" The Pressure... The PRESSURE ... !!! "

Ya Know I'm Like … " V For Vendetta " ...
When It Comes To … " The Pressure " ... !!!

PRESSURES That Surround … !!!
When You're On SHAKY Ground ... !!!

For Some These Pressures Tend To Hound … !!!
Because of Reluctance To Show Their TRUE Substance ...

Refusing To Bend In The Face of PROBLEMS … !!!
That Others Suggest ... You Should Try To DEFLECT … !!?!!

But Why Change Your Purpose Because You Are Nervous … ?!?
Such Actions Are Surplus To Facing Life's Hurdles … !!!

Top Athletes KNOW How The Story Goes …

EMBRACE The Fear And Get In Gear … !!!

Then … DRIVE On THROUGH … !!!
Use The Pressure As A Tool To Make SMART Moves …
And Reduce Your Tension ...
Cos' It's Just An Extension of The FEAR To Lose …

Sometimes You Have To Lose To Show You How To Win … !!!!!
Most Pressures Are A Test To Put You Under Stress …

To Make YOU THINK … " Assess and Progress " …
So That You Can Improve And Do Your Best … !!!!!!

But Things Can Get TRICKY ...
Ask … " Sabine Lisicki " … !!!

Now That's No Diss … !!!

She's A Major Finalist ...
Who Plays Tennis ....
But Has Yet To Enlist ...
What It Takes To Win …

... " Major Championships !!! " …

But If She Stays Strong I Don't Think It Will Be Long …
Before Ms Lisicki ... Puts Right That Wrong … !!!!!

See When You're CLOSE TO You're Dream …
You .... HAVE TO BELIEVE .… !!!!!!

You Can't Afford To CHOKE And That's NO JOKE … !!!!!!

You Have To Stay STRONG … !!!!!
Otherwise You'll Be Singing ...
Tear Filled Songs …. !!!
Because of What Is STINGING … !!!

The PRESSURE of ... Your Loss … !!!!!

FOCUS Is The Key To ... OPENING The Valve …
Where Pressure Is RELEASED And You Retain Your Towel ... !!!!!

Artists TOO …. KNOW This Is TRUE … !!!!!

A Lot of Pressure Is Applied ….
To Those Upsetters of The Lee Scratch Perry Type … !!!!!

There's A Song That's Called ...  " The Pressure " …
That Was Made By … Hip Hop's Tribe …
That Proves That It's A Quest To Put Pressures Aside …
When You Are Given TESTS That Make You Feel … ALIVE ... !!!

Like Going On Stage With Things To Relate …
That May UPSET … Because of Content …
In Things You Say ... That Simply Relate …

Your Views About People ...
That Show Them To Be … " FEEBLE " …  !!!

Now Let Me TELL YA … !!!
THAT'S SOME …. " PRESSURE " …. !!!!!!

But NOT The Type From Which I Hide … !!!

The Pressure of LIES Is A Much WORSE Ride … !!!
Lying To Yourself Is Then The ... ULTIMATE CRIME ... !!!!  

The Types of Pressures Designed By Minds ….
Who Love Adventures ... That AREN'T So Nice … !!!!!

In Fact I'd Say … or Venture … ?!?
That ... When It Comes To PRESSURE …
Within These … Modern Times …

It's Lies And YES DENIAL …
That Causes People Trials …
Just Like … " Death On the Nile " … !!!

Hercule Shows When Pressure's KNOWN …
That People Blow And Then EXPLODE ...
Or Even Worse …. Turn On Their Fold ….. !!!!!

See … Pressure Allies Itself To Such Vibes …
Which I Wouldn't Advise As A Guide To Good Times … !!!

Now Pressure From Peers ...
Can Lead To … " Veneers " … ?!?
That Really … AREN'T GOOD … ?!!!?

So Me I'd Adhere ...
To Steering …............. " Well Clear " … !!!

of Those In Your Hood ...
Who Would If They Could …
See You … Brought To Tears … !!!!!

See It's All About ... " YOU " …  
And How You Pull Through ... !!!
The Moments That … TEST Ya' …
When Options Look … "slender" …

Just ... ALWAYS REMEMBER …
You Must NOT Surrender … !!!

When Facing What We Know ...

As Being ….  

…. " The Pressure " ….

Apply pressure 
Release pressure 
Applied pressure 
Released pressure 
Present pressure 
Past pressure 
Voluntary pressure
Involuntary pressure 
Solid pressure 
Weak pressure 
Whatever the measure 
Life is full of it 
Whatever the treasure 
it comes with it 
Whatever the relationship
it creates a form of it 
Whatever the friendship 
It will be subject to 
PRESSURE 
Life is all about learning how 
to handle its various forms 
While maintaining to be calm 
"Pressure pushing down
on you"
"Pressure pushing down on me"
So dont bottle it up
I will confess
it will eventually  explode 
Making a mess 
of what couldve been 
better finessed 
Passing Life's Test 
knowing their will be 
MORE TO COME 
So put less on yourself 
and others you may know 
There's already enough 
PRESSURE IN THE WORLD

the kind of pressure that I put on myself
the kind of pressure that comes with being a daughter of two dentists
the kind of pressure that builds up inside and creates castles of anger
the kind of pressure that tells me I'm too heavy
the kind of pressure that forms from great expectations
the kind of pressure that coaches lay upon the captains
the kind of pressure that is applied when goals are never achieved  
the kind of pressure that keeps me up at night thinking about the future
the kind of pressure that secrets ignite
the kind of pressure that the eldest sister gets for just being the first born
the kind of pressure that is invisible to anyone but me

No pressure
But can you clean the car?
No pressure
But you need 100 or you won't go far.
No pressure
But your next needs to beat the rest.
No pressure
But you need to be a step above the best.
No pressure
But you need to find the liar.
No pressure
But you're getting fired
No pressure
But you need to lead your peers.
No pressure
But you need to beat your fears.
No pressure
But we're gonna add another problem to the pile.
No pressure
But if you fail, we'll move on all the while.

Why is there such thing as pressure? Social pressure, air pressure, blood pressure, peer pressure, sinus pressure, life pressure
We are pressured by every element ever created yet I am not a diamond
I am not a sparkling gem
I am not perfect
But I am something
I am a soul in a body that isn't truly mine and a pine tree in the middle of a cornfiepld and a bird who has to be fed by it's mother because it doesn't know how to live on it's own;
I am the waves that crash into the shoreline and I am the duckling who is always left behind and I am the broken voice who never yelled hallelujah because I didn't believe I could; I am a guitar that is improperly tuned and a book whose spine is destroyed and I am the child who yelled for her father that never came;
I am a unfinished painting and a crooked portrait and the broken record player that repeats the same groove over and over and over;
Yet I am not perfect, because if I was I would be able to answer your question but I can't and if I could, I know wouldn't be able to stand here and tell you who I truly am

For as long as I can remember I have always been haunted by what I now refer to as "The Pressure". This hideous beast contains all that is wrong with the world - doubt, restlessness, greed, anger, love, hate. The Pressure is what makes me vibrate impatiently at the thought of standing in one place for another moment. The Pressure is cripples me with sly thoughts about rent and food. The titanic thick blackness waits just out of view at every turn - waiting to envelop me at any sign of vulnerability. The way your eyes vibrate within your skull and how your vision becomes nothing but a mess of colors and shapes in times of great rage - that's The Pressure.

The Pressure is not a purely malignant force - in today's world of ceaseless gray one would be a fool to assume that anything can be described by such flimsy words as "good" or "evil". The Pressure made me who I am today and even as these words leave my fingertips it is still shaping me. Molding me. The Pressure allows us to see the true nature of our structural fortitude. Perhaps - like the countless others in this world - I am sedimentary and thus destined to be crushed into more and more smaller pieces until I resemble sand. But maybe, just maybe I am a piece of coal just waiting to turn into a dazzling, unbreakable, diamond.

Pressure isn't always harsh.
It doesn't have to be the grim and guttural.
It isn't always in regard to the coarse.
There's the soft kind, sweet.
The gentle pressure of lips against a collar bone.
Fingertips tracing freckles,
Valves working at elevated speeds.
Pressure needn't be a villain.
It can be a tender confession by means of softly spoken words.
Poignant colloquy put down with clean intentions,
The hum at night of dulcet tones into a receiver.
Mellow pressures on the heart and mind are pressures, too.
The pressure of eyes directed toward skin,
A foot on a gas pedal.
The pressure caused by closing distance.

Pressure me.