Of Course - DOOM!

OCD scrabble tiles placed in a cross.

Of Course - DOOM!

An Ode from OCD

by Arden Jones

Hi old friend, I hold so dear.

I’m the shadow you can’t shake.

Whispering your hidden fears,

With every move you make.

I’m here beside your writing chair

I prod and poke and pry.

A cough, a twinge – I love to scare.

Ask yourself – what’s wrong, and why?

Google symptoms, just in case

You didn’t check just right.

Then check again, so you can face

ME! with all your might.

Refresh your email more you twit.

You never know what’s there.

It’s only been a minute.

But you know what, I don’t care!

I watch you write, then press delete.

Second-guessing every word.

Then lunchtime comes, it’s time to eat.

Time to whisper things absurd.

What if it’s off and you can’t tell?

What if it makes you sick?

Wait, what is that disgusting smell?

Oh, I love to play these tricks.

I feel you force food down your throat,

It’s time for one more try.

‘Doesn’t that taste weird,’ I gloat.

I make you wonder why.

I am the loop you can’t escape.

The itch you cannot see.

I question your past and twist your fate.

I’m your old friend, OCD.

I’ll linger here, so close, so near

The monster in your brain.

But still you write, despite the fear

And pen your words through pain.