National Poetry Month 2016 - Poem #4

So what if this is it?
What if planning has been overshadowed by fear?
What if hope isn't as resilient as it once was?
What if doubt has given way to more questions than answers?
Pretending that all is well when on the inside confusion looms in orbit around the center of my chest.
Rest is all she is seeking
A place to call home and get cozy
Longing to just be nurtured
For once
She has no more to give
Rather, she does not know what else to give
Her previous gifts have yet to be enough
Until her gentle nature becomes target practice
Multiple hands hold the bow
Trigger happy and waiting to see her break
But she is ready
Suited and armored,
shield in place
She rests in her stance
And prepares for the battle of questions and answers once again.

National Poetry Month 2016 - Poem #3

Hostage to the night
Clearly enslaved by her grip
She is calling me


Falling in her peace
I am gazing at her stars
Past exposed...ready.


Open to her light
So here I am at her will
Ready to receive

National Poetry Month 2016 - Poem #2

For Toya...

As uncertain as life is, there are those we meet that give without expectation
Of themselves
Of their heart
A smile,
A hug...without even truly knowing how much it can mean to someone. A stranger you seek in a crowd one you may not see or here from often but when they are there a quiet presence awakens your senses to that ear you know is listening
Attentively

Waiting patiently for a word or a thought or some form inspiration from you
In time that same stranger becomes a friend one you may not hear from often never truly understanding that it was them who gave you inspiration to keep going to keep speaking to keep moving forward in the midst of the storm and when they are no longer with you physically you still feel that quiet presence awakening your senses a gentle breeze in air to let you know that they are still there and they are still listening.

National Poetry Month Poem #1

So I always fail miserably at National Poetry Month but I am committed to 1 poem a day this whole month!

*in my CeeLo voice* "So here it is, an invitation to an open book, a painful past. My heart is still broken, look."

See me, see all of me.
Make home in the depth of my eyes and see what I have seen.
Take a moment to recognize that what exists,
that what you see,
Has hidden behind too many smiles and laugh lines
Soft hands with bruised knuckles punching through concrete paths to find beauty
A never ending trail of tears
One hand breaking down barriers
The other
catching bricks constructed from the thoughts of those who think they know who I am
Too many times,
I trust first and ask questions later
Because I choose to see good
Holding faith in my discernment
I am more light connected than you would believe
So I will stand here
Eyes open
Heart damaged
And I will love...still