Vivian Zems

Vivian Zems Jul 2020

Beneath rich blue skies
wisdom exonerates time from theft
It’s not what time took
but it’s what it left behind
It’s the maturity of imagining
what it’s like to be unbreakable
…..to be remarkable
This…
is what wisdom teaches those
crawling up the vine

#wisdom #truth #time #advice

Vivian Zems Jul 2020

Chocolate and Vanilla

In life’s rearview
Rosa refused to stand
Nelson paid the price for his land
King’s dream was shattered by a bullet
which birthed more bullets for the chocolate man
Until we said NO MORE!

#blacklivesmatter #rosa #parks #nelson #mandela #martin #luther #king #jr

Vivian Zems Jul 2020

Fly like an Eagle

Awakened by the scent of angry winds...

her heart thrills in anticipation

Others flee

but not she

Instead...rising to

greet the hysterical storm below

Spreading her wings

welcoming the screams
closing her eyes

as she’s lifted

by raging winds

to soar with grace

across bemused skies

#eagle #storm #wind #skies #courage

Vivian Zems Jul 2020

2020

The year 2020 was the year
grief wrapped itself around our bones
and tightened its grip
as thousands of spirits were ripped from flesh
and hurled into the night sky

The year 2020 was also the year
the cup of injustice overflowed
with rage embracing bitterness
while history demanded
closer scrutiny

The year 2020 will be remembered as
the beginning
the end
the turning point
the arrow that pierced
hope reborn
beauty for ashes
and not simply
as the year of fires and screams

#2020 #injustice #rage #hope #fire #confusion #the #future

Vivian Zems Jul 2020

Observations During Lunchtime

A tree stares in disbelief at
an axe with an unsharpened edge
Unsure if its fate is to be beaten rather than
chopped to death
before giving birth to tables and chairs
A pavement recoils in disgust
that weeds and not roses sprout from its crevices
Indignant at the unfairness of it all
Even the pictures painted
by words scrawled on anguished walls
seem to have something to say
While I’m lost in thought
on a park bench
trying to make sense
of masked
lockdown/murdering/rioting days

#trees #axe #confusion #lockdown #weeds #roses

Vivian Zems Jul 2020

Legacy

Be as wise as water
and take the path of least resistance
Be as mean as water
and drown all the sorrows can you find
Be a patient as water
and erode all the mountains over time
and
Be as loving as water
and leave oases of yourself behind

© Vivian Zems

Vivian Zems Apr 2018

Kisses and Blows

A view of the ocean
reminds me of relationships
I watch the rocks either
being kissed by the waters

ever so gently
again and again

Or the rocks being pounded
into a form of submission
by an insistent ocean

ever so violently
again and again

The rocks never move
The ocean never gives up
And yet...the rocks erode ...over time
There's a lesson in there somewhere
I'll ponder it later...maybe in a poem

I carry on with my walk under
the hot summer sun
leaving rock and ocean
relationships behind me.

©Vivian Zems

#love #hate #control #relationships