Tag: Poem
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Closed to the public
You don’t get to decideIf my truth holds meritYour curiosity isn’t owedJust because I’m differentYou have no right to my storyMy privacy is a closed doorYou don’t deserve an explanationJust because I mentioned meIf you really think you’re owedThen your priveledge is showingThe only thing you own is youI’m not giving tours to me today.
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Atoms in this galaxy
No more than ants to an elephantOr a spec of sand to the sunThat us the only way I can seeComparing ourself in this universeSome propose a greater beingA greater intelligence to designBut then they have the hubris to thinkIt speaks to us all, it listens to us allThat it cares more for some than othersMy thoughts lean toward existential dreadI dont think the galaxy speaks to meThere is no one tuned in to my silent pleasI can be grateful for my unique existenceAnd agnostic to my place in this universe.
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Carrying these under eye bags
When allergies bruise my face
With deep set racoon eyesMeds only help so muchOnly time and sleep can fixThe curse my body lives withThese puffy, achy pains of existingDoing too much or doing to littleThere is no win, only compromiseI avoid what I can and live moderatelyBut yesterday the world beat me me upAnd now my body’s bullied into submissionThese deep purple circles under my eyesTell me today I need to rest.
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uninspired
A fine whine comes at the time
When inspiration is in declineI use fire to fuel my brainFill the furnace with my painWait for the watched pot to boilHold my breath until it uncoilsStep away to let it simmerSmoke’ll let me know when it’s dinner.
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hurt feelings
It’s true my feelings are my ownAnd only I can choose to feel hurtBut the shock is none the lessWhen reality defies expectationA tone of cruel dismissalHarsh words swaddled in sweetnessThe unevenness stings sharplyI feel hurt by what you aimed at meThere is no opening to demand betterTo ask reason from a mouth that bruisesAt best I can choose to move onYou have no say in my feelings.
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Corporate dissonance
Managers have to be the bestThey have to climb a ladderCompete to get to the topDisability is a disadvantageWe are trying to surviveWe innately don’t fit inReasonable accommodationRequires disability to expose needTo get assistance we have to askWe have to explain our weaknessThis corporate paradigmThe culture of managementConflicts with the reality of disabilityIt’s like expecting wolvesTo see the sheep’s point of viewAnd then stubbornly confusedwhen the wolf sees the sheepAs a meal when it’s time for dinner.
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rare collectibles
Extroverts collect friends
They must have them allIntroverts search for rareThey want that perfect matchIs it better to care for the worldOr restrict to the right fitWho can say what works rightExcept for each one of us.
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Maybe different isn't unique
I’m ordinary and special, as are we all
Not superior, as some think I claimI stand out as much as I chooseSometimes not hiding from viewMy truth is defined by myselfIt isn’t up for debate or editorialLong as I’m not causing intentional harmI am worthy of my life in this worldOthers may have limited perspectiveDrawing a clear box around their existenceI wish I could coax them out to seeBut theirs isn’t my choice to makeI believe minutia means there is moreThe details make this world interestingSo I’m going to enjoy this life I getMy tiny bit of time in this universe.
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everyday hurts
Wailing aches
Screaming painsMy body yells a storyIt loudly complainsLike a whining infantMy body doesn’t careThe world infects meThrough the evil airIn the food I eatJust sitting hereCan’t escape malaiseCan’t make me betterExistence isn’t fair.
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deep or a above
Being the biggest root
Doesn’t make you a leafA leaf soaks it up the sunLiving idly in the soft windUs roots are undergroundDeep in the dark dirtA serf to the whole of the treeWe serve the same masterBut we aren’t in the same placeWe can’t always escape our positionBut we can be aware of it.
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suffer the introvert
Mingling is abhorrentTorture of the introvertA room full of strangersFilling space with polite wordsAs if the air shouldn’t be emptyAwkward introductionsIike a poorly timed cold callLeading to stilted exchangesThe funny ones performAnd the shy ones hoverAnd I just sit in my cornerWaiting for the gathering to end.
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entitled
Entitled is a companion of priveledge
A mistaken belief that the world is fairAn accusation suggesting there is a rightBut the world is a complex systemAnd there is no proven designWe’re a cog in this invisible machineCan’t predict when a wrench is thrown inOr unexpected deviation from the normThe metaphoric world doesn’t careYou may have support to stop your sufferingBut that bring us back to priveledgePriveledge isn’t the world being right or fairThis is the world tilted in your favorEntitlement is the belief that tilt is owed.
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value of a penny
Capitalism and colinization
Fancy words for money and powerWe own, and merge, and buyoutThen promote the owners like it’s a giftAppropriate what we can’t destroyDestroy the parts that don’t get alongBland consumerism is the peakThinking our entitled selves are uniqueA few live on the work of manyThe many suffer the value of a penny.
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lady power
Soft womanly demeanor
Deferring to anotherSetting an extra plateInviting to strangersStrength in givingAn open door isn’t weakHolding it open is power.
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anxious thoughts
Outside they tell me not to dread
Relax. Calm down. Don’t fret.But the competing voices in my headSpeak louder than they getLike an uncomfortable partyWith a dysfunction familyThese are the thoughts I live withAnd you can’t explain them awayNo words will stop my ruminatingDismissing me just pisses me off.
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body ached
My body makes me pay
Too much fun or too littleEither way I get to sufferIt’s hard to have good memoriesWhen they’re all followed by bad daysPain follows around my search for joyAs a rain cloud eager to soak meSo I have to be okay in wet clothesI have to smile as I shiverBecause there is no escaping my bodyIt’s with me forever.
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daily news
They tell salacious storiesEntertainment from painWe seek tales of outliersDull doesn’t garner clicksThinking, “Not in my back yard”Desensitized to the exceptionFueling a 24 hour news cycleHappy doesn’t sell papersReality can’t compete with fearHorrible seems imminentWe made this bed of terrorGood news just isn’t excitingThe world is full of storiesWe ignore logic and reasonWe’re jaded by what we hearWe listen, glued to our chair.
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companionable silence
The silence is calmingThe together is silentWe do our own thingsTogether but seperateAs we sit side by sideWords aren’t neededNo need to fill the voidCompanionship fills it.
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forgiving myself
I don’t want to be mad
At your lies and deceptionYou lied to you and then to meYou bought your own fake storyYou believed deception can be rightAnd I believed in the fake youI bought you line and sinkerWondered why I was drowningUntil I swam myself to shoreNow I see you treading waterCalling for me to come back inYou know I can’t swim anymoreI’m sad that you can’t changeMad at myself for wanting to believeI don’t want to be angry anymoreI want to be dry and leave the shoreSo, I leave the sea behind meForgiving the person I wasNot forgetting the person you are.
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We won't silence me
Can you find comfort without opression
Be free without smothering othersLeave space for a different viewpointWhy is it your way or the highwayWhen we each have our own roofIndependent brain mushy with electric smartsIs conversion the only optionOr can we live cohesive amongst individualsI won’t proselytize if you dont evangelizeMaybe I’m hoping for too muchThat we can live each seperate and togetherI’ll keep trying to stop we from silencing me.
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Which Witch
The mistake was believing in magicThe cat knew this, the human was obliviousLady smelled of sandlewood oilWith hints of laundry soap and human skinEven in the fragrant outdoor gardenCat could smell her humanOn an alter with precious knick knacksLady focused her attentionThe cat took pity on the powerless humanWith a loving rub of feline scentCat let Lady sway the world a tiny bitThis wasn’t rabbit or dog or bird powerIt was the sneaky magic of a catThe fiercly loyal love of a feral felineNot that any human would noticeBrains get in the way of intuitionMagic is animal, a knowing without thinkingSo Lady went on with her ritualAs Cat stalked a beam of sunlightLady thought of cat as her familiarBut only cat knew who held the power.
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passive voice
You tell me not to say I’m sorryYou demand that I stand up for myselfMaybe I’m okay with the words I sayMaybe you should be patient anywayWhat if I like being soft and inviting
What if I choose not to dominateYour active voice rules the worldGiving notes on my life and my choicesIs it really rebelling to match your toneOr perhaps defiant to choose my ownMy words encourages others to speakJust because you try to put me in my placeDoesn’t mean I’m the one that’s weak.
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faulty form
This is body, this is my skin,
These are the walls I live inNot a rich house, nor a pretty one,At least you’d think I’d get functionDreary walls with faulty foundationStands up to the weather, barelyI put pictures up to decorateBut still find I can’t escapeThis is my home and my prison.
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genders gauche gift
A picturesque pose for a painter
An abject object thought ownedA gender gentile and gratefulA sex sinful with sentimentA mask mimiking remorseA tribute trite and untrueA lot lost to the lesserA rebel reticent to remain.
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wilted words
Why is it the art I like
Not the art I writeI read away each dayAnd find the words I splayAren’t flattering imitationOr flat out derivativeI wish my words hit trueInstead meander they doMy style is less than clasic.
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what youth knows
When we were young we knew thingsThings the old us can’t knowNot pinned down by past failureNot aware of cumulative experienceOur young selves had spaces to fillThe adventure of not understandingBelief that we’re the exception to the ruleAn eagerness to foolishly defy adviceA chance to not realize you may failYou can’t re-manufacture a firstExerience sets asside the failed pathChooses to focus on doing what worksAge is a blindness of its ownIgnorant to youthful possibilites.
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give or take
If I am to be if service
I give it to my communityI give it to those who love meI don’t offer myself for freeI’m not here for you to take fromWhen you offer nothing in returnA relationship is made of twoWhile a theif can take from oneSurvival requires corporate participationBut my self is worth more than moneyNot here to preform a free showApproval isn’t the wealth I seek.
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#GlorifyingObesity
Fat is just a word
But it’s taken as offenseThin is just a wordBut it’s taken as a complimentMy size is somehow valuedAppearance a rank of worthWhen I’m accused of being fatI’m supposed to be hurtBut what if I view my bodyOn my own terms and conditionsWhat if I can see my body positivelyAnd reject your derisionI ask you to give up your judgementI live as an example of fat liberationI show you how I found love for myselfOn my journey of size acceptanceYou may call this glorifying obesityAnd I may call you fatphobicNow those words sit between usWe’ve both built this roadblockI’m glorifying self acceptanceI’m setting these clear boundariesMy journey rejects your judgementYou can’t take away my self esteem.
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life's bubble
Simple little lifeMay seem so smallEven a tad uninterestingBut you can’t see insideIdeas swimming in an oceanWorld’s blooming in my headEndless wonder generated by myselfConsuming words, videos, spoken storiesSecond hand experience is enoughCreating new landscapes withinThe acreage of my life is tinyBut my mind is never hungryMy bubble is enoughMade for meBy me.
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together there is we
I’m not going to shame you
For fitting in or standing outBeing quiet or being loudYou should be youI suggest that youTake care of yourself firstUnderstand we are differentLove yourself before meI willfully take care of myselfI see my worth independantlyBut hope for a loving companionSo that together there is a we.
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bus line adventures
The bus was my freedom
A day pass, a book, and snack moneyI could ride the line and backOn my own private adventureMy peers wanted cars and partiesI wanted an empty seat for my backpackAn easy transfer between bus linesA covered bench for rain or shineWalking through massive parking lotsAn urban forest of concrete and strip mall’sMe and my paperback resting on a benchA metropolis for my young self to explore.
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weeble wobble
Moving through the world
Like a poorly choreographed dancerWobbling on my feet, on weak anklesLife is a party like no otherLovely tune with chattering guestsAnd yet I’m still stumbling.
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Not dated
My high school romance in two eventsOne drive, one dance, two boysI wasn’t just a late bloomerI was completely obliviousOne took me to Christmas lightsA clasic date, in his beat up truckBut I wasn’t the girl for this devout boySomehow too devious and too innocentThe other was set up by his sisterHe sold me on a geek clubOpened a new world up to meBut we were far from in loveSo I claim I never datedAnd while this is technically trueI did go on two kinda datesBut no kisses, so they don’t count.
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old age
I find that age sits well on meAs I didn’t have beauty to looseMy trophies wrinkles and grey hairsI flaunt them, my badges of prideFarther away from young yearningEach new year another journeyMy youth was enjoyed but not strikingAge lead me to greater and betterSo I settle for peace not excitementAs age shows more on my skinMy years are a welcome companionThey bring me comfort, warm wisdom.
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function of pretty
Pretty things can have a purpose
But when the purpose is prettyWe can loose the value of the thingCan ugly be ignored in favor of function?Is value so shallow that pretty still wins?Useful has value even when looks wainBecause pretty is a feature, not a function.
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my wierd and wild
Maybe I’m not as lucky as you
To get the same as the majorityI find myself in the minorityA sore thumb near matching fingersPossibly I’m not one that blendsNot delicate or dainty in perfectionUnmistakable as I boldly take up spaceA rough heel under a sleek anklePerhaps I reject the chance for normalcyYou can hide your quirks and flawsI’m going to flaunt my wierd and wildCrooked teeth between grinning lips.
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Unimpressive life
Can I be happy
With this unimpressive lifeThe promise of individualityIs bringing me strifeIt hints that I am specialThat I will leave a markAnd yet I blend into statisticsA dot grouped with the restRegardless of my missing fameI continue to exist.
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human value
If human worth is in dollarsThen the majority of us failKings of cash are family bornTheir lineage inherited wealthA world’s lifetime of weathHeld by a single personA dragon hoarding its goldHuman greed as the winnerNo bootstrap big enoughTo turn a dollar into a billion.
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un-tethered
Everyone else wants to be floating
As I’m desperately gripping the groundI might fall up and fly awayThey jump, to feel as they fall downI know I seek controlI imagine they want freedomFor both, our desire evades usThey stare up, I stare downBoth un-tethered and hoveringBut aiming for different destinations.
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fickle perception
If I tell it to myself
Then it has to be trueWhy would I lie to me?But the mind plays tricksMy perception is foolishMolded into what I needSo perhaps my truthIs only one versionA tinted windowThat only I see.
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constant discomfort
Hate to call it pain
Because pain is distinctSearing, sharp, or pulsingThis is discomfortAn unease of my skinBody tight and swollenA constant uncertaintyOf when it will releaseInstead I can predictMy lack of comfortLiving in this body.
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A medical definition
What is a diagnosis?
A definition, a grouping of symptomsAn explanation, a route to treatmentAn acceptance, a recognized labelA win, if there is a cureIs a diagnosis required?You can have symptoms with no treatmentYou can have a treatment with no diagnosisYou can have a diagnosis with no cureA loss, if the diagnosis isn’t recognizedDoes it matter to me?I’ve had more than one diagnosisI live with lifelong symptomsA label can be a comfortBut my health is still a problem.
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What is enough?
I’m good at somethingsNot talented the way I wantI’m not great at anythingBut better than mostSome things are easy for meWhere I see others struggleI’m spoilt by what I haveResentful of my limitationsWill I always be dissatisfied?Can I be grateful for gifts?Or will I endlessly lamentWhat is just out of reach.
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seperate and together
You do you
And I’ll l do meWhen you and I meetLet’s aim for weIf we see themLet’s make an usBut never forgetThat they are themThat you are youAnd I am me.
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Dine on me
The open maw of peopleIs protected from the raw meI keep myself refrigeratedSaved for a private mealStrangers don’t get to participateTo eat my uncooked selfI don’t serve them in my kitchenI offer a publicly presented dishWearing a smile hurts lessThen putting my meat on displayThey don’t get to choose the cutI offer a charcuterie.
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shadow companion
Haunted on a lovely sunny day
Hearing rejection in a brief silenceDistrust in every bite of picnicDoubting the gift of sweet successChewing away at my insidesTinting my vision with uncertaintyTwisting the jolly of my companyStealing the possibility of comfortMy guest is an unseen shadowThe cliche companion of anxietyA false awareness of doomMy brain the source of this illness.
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not your freak show
The fact that we have to be on display
That showing our vulnerable partsIs the best path to acceptanceMeans that privacy is a priveledgeThe risk is that we entertainMore than we educateIn our goal of finding empathyOur lives become a curious showWhy do we have to teach compassionWhen we start out in a deficitWe want to be treated as humanNot just characters of conversation.
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let's be defiant
What if we were truely defiant
Going against all they want us to beNot a sexy criminal or ralling rebelBut the true sins of personhoodLets be lazy and needy and weakFree with tears and emotionsWailing againt the unfairnessPrideful in our self esteemSlip through the holes of social normReject the rules that make no senseKind and firm instead of nice and easySimultaneously better and worse.