Chris Rathburn
@apotheosystem.bsky.social
Author of the novels The Last Sage, War Dreams, Relentless, and Wayward Wyrd. Also, poetry and the odd short story.
#writing #writingcommunity #poetry
https://chrisrathburnbooks.com/
#writing #writingcommunity #poetry
https://chrisrathburnbooks.com/
It's not giving up
So much as accepting facts
There's no path forward
And it's time to figure out
A different way to go
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
So much as accepting facts
There's no path forward
And it's time to figure out
A different way to go
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 20, 2025 at 11:47 PM
It's not giving up
So much as accepting facts
There's no path forward
And it's time to figure out
A different way to go
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
So much as accepting facts
There's no path forward
And it's time to figure out
A different way to go
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Just a little guy
That used to think they were big
Compared to others
But in time they understood
The biggest specks are just specks
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
That used to think they were big
Compared to others
But in time they understood
The biggest specks are just specks
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 19, 2025 at 2:01 AM
Just a little guy
That used to think they were big
Compared to others
But in time they understood
The biggest specks are just specks
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
That used to think they were big
Compared to others
But in time they understood
The biggest specks are just specks
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
There's no sleep coming
Just the crescent of the moon
Slowly passing by
The sky begins to lighten
It still feels like yesterday
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Just the crescent of the moon
Slowly passing by
The sky begins to lighten
It still feels like yesterday
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 14, 2025 at 5:07 PM
There's no sleep coming
Just the crescent of the moon
Slowly passing by
The sky begins to lighten
It still feels like yesterday
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Just the crescent of the moon
Slowly passing by
The sky begins to lighten
It still feels like yesterday
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Knowing what's coming
And being okay with it
Until the ending
Fades off into the background
The same as the beginning
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
And being okay with it
Until the ending
Fades off into the background
The same as the beginning
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 14, 2025 at 1:14 AM
Knowing what's coming
And being okay with it
Until the ending
Fades off into the background
The same as the beginning
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
And being okay with it
Until the ending
Fades off into the background
The same as the beginning
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Pick up the pieces
Put them together again
Some have gotten lost
But new ones have shown up too
See how they fit together
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Put them together again
Some have gotten lost
But new ones have shown up too
See how they fit together
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 12, 2025 at 9:48 PM
Pick up the pieces
Put them together again
Some have gotten lost
But new ones have shown up too
See how they fit together
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Put them together again
Some have gotten lost
But new ones have shown up too
See how they fit together
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Quiet the echoes
When they start to get too loud
Practice soothing them
It just takes a few minutes
To get to feeling better
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
When they start to get too loud
Practice soothing them
It just takes a few minutes
To get to feeling better
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 10, 2025 at 5:40 PM
Quiet the echoes
When they start to get too loud
Practice soothing them
It just takes a few minutes
To get to feeling better
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
When they start to get too loud
Practice soothing them
It just takes a few minutes
To get to feeling better
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Pull it together
There's still a long way to go
So let's get going
Put some more miles behind us
Let's walk while we still have feet
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
There's still a long way to go
So let's get going
Put some more miles behind us
Let's walk while we still have feet
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 7, 2025 at 3:56 PM
Pull it together
There's still a long way to go
So let's get going
Put some more miles behind us
Let's walk while we still have feet
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
There's still a long way to go
So let's get going
Put some more miles behind us
Let's walk while we still have feet
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
It's been health issues
With no full recovery
For months and months now
And I would give anything
To feel like myself again
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
With no full recovery
For months and months now
And I would give anything
To feel like myself again
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 7, 2025 at 1:05 AM
It's been health issues
With no full recovery
For months and months now
And I would give anything
To feel like myself again
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
With no full recovery
For months and months now
And I would give anything
To feel like myself again
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Feel them welling up
All those difficult pieces
Just as much myself
As the bits that feel like home
But they never seem to fit
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
All those difficult pieces
Just as much myself
As the bits that feel like home
But they never seem to fit
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 5, 2025 at 1:47 AM
Feel them welling up
All those difficult pieces
Just as much myself
As the bits that feel like home
But they never seem to fit
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
All those difficult pieces
Just as much myself
As the bits that feel like home
But they never seem to fit
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
It's crazy how much
Of what everyone's doing
Is straight up guesswork
And how often things work out
Because of plain old dumb luck
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Of what everyone's doing
Is straight up guesswork
And how often things work out
Because of plain old dumb luck
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
November 3, 2025 at 7:02 PM
It's crazy how much
Of what everyone's doing
Is straight up guesswork
And how often things work out
Because of plain old dumb luck
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Of what everyone's doing
Is straight up guesswork
And how often things work out
Because of plain old dumb luck
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Everybody leaves
And it isn't good or bad
It's just how it is
Get comfortable with it
And be happy on my own
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
And it isn't good or bad
It's just how it is
Get comfortable with it
And be happy on my own
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
October 31, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Everybody leaves
And it isn't good or bad
It's just how it is
Get comfortable with it
And be happy on my own
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
And it isn't good or bad
It's just how it is
Get comfortable with it
And be happy on my own
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Tending the garden
That we have built together
All the little tasks
That keep it whole and special
There's nothing I'd rather do
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
That we have built together
All the little tasks
That keep it whole and special
There's nothing I'd rather do
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
October 30, 2025 at 8:54 PM
Tending the garden
That we have built together
All the little tasks
That keep it whole and special
There's nothing I'd rather do
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
That we have built together
All the little tasks
That keep it whole and special
There's nothing I'd rather do
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Watching the leaves turn
Like looking in a mirror
Autumn always fades
Into the cold, dark winter
But for now it's beautiful
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Like looking in a mirror
Autumn always fades
Into the cold, dark winter
But for now it's beautiful
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
October 29, 2025 at 8:54 PM
Watching the leaves turn
Like looking in a mirror
Autumn always fades
Into the cold, dark winter
But for now it's beautiful
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Like looking in a mirror
Autumn always fades
Into the cold, dark winter
But for now it's beautiful
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
These intrusive thoughts
Keep repeating every day
But tolerably
They don't have significance
I just have anxiety
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Keep repeating every day
But tolerably
They don't have significance
I just have anxiety
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
October 28, 2025 at 6:31 PM
These intrusive thoughts
Keep repeating every day
But tolerably
They don't have significance
I just have anxiety
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Keep repeating every day
But tolerably
They don't have significance
I just have anxiety
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
It's good to move on
To grieve and accept losses
Because they pile up
And bury everything else
Unless I'm willing to move
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
To grieve and accept losses
Because they pile up
And bury everything else
Unless I'm willing to move
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
October 24, 2025 at 5:18 PM
It's good to move on
To grieve and accept losses
Because they pile up
And bury everything else
Unless I'm willing to move
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
To grieve and accept losses
Because they pile up
And bury everything else
Unless I'm willing to move
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Appreciating
All the good things going on
Everywhere I look
So I don't get discouraged
By all the insane bullcrap
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
All the good things going on
Everywhere I look
So I don't get discouraged
By all the insane bullcrap
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
October 23, 2025 at 10:29 PM
Appreciating
All the good things going on
Everywhere I look
So I don't get discouraged
By all the insane bullcrap
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
All the good things going on
Everywhere I look
So I don't get discouraged
By all the insane bullcrap
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Take a step forward
It feels a little funny
To let the past go
But suddenly I'm smiling
It just feels so good to move
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
It feels a little funny
To let the past go
But suddenly I'm smiling
It just feels so good to move
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
October 21, 2025 at 5:19 PM
Take a step forward
It feels a little funny
To let the past go
But suddenly I'm smiling
It just feels so good to move
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
It feels a little funny
To let the past go
But suddenly I'm smiling
It just feels so good to move
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth #depression #anxiety
Underneath the dread
There is this optimism
Despite everything
That the good outweighs the bad
And that we will be alright
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #mentalhealth
There is this optimism
Despite everything
That the good outweighs the bad
And that we will be alright
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #mentalhealth
October 17, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Underneath the dread
There is this optimism
Despite everything
That the good outweighs the bad
And that we will be alright
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #mentalhealth
There is this optimism
Despite everything
That the good outweighs the bad
And that we will be alright
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #mentalhealth
I will always miss
The way that we were before
But those times are past
That isn't who we are now
And pretending doesn't help
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #MentalHealth
The way that we were before
But those times are past
That isn't who we are now
And pretending doesn't help
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #MentalHealth
October 15, 2025 at 5:50 PM
I will always miss
The way that we were before
But those times are past
That isn't who we are now
And pretending doesn't help
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #MentalHealth
The way that we were before
But those times are past
That isn't who we are now
And pretending doesn't help
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #MentalHealth
Spend time with loved ones
Take my meds, use coping skills
Don't bottle things up
Make peace with what I can't change
And get to feeling better
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth
Take my meds, use coping skills
Don't bottle things up
Make peace with what I can't change
And get to feeling better
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth
October 14, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Spend time with loved ones
Take my meds, use coping skills
Don't bottle things up
Make peace with what I can't change
And get to feeling better
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth
Take my meds, use coping skills
Don't bottle things up
Make peace with what I can't change
And get to feeling better
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poem #poetry #tanka #mentalhealth
It is important
To remember the good stuff
This life is built from
To survive in the dark times
When shadows swallow it up
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poetry #poem #tanka #MentalHealth
To remember the good stuff
This life is built from
To survive in the dark times
When shadows swallow it up
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poetry #poem #tanka #MentalHealth
October 13, 2025 at 4:59 PM
It is important
To remember the good stuff
This life is built from
To survive in the dark times
When shadows swallow it up
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poetry #poem #tanka #MentalHealth
To remember the good stuff
This life is built from
To survive in the dark times
When shadows swallow it up
Words: Mine
Image: AI
#WritingCommunity #poetry #poem #tanka #MentalHealth
Feeling despondent
Like a slow grind to a halt
Inside an old car
The engine just sputtered out
Momentum is all that's left
Words: Mine
Image: AI
Like a slow grind to a halt
Inside an old car
The engine just sputtered out
Momentum is all that's left
Words: Mine
Image: AI
October 10, 2025 at 10:04 PM
Feeling despondent
Like a slow grind to a halt
Inside an old car
The engine just sputtered out
Momentum is all that's left
Words: Mine
Image: AI
Like a slow grind to a halt
Inside an old car
The engine just sputtered out
Momentum is all that's left
Words: Mine
Image: AI
This prolonged illness
Has got me feeling bummed out
I will get better
And I know it could be worse
But for now, I'm pretty blue
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
Has got me feeling bummed out
I will get better
And I know it could be worse
But for now, I'm pretty blue
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
October 9, 2025 at 9:57 PM
This prolonged illness
Has got me feeling bummed out
I will get better
And I know it could be worse
But for now, I'm pretty blue
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
Has got me feeling bummed out
I will get better
And I know it could be worse
But for now, I'm pretty blue
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
I used to be sad
And hated being alive
And I considered
Doing something about that
Now I know each day's a gift
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
And hated being alive
And I considered
Doing something about that
Now I know each day's a gift
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
October 8, 2025 at 12:29 AM
I used to be sad
And hated being alive
And I considered
Doing something about that
Now I know each day's a gift
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
And hated being alive
And I considered
Doing something about that
Now I know each day's a gift
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
I used to get stuck
In ways I misunderstood
But I've changed since then
I know myself better now
And screw up different things
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
In ways I misunderstood
But I've changed since then
I know myself better now
And screw up different things
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
October 3, 2025 at 1:45 AM
I used to get stuck
In ways I misunderstood
But I've changed since then
I know myself better now
And screw up different things
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated
In ways I misunderstood
But I've changed since then
I know myself better now
And screw up different things
Words: Mine
Image: AI-generated