#adversity poems on Hello Poetry

bcb Mar 2020

they choose to not believe in me. my curiosity heightened, I wonder... will they always? by asking that, it may appear as if my existence solely relies on the convictions from others, but that is not so. to fret now, about the wariness of others, would deter all that I know. let me add that there are many moments I've shared with them. there was warmth. there was clutter. iridescent faces crowded the walls with ***** looks. the air embalmed with rosemary and ashtrays. but there is much they don't understand. they don't know the song of the neon lights. they don't know the thoughts of a clouded mind. they choose to not believe in me. my curiosity heightened, I wonder...are they foolish?

be well,
bcb

#curiosity #adversity #confidence

bcb Mar 2020

Mr. Musical Man

he was the musical man. no one could quite play a tune like him. the pluck of a cello with the flick of his tongue. the trumpets, they roar, with every riddling hum. this musical man knew only to strum, make sounds disappear and come back with a drum. ‘play your last note!’ cried the silencing storm, who stood only to dampen; to live in abhor. the musical man, the brother, the son, said, ‘oh, I’m not done. no, I am not done! for I will play my music until my eyes see the sun!’ so play your music, mr. musical man and watch as the sun comes again and again.

be well,
bcb

#music #hope #determination #adversity

bcb Mar 2020

Guitar Strings

it was late at night
when my guitar string broke
and I didn’t know what to do.
so with a laden sigh
and a tempered joke,
I tried to change my point of view.
I’ll tell you it wasn’t easy,
no instantaneous claim,
but if my guitar string
broke any other day,
I bet I’d be the same.
see, it always hurts to lose a string
make it one or two or three,
but as long as one’s still hanging on,
you can make that guitar sing.

be well,
bcb

#music #hope #adversity

Michael Stefan Feb 2020

Bent

You never did enough to break me
But you left me a little bent

Like a square peg put to a round hole
A chair with one leg just too short
Or a peach with just one bruise

Like tangled fishing line
A trash can lid that won't close right
Or a chipped rim coffee cup

Like a calendar from last year
A fluorescent bulb that's flickering
Or a screen door in a windstorm

You never left me broken
But I still wish I wasn't bent

Just a little monologue about adversity in relationships.

#love #rejection #breakup #heartbreak #adversity #life #wounds #support

Michael Stefan Feb 2020

She Walks in Quiet Misery

Never has a greater wretch walked on this here land
Her wrists are bound in iron
In torn and stained attire

Never has a sadder ghost drifted on this sand
Her sallow skin translucent
Atoning for cruel abuses

Never was a sicker girl seen on an empty path
Blood flows with every sneeze
Her lungs rattle with a wheeze

Never has a woman been dealt with so much wrath
Rocks bruise her skinny legs and arms
Wicked people visit her with harm

She walks in quiet misery
She drifts from place to place
She never stays in one town long
Or shows her tear-streaked face

She walks in utter silence
She never whispers a single word
She never notices those around
Their devilish faces all a blur

She walks in quiet misery
From civilization to the wild
She will always be in misery
Remorse at losing her only child

A long time ago I was sitting at the dinner table with my friends and their grandmother. She was in town visiting from Ohio. After some drinking and merriment, she told stories about growing up in the bible belt in the '50s. She told us how she had gotten pregnant at the age of 15, out of wedlock, and lost the child 4 months later. Her family disowned her and her town turned her out. It was such a heartbreaking story that I wanted to try and express her sorrow through poetry. For years she truly thought it was her fault and it wasn't until she became a nurse in the '70s that she learned she had a genetic disorder increasing her chances of miscarriage by astronomical levels. My heart really goes out to her harrowing experience. This is for you Mirriam.

#acceptance #tragedy #understanding #lovethyneighbor #care #religion #adversity

LeoH Dec 2019

Becoming

When life presents in adversity
I know this is how
I transcend my past
It is a blessing
Evidence I am progressing
On my journey
To become human

This poem started as advice for a friend who was feeling challenged...

#human #progress #blessing #adversity

Nik Bland Dec 2019

Sailing Bricks

You feel you are a stack of mortar and brick
I see you as a sailing ship
So funny how these things contradict
You think you’re still, I say you’re still moving

Shift with me, but standing against the waves
You’re not one for the newest craze
Traditional as you innovate
You and your wonderful “you-ness”

See each time you rise and fall
Ship to sea, not stagnant wall
Consistently moving, never to be stalled
Till your destination is reached

And until you sail again

#bricks #sailing #hardship #unique #fighting #moving #forward #love #adversity

Scott F Hemingway Nov 2019

icing

my bunny
is my
tale so
they sweep
through cities
and farms
with toeholds
their throngs
yet cling
again to
their base
yet yet
baste harmony
in their
drive to
wrap the
vote strong

pirate politic

#wheel #vote #democracy #adversity #scandal #conspiracy

Harry Roberts Sep 2019

Untitled

I would hold my grudges like I kept my secrets,
I would smile while dying just to pretend,
That I was okay and above it I could ascend,
I thought the weight was too heavy for me to contend.

I would wallow in despair and swallow hateful tears,
I learned that secrets are like cancers metastasising through humanity,
Hatred is a product of imbalanced duality,
And if we are to move forward we must outgrow insanity.

#life #pain #struggles #adversity #chaos

AE Aug 2019

Clarity

Awake, I’m in my senses
The drowsiness has disappeared
The light colours my skin
As I walk towards tomorrow
All my thoughts and prayers
Are now in the palm of my hand
I’ll bring them with me every step I take
And I’ll never forget yesterday,
But tomorrow is where I should be
This time I’ll take the stars
Run with the lights
Cross the rivers, and fly above the sea
To get to you,
tomorrow.

In my third letter to time, I have reached clarity. Time is bewildering, but every second of the day is a chance for me to grasp the opportunity to change my life. Right now, it’s never been more clear.

#mountains #adversity #love #dreams #hope #time #letters #truth #motivation