awareness
Learn more about other poetry terms
Two mirrors stand
Adjacent, opposed,
Staring into the infinity
They strive to approach,
Becoming
But never being
(I would step outside before looking in)
In the end you will find
Only the witness as he stands:
Open, bare to the world,
Among it, of it, a part,
i was asked to decribe myself.
i am that person that is seen not heard,
i am the person that always sits in the back of the classroom,
i am the person that is always zoning out,
Depression is like a record player
With a new record every week
and it’s always scratched
Right at the saddest chorus
With all the saddest chords
Those who never pleased the lord
I came into existence, naked yet clothedwith innocence and unaware,bathed with my mother’s blood,old folks heard me cry and were so glad.I came not into this unknown sphere by my own will
The mind always love to talk
but the body never wants to walk.
The Soul always thinks its pure
but nobody else will ever know for sure.
You can say things you would never mean
do things without a even care
Slowly and slowly fly the mighty feathers:
the uncanny wrath bearer,
The poacher's prey, the bald bizzare stigmatic cryptic creature,
The ecosystem's majestic role player!
TOMORROW, I'll cry for all the world,for all the things gone wrong.I will cry for every techered bird who has lost her joyful song.I will cry for ever flower who has lost his colour.
Last night, in my dream,while i wandering in the wild landsand crossing silent shadows,i met a word and ask:''What's your name?''My name is loveand i'm alone in life,i need you,
i saw a little leaf to whirling in the wind,didn't want to fall from the treebut the leaf keeps falling over,i prop it up, it falls again .At the end, the heartbroken leafleaves a tear when it falls
Our life a dazzling dream and the death a new arrival,there is no end and never was a begginning.Thousand centuries will gone and will leave faint signsin the breaths of time, thousand suns will light up
To dream with the black man in one eye
and the white in the other,
My child, let your life come into the world of darknesslike a spark of light, without flicker and pure,and thank them in silence.
You know, my child, they are cruel in their greed and envy,
After time,people will say,in those years, we lost the meaning of we,we lost the sense of universalityfound ourselves prisoners into ego,in a long soliloquyand the infinite life reduced to i,
All humans on earth are one.We descend from the same family of common ancestors.We are, in a quite literal sense, siblings,and like siblings we depend on each other's loveand care and responsibility.
Everybody is going through some shit right now.
Trying to figure out how they're going to dig them selves out,
and the shovel that they need nobody can afford.
And, It really makes you wonder what this life's for?
Let's cleanse our inner self from cobwebs of greed n envy
Let's decorate our persona with modesty n generosity
Let's make rangoli of care, empathy n kindness
Let's outshine the darkness of suffering n oppression
Part 1 of a 6 part poem written to my mom using different
body parts as a guide to weave each poem together.
This one depicts her eyes & mouth.
A deep dive into the ocean
Miami was a charm of a city
What difference does that make me
I learnt to rise and not feel usual hurt.
Time after time it was pleasure for every measure.
Love was the spice of my life
“Let me in, inside your mind, my goals are simple...I am the worst they come, a cold-blooded monster, wanting your soul. There is no end, I will not stop till blood is on my hands.” In darkness, he follows
This one is for the girl with the semicolon tattoo.This one is for the boy who keeps his head down in the hall.This one is for the twins who everyone loved and then--Wait, what happened again?
Your story isn’t over;
It’s the beginning of a new chapter;
A new chapter where you are the hero
But still your own villain;
This disease can come out of nowhere, and can try to take everything from you.
It is understandable to cry and to think about why this had to happen to you.
Hey little jazzier girl..................
Dusky skinned with lil curls
Elated, intrepid and demure
Plethora of dreams, intentions pure
Hello Mr. mustang, please don’t text while you drive
Unless of course you are ready to die
In that case please don’t do it here
When children and innocent people are near
For not everyone is prepared for their death
growing up
the antonym of easythe symptoms hit meand everything changed
I am still the samebut in some ways I amdifferent
Talk to me about depression
And what it feels like to be lost and hopeless
Where loneliness exceeds all expectations
Where darkness is smelled and tasted and felt
Around you like a very wet heavy blanket
Hi brethren,
I greet you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, The Messiah.
I read these words of Antony De Mello and I thought I should share with you.
Everyday, people are wanting to die.
Everyday, many people try.
Few are successful,
Others are not.
All of this is dreadful.
Why is none of this taught?
Everyday, people are wanting to die.
Everyday, many people try.
Few are successful,
Others are not.
All of this is dreadful.
Why is none of this taught?
Alone.
Looking out watching as kids play outside the run-down cheap motel grounds.
Watching as I see a little girl, no older than 5, smile as her mother ran after her.
My heart is heavy asking will I ever
be good enough for myself.
When I look at myself why do I peer through
my reflection like it’s nothing?
Like I am nothing.
Even when I say I am good enough and
It’s an
Anxiety
That doesn’t
Need to be diagnosed
But it’s felt
And it’s known
Like
Brown
I had a red-eye from the kick and start pills I used,
coupled with a red hot bonner.
It was half past six and I had gone 6 rounds,
lubricants from my last condom drained out.
The pain he leaves you with
is not your identity.
You are not what he said you are
and “crazy”,
I could never come to terms with how
you viewed me.
You’re so pretty.
You’re so capable.
You have so much potential.
You said that to me the other day.
a silver paintbrush runs along a soft canvas
leaving red waves in its wake
trading in pain for euphoric numbness
chasing away the voices with an artistic flair
when the sun rises the canvas is hidden
Silence is the real menace
Cause it will weaponize our fear
And one day turn back around
To when my friends were all here
Billy went to fight in the war
And didn’t return the same
Can you see Oh’ Can you see What are you looking at What do you see Can you see Oh’ Can you see What are you thinking What do you see Can you see Oh’ Can you see What’s happening right now What do you see Can you see Can you see What do you see Lo
Unfamiliar
A child, scared at their own shadow,
Pondering its own unfamiliarity,
Slightly,
Arid remarks
Shrugged-off side glances
Painted with painful disdains
Torment and colorful disgust
Intrinsically defined by nothing but
Side comments and catcalls—
Little girl.
I don't think i need a partner necessarily to be happy- i think if anything i need more self love.
bright striped leggings and rubber boots
outside but inside
something much darker
something she has seen
I must be cautious in the words i say;
I dream to be educated in every way.
To banish opression that keep us down;
To uplift whom feel submerged as if they drown.
isolation.
seclusion.
the crowded emptiness of popularity
the silent longing and the 'bottomless pit'.
maybe a self-imposed quarantine.
loneliness is the starvation of the soul from the
Awaken she
A newness of heart
A rebirth of the mind
Quietly she embraced
The day as the night
slipped away
“How do I grow?” Asked the rock to the tree.
“I want to have arms, so I can move and be free.”
“Is that what you really see?” asked the tree.
I have been in the bowels of hell,
Witnessed the Devil’s breath
And seen the Grace of Angels.
my grandmother says I’m lazy,
yet I am fully aware of the tasks
that are meant to be done before me.
I am fully aware of the miles of debris left behind my trail.
She makes sure everything tucks in,
So that she check out,
And gets checked out by strangers,
to open doors she can walk through.
His family isn't the blood type,
Small words taught me to sympathize
with strangers and their inner tides.
What poetry has taught me is easy to see.
It's made me actually deal with, well, me.
I have learned that it's okay to have insecurities.
It's alright to acknowledge the anxiety.
you can tell me not to cry when it rains from the storms i've created for myself but there's no purpose in telling a flower not to wilt.
Sink
Sink without a blink
Drink.
Drink from my breast. The milk to make you forget that you have been hoodwinked.
Think.
Think? Now you know better boy
Reopening this hidden treasure chest
Treasure not of riches but of rareness
Holding all my worst and bits of my best
My mind is a ferocious beast
That feeds off of dismal and harrowing memories.
Oh no, is it time for the feast?
It feels as if I am deceased.
The monster putting my mental state in jeopardy,
Your smoked filled eyes
Holding the thing in your hands,
Precious, you say.
Your smoked filled eyes,
Holding the lies you told me
“Friends”, you say
This past week has been hard but I’m trying my damndest.
You’ve been inviting me over every day but I keep saying no.
Because I’m terrified that I’ll go too far and lose something private.
A mask they hide behind
You notice the way they try to make themselves
look small
They try to close in on themselves
You see, I only know this because when the world showed
No mercy
I did this
Dear Chaotic World,
Need I say why I come to you now
With words
But you already know why I am here
Need I smile in all falsehood
A lie
Dear Now,
I could start this out by saying "Hello,"
But I think we both know it would go a little bit more like (sigh) "Hello... again."
To
The old man in the wheel chair at the art gallery last month,
You said I was in your way, and then you called me ignorant,
And I wanted to say I'm sorry,
But I knew my words did not make up for it.
In an ideal world
we wouldn’t have world hunger,
whole cities wouldn’t be down under,
we wouldn’t have to wonder,
"When will this all end?",
"Are you really my friend?",
Dear Obsessive Compulsive Disorder,
You, the bane of my existence, the pain that has persistence, no matter how I try there's no way I can outdistance you.
Look twice, save a life they said,
I thought once, considering the instruction;
It is known that a great number of lives are lost every day,
Dear Grandpa,
Doc said your lungs were black
Probably from those sticks you put to your lips
We warned you and so did the packages
But you chose to ignore us
run to the water
to the shower
the river
the ocean
to rinse
to cleanse
the dirt
left on my flesh
but the dirt is far from brown
its blue
its purple
its tender
I once saw a picture of a couplewho were as happy as can be. The white gown, alstroemerias, and uniform made them prettier than you and me. Their smiles were crimson like fruitwhich attracts all at the height of spring.
In a mad world he mad king rules. Carried to the thrown on the shouders of an angry and desparate mob.
Wielding pick axes and pitchforks with black lung and black hearts where Black Lives Matter is a thing because..
This girl I knew once,
She said it started with a close friend
someone she thought she could trust.
She was young and naïve
so young,
everything had become black and dark
Dear Depression,
Your waves rushed over me
The pain was comparable to the sting of your biggest bee
Your words
Words roll and tumble through the air
Big words, little words
Words that glow and vibrate
And words that are content to sit there
Filling in the spaces
To you, I gave the world,
Yet to I, you saw no such need.
Under the worst of circumstances, we met,
I, being a mess bent on self-destruction, and you, a loner.
To you, I gave you my world,
To you, I gave the world,
Yet to I, you saw no such need.
Under the worst of circumstances, we met,
I, being a mess bent on self-destruction, and you, a loner.
To you, I gave you my world,
I fell like a water drop
from the skies tears as it cried
for its lost love,
the earth moved silently
and without the moon
the waves were pulled by
storms of jealously as
winds howled for their
Because I love you
I'll never let you face anything alone
Because I love you
I'll remember ever milestone
Because I love you
This number is only going to do so much for me
It may have someone waiting to save me on the other end
But I don't have the courage to call
I feel like if I call
I'd just take another fall
Trying to call
Cinderella mops the floors.
Cinderella has more chores
To pamper, aid, and then protect
The evil sisters that make her a wreck.
Smiling through a crowd of tears,
She hands them dresses as they cheer.
Stop what you are doing and make believe this thought:
Pretend you are alone & safe on a Himalayan mountain
Meditate & somehow find yourself sitting there in a warm room.
At peace & willing -
The skin I’m in is black,
I don’t mind that it’s black, but the responses to black,
Causes to me to reflect back, to the fact that.
My forefathers were black and that blackness was to others a curse.
Perhaps
we are all blind sometimes.
Our vision becomes shrouded in the pitch-black
darkness of our own rotten words.
Our blood turns cold, emerald with envy.
A broken boy, a battered girl
Soil from which the fern uncurl.
From two lives, were seeped in pain
Somehow we found our hearts again.
A world of darkness, two specks of light
God I am frustratedNothing is as it shouldWonderful thoughts of flightBroken calls of worry
Land of the free and the home of the brave?
More like land of the thieves and home of the slaves!
Taxation steals money all over the nation.
We're working for the government on this corporate plantation.
Lacking one's good sense strictly defines that I should hold on tight mine
Seeing people pity on themselves
Knowing that they might need the Lord's help
Oblivious to what is known
Consequences postponed
Look me in my eyes
Do you see the pain?
The pain I hide
Look at my smile
Do you see the pain?
The pain that I hide
Im guessing you don't
Because I am the clown of the circus
Is the closet really safe?
Or was it meant to be fake
Played with like a heart
Who will soon be torn apart
See,but people don't realize this
That the closet is safe as is
I sat there waiting to be hugged by the sweet arms of death.
I sat there awaiting the clock to strike twelve and for my fairytale to end.
How do u explain to someone you cant hangout . "anxiety bad today" wont come out the mouth
Laying in bed , not wanting to get off the couch
My life was a whirlwind of suffering, but only within my mind.
My day to day hardships don't always happen in real time.
My life was dark, dead, and dreary.
I put the inanimate over my head, to protect my mind from gathering more unwanted thoughts
These thoughts fuel my eyelids as they become triggers my lashes ever so slightly pull
I'm losing weight because
you only love me for my skeleton,
on my ribs you carve ampersands,
because my life is nothing
without your "and's."
"And the others are prettier,
the others are wise."
He cares about everyone
And has so much respect
People call him modest
He says nobody is perfect.
They’ve heard that he is polite
He tries not to annoy,
He’s kind and smart, all-around,
Everyday bouncing around in the mind and bodyNever have a boring day, a constant state of hyperTo have thoughts replay over and overThe meds offer no help they cause only depression
To smile well depressed is such a strange feelinglook to for help yet your external emotions are concealingalone once again
Those few weeks before
I knew something was wrong
From the music he was listening to
To his dearly departed smile
That day he didn't show up again
Why
He'd been there
Before
I went to look at myself in the mirror
And I saw no reflection
Because my fist met the glass earlier that day...
If tonight I found myself missing
I disappeared without a trace
You’d spend your nights wishing
I was home warm and safe
If tonight I took my last breath
We the (conniving & coy)
We the (sullen & somber)
We the heartaches
the heartbreaks.
Quell the earths quakes
with equivalent exchange
of natural disasters-
silent breaking, day by day
against my will, I run away
afraid of those I used to trust
one breath away from giving up
Hope seems but a vague memory
You want a perfect poem. With a beginning, middle, and end.A perfect little thing that makes you feel fantastic with a good ending.Of nature, that makes you see the light of things that can't be seen.That is not this poem. Beginning.
I want to share a life lessonThat took me time to see:How choices make the world go roundAnd how it starts with me
A product of society. Must be nice I dream, well what is nice to them?
They own us and they know it, they own us and we know it
Convincing ourselves we have made great progress
growing up I was taught that the
straighter and more constraint my
hair was then the neater it looked
blow dry it, flat iron it and just put it
away
and why? because for some reason
I thought I was a sociopath.
There was something missing in my mind,
No feelings, no time,
The tears that once created streams
were now damned by these things.
Just write.
Tell them I’m kind
Tell them that my intentions weren’t blind
The fact that one characteristic could change one’s mind
My hearts racing but the beat slows I’m losing time
The boy stood at the edgeHe looked up and down, side to sideHe just wanted to end the fight the one he called his life
Two years ago
This is how I would’ve seen my classmates:
Troublemakers,
Perfectionists,
Geniuses,
Slackers,
My best friends,
What can you tell me?Is this the land of the free?If I enter a store,Will you search me all o’re?
It’s okay, I understand.To your fear,I fear,I have lent a hand.
It is my conscious will
My want to always till
A world that never stays still.
It is my conscious awareness
My life I impress
On a world ravaged with tests.
It is my conscious emotion
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.
Before you date somebody with amental illness, you must rememberthat calling them beautiful willnot adjust their brain's chemicallevels. Sweet words do not reversesickness that plagues the mind
Pops, you watch too much TV.
I feel convinced that I have now become a faceless memory,
That only photographs will bring short-term remembrances of me.
Pops,
How can a single word
Rach up healthcare bills, wage war
And tie a noose? A
Handful of letters leading
To a mouthful of pills and
A heart-full of pain.
A foggy night, dizzying heights, the heady scent of the things he tries to fight
Thunder crashing, his heart's thrashing, raindrops splashing, nature's might
Safe and sound, enclosed around him, a resounding consequential roar
I'm alone and can't sleepThere's no one here but meI'm stuck with all these memoriesIf they could only see
Never take life for granted
Always wake up with a smile
The ones we love cannot be supplanted
And you might only be here for a little while
Sexual abuse happens to as many as 1 in 3 females and 1 in 4 males before the age of 18.Dissociation is one of the common coping mechanism of abuse.
Hey, is anyone out there listening?Where are the ears to hear?Her heart is opening wide;can you feel her agony?Does any one care?Her tears are falling.There are secrets in her soul
Beneath the midnight sleep:
seasons come flooding like the touch of a first love,
in vibrant black, blue, and indigo hues,
that every unholy eye can see.
Sit here in silence:
No white or black
Just a well laid track
And often a concerning lack
Of humanity is seen
Forgetting the in between
Just fallowing a track
To human demise
A world were one another
Have you ever been lied to? Judged or picked on?
Do you truly know the difference between right and wrong?
If you suddenly have an answer to that question,
Born a small pebble in the oblivion,
Same as many others, approximately trillions.
The Man up above shining his holy radiance everyday,
Never thought I would ever push myself that way.
I have so many things to say-just... no one to say them to.
All my friends are getting their hearts broken
and getting woken up at 4 am with kisses on their necks
and-sure,
imagine
there is a landmine in your veins
tic tic ticcing away
counting down the days
until you can look in the mirror
and see yourself straight -
imagine
Its time we take some action
This world is far from perfect
Kids living with starvation
Suffering from neglect
Another lost generation
That we all must protect
To help them with temptation
My soul
Is like a polaroid:
Something beautiful waiting to happen,
But turned dark
When exposed to the world
I look upon the moving crowd
Slowly sighing, looking down
Hurting, fallen, angry, shy
Now I cannot just seem to fly
I hear the Rumors in the halls
Now I get unwanted calls
Within my body
marked on my arms
Lies these dark lines
That are called scars
I did it once
And thought I'd stop
But then I kept going
And couldn't get enough
People define you because you are 1 in 68
You are so different yet unique
You coming into my life was complete fate
So you want to get to know me? You sure? The real me? Well my name is Tazjona and I am 17. I grew up with a man that wasn't my daddy. He lived with us cause he loved my mommy. But then i got older and then he raped me.
I remember the first time I wrote poetry,
I remember the blood pooling out of me suddenly becoming ink
How the blade suddenly became a sharp pen-
Right here
Right now
We'll jump and fly
The birds will cry
And time will die
As you and I
Will fly all night
To make things right
And find the light
Right here
Right now
"Your Honor,
I didn't mean it,
I know it's my fault,
I didn't mean it.
My intentions were good,
won't you believe it?
It happened so fast I couldn't see it."
He ain't wanna hear it
maybe if i dont say i am, i wont be.
maybe if i pretend to be happy, i will be.
maybe if i keep building these walls, i'll be protected.
maybe if i stopped taking them pills, i'll be fine.
I remember it like it was yesterday-
The dripping of rain upon my window, the sound of the wind blowing across the city-
It's hard to tell you the whole truth though because I'm still trying to figure that out myself-
feelings smash
collide and integrate
mixing colors like the finger paints my mother made me as a child
one minute i am functioning
one minute i am overwhelmed
and the next i am gone
A year ago, this room would have been empty.
He would have been confined to his room
Confined to his own thoughts obscuring the emptiness.
Maybe more than a year had passed.
A toy needs love too....
You were happy because I was something new and fun to play with,
At first, it seemed lime everything I did amazed and befuddled you,
Where did those times go?
My bones were feeble
My breath had weathered
My voice can be heard as a bare, cracked whisper
And I listen at how fragile we are...
For which my lungs, they were thirsty for air
Tell me
why are you here all alone?
Here in the corner
with a pill bottle
and much more Advil
than you'll ever need
I'm so sorry
that no one ever told you
the
mirror
lies.
Oh sweet, sweet depression.
How are you doing my dear?
You're pulling me down so far,
Down so far I can't hear.
Oh sweet, sweet depression.
My arms become hungry,
As my makeup smears.
History repeats itself
it's why we're here again.
Black versus white
but this time it's times ten.
We need to be aware
that this gon' get us nowhere.
No! It's not him, her, or them;
When I look at you I don’t just see some sad, lost girl,
I see someone beautiful, who makes my world melt when she smiles,
I see someone whose laugh just makes me want to laugh right along with you.
Who am I but a figment of my own imagination?
A lie.
An idea I’ve used to claim the land of four nations.
Who am I?
Dear victims,
Dear that kid in the corner , who is afraid to raise a hand
Dear that girl in the locker room, who is afraid to dress again
Dear that boy getting punched from a so-called " friend "
Who am I without any of those filters or fake edits?
Well I am me
I am someone who is naturally beautiful
yet goofy all by my personal line of credit
I am someone with flaws just like anyone else
Buckets of rain poured down from the sky,
as though the angels wept, mourning what was to come.
I found myself lurking outside at school,shrouded in a black hoodie
The words unspoken are louder than those
yelled across the room.
I must escape
the voices
they're closing in
taking me as their prisoner.
Retreat behind the yellow door
close it and keep it there
What I show you is,
Not who I want to be,
But what you want to see.
I aim to please,
Society.
They say to me,
"Be a tall, thin,
Long haired, white teeth,
Light-skinned beauty,
What I show you is,
Not who I want to be,
But what you want to see.
I aim to please,
Society.
They say to me,
"Be a tall, thin,
Long haired, white teeth,
Light-skinned beauty,
My struggle with anxiety is not as cute as my curled hair or my new outfit.
It certainly won't get as much love on Instagram, and the notes on Tumblr will remain at zero.
Days are tough
I put on a happy face
Mask the pain
No one knows
The real you beside few
I feel lost
Tears fall down
People always ask, "why be sad?"
"Just be happy"
New players start at level 1.
There's not much you can do.
The enemies are too difficult -
one hit and you're down,
the quests are too complicated,
and it seems the other characters have looping speeches.
Underneath I have a dirty heart
You all will fail, so I can win
I am not clean and cut like my selfies
But I am rough and tough like so many
I do not really care about you
So what if I lie and say that I do?
Another world inside of me
That no one else will ever see
Mostly it is comforting
But in the dark
where no one sees
It's actually quite lonely..
The Authentic Me
by Hunter E Jones
Does the selfie define me?
Am I worthy? Am I pretty?
Maybe I should just run away.
If not a single soul should care,
Why on earth would I stay?
I've tried everything to numb this pain.
But nothing seems to kill the sadness.
The wind will blow away my sin
Copper devils wait in the tall grass
I walk on doves feet across the clouds
Fallow my feelings little fish
Sing about rain
I sometimes wish I was a monster
Rarely do I see stretch marks, bruises, and scars in the media
The absence of flaws on models and celebrities is extremely concerning
It implies that imperfections are a shameful appearance
Her eyes swollen from the tears,
whites of them wide with fears.
She's been so strong, she's carried on,
but how long can she go along?
Pushing through everything she does,
They look at the people like us and they laugh
Laughs feel like attacks
Attacks on walls that are already crumbling
Crumbling like our self-esteem and our hopes and dreams
Dreams that are fading away
I am flawless from my head to my toes
No clothes or filters can better what’s already gold
I shine so bright and I don't need to be told
For its my beauty within, that makes me so bold
Highly underrated
Highly anticipated
Got one goal that is being the greatest
Prove doubters wrong when I make it
Been plotting this moment since my momma was pregnant
Screaming bloody murder, but no one can hear the cries
Cannot hold on forever, can hardly put up a fight
Locked inside a cold room, lying on the hard floor
Beaten in the gloom, here be he prisoners of war
Where the air flows fresh and crisp
And life radiates shades of green
And orange and red and colors
That run deeper than the scars
Of the Earth;
Where the grasp of man halts,
Giving way to nature,
I don't want to doit. I woudn't.I won't,that's the easyway out.But sometimes whenthe pain is too muchI don't think I'd mindif you did it to meinstead.
Green sap oozing
from great gashes
in trees
into
paper, furniture, and houses
all for human needs
like the great stashes of black oil
oozing....
into
lakes, rivers, and streams
Oh, if only I could go
I'd walk towards a meadow
My screen of glass would stay astray
Divorced from me.
I'd settle among the tranquil trees,
and open my mind to new possibilities.
It was a dark night
With only one dim street light
Driving down the dirt road
That December night, it snowed
A tear, a whisper
A shout, a cry
No one seems to hear
No one is by your side.
Everyone is oblivious until it's too late,
Another angel has been sent back too soon.
Don't be a brat! BAM BAM Stop being stupid! BAM BAM You need to learn! BAM BAM Don't fucking talk to me!
The cuts got deeper
The blades got sharper
The lights got darker
The voices got quieter
The world got away
Hearing the screaming and shouting in my house,
I don't know what to do but grip my blouse.
I used to think "This is where it all ends",
But I looked past that and started to ascend.
I remember the pain.
The relentless,
nauseating pain cutting through my gut
the second I mistakenly glanced his way.
I craved him
with the senseless hope
he craved me back.
Bringing down others
Undermining ones own self confidence
Leaving a trail of broken people.
Lifless bodies strewn every where due to you
I can only wonder and pray that i'm not next.
Ethnicity, an identifier to some,
a misfortune to others...
to her.
She hides, her true identity under a body she feels isn't her own,
Mocked behind closed doors
My shorts are not an invitation
For your hands to roam my thighs
And my sassiness is no reason
For you to ignore my reluctant cries
My exposed skin is not shouting
"Come on; there's more to see!"
Do I know you?
The words you pronounce
are so ugly and dirty,
But you say they fit me just
perfectly.
Do I know you?
No, I do not
but here I am lying on the floor
Be strongNothing ever last for longIt wouldn't last forever you knewBut its okay he still cares about youJust hold on to your heart for nowWipe the sweat from your brow
Who am I?
A question even I don't know,
For this face I do deny,
And body try to hide,
This mask as my disguise,
Every mirror will catch my eye,
To eat I have to try,
Anorexia.
Sir no sir.
Please leave me alone sir.
Let me sleep sir..
This isn't rite please don't touch me....
I'm only 11; you're 50..
Sick heart, dripping with gasoline,
fueled by the cigarettes thrown like darts
the whip’s bullseye that tore her apart,
innocent and caged, helpless to cleanse itself,
gives in to the rage,
Awkwardly fitting into the other gears
Grinding closely hiding my fears
Tic-Toc, the other gears keep me moving
My time spent is my only doing
Every second spent stranded on a island never to return,
In a dream I was surrounded by darkness
It was a cold vast emptiness
The creeping feeling of things at my feet
In this void emptiness consuming me
I felt the pain in my legs
a numbing and painful bleeding
The tree laughs
Children play below
On a hot summer day so slow
The tree is shade
And the tree likes offering aid
The tree smiles
A couple look deeply into each other's souls
We all want to be happy. Fall in love, get married.
We all want that fairy tale ending.
We fail to see the evil in the poeple we say we love. Because we don't know what love is. Or the damage it does.
Idly, I regret to say the time has come.
You will now feel alone and begin to drone on.
Your mind will stay active,
A World at Large.
Begin to think of the boy 500 miles away,
We swear we live for liberation
So then why are we faking and making it seem we don’t really care about this nation
We are the people, the people that demand equality; it bothers me that we don’t even practice what we preach
Underneath my left breast
carved into my ribs in powdered jet
8.11.14
the day the happiest man alive
killed himself
and we all found out
that he was pagliacci
La Commedia è finita!
"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil." (Psalm 23:4)
When they told me
you were gone,
a cold hand
stilled my heart.
When they told me
you were gone,
a hard, heavy foot
stomped the air from my lungs.
When the rest of the world seems like a movie reel
Spinning incessantly
Spitting useless nonsense
Faster than you can process,
But it's playing a beautiful picture
You've heard
Maybe I'm feeling all emotional
But I feel so inspired
Life isn't about how much money you have attained
How much knowledge one has acquired
Because in the end it all doesn't matter
Bullying is the worst evil
It can make you bleed
It can make you feeble
It strips away your confidence
It can destroy honest men
It steals from the poor
It preys on all fours
I am not the rain on a tin roof,
I am a blanket that never keeps your feet warm at night.
I am the uneven barstool at 2 am,
And the kiss that doesn't quite feel right.
The best part of art lies in the subconscious,
Not within the scrutiny of a scholar’s essay,
Not within the thoughts that the artist speaks to herself,
But within the very muscles of the hand,
The first thing I ever learned from her is that when she says she doesn't care, she's really lying through her teeth.
Hannah was late coming home this evening.
Traffic was slow and she had trouble leaving.
Work was hard and she hadn't any time
"Nadia, here is some cash for you to go back to school with...I love you, do great... make me proud, you can do whatever you want in life".
"Hey Nad, I love you, happy birthday".
Steamy hands on the window pane
She takes a breath and slips away
Pulled by hands of a sick step-father
Iron bars built all around her
She threw herself to the men she saw
So spit at me.
And Color me blind
Sing me deaf
Label me crazy.
Do what you will.
For now.
But know that each:
Comment
Quip
Insult
The first time it happened I was lost;Eyes closed wondering through the woods of my mind and running into trees I was young and a child and trying to find who I was.
Acknowledging It.
Barbie pink panties and an oversized tee
Time to pick her cherry tree
Innocence, gift and curse
Him playing doctor and her playing nurse
Can you even hear him?
Or do you block him out?
Afraid of what he could say
That would make you feel so proud...
Do you even try now?
To let him in your 'house'?
The truth kills
His body rots day in and day out
A lifeless corpse, a broken spirit
Never-ending pain finds paradise
Devouring his hope
Hope keeps him walking
Hope holds his spirit
If I could change things in and about the world
The sky would be pink
Our skin would be chartreuse
Earth is such a wonderful place to live,
It is such a shame humanity takes yet fails to give.
The consistency of life continues to unfurl,
The ignorance of mankind will end the world.
If one child had not been taken -
had not been shot,
had not been slain -
if one more child had remained standing,
think of the heroes
she could have named.
If one child had told her stories,
She sits in a corner.
Knees to her chest and head down.
For she is lost, never to be found.
Thoughts are running wild within this child.
Her life remains madness and pain
Sadness and no gain.
But why?
She puts it in a note
Its all there.
Everything she wrote.
She was angry,she was pissed
No idea how much she would be missed.
Its like she was in a game,
But its not exactly the same.
To those who are broken
Whose hearts have not mended
Keep this thought on your mind
Your lives have not ended.
While the hurt and the grief
Will bear down like a weight
Know that there is relief
Today is today, I mean that's what everyone says. But today is the day that I hide , in the shadows, faces of you are revealed in my sight. I'm afraid to ever walk in those steel doors, because with me you have no insight.
I always loved to help.
So when I woke up for work,
At four in the morning,
And got socks from my sister's room,
I wondered why she didn't ask to talk,
Before taking 3 bottles of prozac and pills.
Why would you just stand and watch?
What if it was your friend or family?
Feeling emotionally lost.
Feeling as if no one is there.
Feeling embarassed.
If I could change something, it'd be my generation.
I'd give them some common sense and even more motivation.
I'd bless them with the initiative it to took to build this land
Cold, frim, lifeless,
Laying on cold steel,
Water trickles down the drain,
Washing the dirty away.
Incisions are made,
Inspection makes way,
Hunting for the cause,
Success.
America, America Home of the free
Where the justice bell rings peacfully
Parents tell children of the birds and the bees
Yet there are others who've never heard such a thing
Garbage litters the dusty roads
A glass house
Sit inside
Watch the storm outside
Watch the thunder and lightning
Draw the curtains
And listen to the thunder
Close the windows
And hear nothing
The first time I saw you . . .
I was greeted by the most unearthly howl
The sound of a thousand jackrabbits being impaled while dragging their nails across a chalkboard
It stopped when
If I suddenly disappeared,
No one would notice..
If I slipped away for a year,
No one would care.
So the point in being here ??
None given.
No point of existing.
No point of living.
What is it that makes a person?
Where you were born?
Then I'm American.
Or where your ancestors came from?
Then I'm Filipino.
What you do?
I'm envious towards the movies,
That's my only crime.
Most take Marley,
Coconut with the lime.
I'm Selective to necessity,
Absorbent of the time.
Transpose and Metamorphose,
Silent tears stream down my face
Forced by pain they flow freely
The pain of life, friends, family
Pains of abandonment, poverty, hardships, failures
The pain begins to kick in.
The never ending pounding,
The drums beat inside my head.
Trembling, the room spins,
Sipping the vodka in my glass,
I'm drowning.
My liver screams
My little younger sister,
Was told when she was seven,
That she wouldn't see so well,
Maybe till she got to heaven.
She has a rare eye case,
Rentinitis Pigementosa,
Being an aspie can be a source of misery or a source of pride, it’s all in the bearer’s perception. “What’s an aspie?” you might ask. It’s a term for someone who bears the rigorous condition of aspergers.
I’ve seen many young die
And it breaks my heart to this day to see photographs
Buried underneath my diploma and school planners
The washed out teddy bears still taped to street signs on corners
I’ve seen many young die
And it breaks my heart to this day to see photographs
Buried underneath my diploma and school planners
The washed out teddy bears still taped to street signs on corners
There is an underlying silence over everything
that holds everything, is everything
as we communicate this substance of silence embodies our conversations
meanwhile I search for inner peace
Her giggles, her smiles, her jokes, all hiding the pain inside her. No one could tell beneath
the fake expressions, the invisible tears, and the clunky bracelets all hiding the scars and burns
A joker isn’t always funny,
A house isn’t always a home,
A father isn’t always a dad,
A bad person isn’t always an enemy.
But twelve have passed, and thousands remain suffering.
And by now it is Thursday,
Hello, it's me.
Yeah, the girl in the front row of your class.
I take vigorous notes, nod and show appreciation for your enthusiasm
or, for a the lack there of, I sympathize.
Grab a hand and stand together
let here a heartfelt welcome
hand by hand race by race
together we stand equal
strong and firm
We are never alone
so be a friend and lend an ear
Myself;
As expansive as the ocean,
Yet also a wanderer within its great depths.
With no thought at all I flow with its motion,
But resistance is found when I consider my breadth.
Deeper than the submarines,
My voice leaves no echo.
I can shout, holler, scream
Cry, beg, or plea,
But nothing would happen,
Nobody would come,
As if my voice has no echo,
No sound,
No meaning.
How
am I supposed to focus on all the good in life when I am ever so
Numb
like the scars on my wrist, the ones that never made it past my skin
Frantic
I watch the news, people are dying
look around the halls, girls are crying
not about the hyrricane, or the war in Iraq-
about the boys they admire
A mind has vacated its body
Escaping voids lingering deep within a battered soul
With ignorance to the disconnect it harvests
A storm is brewing yonder
And one will become wary listening to the thunder
Hearts’ silence.
Speak to me in whispers
I can’t... HEAR you
Scream to me introspectively
Ideological torture meets psychological abuse.
Waiting outside, day in day out, from the morning's beginning, till past the ninth inning.
Crowded before work, people listen, read, write and wait...
Persistent patience while the rain's delaying.
I'm in a situation,
Contemplating on my generation's procrastination,
Young girls who are infatuated with cosmetic creations,
Making decorations out of their bodies,
Living in an inflation of relations,
Let’s give them guns,
Let’s show them how to shot someone,
Let’s to teach them to feel nothing about seeing the blood of their family,
Let’s watch their souls turn into masters of death,
We have created monsters,
I rise and so I stand.
I stand, because I can.
breath of life in the morning I awake.
as the wind blows I smile,
in which, It comforts my mistakes.
lessons to be learned, always enough to be taught,
Pondering with my eyes closed,
As The raindrops tap against my window.
These droplets coming faster,
Its coming down hard.
These droplets must be the tears of God.
To my parents,
A hidden secret awaits,
Please don’t hate me for this,
It’s not a choice.
To my friends,
The hidden secret is out,
and I’m accepted by most,
You choose to shun me.
The light in the window was blown out
When we closed our doors on their tout.
We have seen so many seasons come and pass,
But this winter I want to make last.
You have seen some hard times in your years.
What is this?Greedy beasts feeding on your suffering.Stuffing their faces with ... ah the money you gave them. The money which was supposed to help you. Instead it became a feast for the monsters.
A smiley face at the end of every text, I'm wondering what you'll say next. Do you like me? Do you realize that I like you?
The shop doors open
And the signs are turned,
Every person, ready
to strike a deal.
Market street, dressed in wares of others' vision's
Flowers, dresses, hats, grocers goods.
They can take away your guns, your money, and your rights, They can put down your revolts, Put an end to your fight, But they can't take away your words, And that's why I write. We're at war, But what for?
Eleven months out of twelve I delve deep into the abyss
Can't resist licking my lips at all the quips and tricks the world has to offer
I offer my prayers rarely
but then, Ramadan rolls around
The cries of the people, the slash of the machete
How could we ignore?
The millions of bodies that lined the roads, the celebrations of the killers
How can we forget?
Words.
Whether you read them backwards
or read them forwards.
They are still only words.
Racecar. Kayak. Level.
They are still only words.
Whether you say them with meaning
I breathe in
Finding myself in a dream
Who am I to be on this earth
Write down your troubles, child and all will make sense
The dream moves on but nothing has changed
Am I alive?
Have I truly lived?
Oklahoma met a vortex
that gave and took, more or less,
by adding stress and taking homes –
The tragedies are causing moans
with rains and tears of agony.
The loss and pain of tragedies
A loud voice can do many things. It can free a caterpillar.
My words stayed small for so long and no longer will they hunger for excape.
I fought through the jungle of my mind and freed my thoughts from it's captors.
Large, mystical, and unpredictable,
He guided us through the night.
He saw us enter the alley
That led us to shivering from fright.
Here to remind him of his past
She stares him in the eye,
Glaring, for years, it seems to last.
On his arms, by a sleeve she’s masked;
The Iight
at the end
of the tunnel
is weak
and dark
yet no one
wants to shine
the light to see
all the possibilties.
They love to stay hidden
in their despair
and torment-
Hark unto me oh ye man!!!!
For it is not the struggle of one that overcomes all, but rather the struggle of all that overcomes one. We are not definite through human shape and form, rather infinite through UNIFYING energy.
4 out of 5 teens who attempted suicide have given clear warning
How many do you think have died this morning?
With their mental suffocation, detrimental frustration, judgmental conscience pushing towards their isolation...
It’s a thick pain coming from within my chest, my heart is crying out, wanting this torment to end, my womanhood I defend, as I feel the lump in my breast, as my fingertips I press against, the reason for my stress, and depressed is not the word,
Indifference blinds my generation with ignorance, it’s a lack of concern, of attention and lack of interest, for other people, for life, and for God in every sense.
On the beat, on the beat
The only sound's the pounding feet
Of people jumping on the stage,
Dancing the story of our age,
Of all the humans in their cage
The dancers free their pounding rage.
He loves me, she chants with her accustomed bag of ice.
He loves me, she chants in the morning and at night.
He loves me, she chants as she turns black and blue.
This is nonsensical
I received a fatal wound
Inside of my convertible
Which actually led me to this mountain
It's time to stop restricting those/ and unchain the chains around your cranium it's/ been locked inside that mental cage.../ bird sings if you let it/ get some lessons/but schools won't teach it to do so/necessarily/ true so, true say/ aaaahh/ op
Put down the knife another day is coming
No more red drops and keep life going
Battle scars are worse in the heart, I know
Don't let them on your skin, don't let it show
What I'm asking you is please be strong
Feel the tongue tingling words oozing from my overly active brain.
The sensation of bottle popping knowledge residing in your heart.
His words will never hurt you again
The hammer in your chest will pound no more
I'm sorry you think that I'm hopeless,
I'm sorry I told you it's true.
I'm sorry that you cannot see me,
I'm sorry you cannot break through.
You said you loved me
You said you cared
Then you passed away leaving me with a blank stare
You left so violently
Taking your own life
Plunging into your chest that delicate knife
I'll never forgive
On the outside I'm strong
But on the inside I'm in Hell
I make subtle cries
But no one who notices will help
(poems go here) On the outside I'm strong
But on the inside I'm in Hell
I make subtle cries
But no one who notices will help
I would like to be something different.
Maybe if I change my habits again.
Through hard work and dedication I can.
Become something not as myself.
Why did your self-esteem hit the floor? Was it because of the bullies who beat you to the core?
I can remember the first time I was about to commit suicide. It was about two years back... Maybe even one, I can't really remember.
All I can remember was what happened.
One Autumn day, I stumbled upon
A small leaf in a tree
As red as an ember, as yellow as the sand
The leaves all around
Were floating to the ground
Yet this leaf
This one little leaf
How could anyone say jane is bad?
Have they all gone severely mad?
It opens your mind
and helps you to see through constructs
Mad at myself
For letting it end
Countless months, hours, and days
Spent with my thoughts in a never ending haze
The wistful wind blows
It reminds me of peace
Never ending ongoing tranquility
Things that are hard to achieve
In this society which never sleeps
I'm no Maya Angelou, Mark Twain, or Emerson.
I don't yet know my dearest complaints, intents, or direction.
I've never been hurt so bad that I've been deeply pained,
I have, however, seen enough to know that we need change.
Listening to the sound of the "Hand"
I gaze in amazment
How can one gesture be a word?
I gaze in amzement
We do not know yet what you will hold
Until
you have come
folded into the pages of time
written in fragments
