The Worst Solitude Poem by IRMA KURTI

I had to spend
a lifetime
to realize
that loneliness
doesn't mean
being alone,
but surrounded
by people.
By acquaintances
and relatives, too,
by many smiles;
they give you pats
on the back,
then their claws
stick to you.


Being alone
means
being surrounded
by those
who can't
understand you,
who take
your tears
for weakness,
the ones
who label you
as cold
and bizarre
for your
silence.


Feel
their gaze
like thorns
that pierce,
shield
yourself
as a snail,
wanting
a corner to cry
in stillness.
In the midst
of people...
the worst
solitude
is exactly that.