Grit Poems

In grit and guts does hope dwell

Hold thy hope, happy scene shall come,
To parched and keen, ocean shall come.
Rest nor relax O wayfarer,
Thy dream with joy within shall come. 
________________________
Epigram | 09.08.2025 | dream, hope, patience, traveler
Note: Inspired from the original Urdu:

Rakh hauñslaa, voh mañzar bhi ayegaa,
Pyaase ke paas chalkar samañdar bhi ayegaa,
Thak kar na baith O mañzil ke musaaphir,
Mañzil bhi

Proud To Serve

I’m proud to serve, that’s true as hell,
But sometimes I wonder why we’re here to rebel—
Not against the mission, not against the fight,
But the brass and the game that fogs up the right.
They say it’s a brotherhood, shoulder to shoulder,
But I see ‘em slicked up, gettin' rank over the bolder.
The ones who dodge grime, fresh-pressed

Mad Dog

It was grandma’s last winter.

I watched her hurry outside
to split enough wood so her old kitchen stove
would burn through the new storm
she felt gathering
along the horizon,
its first eiderdown already afloat
on the twilight
settling over her white garden.

From nowhere
a dog tormented by visions
plunged through the drifts
and laid ahold of her leg.
She hacked half through its neck
and crawled

Here we go again

Here we go again
Back to chaos’ den
Emotions stretched abound
Spirits are being drowned

Yet another test
Stressed no rest
Pressing my vest
Nest of pests

Nowhere to hide
Noone to bride
Embrace the tide
Time to ride

Living is ripping
Praying for blessing
Singing while stinging
Bathing in beating

We’ve been here before
Scars from past gore
Roaring while being sore
Crying for no more

Get used to the downpour 
We must make

I've got

I've got.....

I've got skin cancer,
bone cancer,
lung cancer too,
I won't ever let it beat me,
if it's the last thing I do.
It'll never define me,
there till my life is due,
Holding on to days new grown,
finally like my future's shown.

Looking back at my life,
I take from it what is good,
Separate from the past,
living in my cancer's hood.
At just

Girls' Grit

"I should not go to school today,"
Says every girl who feels this way.
"I've got the monthlies and the cramps,
A flood, a flush, and uterine camps.

My mood swings low, my temper is high.
Nature's tide flows, I can't deny.
My abdomen's as hard as rocks,
I've counted twenty bathroom stops.

Yet still I rise and face the day,
Pack necessities, and

Bad Influences

Bike to ramp and from ramp to tree
In just a second you can feel the hit
Hanging midair is a time of glee
Adrenaline rush with teeth a’grit

Grasping his precious jewels 
The tens unit clung
Crank that cruel switch to eleven so
His unborn kids will know he was stung

A blindfolded face, cigarette tastes,
Tighty-whities, and a Big Mac burger,
A

Moxie and Grit

   Wandering, ever wandering 
     straddling cultural divides
   Never homing, ever-roaming
     o’er fretful borders or oceans’ high tides

   The hands of a tailor, a mender, a fixer-upper
     conning the vernacular just enough for supper
   Wandering,

True Grit

marathon runner
all the way with a sprained knee ~
           a sheer force of will


Date written: 05/13/2023

Grit

Behind the most dazzling eyes you ever did see
Lives a tiger who will not be tamed
With great zeal she is willing to take on any task
Once she does so her focus is aimed
She's got strength that's internal, she's beautiful too
But don't let that your guard be offset
I'd be honored if maybe one day I could

Never Give Up

My mama said “never give up, whatever you do!”
You can be anything you want to be in America
I’m not entirely sure that’s altogether true
In any case, it holds more promise than Africa.

You can be anything you want to be in America
When you’re down, someone will help you get up
In any case, it holds more promise

True Grit

I hit the canvas one more time,
a young man’s pride demeaned by doubt,
your hand of friendship helped me climb,
disturbed and nearly beaten out.
	
But once again the mouthguard spills,
life overflows with ruthless pain,
caught ‘tween this warring clash of wills,
of failure or success again.

The goals I had where only dreams,
until you taught me how to plan,
the bell

Tenacious

Take heart amid violent storms 
Triggered by others' ignorance;
For elephants ignore all worms 
Who coil under its titanic might. 
 
Swim on to that higher clime
Where giants dine and wine; 
For all closer shores promise 
No treat above common line. 

Strive for the luminous sun 
Or hurtle down into oblivion;
Forfeit sure ground's safety 
On which

With Much Grit and Grime Not Worth a Dime

with much  grit and grime  
he had committed a crime
from store did steal a dime

With Much Grit and Grime Not Worth a Dime

with much  grit and grime  
he had committed a crime
from store did steal a dime

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