when people ask,
they don’t really want to know.
they just want you to tell them,
what they already think.

You tell me that there is no way out
Before walking out the door
And I stand there; frozen
Slowly breaking down to the core.

You tell me everything’s said and done
And go quite for a lifetime
I sit there listening to the silence
Speaking thousand of words of crime

You tell me there is nothing left to look at
And you close your eyes
And I gaze around in the water
Slowly watching it turn into ice

I believe in everything that leaves your lips
Blinded by the darkness of the night
Because there is nothing else left to do
There is nothing left to fight.

The battlefield of our hearts empty now
Craving for just a little bit of mercy
The blood splattered around; stinking
Because we have no one clean the wounds.

Being so small
So quiet, keeping to myself
Not sure enough to put my hand up
Not asking for help
Not using the notes
Not speaking up
Not focusing on one thing at a time
Not turning in assignments
Not taking proper care of myself
Not eating three full meals a day
Not making much of myself
Just barely scraping by

But there's a lot I've got to say
To a little someone
To little me
Because there's just so much
That I just won't tell me
From this path, I've gone astray
I would say these next words to anyone
Hold them up so that they could touch
The sky and then the stars;

You've got to be sure of your answers
You've got to ask for help when you need it
You've got to use the notes
You've got to speak up
You've got to take it one step at a time
You've got to turn things in
You've got to take care of you too
You've got to eat enough
You've got to make what you can of yourself
Not just scraping by

Be sure of yourself
Don't just be a book on the shelf

Ask for help when you need it
Don't let yourself fall too far
Let them know who you are

Use the notes
They're there for you
So go and do
As best as you can do
And see how great you can be

Speak up
Shout it loud
Let them know who you want to be
Don't be like little me
Be what you can be

Take it one step at a time
Not twenty and rhyme
One step at a time
One day at a time

Turn in what you've got done
Don't hold yourself back, ***

Take care of you
Don't let your body turn blue
Do what you gotta do
And just do you

Eat enough
Because you are enough
Don't take it out on your body
Even if you just want to be a hottie

Make what you can of yourself
Don't be a blank canvas sitting on the shelf
Go get that degree
Go fight for your love
Go fight for your life

Don't just scrape by
Or life will just pass you by.

- Jay M
February 6th, 2020

he's summer
his body
smells like citrus
soothing
like the June wind