An Empty Man.

He was an empty man,

so he tried to fill his life

with trinkets

and things

and people

who did his bidding.

He grasped at money

and straws

and put them in the emptiness

of his vessel.

Everything he saw

that gleamed

or shined

or smelled or tasted nice,

he shoved inside

his body

with abandon.

After a while,

everything left him,

emptier than before,

and he despaired

of ever filling the void.

Then, old age

slowed his urges,

and tempered his desires,

and he decided to keep them external

to himself.

He would stay empty,

until the right thing

came along.

Hunger became his friend,

and he didn’t need to feed it

anymore.

He thought of this when he saw her,

and she smelled

and tasted

like heaven on earth.

He sensed that his emptiness

didn’t need filling after all,

and he held her hand

in the darkness

while he searched for the rest of her

under the covers.

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