Echolalia
Monday, October 20, 2008
This triptych poem was written for two prompts: Justice/Injustice at Totally Optional Prompts and Read Write Poem Prompt #49: Mission, Echolalia. This deals with a rather difficult subject (child abuse) so if you’d rather skip this one, I understand. If not, read on.
-Nicole
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| echoes | throughout the space-time continuum | ghostly, yet heavy |
| I’ll give you | something to cry about | echoes |
| from one end to | this present point | evil echolalia |
| infinity | frozen | forever looping |
| if | then | next |
| you just listen to | acerbic | words |
| my pain | buried inside | my heart |
| inside | virgin soil(ed) | sprouting resident evil |
| if | it remains hidden | then |
| I | will become evil | putrid blackness |
| personified | next | repeating |
| those cruel hands | those cruel words | that cruel belt |
| if I | scar another child | through echoes |
| repeated | I’ll give them | something to cry about |
| violence and | love | like oil and water |
| hatred | instead | mother and child |
| then | mother | minus child |
| I’ll be alone | I cannot | be echolalia |
| I cannot | risk | repetition |
| become | echolalia | in a child’s eyes |
| echolalia | my womb | forever empty |
| I sacrificed | on the altar of silence | I gave |
| myself | something to cry about | no chance |
| I will not become | I will not become | I will not become |
| echolalia | echolalia | echolalia |
Written 10/20/08
© 2008 Nicole Nicholson. All Rights Reserved.
9 Comments
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Heavy stuff – haunting and moving. The three-peat of the lines “I will not become” is especially powerful.
This is wonderfully executed. it is so hard to do the kind of poem which reads down as well as across and you’ve done a tryptych! Great work. Really.
Love the way this goes together poetically. A powerful message with a very strong refain at the end!
Works really well. Whichever way you read it, the haunting message sends it repeated hammer blows.
Well done! I’m impressed. (I can’t imagine how long that must have taken.)
A great visual effet. It was a treat!
http://firmlyrooted.blogspot.com/2008/10/echoes-reverbate-half-poem.html
The repetition of “I will not become” is so effective here.
I like the form for sure, because you can also read it from left to right and down up…it is puzzling.
An amazing form. I couldn’t imagine trying this. It must be so difficult. I really like the repetition of “be echolalia.”