Women and Children First

I heard that the women 

Aboard the titanic  

Ran to the mirror to 

Apply lipstick 

As the boat was sinking

I imagine their terror and 

Them choosing this ritual 

To attempt to quell anxiety 

Has always resonated with me 

Now I wonder if lipstick 

Will disappear altogether

I am sure the demand is down 

During these masked times 

Loved ones have died 

Future plans don’t exist 

Live music, my religion 

Can no longer be experienced 

 People cry and 

 I am expected to comfort 

 People lie and

I am supposed to believe 

 People hate and 

 Still I fight to love 

 I work every shift gasping for air 

 At the threshold 

 Of my next panic attack

I am tired 

 So 

Very 

Tired 

 Feeling more expendable 

 And less than essential 

 My wonder at the world 

 Has turned to worry 

 Looking for those slivers 

 Of light and hope 

 To carry me through 

Proves to be difficult 

 Yet here I am 

 Still hunting... 

 💫Amber Comber

 #poetry #words #poems #healing #anxiety #writeitout #hope #fear #love #writer