Pain wears many faces.
Sometimes it is silence,
sometimes a smile stitched over a wound.
It builds homes inside us,
furnishes them with memories we never asked for.
It teaches us to breathe through fire,
to carry storms in our chest
and call it survival.
Pain is the sculptor —
chiseling us into strangers,
yet somehow more human.
We learn to love the ache,
because it proves we are alive.
And when the storm finally breaks,
pain whispers —
I was your shadow,
but you were the light.
Response to Mexican poet /writer, Octavio Paz
There is not
A single soul among the trees
And I
Don't know where I've gone.
Where he sought to walk
neither foot fully stepped
more than anemically …
when time tripped
him over this reveal
his heart sought a
numbness his
light would not
accept -
dimness changed his depth
All seems dark and gloomy.
Just then, happy thoughts seem very distant.
Remember... this too shall pass.
Wordku: 5-7-5 words
AP: 2ndplace 2026
My heart aches—
blood seeps like a broken spring,
grief walks beside me,
a silent but clinging shadow.
Hope feels distant,
a fading echo in a void.
Life bears down on these frail shoulders,
its weight crushing bone and breath.
Fear has chained my limbs,
each step a battle I cannot win.
Yet still, I lift my head—
and there, upon His throne,
The Lord sits with a radiant smile,
His voice gentle but firm:
“Press on, My child.”
But how long, Lord?
How long must I endure?
Wipe that frown from your face
Trust in what the future has in store
You never know what's around the corner
AP: Honorable Mention 2026
POTD February 17, 2026
Here we go again,
Give it another shot.
Let's get to know each other
Is she real or is she not?
Take the mask off,
Expose your true self,
But not all the way,
Wall off for mental health.
Here we go again,
Hoping it isn't fake.
Am I a fool, just a tool,
With pie thrown in my face?
She knows what she's doing,
But I have to figure it out.
It's my mind that she's screwing,
I just can't keep her out.
She seems so perfect,
Pure beauty the clout.
So worth it,
A gentle soul within, without.
I don't know if there's a heaven,
not in the way they say.
Golden gates, bright lights,
or even a list of who gets to stay.
But I know I miss you,
I know how much I love you.
I know a bond as strong as ours
can't possibly just disappear.
Maybe there really is an after,
and it's a beautiful place beyond this pain.
But sometimes when it's quiet,
I swear I hear you calling out my name.
Maybe it's a memory,
It could be just a trick of the mind.
Or maybe it's a soul deep wanting
for that eternity, not of our time.
They say I'm not meant to know the answers,
just follow the rules and his plan.
But honestly, the mom inside of me needs to believe,
I'll see your face again.
So I'll live here in the maybe,
In this painful, aching, empty space.
Not sure of a heaven,
But holding on to the hope
we’ll be together once more someday.
And maybe.. just maybe...
that’s enough for me right now.
Monday morning sneaks through shack and grime,
Bullets whirr where drug barons plot their trade,
Gatas tread gingerly.wasting hours and time.
The spaza hums,mugs chime,Rooibos Tea in the lane,
Bambinos sidestep shadows,mae geri into dustty tins,
Old timers murmur incantations under the day's first pain.
Smog sprinkles from braai stands where mamtanies fry,
Pirated Kalashnikovs twinkle in the sun's first glare,
Yet souls beat steady,declining lies.
Klevahs shuffle,wallets empty,agrrements whispered fast,
Tiny tots peep through windows,hearts throbbing loud,
Even in agony,a tenacious hope holds steady steadfast.
Through shacks,mirth trembles,sharp but bright,
The day starts with grit,with pain,with dreams,
In this dream struggle, the spirit fights for light.
i'm at my wit's end
barely clinging to the last remaining illusion
~ hope being the rising sun
Wordku: 15-7-5 words
AP: 2nd place 2025
He took the coward’s way out
Over and over they flout.
Only those who tried to end
Can comprehend the blend.
For truly committing to no return
Is rooted in constant yearn.
Trying to cross the other side
Requires the loss of pride.
The irony of being a suicide
Is the longing to survive.
The burning desire to be loved.
Hope simply caught in rope.
my hopes and dreams
came crashing down
and yet nobody
stayed around
I am all alone
in this awful place
feeling as if I'm
just full of hate
my body is hurting
and my heart frozen
I wonder if this is
what God has chosen
Soft tears stream down her sorrowful face
Petals of pain peeling away her peace
Drops of desolation that delve into dejection
Why, asks her depressed mind?
Not another cycle, says her miserable soul
Unhappy sobs steal her joy and upset her mood
Precious prayers unanswered again
How much more can she take?
Petals of perplexity pervade her poignancy
Hold on to hope, her heart says
The flower of faith blooms fresh and fair
Prayer's powerful potential is felt once again
Sometimes waiting is the answer
God can still work mysterious miracles
Petals of patience blossom through the pain
I have been encaged all my life for mans pleasure and fun,
my precious life had sadly ended before it even begun.
In human terms I have been enslaved so man could hear my song.
Behind the bars I am to stay in a place I don’t belong.
On saddened tunes I hop and play as I sing a moaners song,
I am just a pet and so they say in a world of greedy strong.
I seem amused to some surprised but deep I hide my cries.
My voice would sing but my heart would pray for freedom from laughing eyes.
When I am alone tears I shed on precious wasted life,
if not for distant light of hope I would have not survived.
In dreams I seek a he or she who would pay my freedom price,
I think it’s time they set me free from this deceptive paradise.
Did man forget his fellow mate who he enslaved for gold.
It’s always man who bears the shame for what his life would hold.
Saleh Ben Saleh
Watching the protests grow larger and stronger
burying hope in the stench of a dumpster
Hearing speakers extol baby-burners
they themselves as unhinged as murderers
What has America come to when human butchery is praised
with social media as their church, on such values our youth is now raised
Sadness, mixed emotions pushed against impenetrable wall of hope.
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