Steel

The unbreakable skin
matches the impervious shell
that once protected me
from my surrounding Hell.

My walls have since rusted,
and the structure's weakened.
The metal encasement I sheltered
in is now brittle and thin.

My attempts to rebuild
leave me vulnerable and exposed.
It is no surprise that
I cannot find the proper repose.

My mind aches with my heart,
trapped in a gilded cage
that repeats stories and bittersweet
symphonies into my old age.

The rivets break. The nails dull.
The screws are stripped of their grip.
The welds that once held me firmly
together seem to have been ripped.

I melt in the fire of hatred I've lit
and it consumes all materials.
I attempt to forge new alloys from scrap,
yet the failures are listed in serial.

With my last laboured breath,
I must make my walls strong.
If I don't, if I can't,
how do I resist the throng?

My emotions: hate, bitterness,
greed and lust.
They will grind me down
and make me into nothing but dust.