TEMPTATION
By David Allen
The piece of paper
Plucked from the poet’s
Brilliant Ideas jar read
“Temptation is sure
To knock on your door…”
Temptation rings so often
It creates a tinnitus hum,
A constant ringing, whooshing
Electric buzz that drowns
Out rationality.
The tempter is the urge
To fix the broken people
Ringing constantly,
Begging, pleading,
Demanding.
The enabler futilely tries
To save them, to prevent
Their final fall, the plunge
To the bottom of the pit
Their addictions create;
Until he, too, breaks
In spirit, helplessly
Caught up in the
Spiraling descent.
Hopeless, he shouts
“Stop this! How can
I stop this?”
And, finally, a voice
In the darkness answers:
“Temptation may ring,
But you don’t have to invite
It to dinner. Say ‘No’
Just say NO!”
It’s then the ringing stops
And there is light.”
Type Dancing 
Temptation as a tinnitus… a great and chilling metaphor.But there are always temptations that are OK to fall for… I corrected your link at dVerse leading here… 🙂
LikeLike
Thanks. What did you have to do to correct the link?
LikeLike
There are many temptations around us but its our choice to accept the knock or let it go knocking outside ~
Its easy to spiral into it, but it takes a great courage to say No and move on ~
Happy to see you at D’verse ~ Have a good weekend ~
LikeLike
I love your use of onomatopoeia here. All that ring and whoosh and buzz sets “Begging, pleading,
Demanding.” up to have its own low drone. Especially like that “tinnitus hum.”
LikeLike
“Temptation rings so often
It creates a tinnitus hum,”
How well those lines describe the constant urge and temptation that the addict experiences. And well done, as you include the enabler in the scenario, and finally come to a place of quiet and peace by his own voice within.
Thank you for sharing with us, David.
Gayle ~
LikeLike
Enjoyed your metaphorical write, and happy to welcome you to dVerse. Hope to see you around in the future. It’s a great community of poets who read and comment on each other’s work. Temptation has a way of sneaking in the back door.
LikeLike
SAdly.. modern science shows perhaps
there is no solution for ‘this’.. as
addiction seems to most
often be the lacking end
result of connections
of feeling connections
with others.. the real
elixir in actuAlly
feeling each
other
that never
connects
where the
garden of
Love is not
literAlly then
established
in a bRain of
young
to live
old
so free
as LOVE..
there are no
winners when
Love is not the
Garden of Youth.. my friend.. iT seems…
LikeLike
But there is a solution concerning how we “enablers” react to our addicted friends and family.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes.. True of course.. There is but sadly rarely for the one missing Love.. If root ’cause.. No solutions for them can be lifelong sad.. And Often prison.. Or worse of course.. Life is not fair though.. Of course too…
LikeLike
This is an in-depth look at addiction and those who would be their saviors. The metaphor is apt..The ending likely true…what happens in between may be more horrible, challenging, and debilitating…I guess that emotion is meant to be perceived between the lines. Still a courageous poem and an important one.
LikeLike
Oh, I like this….the idea that temptation may ring but we don’t have to invite it in! We have to hope that rationality WILL win out in the end!
LikeLike