I remember when I was young
And my empty stomach would ache,
My grandma would dance with me
And all my troubles would go away.

We never had enough food,
Many times I saw her cry.
But if I asked if she was hungry
Often times she would lie.

"When you eat, it gives me strength"
Then her stomach would growl,
I didn't get it but didn't push
At six years old I didn't know how.

God never left our side,
So things started to improve.
At 70 she held a job as housekeeper
And so we fell into a groove.

I became her little helper
So she wouldn't mess up her knees.
I was just the right size
To fit most places with ease.

I feel like we grew old together
But it didn't last long,
I moved away with my mother
And grandma was left alone.

She did have the rest of our family
But they only care about themselves.
They take but rarely give,
Not caring about anyone else.

It's been years since I saw my grandma.
Nowadays I dance alone,
When I'm sad though, I give her a call
And suddenly I am home.

Take your broken heart
And make it into art.
Take your shattered dreams
And let them glow and gleam.
Take your darkest fears
And turn them into cheers.
Take this road alone
And make the world your own.

14-18 II 2017

We'll make this country great again!
I'll build that wall up high.

Climate change? Economy!
It's great! Don't wonder why.

I'll take care of all your needs and get you jobs you'll love.
Raise your right hand for the pledge and pray to God above!

Do your duty as a man and grab her nice and tight!
It's OK if she fights back, they like it rough, alright?

Civil liberties, really, who needs 'em?
Burn the flag? I'll just hang you for treason!

This country is first. To protect it is best!
Whose up for a fun little nuclear arms test?

Capitalism? Yeah, I'm the money master!
Pipelines! Who cares about ecological disaster?

Gays? Girls? Abortion? WOE!
If they want that, send em' down to Mexico!

I'll rule with blood and honor too!
I'll tame this crazy, jobless zoo!

I'll fight for you and family rights!
(Mostly for rich and mostly for whites!)

Minorities? No, I'm not a racist.
It's an alternate fact: Totally baseless!

America the great. America the free!
Put a bigger pair of **** on old Lady Liberty.

Goodbye all you immigrants!
All you do is steal and loot.
Leave a couple of 'em behind:
Someone's gotta pick our fruit!

Thank you all for choosing me!

This is very great and swell.

Prove that you will follow now:
Let's all go straight to-

Heil!

in hard times especially
those of us who can afford it
should be generous

unless we want to have
tanks in our streets again soon

i've always wondered:
how did a pretty soul like yours
grow in the confines of concrete walls?
are you sure you did not grow
under the kind light of the sun,
amidst fields in the breeze?
are you sure you did not grow
among the sea under blue skies?
are you sure you grew up
being mistreated for the way you looked?
are you sure you spent your youth,
working all too hard from dusk to dawn?
are you sure you were not trampled on
by the world and all its cheaters?

how could you, such a pretty soul,
have grown with all you have endured?

You know what bothers me a bit?
Everytime I recall a memory,
Casually, in my train of thought,
It almost always ends with-
“That was a hard time in my life.”
Even in recollections full of kind
That’s almost always
The following thought in my mind.
And ****** if I can find a period of time
That hasn’t been, that wasn’t.
But it doesn’t matter what was…
Or does it?
Yes… yes, it does.

I wasn't birthed in rosewater
No Silver Spoon have I
The very ground I walk on
Breaks open the sky
I'm swallowed up in sulfur fumes
It rains sulfuric acid
The sea is so tumultuous
It makes the tempest placid!
Don't walk on smooth pavement
I take the hot coal route!
I walk in moccasins so tight
My big toes stick out!

But it is a challenge
And I will not complain
That doesn't help folks anyway
Constantly placing blame
I am just conveying this
So you'll understand
I'm not sending out drummers
Or breaking out the band
Sometimes I just get away
Sometimes I just want peace
And listening to music
Gives me some release

So I am not on site enough
My parents need assistance
They are both in power chairs
(I keep my toes at distance!)
My dad's completely deaf
And he's losing vision
But we won't put him in a home
That is our decision
He's 92 in February
But still vital and strong
Sometimes he has lapses
His cognition goes all wrong
So it is a problem
Since he still has health
He wants to be helpful
And do all things himself!
So you can see the problem
He can go astray
This is what I deal with
And do so every day.

I want you to understand
I know you have compassion
You are lovely people
For poetry's your passion!
You have hearts that love
Your spirit's prone to share
Because you are so sensitive
You have souls that care

Believe me when I tell you
It grieves me to the core
That I don't really read as much
As I did before!

But I pray for EVERYONE
I intercede for thee
I really love the poet's here

On HELLO POETRY!


♡ Catherine