This is the second poem in a trilogy that  I have dedicated to the poet John Donne.

The tortured mystery of
one-sided adoration.
The transparent helplessness
of a hopeless lover
who divorces feeling
in a desperate attempt
to relinquish the beloved—
transcend the mania
and exorcise the obsession.

A heart torn not broken.
Shredded muscle fibres
stressed to death
and debris in vessels
that block and
stop a flow.

The same mind that realizes
the futility of misplaced emotion
has thoughts numb and useless
which bind instead of bond.
Compulsions that drive to Purgatory
a haunted and depressed person
who is dismal and desolate.

But there is a saviour
who will rescue you,
restore mend and cure—
those many poets who
have also been there—
and have written about the allure.