I have been cut by words
And cut by the blade
I have bled
And I have been betrayed
I have been bullied
Made the butt of many a joke
Yet I stand and defend
Not cower or provoke
I know triumph
And experienced defeat
I know pain
And darkness beyond belief
I remain a student
But continue to empower
While my heart weeps
That my disposition is so dour
I give more than is required
Much more than I take
Shots wound flesh and soul
But my mind you will never break
And while lies and deception
May seduce minds that are weak
The shadow cast by truth, for some
Looms like an insurmountable peak
Almost seventy five years had passed
before I recognised, guidance from above
In hindsight many messages,
so much full of love
No formal religious indoctrination, my father preached as atheist
my mother I don't know
But I remained agnostic, wasn't sure the path that I should surely take
always believed that Jesus lived, two thousand years ago
Modern existence, I find a challenge, so far removed from nature
and all of wondrous creation
I look to God, the greatest mentor we all have. I know that from within I must empower myself
but the connection He provides, is the base of inspiration
Sometimes our best intentions
miss the impossible target-perfection
Sometimes our best efforts
leave us hopeless and contemplating defection
Sometimes our goal
of being everything to everybody
misses the target so that we feel
we give very little to anybody
Oftentimes we must stop
to refuel our bodies and our minds
so that when we are engaged in lifting up
we do not leave ourselves behind
Sometimes our best intentions
must be reexamined through the lens of gratitude
Sometimes our best efforts
must be weighed on the scales of self-affirming latitude
Sometimes we must pause
to just give ourselves and others grace
so that we empower our vision
to redefine the target for this race
In the ethereal realm, where Themis holds sway,
A cosmic ballet of justice, a metaphorical play.
Yet, in our earthly sphere, reflections intertwine,
Empower women—the catalysts of progress divine.
Like Themis, with scales, a celestial display,
Let women’s worth twirl within the sunlit ray.
Respect and recognition, whispered dreams unfold,
A symphony of progress, a story yet untold.
As Themis adorns the sacred tapestry of mythic lore,
So too can women ascend, their voices galore.
Grant them the stage, society’s sacred decree,
Witness progress soaring, untethered and free.
Our hands, through them they have led us to magnifcence.
Perfectly constructed. The thumb, essential, part of the team but not like the others.
The leader? Maybe.
These hands that were raised to be heard, to clear the smoke so we could see.
These hands that made their mark so others could too.
The hands that sheltered your eyes so you could see the horizon and make real that
which was yet to be seen.
They held on but knew when to let go.
These hands.
These hands that showed grace and humility so others could be lifted, are the hands that
are never forgotten when it's time to change your world.
_
'These Hands' are a celebration and a plea to pause for a moment to recognise the
potential for joy that is held in our hands.
Designed to bring into being thought, desire and will - the ability within to create.
To be revered, for a simple move can afect unimaginable change. That power lies within
us all.
These hands tell the story of humanity.
These Hands.
The chains of custom, long they bind,
A girl's potential is left behind.
But voices rise, a chorus strong,
To break the chains, where they belong.
They fight for justice, hand in hand,
Against the wrongs, across the land.
For equality, a right to claim,
Their voices rise, a burning flame.
The breaking chains, a symbol bold,
Of dreams and futures, yet untold.
They fight for freedom, every day,
To break the chains, and pave the way.
A world of words, a boundless space,
Lies open wide, with gentle grace.
Within its pages, stories unfold,
Of dreams and journeys, yet untold.
A girl approaches, eyes alight,
To quench her thirst, for knowledge bright.
The open book, a magic door,
To worlds unseen, she'll explore.
On each page she turns, a seed is sown,
Of wisdom's bloom, a future grown.
The open book, a guiding hand,
Empowering her, in this new land.
So many things are out of our control, making it hard to just go with the flow. It can be maddening to bang our head against the wall, thinking that we can change it all. Society’s view is not going to evolve overnight despite how much we put a fight. Not saying to retreat and give up as don’t want to suppress our feelings until we erupt.
But we can decide how we respond to begin building stronger bonds. Granting ourselves grace by not allowing others actions to invade our space. Giving us grounding to get through any situation underpinned by a sturdy foundation.
A future grand.
A world of possibilities.
Women united.
Equality's blossom.
Education's blade.
Bridges of hope.
A lifelong friend.
Towards a future.
Equality's flame.
Every girl deserves to learn.
Winter fetches a hillock of the wind and downpour.
Exacerbating people to mislay their blight core.
Peculiar demesne keepers are utterly aroused.
While tiny dwellings, slums are bulldozed.
Flush breaks out among the poorest of the poor.
Thoroughly jiggling, they shiver in the spongy cure.
None of the people around me appear to descry them.
They are enduring dull, agonizing demise mayhem.
In the midst of the winters harshest season,
The scenery is desolate, and homes sap blacken.
Snow inversely overwhelms everything.
Making hills that are huge and transcending.
People in neediness succumb to the winter.
While we continue to offer a hefty fee for a heater,
We tuck ourselves into our cozy beds for the night.
People have stuck to death all around from frostbite.
Relish life by humming songs of love every day.
I'm unconcerned if it's winter or summer ray.
The universe is a child's hand on your shoulder.
When life is volatile, death lacks uniqueness jolter.
Written: January 15, 2022
Winter Wonders Within Nature Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: M. L. Kiser
The Holy Spirit will empower you to do what’s right. Sit back in your seat and relax and hold tight. He will deliver you from the evil one. By the power of the lord Jesus you are one. Many things in your past will go by if you embrace the grace of God and try. You are given strength through the one that sent the helper. You are given wisdom so be wise and be clever. We all struggle at times but their is good news so rise up and shine. The Holy Spirit guides us in our ways. The Holy Spirit is with Jesus and never delays. When you look on the bright side, you will see your whole life being very wide. For the Holy Spirit will guide us everywhere we go. Our seed is in our hearts which grows. The Holy Spirit will empower you to do what’s right. Sit back in your seat and relax and hold tight.
I feel stuck in a web of moving on
to leave home behind.
I want to be free of safe turtle shells,
to commune with naked nature
including human,
divine,
humane,
wombmain
not excluding any egostrong stability,
identity,
fragility
as if intolerable
to civil integrity.
I need to grow free,
to feel communion
within
without
above
below
for and of all nature/spirit souls,
timelessly copresent in- and ex-carnations
explicitly remembered
and vaguely
curiously
transparently
vulnerably forgotten
fuels of felt fame
exhausted and ingested,
sober and jested.
I am asking
invoking,
exhaling and inhaling,
possibly provoking
Earth
and all Her Tribes
all Her Eternal Times,
all Her Sacred Spaces
impressed
and suppressed
and depressed
wombmain neural regenerative Places:
When I must at last choose home
between secular wise purpose
and sacred integral meaning,
Remind me,
Mother's birthing nature,
of all our polypathic indigenous ways,
of all organic truths
indicating this ego identity could not be all trusted home
within one compassionate EarthLove.
Lets burn all differences,
Lets stand by their sides,
Lets let them make our nation pride,
Lets let them climb the Himalayan heights,
Lets let them make glory runs ,
Lets let them bring trophies or cups,
Lets accept it that they are equal to us.
G-ood
R-eader
A-lways
C-omments
E-xpressing
N-ice
O-pinion
T-o
A-llow
R-ighteousness
T-o
E-mpower
Topic: Birthday of Grace Notarte (March 07)
Form: Vertical Monocrostic
Hold me down, then watch me rage.
Hold me back, I'll disengage.
Control me, and I'll just rebel.
Challenge me, I will excel.
Simplify me, but I'm complicated.
Fitting in is overrated.
You can't limit me with your low expectations.
My confidence matches my high aspirations.
I'll stand out despite your suppression.
I can't blend in. I am the exception.
Knock me down and leave me with bruises.
I'll rebound from your senseless abuses.
Kick up dirt, but I'm used to the mess.
I'll close my eyes and get undressed.
When the dust settles, stay composed.
I'm untarnished, and I'm fully exposed.
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