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Best Poems Written by Tameko Barnette

Below are the all-time best Tameko Barnette poems as chosen by PoetrySoup members

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I Am - Part 1

uncertain about
my future but certain when
it comes to right now

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A World Without Violence

when it's taught
and they see it
or hear it, then
they speak it,
'that's a shame',
but who's to blame
it's not their way
to seek it
weaponry and hate
are a combination
for an unnatural 
and unresponsibledisaster
excuses are plentiful
blood is abundant
debates inevitable
among politicalpundants
second amendment 
and the NRA
claim they have the appropriate way
for safety to reign  in a 
country  of tainted lands
whose only concern  is 
money and bullets
changing hands
we can't say yet
that it's all in past
violence been around since  the
takeover took place
in most situations
it's a matter of race
every day in some cities
people all and their 
21st century  lynchings 
that have to stall
it can be hard to
walk tall in city
o violent giants and it 
spreads all over the world  
with the intention of  
dictated violenceand what 
are we to do?
untimely deaths ain't up 
for debate, so 
in truth we may
not have a clue
it has to stop
starting from the top

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Broken Cup

broken cup
constant comments 
the tea tastes the same

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Bittersweet

I love the taste
of pears -- especially
red pears

sweet some times crisp
or some times soft juicy
inside as my teeth sink in 

while the sounds of the 
chewing calms down story
after story headline after 
headline -- it was a group
at work, a Black boy walking,
people at a concert, a group
at a nightclub, peaceful 
protesters, a Black driver 

they're gone too soon
all I'm left holding is the 
core of a red pear its flavor
turned from sweet to bitter
to nothing 

this person shot that person shot
on their way to work or home 

to savor the sweetness of the
pears in the future perhaps i 
should never watch the news
again -- maybe there's a scientific
study somewhere that  talks
about the positive effects 
oblivion has on one's fruit
i understand why some spiritual 
folk don't believe in watching
the news -- it has an ingredient
that takes the sweetness
away -- but even if the news
ain't on it still get around on
social media or people just 
talking, "hey, did you hear 
about the guy that...." the voice
fades into the distance caught
in a cirrus cloud or hid behind a 
very tall mountain where there are
no echoes only silence and 
occasional animal and nature
sounds -- perhaps, this voice
might come back one day
some day with a smile and
join our voices with smiles 
also as we share all day every
day good news?!  

to awaken 
per chance
to dream

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The Road

the road
the bench 
sitting only when they're tired

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What Butterflies May Come


in a city where
a statue of a black man
being stomped they're few

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A Tall Tale On Love

*this was inspired by 'tall tales' that were collected and written by Zora Neale Hurston...this is meant to be humorous* 

I knew a woman
who loved a man
so much she 
couldn't hardly
take his touch
she would faint,
wake up, and such

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To Nikki Giovanni

at fifteen
seeing and
listening
to you in 
Roanoke, VA
in that moment
I knew that's
what I wanted
to do and your
words elemental
thought-provoking
grounding, energizing,
and at times, 
beautifully subtle

and Ms. Giovanni,
if I were a poet
i'd be like you
vocal, strong, 
and flying on 
wings of freedom

you kidnapped me
that day at Virginia
Western Community
College to take me
on a ride of rhythm
and words -- we 
retrieve our blues
back and because
of you I will alwys
remember that
shoulders are for 
emergencies only
and will go back
to that blues that
gospel that African 
drum in heart and
spirit even while
llistening to rap
music

up up and away
to mars among 
the stars and you
shine so bright so
bold every poem
a story told

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Cool Rain

a choir of drops
a symphony of breeze
prelude to autumn
leaves scattered
humidity shattered
a crisp feeling 
across my face and
the promise of 
more scarves
heavier jackets
pumpkins, butternut
squash, and apples

a wish on a leaf
and watch it float
away until it drop
on another spot on
the ground and the
sun hiding somewhere
on its rotation route
behind clouds of gray
and white on a cool 
night many lights out
television sounds and
a hot cup of something
fragrant and wholesome
to draw the autumn 
around the corner
closer adorned in 
brown, tan, orange,
yellow and red 
nourished by pumpkins
butternut squash and
an abundance of apples

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Only In My Dreams

I found a place of
peace residing far beyond
these walls - and I smiled