It’s not over yet

The line I chose is from a poem our friend Maggie wrote - The Room that Echoed Back as if each repeated idea consumeda little more spacethan it returned. My take on it in the Golden Shovel format. The theme is not the same. I've borrowed her words. Freedom for all, love and peace to … Continue reading It’s not over yet

Unparalleled

My train of thought moves at jet speednot on parallel tracksbut all over the space words break out of neural pathwaysto seek relevance in the world.They lull me into a somnambulist statebefore I incarcerate them on a page. I wake up to find they havedisappeared into the sky-my page is blankDid a star employ themto … Continue reading Unparalleled

Turtlemoves

For how long has he livedlonger than rivers remember,longer than the starsthat fell into the first ocean’s cradle.He survived the weight of worlds,carrying experience like continentsbalanced on his sturdy back. Why does he move so slow?Because each step is a prayer,each pause a meditationon the burden of memory.The grim expression tells mehe is an empath,absorbing … Continue reading Turtlemoves

I ate a poem today

I ate a poem todayNo, I hold nothing against the poetIt was accidentalI was holding a page openand I dozed off. The poem spoke to mein my sleepas it could notduring my waking hours It had permeatedlayers of the subconsciousto find connecting pointswhy did I underline certain partswith a not-so-sharp, old pencil The poem re-emergedin … Continue reading I ate a poem today

Patriarchal Societies

Gerard sekoto- woman with downcast eyes

Your beautiful eyescarry a shame – it’s not yours Mirrors do not show flawsso accusing fingers can’t see theirs-it will take your eyes to seeand your courage to speakto tell themthey are tainted Whatever venom they spewThe underlying instinct is the sameYou dared to stay out of the chorussing their tunefollow their instructions they don’t … Continue reading Patriarchal Societies

You know when …

When you struggle to reach up there and findThe gods have turned their faces away,You know it was an error of judgment—to trust the vision from afar. Between the halo and the face lies shadow,a gulf of silence no prayer can cross.The smile you worshipped dissolvesinto the cold indifference of apathy. Yet from that fracture … Continue reading You know when …

Layered truths

The night calls out, wanting to take me in its fold. It holds dark secrets Patriarchy, injustice, un-blossomed buds, unfulfilled dreams, muffled voices Those voices warn me not to come in just to become another relic in a dark history glorified as culture. “Some of us lived in darkness, some saw the light but were … Continue reading Layered truths

Bubbles

Bubbles are bound to burst someday. We driftinside their shimmer, mistaking the fragile glowfor life. The fault is never with love, but our illusionof permanence makes it seem sothe heartbreak when it dissolvesbrings us out of an intoxicated state. Can we imagine ourselves beyond,unbound, choosing freely,discovering the core once expectations fall away? This is where … Continue reading Bubbles

Punctured

Hot air balloons of mutual expectationspuffed up with speeches and self-importance,hover like parade floats of borrowed virtue. One jab of realitysharp as a safety pinand the grand spectacle collapses,leaving the stench of heartbreakand a crumpled, wasted life Image credit - Lillian OLN at dVerse

Flight

undressingnever felt so goodpeeling off diaphanous garments-of imposed ideas-of attributed traitsthe scrap lying at her feetshards of broken mirrorsthat reflects a strangernot her face. floatingabove the groundShe feels the lightness-of authenticity-of a free mindunhinged from the gravity of expectationsShe flaps her wingsaligns herself with the skytakes off with the wind W3 Prompt #206