Swizzle Stick

Weltschmerz

April 11 prompt: Somehow incorporate a word or phrase of another language into your poem.


It is peak hour
cold evening
my carriage awaits
bee-bee-beeping
I shoulder my way in,
Weltschmerz
like chain mail
I collapse beneath
its invisible heft
in a window seat
& I breathe

I wrap my head
in headphones
close my eyes
& press play
tuning in to new
Weltschmerz
arranged & noted
musical
& while different
just as weighty
as mine



Weltschmerz. - German. Literally translates as “world pain,” the feeling of having the weight of the world on your shoulders.