a wonderful poem!
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Thank you very much. No lol although my legs do feel broken today 😂
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None of us get through life unscathed (love the poem)
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Thank you Carol.
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You are welcome, as always….have a good week.
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You too 🙂
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Thanks so much
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We’re, all of us, broken
Though not so outspoken.
We sigh, hide, and cry;
Keeping all things inside.
Afraid to reach out,
As others walk by.
If only we’d look,
If only we’d try.
Yet, fractured and walking
We’re talking
We’re stalking
While mirror-image souls
Keep knocking.
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And knocking.
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Indeed
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This is better than my own humble offering. You should have blogged it as a post.
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Whatevs. You are most definitely the rap master. I only TRIED to match your meter.
Consider yours inspirational enough to want to respond in kind. 🙂
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Thank you. Much appreciated.
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Yes I would describe myself as broken. I’m rather a sensitive soul and this world can sometimes be too harsh for me, and also for others like me.
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I’m much the same.
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We are all a bit broken. Great poem. I could feel the brokenness.
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Thank you 😊
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Yes… But that’s our shared humanity. If we weren’t broken, I’d not have empathy for those that do. We are connected by the suffering as strange as it sounds. I actually just read an article from time magazine about how empathy makes us more attractive. I would say this is true. I’m attracted, not in any kind of romantic way, to people who know pain. It helps me to see the beauty in our shared brokenness. If I was perfect, I’d not notice the tears or feel as deep as I do. I dare say, I’d not be a writer or artistic. You use your pain for beautiful things. And that makes you a lovely human. So thank you for sharing it. I’m not alone and that’s a wonderful thing to realize.
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Thank you very much Michelle. Beautifully expressed.
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This is such a moving poem. You can feel the emotions jumping off the page. You are right, we’re all a “little” broken but we manage somehow to get through each day little by little.
Thank you for this beautiful poem
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You’re welcome. Thank you very much 😊
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I’m a bit broken too. 💜
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If we weren’t a bit broken, then what would we be? Gods? Recognizing that we aren’t perfect, that we fallible, or even rewriting code in our brains and breaking out of bad habits is what makes us human.
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That’s true. I’m certainly no god lol.
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the truth is
we are all a bit broken
we may not always admit it
but we all go through a sleepless night where we just cry to let it all out
it is something we all have in common
this poem is something we can all relate to no matter what age we are
we are all a bit broken
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I agree. Thank you for your feedback 😊
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We must be broken before we can admit our need for Christ.
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This sounds so much like where I was before Jesus (not “church”!) picked me up. – Not that I don’t backslide occasionally, but it reminds me of what the old brokenness felt like and keeps me from getting smug and insensitive. Ideally, the Church (people, not the building) should be a community of shared brokenness and healing. I do hope you find a group of believers you can trust, and help others in their own brokenness, as they help you stay healed.
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I’m not really looking to be honest. I feel healthier outside the church environment at present. Thank you for your concern, though.
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Unbelievably broken at times and then light shines through the cracks and there seems to be meaning. You have a tremendous talent for writing, keeping faith in your spirit, running, being a great dad/person and seeking to inspire and motivate others …. Sometimes even though we may be bruised, battered, tattered and bleeding … the days where hope returns, reward us with a sudden brighter insight. Sending HOPE and healing through the wires!
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Thank you very much. You’re very kind.
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So many of us are, and yet we are stronger for it. This is a beautiful and very moving poem.
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Thank you very much.
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I am sorry you feel this way – to be missing something and have no hope of repair is sad. I think I was broken at the very beginning, and I have been putting myself back together ever since. The trouble with age is, you forget which piece goes where, a lot of the time..
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Yes, I identify as the broken body of Christ that continues to live, in real time, today. Thank you for being transparent. We all long to be loved, accepted, forgiven and pleasing to God and others. You are! I am thankful for your writing and to be your friend over the seas.
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Thank you Julia.
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So much meaning,
In so few words,
Keep it up Baba…
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Thank you very much.
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We are all broken in varying degrees. In healing, those broken places can become the source of our strength.
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Thank you.
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Words spoken out loud that I am a bit broken, helps to break that unrealistic expectation of happy all the time. I appreciated your poem, thanks for sharing
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Yes, my Brother! I’m more than a bit broken. I’m chattered to pieces! What a blessing you are with your transparency. Much love, thia. 🙂
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Thank you very much 🙂
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I love your poetry.. check mine out if you get a chance. Peace, hope and love, Emily
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Thank you Emily. I will 😊
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