Poetry

Somebodyism

Posted on by Khaya Ronkainen

Sensitive and misunderstood affliction of the soul
manifests in bewildering ways:
excessive unhappiness
wounded confidence
ego under stress

Tried and tested:
a dose of tears as often as required
some swear egomania offers temporary relief
and awareness soothes the compassionate soul

But F.I.N.E symptoms soon emerge
(Freaky, Irritable, Neurotic & Emotional)

Patient confined with imaginary friends talks about
words, together they coin a new term – talksanity.

Proud of achievements, talks about ME
all the time. An irritating itch
on susceptible wounds

Urgent medical breakthrough needed
as somebodyism continues to infect
inhabitants of the vale.

Note: I have to admit, I found this prompt difficult. I hope I did it justice.

In response to: “Write a poem that illustrates the symptoms of a quirky made up illness” Dark Poetry for the Cruellest Month Challenge.

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Khaya Ronkainen
Khaya Ronkainen writes poetry, creative nonfiction and fiction. This blog explores all things writing and living, aka personal history, cross-cultural experiences, nature, language, and the many ways people carry home within and across borders.

22 Comments

  1. I think you did it justice and then some! I feel a bit better to hear that you, too, found it a bit challenging. When I wrote the announcement, I thought this would be one of the easiest poems to write. It wasn’t. I found myself starting at the screen for quite a while.

    This is great, Khaya. I love that as the good researcher and analyst you are, you offered a diagnosis, treatment, and suggested further studies. Even more, I really like that although Somebodyism might be made up, some of the behaviors listed in your poem are very real.

    Great piece. ♥

    1. Phew! breathing a sigh of relief that my attempt made sense:). I’m enjoying the challenge, it allows for cleaning those dark corners decorated with spider webs. Call it spring cleaning.♥

  2. Bwahahahaha… “Sombodyism” is rife amongst the online community, yet we still fear a “Zombie outbteak” D XXX

    1. I’m glad you laughed about this Georgina:D Indeed, signs can be rife but it is with acknowledgement that we can keep them in check…♥

  3. Maybe you should submit this to the DSM (the mental health ‘bible’) committee for their next revision

  10. What a perfect response to Magaly’s prompt. I think the disease is far more widespread than we would think. Its entirely possible I’m an intermittent sufferer. Great stuff.

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