Author’s Note: It is the third week, third day of the Crossroads Writing Project, and this is today’s SWP. The prompt was a picture by Van Asomebody called “The Seventh Chair” with the subheading “The fifth one ended up in Paris” or some such thing. I’ll have to get the exact details later. I think this would be better as an audio rather than a written text, but here it is in written form anyway…
The Pain
The sharp point entered my skin
The pain came a second later
And I gasped as it registered
Another second and the blood flowed
Three seconds, almost instantaneous
But to me, the one stabbed
Time slowed and I knew each moment
As it seared itself into my memory
Stabbed, wounded, I ached
I stared at the wound
Is there a doctor in the house
I wondered
There was no doctor or mother
To comfort and treat me
And so I did the next best thing
For me
I placed my finger in my mouth
Threw the stupid stabbing staple away
And there next to the trash can I vowed
Next time I’m sticking to 3-hole punches
Author’s note continued: Did I forget to mention that right before getting the writing prompt, I stabbed my finger with an errant staple?







Hi, i liked the poem. Call me sometime.