Craig Rozniecki's poem is a plain, confessional portrait of loneliness. The speaker says he was alone from birth and has stayed that way into adulthood. He names what keeps him there: illness, abuse, and a shyness that makes it hard to approach women or open up to anyone. The poem suggests these problems feed one another, so fear of rejection leads to more isolation.
The poem's strength is its repetition. "Alone" turns up again and again, in the street, at a bar, in the car, at the computer, even at home and at church. The opening lines about tears and knowing no one return near the end, which makes his life feel like a closed circle. The quiet details, such as crickets, distant wind and his own heartbeat, make the silence almost audible. The mood is sad, tired and raw. Though he says he has given up on love, he still wishes someone were with him, and that small hope makes the ending, "as I cry in the night," hurt more.