The parts of ourselves
We want to hide
Often come out the most
Be honest with yourself
You can never hide what's inside
Whatever is boiling below the surface
Let it go
Let go
Of whatever it is
That is keeping you
From being true to yourself
Whatever it is
That you are holding on to
Whatever it is that is keeping you
From truly healing
Whatever it is
That is keeping you from seeing reality
Stuck in yourself
Choosing to ignore
The issues
That are staring you
Right in front of your face
Let go
Of whatever is inside of you
That is keeping you
From being that whole
Complete
Healed
Loving person
We all want to be healed
We have to look inside of ourselves
And truly look at ourselves
To truly be free

Lights out
Good night
The sun has set
The night time hour
Has descended upon us
The night has come
The lights are gone
Lost in the night
When the lights first go out
It can be hard to see
Sometimes we can stumble along
Not knowing where we need to go
Tripping over and stumbling
Over any obstacle in our way
After a while
Our night vision kicks in
And we start to see farther
The night starts getting brighter
The obstacles in our way
Become more clear
We get to the point
Where we can navigate
Through the night
With relative ease
Life is a lot like
Switching the lights off
When things are the brightest
Some time we can stumble along
Not really knowing
Which way we should be going
Tripping over every obstacle
That trips us up
Or that falls in our way
But its once we have been in the dark
For a little bit of time
When we start to become
More adept at navigating the night
Learning to trust our night vision
Trusting our instincts instead of our eyes
Learning to trust the inner primal knowing
That guides you through those dark ravines
That guides you through those dark points
Learn to trust that night vision
That inner knowing
The inner faith
That will lead you through
The darkest night
When the light go out

A place where I can be free
by Ahmad ***
I want a place someday
Where I can be free
Free to roam
Free to be myself
And to plant and grow for myself
And for anyone that might come by
I would love a place
Where I know I could make a positive difference in my community
While being able to go be by myself sometimes
When I need to be alone
And when I need some time to reflect
And to breathe
And to collect myself
I would love to be able
To be that old person in their neighborhood
Who everyones knows
And all the little kids come over
To sneak cookies from
Who knows the best secrets
And tells the best stories
And knows when it's time to rest
And when it's time to get things done
I would love to be able to build community around me
And feel the joy that can come from being connected with people in open and loving ways
Being able to accept what is
And accepting what isn't
And I would love to dance
And to love
And to live fully
With each breathe
And be able to smile
And to cry
And even sometimes wonder about the state of the world
And where this crazy world we call home is going
All in the comfort of my doorstep
And be able to know that I was home
And that other people could call my home as well
If they needed a spot to sit for a bit
And just talk about their lives
And talk about their day
But most importantly I feel like
It would be nice to just be
And to be able to enjoy life
And spread that joy to others

I wish I could save myself from myself
by Ahmad ***
Sometimes I wish I could help me from myself
There are sometimes when I wish
I could go back and stop myself
From making those mistakes
That seemed so obvious after I have made them
Sometimes I wish
I could erase
All of the hurt I have ever caused others
The people and the friends that have come and gone
I wish that I could keep myself
From feeling hate towards others
I wish sometimes I could keep myself
From giving in to my urges
When I am feeling upset
When I am feeling low
And when I can even hear myself saying no
That I shouldn't
But I keep on anyway
I wish that I could help myself sometimes
To keep me from harming myself sometimes
But it seems like unfortunately
It just doesn't always work out that way
I end up hurting myself
And unfortunately sometimes I hurt others
But sometimes I think I just have to accept
That I am not perfect
And I am going to stray from where I feel I should be
And I am going to feel lost
And I am going to feel loss
And regret
And pain
Whether it be self inflicted or not
And that I just have to try and do my best
To try and become a better person
Than I was the last day

Let the love flow
Feel the spirit inside
Feel it wash over you
Feel it
Pouring from every ounce
Feel that light
The ever present light
Flowing and healing
Feel the warmth
The beauty
The ever present
Amazing
Glory
Peace
May the spirit flow into you
May it heal you
May you see the beauty
That flows in you
And in everyone around you
Let the spirit flows out
Until light and peace
Is all you will see
And maybe you can share
A little peace
And light with me

The inner goddess
Lies in us all
Connecting
Us to the Earth
Connecting
Us
With ourselves
Connecting us
To that loving
Caring
Warmth
That intuitive knowledge
Connecting to the spiritual
Connecting to the sensual
Feeling our bodies
Feeling our space
Becoming more open
Truly feeling the love
And the grace
And the warmth
That our mother
Bestows upon all her children
She loves us all
She is willing
To share a little love
With everyone
All you have to do
Is acknowledge her
And the wonderful
Beautiful
And mysterious world
That we all live in

Love is like a blanket
Its wraps us
Protects us
Shields us
It warms us
It permeates us
Shelters us from the cold
The cold of the world
Protecting us from our hurt
Protecting us from the pain
Wrapping us in its warm
And healing glow
Giving us strength
To face the cold
To face another day

Blessed Mother
Blessed Father
Divine love
Flowing
Through
The spirit
Spirit
That resides
Spirit that dwells
Connect us
To that inner well
That inner knowledge
Connecting us
To the Earth
Connecting us
To each other
Connecting us
To the healing
Loving
Powerful
Energy
That flows
All around us

I think sometimes
We tend to get swept up
In the romantic love
In the grand
Sweeping
Drunken love
I think that we
Should
Be paying
Attention
To the everyday love
The love of a friend
The love of yourself
The love of where
You are at in life
Love for your neighbor
Love for the Earth
Love for our father
Love for one another
Loving a stranger
Loving each second
Each moment
Loving each new day
Each new breathe
The everyday love
Can overwhelm us
Can sweep over us
Filling us
In a great big wave
Of peace
Loving every bit of yourself
A little more each day
Loving life
A little more each day
And sharing that
Everyday type of love
With others as well

Acting
by Ahmad ***
I feel like sometimes we are very good at acting
Very good at putting on a show
When we are really feeling something else inside
We teach ourselves
That certain feelings
Certain things are unnacceptable
We are supposed to be civil
We are supposed to put on a good face
We are supposed to hide the negative feelings
The dark feelings that well up inside of us
If we don't accept ourselves for who we are
For better or for worst
We will keep acting
Keep playing the part that everyone else has for us
Afraid to stop acting
And to live our own lives
And to keep us from truly expressing
The uniqueness that everyone has inside

Zealous
by Ahmad ***
I am zealous sometimes
When it comes to my ideals
I can be zealous sometimes when I feel I am right
But sometimes I must also be willing
To see the other side
To understand the other person
Even if I might not make the same decisions
Sometimes understanding someone else
Even if it might seem hard sometimes
Can allow me to look past my own ideals
And my own truths
To understand the ideals and truths in someone else actions
For some people this is easier said than done
But usually
If I step back
I can look with understanding
And I can see the person behind the hurt
And the bad choices
And bad decisions
And all of the mistakes
And the bigotry
And racism
And apathy
To see the actual human underneath

Poems for people and about people.

Getting caught in the mix
Is easy to do
It can get easy
To get caught
We so easily
Listen to the world
Getting caught in the game
Getting caught in the things
That can get us caught the most
We tend to fall backwards
Falling deeper and deeper
Continuing to fill the void
Getting caught in the game
Without a clue
How to get out
We all have a hole
That needs to be filled
We all need to be whole
And to feel whole
To find our place
Letting go of what holds us
Whatever it is
That holds us in place
That keeps us stuck
Caught in the game
We all have a want
To be loved
Once you fill that hole
Inside of yourself
You can start to
To spread it to others
Filling your heart
A little more as you go along
Letting go of whatever
Holds you down
And setting your soul free
Free to soar
To soar above the trials
To soar above the world
Spreading your wings
And flying along
The winds of change
Spreading love to
All who might need
A little extra too
Freeing those
Who are still caught

The rhythm of life
Is playing all around us
You just have to learn
How to listen to the tune
Listen to the beat
The rhythm of life
That is playing in everything
The rhythm is inside our hearts
We just have to learn how to listen
Be quite
Pay attention
Find the rhythm
In everyday life
In every single moment
Listening to the rhythm
As it plays in the street
Listening to the rhythm
When you feel alone
When you start losing sleep
When you start to feel lost
Getting stuck in the grind
Stop
Look
Listen
Be still
The rhythm
Is all around you
You just have to know
When to listen

Fear can consume us
Eating away at our souls
Sometimes fear can become so real
That we lose grip of reality
Becoming so consumed in fear
That we can't get a grip
Losing our grip on what is real
Pushing ourselves further away from the truth
We can also hurt people out of fear
We can even hurt ourselves
Ultimately fear is an illusion
It separates us from reality
The only reality is love
As long as you understand that
And know that in your heart
Fear has no power

Black is the color of the dirt
Black is the color of life
The black soil in our souls
Helping us to grow strong
Composting the dark times
Composting the good times
Taking all of the nutrients
And mixing them together
We couldn't have light
Without dark
Everything has its value
We go through turmoil
We have struggled
Had our turmoil
We have been kicked down
And put down
And yet there is strength
Even in the darkness
Still bringing light
To all who are willing to see

Matter and spirit
Are intertwined
Love
Flowing
Connecting
Permeating
Through
Everything
Every molecule
Every atom
Everything
Contains
Spirit
The breathe
Of life
That exists
It exists in everything
There in the creation
From the very beginning
There now
Permeating everything
There until the end
We just need to see it
Be aware of it
See the heart
Of everyone
And everything
To truly see
When you do
You will understand
Everything
We have been fighting about
Everything
We have been doing
To separate ourselves
Are all illusions
We are no more separate
Than our cells are from our body
We are no more separate
Than our souls are
That connect us to everything
Yet identifies us
As our own

Your life matters
Your life means something
We all exist
We all grow
We all live
We all love
Moving closer
Closer to ourselves
Slowing finding ourselves
Even if it might seem
Like life is tossing you around
Feeling like  you are roaming
Roaming aimlessly
Getting caught in the dark
Every body's life matters
Nobody is more important
No life is more valuable
We all want to know
That our lives matter
We all want to grow
To live
To love
To find ourselves
We just go about it
In different ways

Let life grow
There is a little
Tiny heart beat
Flowing life
Everything
Has spirit
A little heart beat
Life growing
Expanding
Always changing
Molding
The more
We try to
Confine
Predict
Control
The more
Things will become
Out of control
Let go
Life will grow
There is a little heart beat
That life that flows through everything
Connecting everything
We are all connected
Everything in the universe
Has its own beat
Has its own pulse
Everything flows
Everything has its own life
Everything breathes
Everything grows
Even the universe
Continues to expand
To grow
And change
All around us

Piecing it together
Can be hard
It can be hard
To pick up the pieces
Once life has shattered
It can be easy
To get overwhelmed
It can be even harder
To pick yourself
Back up again
Sometimes
You have to dust yourself off
Pick up the pieces
And start piecing yourself
Back together again

In your eyes
You learn
Everything
You will ever
Need to know
In your eyes
Are the keys
To eternity
That eternal spark
Burning through
Shining in the dark
Shining through
If we know where to look

Sometimes you have to laugh
To keep from crying
Sometimes the weight
Can seem so heavy
That you feel like
The whole world
Is sitting on your shoulders
There are times
When we want to yell out
Letting go of all the anxiety
That living life can bring
Learning to laugh a little
Brightening up your heart
Learn to smile a little more
Open up your heart
Let a laugh out
Laugh at yourself
Its ok
To relax a little
And just smile.

I want you know
We all fall down
It just depends
If you get yourself
Back up again
You can soar
Soaring above it all
Becoming free of the world
Freeing yourself
From everything that holds you down

Why do we hurt
Why is there so much pain
Why does it seem
Like some people
Just never catch a break
It can feel
Like some people are stuck
Repeating the same cycle
Getting stuck in the same cycles
The cycles of hatred
The cycle of pain
The cycle of violence
Feeling regret
Over the things we have done
We all have to deal with some pain in our lives
It is part of living
We all have our own trials
We just have to learn
To grow
To change
To make ourselves a little better
Than we were the day before
Breaking the cycles
Getting to better places in our lives
Where we can step away from the hurt
Even all the regret and the pain
And start stepping toward peace

They say
That people see life
Out of rose-tinted glasses
I think its easy
To allow ourselves
To become tainted
Our views become tainted
Becoming lost in your own tainted perceptions
Of how you think life should be
You have to be willing
To take off the glasses
To really see what is going on
And to see life clearly
For what it really is

Love your way
Don't let anybody tell you different
Love yourself
Don't let anybody tell you different
We are all beautiful in our own ways
Don't let anybody tell you different
Love your way
Don't be afraid
Even if the world
Might not understand
You will feel much freer
When you just love your way
Love freely
Love wholly
Until you fill completely full

Family can be tricky
It can be hard
To really separate yourself
Getting stuck in the drama
Getting stuck
Acting out old hurts
Bringing up stuff from the past
Sometimes the more you love someone
The easier it is to get hurt
Hurting in return
Family should come together
We are born of the same blood
We need to be one
United through the storm
If we are going to make it at all

The eternal
The life
The beating
Of the drum
The drum of our hearts
Connecting
Connecting through spirit
Connecting
One drum
One beat
Drumming through many hearts
Collecting together
Coalescing into spirit
Flowing into
And through us all
Connecting us to the earth
Connecting us to the heavens
Our hearts are beating
Eternal
Life everlasting
In a breathe
In a heart beat
Breathing life into ourselves
Beating together
Many drums
Connected to the earth
Through space and time
Eternally

End time
The time
When we
Cease to exist
The end time
Falling into the night
Falling into the void
Rolling into the eternal night
Falling and rolling toward eternal rest
Returning to peace
Returning to love
Returning to oneness
Returning to knowledge
Returning to god
Returning to ourselves
As we embrace the darkness
You have to cross into the night
To get to the light
So that you can do it all over
Returning to this world
To remember the light filled you
You were always meant to be

We free fall
Falling through space
Falling through time
Falling through this world
As we move along
Falling out
Falling in
Falling
Sometimes we need to fall a little
So that we can spread our wings
And fly

We all need our space
We need to be alone
Every once in a while
We need time to reflect
Lose ourselves in ourselves
Taking a break
Taking that time
To free ourselves
Find that spot
That special spot deep inside
Where no one else can go
When we need to escape

The air between that space
The space in between
That last breathe
That little pause
The air between
Speaking volumes
There is air between us
Air all around us
Air surrounding us
The air in between
Can be more powerful
That the actual words
That are spoken

Beauty
Comes from
Inside our souls
Springing from inside
Sharing the beauty
With everyone
Sharing peace and love
Beauty
Springs up from our hearts
Casting love and light
Wherever beauty goes
Touching people
With grace and mercy
Extending the beauty
And their hearts
To whoever they meet

Heartfelt feelings
Can spring up
From our souls
Overwhelming us
With emotions
That seem to
Spring from no where
They can be feelings of love
Feeling of peace
Feeling of strength
Even feelings
Of hate
And despair
But its these
Heartfelt feelings
That less us know
That we are still alive
Still feeling
No matter what
That feeling
Happens to be

Sharing your hurt
Can be hard
It can be hard
To let go of the pain
Letting of the hurt
We can hold on to the pain
Not truly expressing
What we are feeling in our hearts
Hiding our hurt
Hiding ourselves
Holding it inside
Until we can't take anymore

Extinguish jealousy
Don't let it run your heart
If you allow yourself
To run off of jealousy
Allowing it to take root
You will never be happy
Constantly trying to think
About what someone else has
And what you don't

We can feel choked
Like we can't speak
Like the air
Has been taken out of us
Life can hit us like a brick
It can be hard
To really stand
To catch your breath
To take in air
When the world comes down
When the world begins to collapse
Right before your eyes
It can be hard to bear
Its get easy
To want to quite
To step away from the game
It can seem so unfair sometimes
Sometimes we can even break down
Wondering what has happened
How did this all happen
How did I let things get this way
Will things ever be right again
Will I ever be able to catch a break
Catch my breathe
In this insane mess
That has become my life
You have to be willing
To step back
Look at life
Understanding
That we go through
Things because
We are always given the chance
To learn and to grow
It can get easy
To get caught in the muck of life
Getting caught in the daily grind
But if you truly understand
You will come to see
That this world isn't so bad
After all
That there is goodness all around
If you know where to look
That finding peace
Even in this crazy existence
Is only a breath away
Just take the time
To breathe a little
Let things go
Finding a little more light
In what you see
When you step outside

Blown out
Washed up
Torn down
Torn asunder
Laid to ruin
Laid bare
Laid out
Torn out
Destroyed
Conquered
Demolished
Smashed
Assaulted
Pushed aside
Pushed down
Stepped on
Feeling low
Feeling trapped
Feeling scared
Feeling alone
Getting out
Feeling lost
Our souls know
What it is
To fear
What our souls
Is really craving for
Is love

I think that
We need to be
A little more careful
We need to exercise
A little more frailty
When it comes to each other
We are all healing
We are all frail in our own ways
Be careful with each other
Be careful with each other's heart
Be careful
And make sure
To always remember
Exercise a little more frailty
When it comes to other people heart

Scripting Love
Writing broken
Reason
Scripting Love
Creating Love
Thats not really there
Manipulating love
Distorting love
Scripting and changing
Altering and reconfiguring
Until the script
Becomes more true
Than the reality

Our souls reach out
We all want to live
We all want to grow
Even when things seem the darkest
Our souls and hearts reach for life
But we must be able to accept death
Learning to live without fear of living
And learning to enrich death
As you continue to die
Little by little
Changing yourself
Dying over and over
As your soul continues
To thrive.

Seeing through the haze
Peering through the fog
Removing the scales
That hide your eyes
Peering through the fog
Peering through the rain
To show you the way

We are living
In a crazy maze
Trying to find our way
Among the chaos
Among the mess
That surrounds us
Every day
But the quickest way'
To any point
Is a straight line
Sometimes
You have to rise
Above
To see things clearly

Thinking
Can sometimes
Get me in trouble
Thinking
Can be the thing
That gets in the way
Of the feeling
But sometimes
I have to let go
And just allow myself to feel

Sudden embrace
Surrounding you
Sudden embrace
Feeling yourself
Feeling your space
Embracing yourself
Embracing who you are
Embracing the simple fact
That you are alive
Embracing the present
Embracing the now
Embracing your past
Embracing your path
Embracing each new moment
With each new day
Knowing
You are embraced

We are all human
by Ahmad ***
We all have a past
Everyone hurts
We all have baggage
We all have pain
We all have memories
Or experiences
That we wish that we could take away
We all have times in our lives
When we wish that we could turn back the clock
And undo those mistakes
That we can see so obviously now
There are times in our lives
When we have hurt the people we love
Whether it's been intentional or not
There are times when we wonder
If we were really meant to be here
If we really belong
And if somehow life is just one cosmic joke
With one bad thing happening after the other
We all feel lost sometimes
And like we are just drifting on the wind
Like we don't know which way
Is up or done
Which way is right
Or which way is wrong
We all feel this way
There is no escaping it
It's part of being human
We all constantly question ourselves
And our positions in life
But it's when you get to that point
When you start to find your way
And when life starts to make sense
That you can truly look back
And understand what you have gone through
Has lead you to the point
Where you are right now
And it's with that understanding
That you can start to move forward
We are all human
We all have our drama
We just have to choose to accept it
Instead of trying to fight ourselves

Lessons that I have learned along the way

I want to start my book with love

The heart knows
It always knows
It whispers to us
When we can't find our way
Our hearts know the way
Listen to your heart
Open up your heart
Open it up to others
We get hurt in this life
We tend to shield our hearts
And shield ourselves
From everybody
And the world
But we must learn
To open up our hearts
Learning to trust in our hearts
Trusting in that inner intuition
That will ultimately lead you back
To where you have always meant to be

Our way is peace
Our way is kindness
Our way is knowledge
Our way is connection
Our way is love
Our way is mercy
Our way is understanding
Our way is everlasting
Even as far away
From ourselves
As we get
Our natural state
We must always return back
To who we really are
To truly live
Setting our souls free
Living the truth
Living the way
Living our way
The right way
That we have
Always been meant to
From the beginning