I want to think of you like a warm breeze
Free flowing and happy.
Our last words to not be filled with anger
But thinly veiled fear.
I want to see you in my dreams
A vision so sweet.
The little thin lines at the corners of your eyes
Forever turned up.
I want to hear the laughter of your children
As they grow older with every season.
The voices growing stronger
With every passing turn
I want to see stories in the paper
About your heroics.
To me, that’s a true gem.
Her body sunk below the surface
It flung through violent waves
One by one, they crashed against the Earth.
She couldn’t see.
Blinded by an ocean of rage and ache.
No longer equipped to fight the current in this state.
She used to slide under the radar of feisty fishermen
Dodge their illusive nets
But they’ve got her
hook,
line,
and sinker.
Stranded with the dead-eyed flounder,
Her throat constricted and the breathes were shallow.
She was just another fish trapped on a ship of uglies
It’s happening again
This pounding within my chest
Feet cemented to the ground
We watched the earth reset.
My body tensed,
Waiting for the impact.
The waves took us both under.
We sunk deeper and deeper beneath the surface.
I have never felt more free.
The sun is at its peak in the sky
Not sure what came of the time.
The crows created a nest in the trees,
While I wiped away the last semblance of hope from my cheeks.
Racing through hoops of unrest.
The rioting,
The looting,
Protestors chanting, “I can’t breathe. Don’t shoot!”
Deep inside, I am screaming.
Can anyone hear me?
My voice has reached new octaves
I’m the pianist slamming down the keys
I am not a threat
My cellphone is not a weapon
Stop! Don’t shoot me!
Rinse, repeat
Another brother is on tv
Another sister didn’t make it out of custody.
We wear masks to protect the public from a virus
Where is our protection from the government?
Were we not created equal?
Did Martin not take a stand on the bridge in Salem?
Have we not done enough to make America great?
We are suspicious.
We should be feared.
We don’t belong here.
Trapped in the twilight zone
Somewhere circa 1960
Why is my life not worth saving?
Why is this even a question?
I love the way that you touch me.
My mind and body buoyed to the sea
Tethered to the anchor of forbidden fruit.
We are at a standstill and I’m ready for the scenic route
Listen to the sound of the music playing in the background.
Ready to take a leap.
Inside I’m rotting,
Water seeping into the crevices.
Growing spores on the source of forced breaths.
Cracking at the root
Afraid to take a step
I refuse to go anywhere without you.
And so I stand, where I’ve been placed for centuries
Withstanding the chaos of fire, water, and man
Nothing shall faze me.
A wall of steel is what I shall be.
A mere scratch on the surface.
A warrior in the forest of havoc.
The clouds were lively tonight.
Dark and broody
A storm was brewing.
He gazed longingly at his beloved
Words trailed off,
Much was left unsaid.
The waves crashed against the hull,
As the wind picked up,
Thunder roared.
They’ve created something special
This little slice of secret menu apple pie.
It brought comfort to them like a sweet white wine.
Traces of fresh 20 proof comforted her.
In liquored spurts,
The words were out in the sweetest ballad.
Tears filled her eyes as she lay her head down for the night.
Softly whispering “I love you”
Hoping they reached him before sunrise.
This feeling of unease seeps its way into a world where hope is reserved for fighters.
Coming from places where suns and moons rise at different times.
They fight side by side, partners as some may say.
How wide can one’s arms spread in a world reliant heavily on faith?
She stood on the edge of the cliff
The breeze was brisk and yet confined itself to every crevice.
The water came crashing at the shoreline,
Creating this sense of unexplained melancholy in the pit of her belly.
They were riddled with memories of worlds intertwined,
Rising and falling together like a moth to a flame.
Straddling the line between monsoon and drought.
The weatherman couldn’t predict Mother Nature this time.
What was happening, there is no scientific diagnosis.
The sky cried for a little while
Until the sun broke through the clouds
Just for a moment, everything was ok.
Just for a moment, everyone was on the same page.
People came out of their shells with a purpose
All looking up at the clouds with the same look of masked anguish.
Just for a moment, the weatherman predicted
Dark and cloudy is the the forecast today.
I’ve often reminisced about the wind gliding through the luster of my hair,
I am transfixed—
by the place that gave me asylum from my own pretenses.
I walked through the meadow,
Stumbling upon the lives that appeared before me
An existence of utter tranquility
That momentary silence heeded
Engulfed by the need to stop the clutter of voices
Preventing ink from touching paper.
To feed upon my own insanity
They told me not to hide.
The sun bore through the trees
My skin displayed the absence of light—
Forming this connection.
I knew we would thrive
Inside the globe of our ancestors.
I’ve tried to see it through their eyes.
How hard it must be to be torn.
I feel like an ornament that sits atop the mantle.
Visible and worn.
It is not my intention to replace you
But to compel you to be better humans.
To be free-thinkers
And self-sufficient.
I’ve been painted as the monster
A hulk-like figure.
A scary person,
Who makes bumps in the night.
Progress is lost upon us.
We must now start from scratch.
Words of expression 