A Peace of Knowledge

There is a physical sickness
and a mental one,
both which I fight
every day, every night.
The illness that comes
inside my mind,
inside my head,
fills everything with haunting dread.
When my heart falls to chaotic slumber,
when my blood throbs cold in my veins,
I know what I must do,
I grab the rope of things learned new.

Behind the thoughts, the ideas,
behind the stories and truths,
that’s where I lie,
there I’ll be ‘til the day I die.
The words, the learning,
make pathways through my life,
through the ancient brush and scraggily trees,
through the sand, air, and seas.
“Hush,” the knowledge says,
carrying me through the flame.
Though it burns and sears,
it holds me through my blackest of fears.