Crowned in gravel

I'm totally exhausted,
wondering if life is a car exhaust.
Maybe I'm just smoke in motion,
burning dreams for fuel I can't afford.

Or I might be just a windscreen,
only of use when it rains.
People look through me,
but never pause to see the stains.

Often ignored,
like tires only checked on
once I'm worn out—
still I keep rolling.
Even gravel can’t convince me to break.

How many needles and glass
have I endured
to keep the train moving?
Still they wonder why I creak,
why my silence sounds like breaking.

I have chose you
in every turn and curve,
thinking you were my destination
but some maps lie in silence,
and not all roads were meant to arrive.

So reclaim what I have lost:
I'm taking the sharp glass and gravels,
embedding them on my crown.
Let them see every crack I survived
my glory isn’t gold, it’s grit.

Today I’m shamelessly proud
of every journey, ’cause
it showed me new roads.
And every scar sings of motion—
proof I never stayed broken.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2025

Poem

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Ashley Avatar
June 30, 2025 at 10:27 AM
Dear Hellen, your emotive and evocative poem speaks to the strength gained through pain when seasoned with pride and perseverance. It's too bad that we have to accumulate "scars" from "glass and gravels" to reach "new roads". Potent use of imagery and metaphors. Warmest wishes.. ~Susan
Nuhu Avatar
June 30, 2025 at 10:35 AM
Thank you so much Susan,this warms my heart
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