poverty

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Laying in bed, Conflicted, Sleep not entering your head, Twisted.   Thinking of what, Tomorrow brings, Thinking of what, Tomorrow could lead.   It's a Step up, 
there is enough treachery, hatred violence absurdity in the average human being to supply any given army on any given day   and the best at murder are those who preach against it
Don't make us become displaced. Never make us feel misplaced. that would be a disgrace. Trauma and tragedy, no one should have to face.   Fun games ,not war. Say no to gore.
Hell in Haiti, Hell in Hispaniola Hell in Haiti, Hell in Santo Domingo Hell in Bohio, Hell in Quisqueya
The man on the corner with nothing to spare. But who would pause to help him? Watch as people stride past, They do not dare look him in the eyes.
When I was a child, I tried to talk, When I Was talking, I tried to write, By using fingers, and piece of sticks, To draw and write By being tought.
Bills, bills, BILLS... ...constantly, incoming.   Money, money, MONEY... ...constantly, outgoing.   Savings, virtually NONE...; As soon as 'any' money comes in...;
I have seen the tortured minds of my generation rise out of the ashes of   insanity naked in new birthborn of one-night stands to fathers angry at street-level poverty looking for   another damned fix
*WHY* _I HAD_ *TO* _PONDER_ _Wandering exploring to discovery transportation, heading deep into the future_ .
BLACK AND EVERY LIVES MATTER Much more to humanity than being White or Black, no inferiority nor superiority. No African No American and nothang like Asian. All I see on earth is humans.
MONEY A new young money runs this town In new flashy cars latest in town Owns mansions at every nook and cranny And all the floozies throw at his feet People worship all my goldmines
Food rations she desperately wanted, As she squealed and excitedly pointed
Killer
We walked a path, but not together You walked it while danger slept You walked it in sunny weather You walked through on fields of heather You walked while the streams ran wet  
Hill homes and cars and a place in front, we run a race I lost at birth with house wheels and buses. I cross the line to stand in dingy dark, cast by prestige.  
And just like that The world became quieter  Hearts grew heavier People's privilege shone a little brighter  And the great big tide Kindled humanity's desire to be kinder.  
I am from moving boxes scattered, littered on hallway floors From unpaid utility bills, arguments and slamming doors I am from tax return Christmas gifts and food stamp Thanksgivings
For many this is a time of festivity, of good tidings, gifts, food and family... While the words, " merry" and " happy" float in the air like shimmering snowflakes.
On the streets is where I lie, Obscured from the peasants, Merrily sauntering by, Maybe, an opaque veil besets me, From the niggardly world, My infinite prayers never seem to be heard.  
I have a dream To help those in need. To help set them free from their past sufferings. To help them keep hope when they're without a home. I'll provide a place where they're finally thrown a bone.
Dressed in grey and black attire Waiting at the ready “Do you need help?” “Have a nice day!” Aged eyes and pursed lips  Forced into a smile.  A family at home? A life alone?
The opportunity to do what others can’t Inspires me to win. This might come off strange and self-serving. Some might call it a sin.  
Desert Broken dreams. Fronteirs of symbolic darkness. This is Land's end ( not the clothing company) just sun, scorching summer's skin and in winter a cold that permeates
Somewhere in the heat of a jungle, the tundra's cold, on a hillside, - the desert, in a sprawling city, or ruined village, in a camp, settlement, or colony, in a lone hut,
Lurking, screeching, rumbling, Every day, The hunger inside of me, Is a perpetual prey, My body screams, My mind can’t keep straight, My brain keeps puzzling, The rest of my foredoomed fate.
Orthopedic surgeon fled Vietnam at age fourteen   Old Lady works full-time and rescues children in between   My doctor doesn't know mother died from a complication of this surgery  
The sounds of joy during the holidays The warm climate, nothing like the cold december i know Music bounces from walls to walls Kids laughter laced with nothing but joy They who don't know what a christmas dinner is What christmas presents are or
What is it to be an adult?  A grown-up? Oh to be free, to have control over all the little  details and choices  
All I ever wished for was a home It was hard growing up Food was scarce and so was love I felt my heart slowly turning cold
In the beginning, 
Beauty from the ashes Beauty from the choas In dolourfull darkness He'll kiss your lost soul Soul of bard fading away My destination is far away Let all these wounds burn Heal me and take me away Thorns in the roses Roses in the thorns Beauty in d
Beauty from the ashes Beauty from the choas In dolourfull darkness He'll kiss your lost soul Soul of bard fading away My destination is far away Let all these wounds burn Heal me and take me away
My work duty first had me weary the car was supposed to work in theory these two had the future looking weary unknown to me, adulthood was merely one giant query 
When I got on my knees for church And asked who am I doing this for? When I watched a man die on the street And wondered why anyone need be poor? When I heard students cry out for peers shot dead
When I think about how I've glowed up It'll make you want to throw up If you've seen the things I've seen  And you did the things I did It'll make you wonder how I ever really growed up
It wasn't until one day, A Thursday to be exact, That I opened my eyes slowly To the shimmering beams of light. Soaked deep beneath my skin, I welcomed the light. The glow emitted from within me
Billionaires donating money donating money to a burnt down cathedral poor people donating old clothes to other in need billionaires donating money  donating meant to a burnt down cathedral 
Listen let me tell you about BOX Not a container with a flat base and sides typically square or rectangular and having a lid I wanna personify the BOX I knew as a kid See, BOX was close minded (get it box closed minded)...... NO BOX WAS closed....
All I want to do is lay here and stay ; Thy kindest hearts always pray for a change ; But God don't answer when the skies are gray; The child inside me cries for no long range .
I want to speak one more Language That everybody can easily speak Same as our food and the beverage If not, it means, we are weak  
Pull the cloak im so broke yet “woke” Haven’t spoke had to joke I'm not a pessimistic I just stay true with the statistics Let's face it i don't have a chance so give me that glance
Baby birds and food. Who is going to feed them? Stomachs growl for food.
"Somewhere", spoke the grey lips in the wall.Somewhere before sunrise,before the first bird crows to dawnand the apathetic are yet to uncurlthe grit that gathers like dustbetween the fold of shallow eyes.
A dog named Hunger gnaws on my stomach Growls at me whenever I cannot eat Demands my attention while I’m in class He has a sister who lives in my mind Her name is Anxiety While she does not bite me
Fast food every night might sound ideal to a kid but it left her often hungry for more. She'd rummage through half-empty cupboards, the kithen walls sticky with cigarette tar,
It all starts with laughs, hopes, and dreams. But then, she slaps you with lonesome.
When I think of the world I'm afraid to look at what it has become. People struggle through the darkness that has risen all through out the pastures of their very land.
Based off my understanding ,   Poetry can reveal, come through pain ,can politely hide, or it can simply amplify anything and anyone.  
Based off my understanding ,   Poetry can reveal, come through pain ,can politely hide, or it can simply amplify anything and anyone.  
thank you for glancing at me then looking away like you didn’t see me   thank you for kicking me
No matter how late we came home on a winter night, there were always enough lights to see with; Lemay Ferry Road is always busy. That was long before the  monster named fentanyl snatched my cousin Mikey
I look up at the night sky,through a windshield.The deep, indigo sky, andI look to the stars, each a person somewhere in the world.Are they lookingup at these same stars,this same sky, through
There goes the pop shop, on the corner of 42nd with pop rocks, where the Candy Lady beckons
There are too many problems to solve at once. Just pick one okay? We need to get our priorities straight I don’t think we can save the whales if there are 4 white rhinos left
poetry. it used to be what we read in school; harsh lines for more educated, eloquent, and sheltered minds. minds untorn by the society around them.  devoid of thoughts of depression, 
They are some of many billions Some do walk-ins, some do sit-ins   One eats plenty, enough for four One is but a raw, empty core  
Dingy green metal Flecks of paint flaking off like dandruff Corners set in stagnant water, Leechy muck in the slimerot of the shadows Little door slides open with a screech
On a warm summer day, a young child was walking with her parents through the New York City shops. A crisp 20 dollar bill was clutched in her hand, ruffling in the slight breeze as she skipped happily about.
Put down the pen for just a moment.  Writing doesn't feed the poor.  Pamphlets cannot house an orphan, Fliers don't eradicate gore. You're offended by middle fingers, But war and famine are okay.
I.   Dear Tesfaye, I wish you didn’t have to grow up like this. I wish there was more I could do to help. You are only four, still too young to fully understand. Poverty
Homeless Looks so different in the eyes of strangers No one ever tells you homeless looks like attention from the eyes and bodies of strangers Body after body, night after night.
A town divided I understand I see a town divided you know, you against me  South side getting the short ride of a long route that never seems to stop  Our streets hoarded with paper as far as the eye can see 
Dear 1929, No shoes, no food, no water, The Great Depression is here. No toys, no games, no clothes, Kids like me have so much to fear. No roof on top of my head at night,
Dear daughter or son, I'm sorry didn't make it to your first birthday. So much to you I wanted to say. Through the years I shedded many tears, Cause the days with you were never near. I made this choice, 
I used to live in a world of freshly squeezed laundry, Himalayan pink salt on Atlantic salmon, and thermostatic, triple jet showers.   But now I live in a world of re-worn t-shirts, mouldy
A wax sky drips over a sidewalk corner Illuminated by a burning-wick sun As I smile at the old men living there, Baked and leathery and meaning everything to nothing
Did a good heart get you far As simple as it seems Did a good mom get you sharp As simple as her seams   Did a good heart feed your soul Or did it starve you to death
What does it take to stay awake  And not hate  Every eye that passes by Makes me wonder if they try  Or do they categorize  My kind within wicked lies As if every time a brother dies
Eyes cold as Concrete Even when not walking the streets The halls  So closed off  From the poverty we breath Considered clean Cuz the sheen  Easier's to see  Away from the hood
Yes, college was really on my mind as I watched my parents going at each other's throats, my uncle throwin in a pinch every 20 minutes, and the kids being hungry. When my world was a modge-podge of
Just outside Pittsburgh. The Steel City. An industrial America-   a blue collar America.   A blue collar America that survives on    $1000 every 2 weeks   power company grace periods
An eleven year old hops the steps up to the trailer they live in. The door clangs shut, as the frame is warped. Poverty-stricken Tennessee, United States.   An eleven year old in jeans and a hoodie
Once upon a time....in the hood
Little Red A Peculiar girl The Wolf A Monstrous Me The Woods No place for little girls   I was there when she first wandered in The time she met me The Big Bad
It was the Westside of the City of Wind.  The year 1998. The time when the sun still hid shyly behind the moon's dark embrace.  A fire station. Dawn.  A mother of two, soon to become a mother of none. 
It was told that a leader of many Would not see the morning moon. That the giver of plenty, Would die too soon.   Today, he decides to live alongside The Light’s curse.
Once upon a time, the beginning 'O' was never embroidered with gold, life was void of materialistic tangents; our modern albatrosses   But sufficied with compassion,
Oh how they made us love these chains, we wear them everyday. Our boys are cuffed and pulled away. We'll never see a change. Whether wearing them around our necks, or close the gate at night.
I was taught to write poetry not by man, nor educationally. We never had the money; spent most of what we had, to feed each belly in our homestead.
I too, hear America singing Many millions of songs.   I hear the song of my teachers All they say is listen.
When I say "homeless," what do you see? Someone dressed in dirty clothes, out on the street? Someone with a cup, asking for change so they can eat? Someone who struggles to get back on their feet?
I see my people walking through the streets covered in a graffiti of shame and pain, A depression that came from the time of apartheid, Walls covered in memories of frustration,
I miss that time when people looked at pigeons, dancing with the wind. Now there's too much crime. In my mind... I wonder about, "the life of pigeons"
Growing up, the happy endings are shoved down our throats Like a spoon full of sugar While other kids grow up with the harsh realities of their lives
She is afraid of fading into history of being an unknown story among the classics of forgotten churchgoers who live on their knees   She doesn't know how she's going to pay the bills
A night in the city T'was when the story began, After a young girl sought  To buy her mother a fan.   The night was shining, Though with limited light, And could still clearly see
we are not poor we just lacked the resources that would have allowed us to own   the same toys that some of our friends   owned we were rich   with imagination and reads
At 7:30 Every morning, In robotic voices, We pledge our loyalty to our country. Are our voices robotic Because of repetition?
America How could you? I trusted you, I believed  in you, And now with every passing day I weep As this once great nation is now in shambles.   How could we stray so far
Not my fault, They say Not my fault that you could not make something of yourself, in a land that gives Everything... Not my fault...not my problem... Not my fault,  They say
Not my fault, They say Not my fault that you could not make something of yourself, in a land that gives Everything... Not my fault...not my problem... Not my fault,  They say
The land of opportunity where all can rise beyond no class, no division freedom and prosperity at will.   Work hard reach for the stars taste ambition dream of "success".  
The shivering little girl Stared at the well-dressed business man Her chapped lips cracked from the strong breeze That blew across her raw face
The beauty of those oppressed by those with money. You often wonder if they think you're funny. If being poor and having to rely on the next paycheck is a reason to be scorned.
Land of the free. Land of poverty. In this country you’re judged on sexuality, and ethnicity. In actuality, we shouldn’t be a theocracy. We got legality that we can believe,
Black Birds   Black birds, black birds fly in the sky. Oh black birds, black birds why aren’t your words being heard.  
  It still needs work But we are a land like no other. America has everything - But sometimes not in the right quantities
I live well My parents feed me every night My stomach is never empty The latest toys fall into my lap A stay at home mother for me to cry to   I had not realized
How
You hear it all the time I want to change the world I want to save it But how How can I How can you
Dreams sparked in thoughts For money beyond, For love and respect and freedom, For bright musical schools, Dreams dropped in two dollar days, In dark "school" hallways,
My thoughts are too loud to not let out, But I don't know what to write about, the rhymes spout but they all sound the same, they fall from the clouds where my soul hides,
Eyes.Accusatory eyes.Staring blankly at meOver their mother's back.Hands.
When my parents first came to America,They thought it would unite their broken states of mind   My mother came from a poor family,But immigrant soil pinched pennies harder than she could  
Maybe, just maybe We might all be able to come together Disregard race, religion, gender, age and social status
America the free But are we really free? Striving to contain a positive image Looking into the mirror Not many like what they see Remain a healthy mindset is what I strive to do
When did the cost of living, Become so expensive. Working two full-time jobs, Minnimum wage, Still cant afford to eat.    The lampshade, Needs to be dusted again, And so does the vase,
America, aren't you supposed to be free? A land free of racism, injustice, and just letting me be me? Every day we turn on the news, A man is dead, his wife and unborn baby too.  
America is not great and the American Dream is fake.  We are still fighting battles that should have been won over 100 years ago.  Racism and slavery...it seems we have just given up How about our education it's really bad
The water is too murky The water is too gray. The water is too polluted. To see the fish at bay. For the fisherman had never thought That his fish would have never been caught
Fade up lights 2 and 3! We want to have a general wash on the poverty, So the audience can see but not truly see the details of The decaying clothes and caved in stomachs and
Does anyone care what goes on in the world? With people that hunger and need much care? They have bloated stomachs and legs all curled, All shriveled, yet young, and entirely bare.  
My grandmother saw America not as a land of opportunity, but as a last resort. Taking off only when there was nothing left Leaving because a twenty-six-year-old with four children cannot provide on a dime.
America great? With unemployment rates high? No, I do not think.
It all started when I was nine years old daddy saw a body instead of his little girl  he jumped right on it and didn't realize that was my first moment of being traumatized  now mamma wanna ask what we did for holidays 
I am a part of Generation Z and amending society   I wonder what waits for me after this inaguration I hear voices in protest and anger
a graduation too poor to attend, the shame2018, I will do more 
Get off of those streets They are filled with confusion Just leave those dark clouds behind Nothing but pure frustration When you live in a state of poverty Gloomy moments will appear
For being able to walk outside and look at the constellations, I am thankful. I spend hours outside tracing the stars with my fingertips, creating combinations astronomers haven't even thought of yet.
Pop your collar, working class hippie, rainbow kid in work boots- scorch the earth with defined footprints.
We got to be greatly blessed for what we got.  I'm in the united states and I thought that was a stressful place to reside or plot If you can think realistically,
A child's terrified eyes sees the world for the violent drunk it is One is not born immune to the immersive experience Of domination, damnation, Filthy bodies and even filthier minds.
The dark scenery Is what will appear You have nothing going for you Do I make myself very clear? You are asking for trouble When you live in the streets Uncertainty will surround you
A get away from norm, the every day racial tension in Newark takes its toll, store after store I am pre-judged as a thief ,  Not knowing I am a college student who just happens to be striving for a degree.
I think about it quite often, actually, how some people can't even afford a coffin, to bury their loved ones in.
Over here it's a bad place to live, all the deaths, people can only forgive, everyday there is shootings, no one can do anything about it but mourn. Now a days people are negative,
If the entire world were molded into one being It would have its hand extending out into space Seeking the aid of another world Man has devastated the planet
Could someone bring back, My innocent childhood days? Even today on roadside, I break stones with hammer, In the scorching sun.
The world is a garden Where the positives and negatives dwell. Where beautiful things can happen; where caterpillars morph into precious butterflies,
Sitting on the windowsill, Let's pop another pill.I see the life leave your eyes, All they did was ostracize.
You sleep in a bedI sleep in the streetsI'm your shadow You eat at restaurants I eat from garbage cansI'm your shadow You're treated with respect and careI'm left in the streets, helpless for others to stareI'm your shadow I'm human just like you,
I never understood how a city could be divided in two. Nairobi City. The city of two. The rich and the poor too. This is where you succeed if you know who to talk to,
To wake up every crack of dawn and raise your head to find nothing is protecting you is quite dsheartening. To be judged and ignored from the rest of society. To be shamed and labeled because
(Businessman Perspective) Cold and hungry as I tried to find a place to rest, I finally see a small warm cafe at the end of the road. I started to jog and cross my arms in front of my chest,
When the rent is past due and we're struggling for extra money  I have poetry.  When I'm sitting in the dark with lit candles but the mood isn't lovely I have poetry. 
In the biting cold I walk, Barefoot and in tattered attire, My dirty pants, ripped at the knees, Folded at the waist and tied to my body By an old and dirty rope coming apart, This is me, this is morning,
His shoes’ soles are gone from the incessant walking. Under the scorching sun he is bathed in sweat. Armed with numerous certificates, He embarks on a futile job hunting journey.
I am the early bird Leaving my nest on the daily to catch my worm But I am not your usual early bird, For I just never catch the worm. The early bird that’s always unlucky.
Dear America, Look past your built in pools, There are kids lonely and afraid beyond them, They have seen life sized doll pieces scattered on their lush green lawns, They have been taught to walk like soldiers,
the raindrop that splatters   on the kitchen counter means   there is a leak in the roof again   my mother takes an extra shift at   night my father
I suppose I would like You to know that I am sorry. That’s how all apologies and the like are supposed to begin, With that admission of guilt or regret or something that tastes like bile
Overuse, Overthink, Oversimplify       The degree to which we suffer is surely to the nth Forced to lose humanity, when I can't pay my rent Swear to god
As I roam the poor streets of Ethiopia, The wails of the children come to my attention. I look to my left and see the worn-out, oversized clothes That hang loosely on their bodies.
I am greed, want.She is need, lack. I am anger and frustration.She is hope, tenacity. She is yellowamidst the grey that I'm become. But I am success, money.And she is poverty, dust.
A Wise Man is the Common Man; and the common be the wise One sits lavished in a chair, while the other bites back at his demise You cannot say this is not true; for a strong truth brings the lie
I struggle constantly, just like everybody else. Eyeing myself in the mirror, I look plump in all of the places I shouldn't. I want to work out, but I've got other things on my list that I'd rather do.
Shadows, Acrosss the field, Across the meadow, Across the lawn and across the room, As the adults yawn and the children snore.   Lollipops, gumdrops, Nightmares and blessed dreams,
Every day, there’s enormous bloodshed, Terrorists chopping off heads in the Middle East, Thugs throwing acid in girls schools in Africa, Drugs, kidnap, and murder in South America,
Sometimes, I wake up in the middle of the night breathless.   My lungs seem to convulse, and each inhalation of air seems not to be enough for each exhalation too quickly follows.  
Food. Water. Love. Hope. People say these things keep them alive. And they do. They make life worth living. They give hu- mans the spark they need to continue on. But when they’re gone,
Everybody has a strength and a weakness in their life that they have to deal with as a blessing or a challenge. But the one thing that I think is important and absolutely need is shelter.
  When I think poverty, here's what I see, Beaten down faces and thousands of frowns Shutdown dreams in the land of the free
In order to survive, You need love, Water,  Shelter, Food. But what if you don't have that? What if you're  stranded on an island? You'd need to make with what you got.
A island. I need nothing but my past. I have no more expectations for the future. I want nothing in the moment.
  City of grunge City of decay                             City of aspiration   Maybe just the start forget the past            likewise look to the future  
I was born in December of 96 A winter baby indeed I am left handed, so strange as being the first girl to mommy Three big brothers a father and a momma, but never a full house So to prosper was a must
I'm mad.I'm mad that when I talk about important things they roll their eyes.I'm mad that I'm a bitch for having opinions,or boring for being a(stupid)(shallow) (unambitious) girl.
– Where is the Justice? My feet matches on oil, But lives in a world full of self-doubts and loss, Yet in the faces of challenges, I strive to live on, because in victory tells the story.
In the corner sits my daughter,Her skin dry and lips chapped<br>She begs those who walk by for water<br>The people walk by, their responses are apt<br>No says one woman, we need some for us<br>Although my daughter cries, an
Lightning cracks --- I sleep like a sailor all alone on rough seas The night devils: they torment me All alone in my lonely dreams   I dream I’ve made mistakes. Now, ocean water overtakes
An undergraduate composed of no less than one thirty second ramen raw as I am half baked   Shaped from vacant shells and grit
Mad, sad, glad,   is always the right time for Chocolate.   I am the flavor of all love,    of all rejoice, and all morn.   I give people the fulfilling feeling in their tummies  
I am the scars my parents put on me as a child. From the abuse mentally and physically. Little did they know they scarred me sociologically too.  
As I stand here on the brink of destruction
The wind blows cold outside, The sun is flickering out. The grass grows dry and crumbles down Around the big blue tent.
I am a black teen living in a community of depair and poverty Growing up in a household of 3 Foodstamps wasnt really supporting me Finacially money really wasnt coming my way
Worn eyes stare gently at my shy privilege  
There was a little girl I knew Born to a drug addict, the youngest of five, Forced to survive on rubble and scraps Because checks were stretched thin                Between sins and rent.
What does awesome mean to you? When you think of awesome You think of that great big success You think of acing that end-of-year test We think of celebrations and parties And being our best
I've tried so hard to silence the silenceI've waited so long and haven't seem much but little ripples in the darknessI'm not satisfiedI'm not OK with what I've been taught to think is real. 
WE   We are known for being ignorant, and dirty, Known for being weak, and unworthy Known for being corrupted and inconsiderate. and we know
Imagine living with a family of disorders, darkness riding upon corners. Imagine living with an anorexic sister, autistic brother,
Who are you?            I am a human.
Through the darkness Of a power bill Overdue and unpaid I stayed strong Through the temptations Of marriage Offering me a way out Of poverty I stood on my own
once
I just want to spend more of my life loving.more of it giving.I want to live my life withan outstretched hand,want my treasured memories to be full ofsmiles from people I have fed.
Wasteful beings we've become 
My life is my canvas Everyday a new struggle Everyday a new scar  
The unexpected comfort I have found sleeping on this furniture my sister diagonal from me. my mother parallel to me. my pride inexistestent. I do not complain because it is either this couch or
resposible and inpendent  preparing to my own rent  not afraid of new beginnigs  keeping my optimstic attutude, I'll never stop grinning  senior in high school  working hard not to be another misguided fool
  In a passing, bleak moment
Waking up from a dream feeling all bubbly While everyone else looks  at the world humbly I get out of bed everyday with the thought That today and no later is the day that I ought
Scared screams fill the streets, As they watch their city torn, From the roots of the trees, To the fields of corn. Their small homes fall, And burn to the ground, With flames so tall,
Infinite number of uses Touching, holding, & transportation
Becasue setreoypes exist
Thinking about my life
Flattering filter, are you my mirror?
We are migratory kids,  From our own native home, End up in cities looking for life, Strive here and there for life and food, Sleep and live under bridge and streets,
Black is night, white is noon, Dense clouds are black, they have rain, Black is shade, cools us all, Black is night, time to relax, Black is dusky, defuses heat, 
I live in a city And it is a pity For ten years it was tolerated Now- I'm exasperated There isn't shit to do When you're full of vigor and youth I live in what you call the ghetto- I call it the hood
The poor pigeons coo
YOUR PROBABLY THINKING ABOUT WHAT TO WEAR? MAYBE WHAT AM I GOING TO EAT?
    Stifling sounds of a chair colliding with the adjacent wall send vibrations throughout my room.
High as the rent can beSky is where life is freeFly, now I believe
As a woman I am told to be quiet Keep it down They try to keep me down Below you, looking up On my knees, I exist only in ways that service you They want me to hear, not to speak  
As my feet stand here in the nation of corn fields,
Stop it I'm sorry kids But yes, There's no afterlife And we will die You wonder why I did this Melted ice caps and Starved kids As if Because I know  I can tell you 
I'm tired of looking at the human race in the eyes To see death, poverty, abuse all covered up by lies We told ourselves it wouldn't happen again But it never stopped my fellow men
As I drive, watching my city streets roll past me I see the tear stained faces of broken homes And children being raised by strangers. I see the garbage cluttered streets of SE,
Stop being poor How? Magic? You’re assuming we got here because we’re Lazy Unemployed Uneducated Well news flash we’re not   Stop being poor Single mothers on welfare
We have a tendency to hideEveryday before leaving homeWe put on our maskAnd leave to go into the real worldThere's almost no room for authenticityHow can we "just" be ourselves?Your beliefs, my opinion,
College, one powerful place to change our lives. A place that strikes fear STRONG emotion. A place that some can't even get a chance to start. Parents with other ideas not focused on your future but there's.
The pulse of my soul flows slow and deep
I have new shoes.  They were my cousin's and then my sister's, and now they're mine.  They may not light up or clack or shine  And you won't find them on TV or ads  But if you ask me They don't scuff. 
We all have a meaning to be in this world. What is mine? I am not so sure yet, but I intend on finding out soon. Soon, everything will be different. I'll be going away from those who have loved me in my darkest times. 
She used to be the girl wrapping up school lunch to take home She used to be the girl who never had new clothes She used to be the girl who needed help   They are the family that sleeps hungry
I remember, when I was fourteen,  I found out my friend had been raped. I didn't even know what it meant  back then. My friend, she was a drug addict. Living with the trauma.
Why the fuck do I have to pay for college?  I'm trying to educate myself & spread happiness to the world. 
STOP! WHATEVER IS DISTRACTING YOU... STOP! Live in the moment and listen up. I am talking to everybody, and I am hoping all of you will take these words to heart, so please, please,
He struggles to find his place in this world But for putting up walls, he should get an award Because the only person he shares his feelings with Would never even be able to understand it  
One day I met a kingAnd asked him why he cried. ''There isn't gold enough,'' he said, ''To leave it all behind'' -- 
Word after word
I remember the lady remembering her first son She taught him his first word, his first step turned run. His first tear, how she’d stop to kiss it
They say you're strong, When you've been through something. I say they're wrong. I say they know nothing.
Money, money, money For the nourishing food we eat Along with a refreshing drink And the occasional sweet treat
When did this world become full of greed, wealth, and giving cruelty to the ones that don't have it?  How do we give a raise to politicians,  and leave our troops with no breakfast to eat?
Sounds chiming in my head, what Is that? I think I roll off the top bunk. THUMP! Squeak!
Money There's so much of it in the world but why don't I have any of it? Why does my family struggle so much when others have money coming out of their ears? I'm stuck trying to figure out
Wall street looms above you as you takeyour walk across the graduation stageyour walk down the aisleyour walk around the neighborhood,draining you with the fangs that they call debt.
If I could have my dream job, I’d be on my way to medical school because I wouldn’t have to worry about loans or tuitions.
Abused freedom. What has this country become ? Looking around. Abandon & filth is all that I found. What Happened ? From colorful, joyful, musical, Hopeful,
Clipping coupons for a retail dream,
Sickness, poverty, nations of the illUncured, losing the battle not at will   Nations crumbling beneath our feetNations tearing at the seams  
A few streets down away from this perfected outer shell of blissful indulgence that we have created lies a city of distorted faces, starvation, violence.  
Fear that runs so deep your soul cries from the pain
I'm speaking
Like a Concrete Jungle Animals of the street standing on the corner bringing all the heat brown buidings look like sideways slaveships hold about 1000s people in each complex black
I try to stay away from you But you keep on coming back I see the desperation but I do not give a flack You're a crazy creepy stalking pig who I want far, far away but you just seem to return to me
  A never ending line of bills Needing to be paid at the end of the month Debt is in the trash bin. Poverty is as stifling as the Miami heat on a Summer's day. How can I make it? How can I go on?
Baby Girl!! What are you doing?!! Do you care about your life? Being a mother isn't easy Being a single mother is harder Being a single, young mother is damn near impossible.
I don't like hate. Judgement makes me irate. Racism makes me want to scream. Homophobia makes me angry. I'm sick of people being mean, bullying because of their own insecurities,
War
Its a cycl
Blue benches, concrete walls, and empty streets Empty skies, no stars....
Another flight overhead of the Arctic  Flying into smog-filled Beijing, the sky is a friend who has dyed her hair black A friend who is a stranger, a friend who smokes.
We walk past, ignore, and don't even aknowlege the people on Earth viewed as peasent to most the look of fear in their eyes and destruction on their souls as they walk down the road they happen to call it home
We walked along and he was there, his clothe
She stands on the corner, barely 18 Hasn't showered in days but waits Waits for a man who needs an illegal touch The body of an adolescent becomes tainted She looks for independence on an incredibly tight leash
Don't waste my time each millisecond I won't be able to buy into existence  I cannot undo conversations we've had. I can't take back the things I've said. Each millisecond it takes to breathe
Will you not love me in sickness, but in health?
Walk a mile in my shoes Then you’ll know what it’s like to choose Between making a life of your own and leaving the nest
He has no home she has no water he's cold she's hungry  
I saw that man on the side of the streetBegging for money for food to eatCause his last meal was two days agoAnd he's dying of starvation but you just say "So?"Desensitized to the pain of these people
Ever so thirsty Yearning for one single drip That will never come
Hello my young friend It's good to see you again
I feel afraid 
My dream job is not  too popular, but one that completes me. To feed the poor, clothe the naked, share some water if need be.   It calls me when I see the homeless.   It calls me when I feel hungry.
Who is poverty?Where did it come from?What will be its remedy?Why does it cause so much pain?When can we eradicate its name?How do we begin to let our lights shine and ruin its fame.?
Child of poverty Child of immigrants Doesn't know any other world until it's time to go to school In Boyle Heights, you're just like everybody else except maybe not as brown
What can a dollar do? Pay for lunch, A car, College. Well, maybe not a dollar Though at least it helps. But while we eat and drive and learn A child dies from hunger A woman wishes
She cries every night tears streaming down her face She needs to be loved again she's forgotten the taste.  
Desk, chair, paper, pencil, desk.Scratching on a clipboard what makes you
I see them I ignore them I passed by them I see you  Having a sign "F*CK THE POOR" I stand up Saying that's not humane Stating that he should help Walking  few blocks down
    
Jose had a dream that he would be  an educated man Jose had a dream that he would live better than his parents  Jose had a dream that he would give back to his parents 
We often ignore the poor and the hungry. Because we never give thanks for what we have.  If we can't appreciate our own things, How can we help others in need? The saddest part of it all,
I can not feel at ease with so much chaos over seas
Growing up all I knew was poverty.  "Put that back!" "We cannot afford that."  I come from a life where education was a scapgoat.  I come from hand-me-downs, and cheap shoes. 
Hush little baby close your eyes, Hide from the world of darkness and lies. Hide from the fear that plagues your day, Hide from the world that shuts you away.  
  I was walking along the streets one day And saw a man with a dog; Except the man was homeless and the dog was dead And the man was dirty and the dog was not breathing
Summers filled with
    Neighborhoods don't improve.
The kids on the street Have something to eat With a warm fluffy bed To cradle their head.   A nice little home With no reason to moan And a doll in her hand That she calls Little Joan.
A Photograph of The Past   I’m laying here, the ceiling’s caving in. I’m staring up in a gaze waiting for the fallout. I’m still, I will not move. I will lose myself in this crumble.
The cost of a child. Two thousand forty one dollars.  Just to have a child.    The cost of  good health.  Three hundred twenty eight dollars.  Just to stay healthy.
If I had the power, Well first I’d need an extra hour. If I had the power, Perhaps the world would be less sour.   If I look at their faces, I feel pity but, time races.
  Decayed Tears drench down sunk in faces.
What Would You Change Scholarship Slam   How could the world be so cold? Yet we act so naive, People are out in the streets, Waiting to be retrieved.
Disastrous
"OMG you too Ms. Imani?You see I... I thought I was the only"Thats what this young girl said to meas she glared at meno longer feeling lonely.
If I can change one thing about the world what would be I would say where to start poverty strickin lows violence abuse depression starvation and weather crisis so many topics that need attention
The land of dreams but I'm home to schemers lost dreamers through cold  realities of life hoping just to see the day no thought on what the future lies only hoping to everything done by sunset
Children are getting left behind
“Another defeat makes the soul weary,
Let’s just think If there is one thing that could be changed The thing to be changed would be drastic It would affect many people and many countries
No where to go, No food to eat. What happened to living? Making a better life for myself? This country that they've fought for, Caused them so many problems. The veterans,
It all started when I was just a thought in my mothers mind A guessing game for the ages I waited Waited in the corners of my mothers heart In the nutrient enriched darkness of uncertainty Of care
If money is the source of all evil, then we must be living in hell Corporate America is in control and I compare it to jail Since we are all victims to it, somebody show me my cell
The world in shambles Not everyone can see, but those who do suffer most Sadness, sickness, Hunger Children suffering, without a chance to live Children that could change the world Stuck, Missing, Poor
forces of Darkness quever never ending tales       ocean waves carry distant cries  The never ending ache on our backs      sleepless night with dancing bits  hope are here for an unchanging soul
I grew up believing poor was a four letter word an
Oreo To think a childhood could reincarnate itself in mockery Oreo that's what they call me Oreo because I'm too black to be white, but not black enough to BE black Oreo
The beginning of my life shaped the end. Bare bones exposed from under nourishment Made me want to dig myself out of the hole we were living in. From violent nights came a curiosity of those violent actions.
Grief and illness, fear and restlessness, these horrors brand, upon children of foreign lands.   Living in affluence, without consequence, children free to dream,
That little Uganda boy Tripping, falling over glass Decay and forgotten objects linger When does it stop? When do the bruises cease, And absent peace subside from the mind of that little Uganda boy
In hard times as these Life has a strong cost. To be begging on your knees, And all hope to be tossed.   I too, was the child who longed see a meal. I saw lavish spending from a friend.
In hard times as these Life has a strong cost. To be begging on your knees, And all hope to be tossed.   I too, was the child who longed see a meal. I saw lavish spending from a friend.
In hard times as these Life has a strong cost. To be begging on your knees, And all hope to be tossed.   I too, was the child who longed see a meal. I saw lavish spending from a friend.
In hard times as these Life has a strong cost. To be begging on your knees, And all hope to be tossed.   I too, was the child who longed see a meal. I saw lavish spending from a friend.
In hard times as these Life has a strong cost. To be begging on your knees, And all hope to be tossed.   I too, was the child who longed see a meal. I saw lavish spending from a friend.
This is their place, the place they freely roam; This is their place, the place they call, “Home”.  
There are many things wrong And many things right. So much confusion. So little light. How many times  Must we face a disaster? The lights keep on fading. And there is no real "master".
Mean-spirited. Greedy. As his claws lifted off the ground, Soaring through the clouds. He reached the sky. Lonely. Unsatisfied.   Rain storms and thunderstorms,
Her hair is matted, there is dirt on her face
I never did anything wrong, but every night I face the angry beast of my belly. We fight for hours and hours and hours, Until I finally cave in, I'm starving. Momma can't find a job,
Poverty
What is poverty you ask? To a person who has had to sleep on urine stained mattresses,
Good question, what would I change well I would change alot of things no more of signs thrown by gangs and the sound of the world going BANG! but that's only one thing that bothers me help and throw money
Good question, what would I change well I would change alot of things no more of signs thrown by gangs and the sound of the world going BANG! but that's only one thing that bothers me help and throw money
Good question, what would I change well I would change alot of things no more of signs thrown by gangs and the sound of the world going BANG! but that's only one thing that bothers me help and throw money
Good question, what would I change well I would change alot of things no more of signs thrown by gangs and the sound of the world going BANG! but that's only one thing that bothers me help and throw money
Good question, what would I change well I would change alot of things no more of signs thrown by gangs and the sound of the world going BANG! but that's only one thing that bothers me help and throw money
Good question, what would I change well I would change alot of things no more of signs thrown by gangs and the sound of the world going BANG! but that's only one thing that bothers me help and throw money
Good question, what would I change well I would change alot of things no more of signs thrown by gangs and the sound of the world going BANG! but that's only one thing that bothers me help and throw money
Good question, what would I change well I would change alot of things no more of signs thrown by gangs and the sound of the world going BANG! but that's only one thing that bothers me help and throw money
Washington, Lincoln, Jackson and Franklin
Illuminated minds And related kinds Elated to find gold  In the mind that's my mind Unrefined, unaligned  With mainstream views As I daydream of good news Brighter days, righter ways
I spent a year in a foreign placeWandering about what truths I would learn or face...
It is dark and dreary. The sun never comes out. I feel so wet and sticky. Why won't this mud come out? I know not what it is like, to even know how to ride a bike. I'm stuck in this house,
On the exit ramp,
You think the world changing
Child:                                                                                                           Echo:      
We spend billions of dollars to protect our country, but what's the point if behind the walls is a land that's crumbling?
Two shots from two "22's" breaking the silence
Homelessness a tragedy, Travesty, undeniable reality. Society full of apathy. Naturally causes casualties, Nationally.
Feeding off dump sitesGovernment preaching about human rightsThe minds hunger now difficult to fightThe authority’s pledge I’ve learnt to reciteInsanity, poverty for eternity
Hardscrabble life
Shocking Failure, Blinding success The only difference, A thin white line We always make, A great big mess
  It’s when autumn in its final throes surrenders and one morning you draw in a peculiar breath thick with frigid air that you realize the winter’s made its presence.
Stay inside your lonely head,                                                                                                                and tidy up your filthy bed,                                                                             
Lines of bodies piled one behind another, Sons, daughters, fathers, and mothers, Looking for a few walls to cover their heads, Hoping a few mouths could be fed.   But there was no room in the inn, said Jim.
Money vs Survival
Money vs Survival Another worry versus another worry Seeking money to survive veruses just survivng Slaving away versus Living away Tears of hardship versus Tears of real life.
The little man with the tangled beard sits huddled in an olive green jacket dust and snow caught in the wrinkles   A stained sheet draped around cold shoulders edges shredded to
Dreams are not what they used to be
We.
Does nobody care? Can nobody hear The calls of the dying and hungry, Poor and restless with fear?                       How can we be content with our actions, Yet achieve no satisfaction
shreds of winter hair shroud stippled skin,weathered by one, two, many weekscrouched and soliciting in the steady glowof our capital’s sun. Once full lips shrivel,struggle to form the one simple word
I kill because you are in my way. I kill because my hunger pangs will not let me sleep. I kill you to quench my thirst for water. I'd kill you to fulfill my unchained, but caged desires.
Behind each face there is a story, Behind each run down person there was once a time of glory. In a world, who is so quick to judge, these juveniles put down. They are merely people born in the wrong situations,
If time were stoppable And hypocrisy improbable I would make you understand Let you experience firsthand How to wallow in self-suffering and What it’s like to have nothing
Yes, I will be. Yes, I am. Yes, screw you, You were not there. You were in prison. Remind me, why your Mia self can be snarky, Questioning me as if I tasted Like dog shit.
 From the moment I walked in, You judged me. It was apparent you knew nothin' I know nothing in the life comes free, But you told me I couldn't afford The one thing I wanted to be.
Man, the American dream sure did have us
You have to be willing to try, try again Your mind set should be, "Yes, yes I can!" Do not let fear strike in your heart, Worrying and fear will tear you apart. Don't let the little things get you down,
The right to an education, Is guaranteed. To everyone. This means that we are all, On even ground in school. And have equal opportunities to learn And excel in our studies. But just where
Living life as a teen is hard sometime it feels like I'm suck in a brick yard I try to look through it but that wall is not invisable To be honest its my parents acting like the wold is transmissible.  
America the great is what they sayWhere my children are shot down every dayWhen all they want to do is playAmerica the great what does this mean?
Brown faces, some white that see us .  your responsibilty does not begin at the door tell her its ok not to be thin and that by exclaiming back whats she's taken in  shes losing her, the within
Trying to hide how my stomach feels How long has it been since I had a meal?  The Money is dust. Hunger is rust: robbing me senseless,  caressing me senseless. Hunger, that foul fiend!
The little girl on the street knew how to keep a beat. The little girl on the street kept people on the edge of their seat. The older girl on the street couldn't make ends meet.
Like the shimmering dust of gunpowderI was wounded by his eyes like gunpowderLifeless, but with the potential to combustLike that paints the parking lotBeneath our feet
His feet were hard and calloused Probably because he had no shoes Torn and stained courdaroy pants Worn for the past 2 weeks Cracked mug found in the dumpster Filled with loose change
I like how you tell me,in so many removed terms, that I'm falling apart -- as if I don't know it's wrongto savor the scent of my sweat, or I'm not awarethat my house is the line
EXUSES ARE FOR THE WEAK FOR THE LAZY AND THE MEEK. thats what my teacher says to me. yes sometimes MY DOG ATE MY HOMEWORK just doesnt fly. but tell me why, tell me how,
"Don't have a big head, the world doesn't revolve around you." There's no I in team, that's all that I knew. There are people that are starving, homless and broke. But that's only in movies, it was only a joke.
At dawn she'll sleep forever,Rest in peace her tortured soul,Have you ever? Seen an angel without wings?"If you love something set it free" ,Is what I used to believe, Before I Let go of what I Love,
In a street he waits and staresWondering who will strike todayHe whispers secret, silent prayersHoping they will be at bayThey hate him for his beliefsThat religious men should lead
I dream of a life where media isn't idolized, Where women can love their bodies the way they are and society will no longer have ficticious expectations. I dream of a love that is PURE and true,
On twitter these days, there's a new hashtag trending,
Through halls painted white, I walk to my class. With courage and pride, I look through the glass. Though scared I am of another new school, I will do my best to not be the fool.
Here and there, the unheard resides A face so unsual A face no one can describe A face, ignored Abandoned in the cold forest alone A thunder stops by and turns to the other side
1993 Westside Sunset Boulevard SoCal Los Angeles California Bring you back to the silver DeLorean, flux capacitor We got that hover board under the seat. 
Some people aren't as lucky as we are.To be able to drive around in fancy cars,and to be able to have a place called home...only few have things they can call their own.
I’m a foreigner. A white girl in a brown world. I stick out. I’m a target. Oh how I wish that my safety were not an issue! Because sometimes I feel like Rapunzel, Locked up in a tower,
i have my own memories brewed with sin,i did it for my family and i would do it again,one day i spoke with god, i knew it was him,"Son im going to take you where few have been."he took my hand and appered before a huge mansion,dont explain yoursel
  I am committed -no- destined to make a better life for myself I work in the day, I don’t have time that is free No, I don’t have an inherited wealth. I am overwhelmed and I wont tell you what I need.  
We sit on our cotton made, silk lined couches. We entertain ourselves by watching Hi-Def  TV on 62'' flat screen televisions, while eating a hot homemade meal, 
Take the time to listen, Take the time to know, Take the time to hold on, To that which is truly good.
I have no room to judge Living on the street, they never seem to budge Living off a dollar or a penny Everyone's afraid to give Thinking that people gone spend it on henny But that's how they learned to live
We all must face At some point in our lives An insurmountable force Impossible to push aside. Something That challenges our strength Our character  And our pride.  
Everyone has it, no one thought it was contagious Hordes of people stand with ignorance to the epidemic Man, woman, child all murdered; it's egregious  But are we not all sick?   For we must have narcolepsy
Lord tell me everything is going to be okay. That even though there are rules to obey Tell me that myself, family and friends will remain okay Tell me that I that I don't have to rely on material.
"You make me feel, You make me feel, You make me feel.."Perfect.And if I'm perfectly honest I can't help it.All my attempts at being disaffectedAre utterly demolished,When faced with your affection.
Shadows eclipse my weary soulBattle wounds can take its tollWhy am I to be this way?To make that choice this very dayThoughts driven by doubt revolveFears dimmed by peace disolve
I am untouchable Surrounded by the black gates Unsure of which to open “Let the people in!” Cries my heart Yet I am lost… Separated and gone   Write my name in the water
i scrubbed violently at the grime on my skin filth dirt stain soot struggled to cleanse the grease out of my hair dirty oily unwashed
to cease to desist to stop the crimes to help the fighting youth to unveil the bride Truth and stop her point from becoming moot   that is our calling  
To which are you referring   The lines that you are blurring   The hands unheld and the tears untouched   Hungry, hurting, hopeless  
Harsh and cold Is the shattered concrete Click clicking beneath the feet Of jostled ignorance   Heavily breathing Pant panting anxiety Beneath these metal ghosts  
Hi, my name is Lauren Lehman, I'm an ambitious poet from the South Florida Metropolitan Area.. I began writing poetry to help cope with traumatic events that I've overcome in my past.
Backbone to navelBrain to dirtChildren 6ft. under on account of us...Scathing, burned, and batteredSealed with the branding of DEATHNo hope.Bones shaking, earth quakingBoom!
If i could erase from this world everything that reminded me of you, God would have to take everything back and start from scratch. For the mark you left on my life is so immense, so intricate...
As I walk down the street I see all the faces; The happy, the sad, the downright mad; Some might believe they are always this way; Soon you'll know that's just not true; The mad man at the bus stop,
Little girls growing up. Limited in their visions. Little boys growing up. Limited in their prosperity.  Who are we? We the people. We are supposed to be free. Who are we? We the people. We are meant for simplicity.
Here one day, gone the next. My dear child, why so soon? The light of hope in my dismal life struck down by hunger. My dear child, why so soon?  Seeing your simple happiness filled my life with joy.
Trembling, Freezing With no clothes on hand No money to bearOut in the streets Chills becoming meNo place to goShivering arms crossedLi[s and teeth chatteringWarm thoughts coveting me
I woke up one morning to a very dark day I couldn't go home my parents they went away the streets aren't so friendly theres terror in my eyes No place to call home I'm all alone in the night
The body and the earth shakes All the while the waves quake With untangible thoughts of a body So the sand breaks   Into grains in the mind Stringed noodles of a hallowed concubine
We prepare long and hard Sweating and in pain We arrive and the the air is dry and stiff I hear no language that I know And acknowledge my detachment from familiarity  We arrive to our new home After a bumpy ride In a run-down, old, moldy bus The
They say the world revolves around money. I think that you don't need money to be happy, but in order to be happy you have to be set financially. The world is too cruel to those who have nothing,
                                                      Nothing is free in the land of the free.  
I look at my legs and I see all my scars Somtimes they're as vivid as my nightmares Sometimes they're as invisible as that little girl was made to feel I look at my arms and I see exhausted veins
Barack Obama Pressing munchies on the poor Feeding off us all.
Alone under dark skies Where ambience and little life cries To the power they ride Live they who contest the lie     Falling upon the deafest of mouths And the hungriest of ears
So many faults. So many dropped balls, And missed calls, And “Holy shit! Thank God you had your seatbelt on.” Not to mention those late bills that caused The lights and the A/C to go out
I yell at you day after day, begging you to take this pain away. I ask you why you have allowed such things to happen to me but all I get in reply is an empty silence and my own sigh. I have been good I say, so why do this to me?
Zombies. Shuffling in a straight line. Thirsting for the one thing. Never satisfied. Zombies. Draw fake smiles on their faces. Everyday the same. They follow the rules, they say their graces.
 
break out Of bounds; set the standards around What others cannot Trouble inbound; bein followed Back to the roots, the home, the starting point disjointed from the hip
Hartford is a storm. Hartford is a rainbow.   Hartford is a concrete rose garden That when the sun washes over the streets They grow.
Bright flashing gold and green hypnotic, It’s plain this substance is narcotic.   Desire that we can’t ignore, The more we have, the more we adore,
Pouding, pouding, pounding away The remains of a once loved city Crumbling away under them They don't even see Eyes hopeful enough to imagine a light at the end Ways of fixing what they've destroyed
Everyone is tangible/ Lacerations cut deep within one's pride/ Castigations fly freely from lips of an octogenarian idol/ Sorid, vile words were bladed sharp/ Everyone is tangilbe/ Aspirant to move forward/ Pushing through the cracks of the dark,
Song of Innocence: A bright light shining,  Shining and radiating proudly  O’er the land; Proudly illuminating the poor Hovel, the crumbling
10+11 are the days I should stay home Your mother called. She asked me what you want for dinner, chicken or spaghetti? How can I be special at home?
People living in poverty need so little to be happy, A single house Is known as a palace.
A ticket and a dream was all that she could see, An orphan, and hope for all that could be. Not even a hop, skip, and a jump away.   To arrive on a plan was more than they could ask for,
You won't take the time. So you don't know. She has a good heart. But through her exterior that doesn't show. All you can see is the poverty that her family has been cursed with.
We groan and mutter everytime we start to fall ill. But some mothers scream as their children get killed. We get gutted when we can't afford something pricey.  But some can't buy food, so they remain hungry.  
(I am unsure of what to name this poem, so if you could suggest any ideas I would appreciate it! I was suggested the name to be "You're a Lifesaver," but I don't know if I can really consider myself one)
As we complain about things being unfair, there are families in the US without health care. You may not have gotten what you wanted for your birthday, there are people in Haiti trying to survive after an earthquake.
I step out of the plane Baggage on my right hand A bag of toys on the other. One foot touches the concrete. The hard surface onto the soft soles of my feet.
(poems go here) Life’s bumpy roads and harsh realities Are what brought me to the refuge of poetry. A world where you have little money, Where the lady on the news talks about a new murder every night
If today were the last day to live, would you call your enemies and forgive? or would you go to the shelter to give? something simple can express so much our hands together is a simple touch
Mugging bubblegum Left step Right step into a bodega Barely standing at four feet tall Waiting for the old man to rush me Hoping for him to give him something free Old man glances at a new customer
Abnormal, poor, weird words I hear daily Growing up poor wasn’t a choice; wishing it was a choice Each day I struggle looking over my should, hearing them laugh, Avoiding the landlord, rents overdue.
Her lungs seek fervently to find a breath of stuffy air, Her heart looks in desperation for courage to hope, Her mind searches hopelessly to find the end.
The darker corner of Memphis, TN Where prostitutes take their positions among a sea Of honest workers and school kids waiting early on the MATA Just to repeat the process at 3 in the after-
His Harmonica he played, sweet melody, music reached out to me like sun rays, penetrating my skin on a summer day, and I observed from a distance, not too far away, an old man with gray hairs, running down the sides of his face, an old coat he wor
Sitting on an invisible desert Screaming for Help No one hears Voice Plastered on a piece of cardboard No yellow brick road That others follow home No home to follow it to Rain
these hands, subjacent to my heart, brush tears from eyes, push water through space, teach children to swim, feed hungry lost souls, faith, make art, heal wounds, and open doors... for you.
Life is like dominoes, each one has an effect, wherever the first one falls has an influence on the next.
when I was starving when I was left for dead when I was abandoned or
The world we live in is such a disgrace! Some flourish greatly while others die Do not let your life be a waste!
If the heroes of old learned how we kept this place They would rise from the grave and they would spit in our faces The land and the sea is soaked with blood and their tears Maintaining our freedom for hundreds of years
You're exasperating, Mr. Brisbane! You wear a pointy hat and new shoes and an overcoat with socks, but you forget, sir, that you do not wear a moneyhat or a moneyshoe or a moneycoat or
Stenches from take-out restaurants and people who should shower more often, Looking up to the sky only when buildings pointed that way, Crack heads and crazies and crooks eyes follow me as I pass, Enter the building,
Lavish lies conceal flattering false prophets Under a guise that is layers deep A ritualistic routine of self masocation Of emotional measures physicality intact Progressing and digressing
Take me back to the days of a Ghanaian sunset. When hope dwelled above the waters of despair And I gazed into the eyes of a sinking soul. Where trust and fear were honest and pure --
Deep moans drift in the room. Liquid hunger screams from my veins. Acid leaks from my lips. Agony drips from my head. I am wounded, and all I want is more. more of her to heal my pain,
I look out across the dingy city. Towers loom over the filthy streets, the roads, broken, have no destination, and the street signs, blank, give no direction.
It smells like coal my mother says "Reminds me of my childhood," she says Reminds her of family reunions Ashland, KY formerly a place of gathering (It is now a ghost-town living up to its name)
Look away, Look away, That I may not see the hunger, the stricken, the pain; I would much rather stay In my world Having every thing I could ever want -- But always wanting more.
On hands and knees my wrists move with the rhythm of my labored breathing, scrubbing these floors and hoping that working just hard enough can wash away the sins of this system we didn’t ask to be a part of,
Pittsburgh, PA; Glowing lights. Downtown; Broken fights. This is where I spend my nights. I'm in for it, Jesus Christ.   You see the colored flags, the shoes on telephones wires.
The world is mine for the taking Every day something new Discovering who I can be What can I do? Born into a broken home Always fighting for the spotlight Never one for trouble
I had a small, rich and happy family. There was my dad Harry, my mom Wendy, me and my little sister Mei. Back then, we were fine. Mom and Dad had no problems during that time.
Is this what life is? Only the known ones Only the pure ones Can make it anywhere Only the divine ones Only the heavenly beings Are carried on feathery wings To the heights of riches
The homeless starve on the streets, And the people never stopping, never sharing a glance, never sharing a thought.
Storm of Ignorance By Lynisha Arceus
With each passing day you ponder a thought How will you pay, when will you start They denied to tell you how hard it would be Writing 600 words to each school applied Even after you've licked the last stamps
I'm riding in a car with people I just met, Realizing that my mind is so far away from theirs. I look around outside the car window seeing the life I live in, While questioning the thoughts that are going through my head.
Welcome to this world, this cold, cruel place, Where violence and hurt are quick to replace. Here are some things to which to pay mind If, and only if, you wish to survive.
Beating to the core Towards a betrayed Soul Being pushed out into a sea Of blood and grief And yet no one shows empathy to those Who inhale these deadly blows
Most girls dream of being prom queen I dream of being asked to prom Most girls dream of true love I dream of a simple happiness Most girls dream of living in a mansion I dream of living in house without wheels
Strength is not always, Muscle and brawn, But the feelings you have inside.
Standing at an intersection Holding a cardboard sign Scrawled on with a sharpie Found lying around Cars pass And pass And pass This is humiliating Still they pass The hot sun beats down,
History the past When did they invent the cash? That would stimulate economies And create a large gap In between the lines You cant read like "Between the Lions" You cant read the fine print
The city everyone wants to leave. I guess it’s part of growing up: Forgetting.
This morning I woke up and all I saw was black. I never knew the world could be so cold and lonely. But now I watch as: My mom loses her job and her house. So I sit here, In my bed, Wondering if I am next.
Lashes long, Apparel unclean. Everything is wrong, and the government is mean. A scary disease, and a sad smile. Hoping for relief, or a friend to stay a while.
Why is no one answering my cries? I lash out in hopes that someone will notice, But all that responds is never-ending silence. Music used to be my perfect muse… Now it doesn’t even offer me comfort.
Whats up with all this terrorism, racism, crime, and poverty? It must be in result of all this sovereignty, Or maybe because we've made this idea of reliability a novelty. Do we expect everyone to just win the lottery?
As so many others before me, I dream of a day where there will be no more debris Debris of the lost and lonely Debris of the poor and homely Debris of the beat and anguished Debris of the alone and languished
I am that little girl living in that little hole. Insides oozing out of me, insects creeping into my soul. Moans and cries nightly and daily, accepting my punishment, vulnerable…..gravely.
A president, an astronaut, that's what I had envisioned An actor surviving a 28 car collision A thread of untruth entwined into a white robe Strobe lights imitating a holy glow
Children, Quiet nights, chubby toes, imaginary friends in class. Water balloons, ice cream trucks, green blades of grass. Children, Mistakes made, processing death, moving away with dad.
Broken perfection, Hell slips into Heaven Sin crashes, and its fire causes damage Touching every man and all his possessions Burning flesh Searing hearts Breaking wills
Zero Zero dollars because the last bit went to the food that now digest slowly in our stomachs. As it was sliding down my hungry throat, I thought, "This is it, this is the end." It rains. And it rains.
On my hands and knees I pray For this world to see a new, brighter day. Not with the eyes of humans we should see, But with the eyes of how it was meant to be.
(poems go here) They did the work we didn’t want to do We could not be in the same room It was illegal for them to have a say If they even tried it was almost like they were thrown away This went on for 400 years
Shuffled by, Tossed and tied up without a bat of an eye Thrusted into a life that was unseen Depicted less of our mean Voice unheard, some sort of strangled silence
Shuffled by, Tossed and tied up without a bat of an eye Thrusted into a life that was unseen Depicted less of our mean Voice unheard, some sort of strangled silence
I see what your scared of, that thing inside that you want, the burning fire, te desire for change, you thought you could do it alone but your just one, thats what the doubters say,
The riders are teachers, The marchers are leaders, The man they all look too, Is a Baptist preacher. She sat in a chair, Not willing to share, To stand for her rights, Without being compared.
Some say ignorance is bliss, but I dare to disagree; I say ignorance is what the eyes are afraid to see. On the outside you may think these people are friends through whatever;
I've seen my people enslaved by these monsters I haven't seen them escape very far Still trapped by their masters, or the ones that claim they are And they've been hypnotized by those damn cars
Why won’t it change color? I try so hard To scrub off the darkness That will never go away It brings so much trouble and shame They stare at “it” Define me through “it” But I am more than that
Silence sweeps over the cotton fields of present day Georgia As gentle winds tickle the cypress and the pine. Streams ebb contently in their beds. Who would have thought in such a beautiful place,
I had a dream, he had a gun. I asked if I could sit, they asked if I could run. Without justice there is no peace, they say “I have justice so is there peace?”
In today's world, we hear about the civil rights movements in history class. We think, "that was so long ago, does it even matter now?" Most teens only think about our country now, not it's past.
This is a Rise^ For All of Those who have Died in order to keep the Living Hope Alive This a Rise^ For All of those who wear a disguise There's no need to hide
Oreos. Zebras. There are jokes about both That are funny to even the most welcoming of people. When two races mix, Two races so different as black and white, literally, Judgment is passed,
for anyone who has ever said people are poor because they’re lazy
She suffers unimaginable violence and neglect from him Not because she likes mistreatment But because she’s financially unstable
I am no Englishman But I conduct constitutional statements beyond imagination and time I am no senator But within my own moral enforce laws only accessible to wildest dreams I passed out millions
You're there. Sitting. Breathing. Breathing in all of the fibers of the world. Your world. But where am I? I am but an enigma that you dreamt up.
Their eyes no longer blank As they had risen from concrete crumbles. In the burning heat of day And in the rituals of the night. Rushing through the strings of dirty tents Trying to find the ceaseless end
Of shrimps and steaks and sizzling soups And turpentine rolls and cabbage groups Comes a man of greedy, vicious frosting The essence of virtue he is lacking. An effervescent mind when he wants it to be
In this great Melting Pot is there really room for more ingredients? Careers New Life Education They want it all Seeking far and low To become new creations Carrying stress and pressure on behind
Fortune tellers have never appealed to me Last resort to find your bicycle It's more that materialistic drama I can not seem to find a piece (peace)
One day, words will willfully transform into action A set of syllables will slip from tongue to reaction One day, speech and rhetoric will become living, moving, breathing
Let me tell you a little bit about the people you pass by every day- in school, in the drugstore, in the mall, on the street, in your one home
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