I grew up in broken homes with vicious cycles
Night terrors on constant repeat when my eyes close
Raised by tatted men on motorcycles
There were plenty of cigarettes and empty bottles
I grew up quickly from the trauma that followed
Single mom on her own with no place to go
A restless woman with a troubled soul
While my father was a rolling stone

When I tried to hide the pain
Certain people thought my heart was cold
When I was really stuck in survival mode
Hard times made me feel alone
Until women’s love taught me that no one has to live alone

They taught me that my story is our story
That our story is her story
That her story is History
That there is healing in telling our story

All I could see was fear
When I looked into the eyes
Of those men dressed in riot gear
Using military tactics against peaceful protesters
This felt like spiritual warfare
It was then I knew what I was fighting for
Justice
Equality
Freedom
To protect the oppressed from tyranny
To fight for my brothers and sisters
Who’ve been stepped on, choked, murdered
For too long
Fighting to keep the flame of democracy alive
Against a swelling black tide
Fighting to keep black men and women alive
Fighting against cops who don’t care about Black lives
Fighting desperately against a growing evil
Fighting for George Floyd
For Breonna Taylor
For Michael Brown
For Eric Garner
For Tamir Rice
For Black lives
To fight generations of injustice

My soul is burdened
Knowing this fight is
Far from over
When we’re all that we have
We have to fight for each other

I’ve told many lies
Obscured the truth
To hide my pain

My skeletons don’t hide in my closet
They sleep in my bed with me at night
I’ve woken up to stares from where
Eyes should be
Hollow sockets
That beckon forth the Abyss
The eternal sheath of night
Wrapped in dusty bones

I’ll put them where they belong
Covered by earth in their finest attire
So I can finally get a good nights rest

Her Lover’s heart has turned to stone
At the core where the rivers ran hot
With blood and fire
Is black obsidian
Sleek and cold
He couldn’t be saved

They both underestimated love
It’s power
It’s fleeting whims
It’s fragility
The odd look of devastation
It brings to the eyes
When lovers are abandoned on the peak

They could have handled it better

Share with me your fears
I will share with you mine.
Tell me of your grief
I will bear your pain.

Guide me through your troubles
Take solace in my embrace.
Take my cup
Fill it with your sorrow.
I will gift you relief.

Empty hands full of hope
Held together in mine.

Share with me your joy.
I will share with you mine.

Sitting in a pile burning
Are the ashes of his heart
He dreamed of a day
Next to her in the hearth
Of a flaming passion
Firmly ablaze

How mournful is he
How cold and blue

“In this day and age” is a cliché
That I thought only old people used.
I thought it meant that you were angry
With how things were going in your life,
Or that the past was somehow better than the present.
In this day and age…
what?
Stamps are more expensive?
Your grandchildren don’t call you anymore?
I know that sounds cynical
But that’s what I really believed.

I didn’t really think about it
Until it struck me as odd
That in this day and age
Children are getting gunned down in school
By their classmates, and that
All anyone does is recite
Platitudes and maxims
While parents have to bury their children.

That in this day and age
We can all agree
To disagree
About the worth of human lives,
So that we can carry on
With our daily scheduled programming.

I didn’t understand what it meant
Until I realized that today
Right here, right now
At this very waking moment
Tragedy is socially acceptable.
That in this day and age
Shock and grief and outrage
Have been quelled by a numbness
That comes about only when you see
The same headline
Over and over and over and over
And over and over and over
Again.

This is not a political stance.

That in this day and age
A cry against senseless violence
Is a political statement and not a plea for human life
Is something that I don’t understand.
Dead kids are only an argument now,
and not a ******* wake up call.
I’ll never fully understand why things happen
The way they do. I only understand
That it is tolerable to justify
Our hatred against humanity.

I am standing on a pier
Looking into the labyrinth of my heart.
Empty space beckons to the dock.
A hollow echo rings in the distance.
Staring farther in brings me closer
To a truth that I seek
However distant.

Truth is fickle.
It is a silver fish caught
In the net of the fisherman
Gasping its final breath.
Scales shimmer from the light but,
Grasping its slippery hide
Proves a true fisherman.

From my perch I can see scales
Though my eyes aren't too keen.
There's a faded glimmer of light
Farther than I can reach.

In the dark
    There will always shine a light.
When the reaper knocks
    Answer in defiance.
Death beckons over our shoulders, but
    Don't look back.
Take it from me
    It calls my name daily
Carry with you a fire
   That would incinerate all evil
Shining a path for others
   Through your adversities.

Your touch is a soothing lullaby,
A sweet song dancing in my ears
With words of honey.

Your words frolic in my head
Whispering your secrets and
Haunting my dreams with their beauty.

The echoes of our nights spent together
Race down the corridor of my mind
Imparting a delicious kiss
Reminiscent of your delicate lips.

Waves crash all around.
A relentless sea intent on drowning me
In the depths of their ecstasy.

In your presence a golden light
Emanates; dispelling the darkness
I carry within me.

You feel the weight of my burden
Yet you hold it in your hands.
Your fingers run over my scars
As I show you the contours of my heart.

The pain I carry is deep,
Yet you hold it like a newborn
With unflinching courage.

I cherish these moments we share
Together, not knowing how long
They will last.