It's just poetry, it won't bite

The State Insane Asylum, Terrell, Texas


07.03.14 Posted in today's words by

Weldon Sandusky wrote this poem.

The State Insane Asylum, Terrell, Texas
By Weldon Sandusky

Aged and weather tarnished,
red brick buildings obscure
little picnic tables scattered
among trees where, strategically
located, an administration building
rises with a three-story
bell tower and white columns.
Then, more sharply in focus,
appears a convenient warehouse,
refrigeration units from World War II, and
several one-story ranch-style ward buildings
with a gymnasium, singular and oddly
compatible.

The state highway is a mile away, the
area filled in by dilapidated residential
houses.

No hills. No people. No water. No funny business.
The inmates walk around and a couple of
security cars patrol.

I was in L ward, where
divided for women and men.
Nurses’ stations about a great white marble floor,
thirty-foot ceiling hall, a TV, a typewriter,
a refrigerator with a kitchen in the back,
all accessible. You wouldn’t say penitentiary or
manufacturer, but you would say austere
and fenced and you would want
to leave.

 



2 Responses to “The State Insane Asylum, Terrell, Texas”

  1. Trish Saunders says:

    Very detailed, fine imagery. Nice poem.

  2. Sharon Poch says:

    A depressive setting for the well, much less ill. Powerful in its simplicity, haunting in its message. Thank you.

Latest Podcast Episode
0:00
0:00
vox poetica archives