On Chronic Pain

I always forget how bad it is:
the muscle tension,
the screaming nerves,
the fatigue,
the looming nausea:
worst of all,
those head-aches
inner lakes of fire

And it is a sort of punishment:
there are other factors
but I've done done too much drinking,
a lot of marijuana (which,
though it should be legal,
is not as harmless as some believe,)
also arsenic from tainted seafood
and vaccines my body is sensitive to

Actually, I'd be dead
if I didn't often flood my body
with vitamins, minerals, and electrolytes,
and taken some care with nutrition

And there is the pain,
ebbing and surging,
it comes SEEMINGLY no matter what I do

But I shall persevere,
as I do in other matters
(perhaps too much for my health)

Soon, the world may be ringing with my name,
and I want to be alive and well
to hear it:
for that reason,
I will take another journey