John Anthony Fingleton’s most recent poem to appear here was “In the Beginning . . .” (September 2019).
Shadow Child
By John Anthony Fingleton
He had always lived in shadows,
Drawn to them like a moth is to the light,
A fugitive without a crime,
Still sentenced there for life.
A Shadow-Child to those he knew,
Dark faced, he drifted through the clouds,
Protected by the veil he drew,
That was the only profile he allowed.
A failure of his father’s dreams;
Afraid of Holy Men,
Unbaptised in his own insanity—
As if he had caused that original sin.
A world of all his phantom friends,
Where he could play all day,
And if he wished to be alone,
He could filter them away.
Deeply moving, raw, and well stated – a poem that hit homes and says so much. Great job.