National Poetry Month 12/30

4.12.17

knees buckled
under the weight of my memories
not what I've endured
the pain radiating from my core
is something more sinister
more dangerous
the pain that I've inflicted
haunts me

National Poetry Month 11/30

4.11.17

Dangerous thoughts
invade a quiet mind
to protect her belovéd
she grew distant
withdrawn
her skin wilted
her soul a desert
vast
empty
full of death

National Poetry Month 10/30

4.10.17

What is freedom really

when we are prisoners

to love
     to work
          to family
               to time

National Poetry Month 9/30

4.9.17

I do not recognize my face
I know that it's me starring
at myself in the mirror
I cannot tell if it's
time or age or something else
the women starring back
a stranger
there's a hint of familiarity
in the sadness of the eyes

has she always been there?
I cannot tell where reality lies
in the past or in the present
Mirrors are supposed to be
the keepers of truth
but this one
no this one taunts me
with a face I do not know
What truth is there in a
reflection?

National Poetry Month 8/30

4.8.30

I want to write you sonnets
alas my love isn't that profound
I want to sing you ballads
alas my lungs are short of air
I want to give you every thing
alas my pockets are full of lint
I want to show you my scars
alas I've forgotten where to find them
I want to give you myself to you
alas I lost her along the way

National Poetry Month 7/30

4.7.17

tall
stalks of green
i hydrate them with love
bright yellow buds
greet me at dawn

daffodils in bloom

National Poetry Month 6/30

4.6.17

I will not parade my pain
     on a stage for you
I will not make a mockery
     of my misery
for voyeurs looking to get off
My history wasn't meant to be
     scored on a rubric
My tears were not meant to be
     validated by an audience

No

I will not parade my pain
     on a stage for you
This stage
This venue
This theater
This house
this is my temple
my holy place

This is where I come
     to commune with goddess
this is not an office
you are not my therapist

I will give you every ounce of
love
     grit
          fight
                 flaw
                       light
but I will not give you my pan
that burden belongs only to me

So no, I will not parade my pain
     on a stage for you
I will not send you home
with comparison notes
I am not looking for acceptance
I don't need validation
This work isn't about me
This work isn't for me
This work
    is greater than my personal narrative
I don't step to the mic seeking approval

I am merely a vessel, here on this stage
the cries you hear in my throat are not mine
they come from another place
Stories I was destined to tell
You were destined to hear
but let this one thing be clear

I will not parade my pain
     on this stage for you