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The Warden Whose Name is Depression

Charena Hylton

November 23 
Free verse
When the warden whose name is Depression
Makes a prison of your mind
And the walls are barred all around you
Mirroring all you've left behind

No matter how good your behavior
You will never get out on parole
Because the warden will never be satisfied
Til he shreds each shard of your soul

In solitary confinement
You will spend most of your time
With only your thoughts for company
To ponder over your crimes

You may hear other prisoners crying
Apparitions of former selves
The infant, the child, the adolescent
With whom you're acquainted well

An ammunition of memories lies
In the chamber of his gun
And nothing would give him more pleasure
Than to shoot if you try to run

When his bullet pierces your brain
Your life will flash before your eyes
Each of your former selves will mourn
As yet another piece of you dies

Whatever remains will be captured
And thrown back into a cell
The Warden will cackle delightedly
By your misery he was regaled

For the warden whose name is Depression
Adores reigning over his jail
Escape is nearly impossible
You will never break free from this Hell
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Submitted by bookerina on November 03, 2023

1:01 min read
99

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABXB CDXD EXXX XXEF GACA XGXG XFDX AXXF
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,093
Words 204
Stanzas 8
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Full analysis for The Warden Whose Name is Depression »

Discuss the poem The Warden Whose Name is Depression with the community...

4 Comments
  • npirandy
    npirandy
    This is really well done and worthy of more recognition than it received. There were so many terrific poems to choose from this month, sadly some like yours get overlooked. Don't let that discourage you. You have obvious talent to share. 
    LikeReply 14 months ago
    • bookerina
      bookerina
      Thank you so much! I appreciate your kind words!
      LikeReply4 months ago
  • susan.brumel
    susan.brumel
    Beautifully written. Resonates with those experiencing depression as well as people who care about them. Very descriptive metaphor.
    LikeReply 14 months ago
  • janet_1
    janet_1
    I read this poem so many times, falling more in love with it each time. I love the metaphor of depression as prison warden and the prison as your mind. This poem is so apt, so true, so poignant. I like how the author continues the metaphor throughout the poem, applying it so aptly to what depression is, and still maintaining the rhyming style. The other prisoners, of whom you're well acquainted, are earlier versions of self, and occupy the prison of your mind. The ammunition for the evil, cruel warden's gun are memories that he loves to shoot. "Nothing would give him more pleasure " It is so true that past regrets are the weapons depression uses against us. Wow. Like I said, I love everything about this poignant poem. Thanks for sharing it. It's likely one I will commit to memory. 
    LikeReply 14 months ago
    • bookerina
      bookerina
      Thank you so much for this kind, beautiful, well- thought out comment. It means so much to me that something I wrote based on my own experiences was able to make an impact on somebody and touch them in some way. 
      LikeReply 14 months ago
  • aliciayan3093
    aliciayan3093
    I really like it because I feel that sometimes I can resonate with this.
    LikeReply 14 months ago

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"The Warden Whose Name is Depression" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/175660/the-warden-whose-name-is-depression>.

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