Sing to me.

Even if your voice is raspy,

And you can not sing,

Love me enough to sing to me,

In the dark,

As you take my hand,

And lead me into your arms.

Sing to me your favorite song,

Or of the fears that plagued you when you were young.

I will memorize the melody,

As I listen to the vibrations,

That your vocal chords conjure up,

As I lean my head against your chest.

Let your insecurities lay at my feet,

And sing to me.

And if you can’t bring yourself to do so,

I’m willing to listen to you hum.

She grew up in a land of bliss
where nothing could go wrong.
She protected herself with a night light and a parent's kiss,
she thought she was so very strong.
She read poems and books and wrote all day,
She filled her head with knowledge.
She charmed people in her own special way.
Her dream was to go to college.
One day everything ended,
she realized she grew up.
Many hurt feelings were left un-mended.
She was no longer a young pup.
Nothing turned out the way it was intended.
She wondered to herself,
"Is this really maturity?"
Her feelings were always left on a shelf.
"Why is everyone in such a hurry?"
Then she realized with distinct clarity,
The monsters were not in the closet or under the bed,
She had been fooled and had never expected this reality,
Actually all of the scary monsters were in her head.
After that things were tough,
Life turned upside down.
She had realized that life was rough.
It was hard trying not to drown.
Hope seem lost.
She lost faith in her fairytales.
"Safety" was found at such high a cost.
Her grades went from straight A's to fails.
She went into drugs.
She got mixed up with the wrong people.
She hung out with the thugs.
Her attempts at escape from this life were feeble.
She got so lost, she tried suicide.
Help seemed hard to find,
Scars no longer seemed to hide.
Then one day someone was truly kind.
He seemed to be from a fairytale, a Prince Charming if you will.
He had such an understanding heart.
He too was quite ill.
Together they found a fresh start.
The sun seemed brighter if they were together,
The road was still dark some days.
Their names were bonded forever,
Life was new in so many ways.
She began to pass again,
Teachers noticed her improvement,
They recognized her reconnection with her skill of pen.
Her story had begun a movement.
She turned her struggles into a book,
It was read far and wide.
Many people took a look.
For once, in many years she had pride.
Her marks continued to get better,
Many colleges wanted her.
She had been released from her fetter.
Although, she knew her past would never be a blur.
Finally, she had become strong.
She realized not everyone gets a fairytale ending.
She dedicated her life to help others carry on.
As for her Prince Charming?
He made it too.
They got married and continued to inspire others.
It turned put his heart really was true.
Their lives were filled with many bold and beautiful colors.

A soul without a body,
floating through the air.

A bird without wings,
broken beyond repair.

A fish without water,
fighting for its air.

A sky without a sun,
causing nothing but despair.

A life without happiness,
nothing but unfair.

you told me I could tell you anything.

and from my tongue slipped chaos.

broken consonants, faulty vowels, damaged syllables.

from my heart slipped shattered feelings that cradled every word that was to be delivered to your sensitive ears.

I spoke unto you everything that was hidden.

I brought them back to life and served them to you on a platter so silver you can see my innocence fading from your eyes looking back at you as you stared in it.

and from my soul slipped trust.

and into your hands it entered.

and then I was safe.

you may not have understood.

but you listened.

and that was more than I could do for myself.

Strong and sturdy,
like a well-believed lie.
Your arms stretch out
grasping for some kind
of truth. What has
your face seen? So
weathered and creased.
I wish I could fall
into you. Put my feet in
the earth. Grow as strong
in my convictions as you
do to withstand time.

Is it crazy to want your
strength? Can I put
my hands on your
roughness and myself
become rough? I want
my limbs to bear the
weight that yours do.
I want them to stay
strong through never
ending change.

Is it crazy to
want your strength?
A strength so rawly
beautiful and intense that
nothing short of
death could diminish
it?

I want to learn
your unspoken
lessons. I want to sit
and listen to the wind
whisper your secrets.
I want to hold a lifetime
of experience under one
stern mask. I want to
be strong and sturdy.
Like a well-believed
lie.

I wish I could stare down every girl,
and tell her that she is beautiful.
Tell her how she matters,
simply because she is here and she is alive.

I wish I could take away all her insecurity.
Because I've been there, through the darkness.
I've seen the pain, and hunger, and shame.
I would tell her that no matter how hard she tries,
no matter how much she starves herself,
the demons, they won't go away.

Because demons, they have a funny way of hiding.
Right there, inside that darkness.
No amount of purging will set them free.
No amount of blood shed will leak them out.
Demons hide in the darkness because there,
there they have power.

I wish I could shine a light,
for every girl who's ever struggled.
Because I know how hard it is to shine that light for yourself.
I would tell her that her demons, no matter how big,
are only shadows.
And shadows are always conquered by light.

I wish I could make girls see their beauty.
The beauty the world claims they don't have.
The beauty that demons,
brought on by magazine and commercial ads,
try to bury and hide.

I would tell them, every single girl,
that they are here, and they matter,
not because they are beautiful.
But that they are beautiful,
because they are here, and they matter.

I want to see how your mind works and weaves.
You cry out for my happiness
but it's worth nothing more to you than
stained carpet.

My skin crawls when your presence wraps around me.
It suffocates my skin like
thick black tar dripping down my body. Burning hot,
but making me numb.

We're not supposed to be like this; stuck in such a mess.
But then again, when have we ever been
any different? Happy memories are so foggy I have to
squint to see them.

Soon can not be soon enough for leaving, but somehow
I feel bad about leaving you behind.
My heart, a boiling cauldron of bitterness, still breaks
seeing you cry.

Maybe the stork dropped me down the wrong chimmney.
Perhaps I wasn't supposed to call
you Mom. Then again, I don't call you that anymore
anyway.

Dear Uganda, listen.

For we have heard your cry.

Our voices have been building,

the end is now in sight.


We know that he has taken,

those born from your own womb.

His sick mind is making kids

grow up much too son.


They're stolen from their beds,

a silent crime at night.

Invisible children marching,

now soliders made to fight.


With over 30 thousand taken,

how can we stay blind?

The place where you are born,

shouldn't decide if you live or die.


Our soliders there on foot,

it's time to spread his name.

Kony thinks he's winning

but we're about to change the game.


Africa please have hope,

for in this you're not alone.

Joseph Kony will.be.stopped.

You're children will be made known.

I used to think a ring,
meant I could have you forever.
That I'd always be there,
in the front of your mind.

I used to think a ring,
came attached with a heart.
Just the way your's
came attached with mine.

But a ring doesn't mean very much.
You've made that unbearably clear.
I wish you'd give my heart back to me.
Since I've given your's back to you.

Raise a glass,

Let’s make a toast.

To the years of our lives,

We’ll remember the most.

These times should be flashy,

Filled with drama and chance.

There’s nothing like summer,

For some risky romance.

We are young and inspired.

We are beautiful and strong.

It’s in these golden years,

That we can do no wrong.

So we’ll run from the cops,

And swim naked in pools.

Drink till we drop,

And smoke to feel cool.

The world is our pearl,

That’s how it will seem.

This is the time of our lives,

For you and for me.