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 Jul 2016 The Calm
Analise Quinn
“I’m an easy crier,
But sometimes I cry the hardest.
And my laugh doesn’t sound too pretty,
But I always laugh the loudest.

I’m a fast talker,
But I don’t lisp as much anymore.


I chew my lip,
I can’t tell you how many smiles
I’ve faked,
And if “I’m fine” is a lie
I’ve lost track
Of how many lies I’ve told.

Because I wear my heart on my sleeve,
I’ve earned quite a few battle scars,
But my heart’s always been for
The underdog.

I’m misunderstood,
Sometimes I laugh when I shouldn’t,
Sometimes I speak when I should only be seen.
I’m thin-skinned, not exactly loud-mouthed,
But if you gave me the choice
Of whether to whisper
Or shout,
I’d scream for all I’m worth.

I mess up,
I freak out,
I have nervous ticks,
Sometimes I use cop-outs.

I worry too much,
Sometimes I overthink,
Sometimes I don’t think enough.

I should be more careful,
I should be more selfless,
I need to practice grace,
Be less worried about my face.

But all these things
Make me
Me.

And yeah,
I need to be more selfless,
I need to not be vain,
But I’m going to have my struggles,
And someday they’ll be my past,
But I have good qualities too,
And they’ll always be part of me.”
 Jul 2016 The Calm
Analise Quinn
I shall not fear the
Dark, for the brightest of lights
Shines within my heart
 Jul 2016 The Calm
Analise Quinn
Whether or not you
Do what's right should never be
Dictated by man.
 Jul 2016 The Calm
Analise Quinn
My Country Tis of Thee,
Sweet land of liberty-
Or so we sing.

Land where my fathers died-
But my forefathers died in a battle
Trying to keep their slaves;
My fathers killed your fathers
For trying to run away;
My fathers **** your fathers
Cause it's late at  night, and
He's reaching for his gun-no, wait,
His ID?

Land of the pilgrim's pride-
But so often we leave out of history
How if it weren't for a Native American,
The pilgrims would've died.

From every mountainside-
Like Stone Mountain in Georgia,
Where Rebel Generals are memorialized,
Where the **** was revived-
God, help me, I can't hear freedom's ring;
I can only hear white-washed history.

From every mountainside-
But these days, the mountain is in my chest,
And liberty's ring sounds a lot different,
And a lot of folks don't like it.

Let freedom ring-
And I want to fight for freedom for all-
#BlackLivesMatter-
I want to help-
HANDS UP, DON'T SHOOT!
But-
I
Can't
Breathe.

Let freedom ring!-
But peaceful protests turn into
Bloodbaths as those who have sworn
To serve and protect are sniped down.

Let freedom ring!-
I try to educate myself
On the side of history not taught-
I've always felt that Nat Turner was the bad guy,
But these days I'm questioning it.
I read "The Meaning of Fourth of July for the *****"
by Frederick Douglass
And I read "Bury Me in a Free Land"
by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
and I read "Sympathy"
by Paul Laurence Dunbar
and I read "Letters from Birmingham Jail",
"The Mountaintop Speech", and
"I Have a Dream"  
by Dr. King.

When I was younger,
I'd research Dr. King & his colleagues
For fun.
I'd  wonder, "If I lived in the Civil Rights era,
What would I have done?"

But when I turned seventeen,
I realized, "I live in a Civil Rights era;
What am I going to do?
 Jul 2016 The Calm
Jazzelle Monae
Do you remember?
I destroyed you
Do you remeber?
I cheated
I lied
I cut
And I tried
Do you remeber?
So don't come back now
There's no way no how
Do you remeber?
Our fights
Our anger
Our pain
The danger
Do you remeber?
You destroyed me
Do you remember?
You manipulated
You lied
You left
Never tried
Do you remember?
Why did we do that
Do you remember?
After the kissing
The missing
The loving
I'm reminiscing
Do you remember?
Your lips
My hands
Together
Our plans
Do you remember?
Like glass
One thousand feet high
Breathless
Our bodies touching the sky
Do you remeber?
We were happy
So happy
In love
Do you remember?
But we can't live back there
In the past
Do you remember?
The future
Do you remember?
I loved you once
Do you remember?
Can we love love again?
Do you remember?
I won't get my hopes up
Because I remember.
2016 © Jazzelle Monae
 Jul 2016 The Calm
KarmaPolice
I See
 Jul 2016 The Calm
KarmaPolice
I watch the waves
Crashing down below
I see the lighthouse
Lighting up the snow

I watch the sunset
Slipping out of sight
Silhouettes before me
Boats drift into the night

I watch the stars intently
As colour fills my eyes
Tears released by beauty
By natures own surprise
Crying Night

You said mean
nasty
horrible
teasing
things

you didn’t think
about what you said
to me

I turned my back
and we sat in silence.
The glow of our phones lighting up our faces
mine, sad
yours, oblivious

mine, a way out of our plans tomorrow
yours, Facebook scrolling

then,
the last straw
the tip of the iceberg
it wasn’t the things he said that night
it was everything
it was me feeling like I wasn’t good enough
our hearts filled not equally

mine, full, overflowing, even
yours, unsure,
you turned to me and tried to make me giggle
react
laugh
at a post
I shoved you
and the flood gates opened
first quietly
then raging
heavy, breathe taking sobs
crying crying

then you realized
this wasn’t a joke
you held me tight
and I told you why
All of it, and you laid and listened
silence
shhhhhh you said.
shhhhhh you’re okay.
shhhh

No,
No I’m not
this isn’t okay.


why am I not enough
the way I feel is too much
I shouldn’t have to hold it all back
You’ve turned me into an insomniac
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