My Growth

Within the projects of East New York
I see a society so harsh and unpromising
That only the eyes that witness the actions of terror become the unknown victims.
Garbage everywhere that can never be handled
Gang violence that leaves a trail of candles
Teen pregnancy on the verge of a scandal
And cops whose evidence is always tangled
Freeze.
Why might this community be so important to me?
It made me who I am today
Yes today, as my mind cradles the memories of lost hopes
Hopes that I will achieve greatness and not become a teen mother
Like the others
I am here today as evidence and as a survivor of the fittest
To demonstrate why I can be someone worth looking up to, who came from the streets and witnessed myself still standing as a trail was marked for a never ending battle
My eyes dealt with so much that caused them to be blind to a certain extent
Blind, yet they can feel the roughness of the feelings of my surroundings that endangers my soul as well.
The colors of aggression and possession takes over the minds of those who only want sadness drifted upon nearby citizens
Little kids bullied until there’s no other option but to contemplate on how far away they should run
And beatings that are deniable yet turns into undocumented truths
From bullets marked on my window, to raising a cousin with the mind that is still yet to be in the form of an adult
I’ve endured enough
Taking care of my home while going to school and sleeping only until I can dream of more difficulties approaching
But most importantly, I’ve dealt with myself
The person that held the truth of fulfillment yet is lost in the sea of doubt and redemption.
Hiding the fear of rejection covered by a mask that suffocates my face like thick ropes squeezing depression into my other half
I am now a strong person who is not afraid of the world
And who can use the hidden talents to turn those tears into ink that marks my paper with words that can put you in a vortex of my reflection and see what I see
Letters that are cultivated into words that will leave future generations speechless and teach them a lesson on how they should really see the world.
There are dreams that are known as impossible
Yet with my courage and form of fortitude I have passed what is already possible
To get to the journey that will make me unstoppable.
Being raised here made me think outside the box
Crawling out of a maze of sorrow that supported me to reach victory
And helping me stimulate the strength I’ve been searching for that was lost in gunshots and puffs of smoke
So, if I can crawl out of a black hole on my own, I can unleash my unique strengths to become a surviving legend.