That moment after a party, when most everyone's either left or passed out and it's only you and one other person still up, and you wind up sitting on the porch sharing a cigarette and finishing off the last bottle while you watch the sunrise and have barely cognizant profound conversating? That's what this reminds me of.

I like what you are trying to say. I would replace the "and" in the third line with "though", or perhaps remove it altogether--just a personal preference for flow. The fourth stanza is a jump, but obviously important for what you are trying to convey. The last stanza of the poem is simply too arrogant and takes away from the overall message. It seems to be the mistake that most people who have experienced pain make, where they assume "I" is "everyone" and their opinions are valid to every person in every context in the world. I would simply end on the fourth stanza, where the emotion is illustrated without assuming too much. Despite these things, good poem.

You are an amazing writer. If this is you rusty, then Fictionpress writers everywhere should truly be afraid for when you're back in the game full swing. The opening stanza is heartbreakingly perfect, terribly deep and totally awe-inspiring. I'll stop wasting your time now, great job, kudos, etc.

First off, as always your work is excellent, but I know you appreciate criticism so here is some and yes some (or maybe all) is nitpicky.

In the first stanza I didn't like "more often." It seemed almost like you were saying the moments were more often accidental than inherent, but I think the moments can be (and often are) both.

I really like the second stanza. The comparison there is really unique and perfectly fitting.

"Seconds may slip away,"... I didn't like the word may here. If you meant it as a statement in general seconds do slip away and if you meant it in relation to the tangents it seems like you're saying those seconds are slipping away, but its still happy. May just makes it seem like it might happen or it might not, when to me it does happen.

The descriptions in the third stanzas are nice. I like the word choices of "dragging," "exhilaration" and "pieces of contentment."

I have to say the next stanza kind of confused me because I feel like your referencing ghoulish behavior that you never mentioned. Is it you going on tangents? Is the behavior you claiming the moments? It confused me. I did like the rest of that stanza though.

I really like the piece as a whole. It describes something I think everyone can relate to, but I've never (at least that I can remember) read about before. And you describe it well as always. Nicely done.

"There are some moments that are inherently, and accidentally, divine." A very profound opening line! :)

"In the end, we are all grasping...small mercies." Sad, but powerful! :)