24/05/2026
THE WALKING HOLLOW
They said the dead would rise one day,
With hunger in their eyes,
But I have seen them walking here
In suits and pretty lies.
They do not crawl from graves at night,
They do not rot or bleed,
They smile while taking from the hearts
Of those who still can feel.
They do not want your body,
They do not crave your skin,
They only sense the light you hold
And ache to get within.
Here come the walking hollow,
Feeding where the living glow,
Hands outstretched for borrowed fire,
Eyes that never seem to know.
They bite with words, they drink with blame,
They leave you tired, cold, and thin,
Zombies were never eating flesh,
They were starving from within.
They gather round the gentle ones,
The healers and the kind,
Not knowing they are searching for
The souls they left behind.
They call it love, they call it need,
They call it being true,
But every time you stand too close
They take a piece of you.
And maybe they were wounded once,
Maybe no one came,
Maybe something died in them
And never spoke its name.
But I will not become their meal,
I will not dim my flame,
I can have compassion
Without carrying their pain.
I can bless the buried places,
I can see the hurt they hide,
But I won’t let the unlived dead
Come crawling back inside.
Here come the walking hollow,
But I no longer fear their hands,
I have learned my light is sacred,
I have learned where I must stand.
Let them wake or let them wander,
Let them face what lies within,
Zombies were never eating flesh,
They were begging life from skin.
So guard your heart, sweet living soul,
Let love be firm and bright,
For those who don't feel life inside
Will always crave your light
Heather Lea
