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Best Poems Written by Ciara Daly

Below are the all-time best Ciara Daly poems as chosen by PoetrySoup members

Details | Ciara Daly Poem

I stare

I look into my mirror and I see
I girl who is standing, staring at me
Our eyes lock and it can’t be

This girl is stressed, eyes filled with despair 
Falling into a pool of darkness without a care
Drowning but not ready to gasp for air, 
I stare

This girl is tired and broken and sad
Choking on her own fears, not ready to ask for a hand
Still unaware and afraid ‘this is normal it can’t be that bad,’
I stare

This girl has a smile that is shaking, doesn’t belong on her face
Uses it to hide all her pain, move it all to one space
That smile is the only key to her happy place, 
I stare

This girl is taking deep breaths in and out
Using them as a way to cope and not shout
How much she is hurting, hiding behind those breaths, what’s that about?

I stare into my mirror and what do I see?
A girl who is standing, staring at me
Where did the other one go? Who was so carefree.
Did she disappear with age, why because she 
Was so perfect, so pleasant oh where could she be
Because she is not the same girl staring back at me.

Details | Ciara Daly Poem

Acta est fabula, plaudite

What I sing from my chest
Only for ivory keys to hear.
Are the same old words
That cracked lips bear.
That familiar tune that calloused fingers play
Is the one that my own heart aches to say.
 
I have plucked and I have strummed
But when its my own heartstrings 
That are plucked for the masses
Will my soul succumb or burn to ashes?

If a song is played for others to judge
Its worth is no longer for me alone.
My fears replayed as feedback 
And my own tune I have outgrown.

When the keys have cracked 
And guitar strings snapped;
Is the silence left a rest
Or is it forever prolonged?

I have played my part
And sang my chant
My ear worm finally laid to rest.
Yet a few notes linger in the air 
Awaiting the song to begin again.

Details | Ciara Daly Poem

Aphantasia

Greek, without imagination.
What a beautiful word,
A beautiful word for the condition that plagues my soul,
As I lie awake at night
As I try to dream
As I cry.

Daring myself to remember
The faces of those I have lost,
The way their eyes gleamed
The way their voices whispered
The way their arms embraced
The way their scent lingered
The way their dinners tasted -
But alas it is gone

I only know I am thinking of such things
but I don’t have the visual imagery to go along side it.
Is it not deserved
Is there a way to get them back
To have them like I did in that moment
To have them restored

It is hardest when you are grieving
Knowing that others may always have their memories
So do I, but I don’t think it is the same
Instead I take to a camera
I see the curve of their lips
Their hair framing their face
The way their eyes shone,

I hold it close
Taking in every detail like I did originally
When it was captured
I try to immortalise the image in my head
But once I look away, its gone.
Like it was never there at all,
Never mine to look at in the first place
Floating away
Like a petal on a stream
Or how a feather takes to the air

I look back then
At the picture before me
My mind at ease once again with their features
And then finally I can rest,
Someday I may be ready to move on

Details | Ciara Daly Poem

I will grow wings

I will grow wings
but I will not fly
When my mind is clear
and I have yet to ask why.

When they are extended, 
I shall be free,
They’ll be my armour
and keep my mind at ease.

They will be majestic, 
soft to the touch,
They won’t weigh me down, 
but steady me just enough.

They’ll envelop me with warmth
and inspire no envy,
Protect those around me,
and spark change in many

I will protect those too
Take them under me wing
Help them overcome obstacles
And let them be free to dance and sing

I will grow wings,
but I will not fly,
For wings inspire freedom, 
but birds already take to the sky.

Details | Ciara Daly Poem

After a star has died

You were gone before we noticed your light,
Glittering golden in the night skies.
Your brilliance could not stir our sight,
Yet you're not forgotten come sunrise.

Glittering golden in the night skies,
Illuminating with an already dead glow.
Yet you're not forgotten come sunrise—
Only discovered once you let go.

Illuminating with an already dead glow,
You still make an impact after all this time.
Only discovered once you let go—
We never saw you past your prime.

You still make an impact after all this time.
You were gone before we noticed your light.
We never saw you past your prime.
Your brilliance could not stir our sight.

Details | Ciara Daly Poem

Fireworks and gunfire

People say that you can’t tell the difference 
of a scream of joy 
from a scream of pain.

A scream of pain is a scream of anger 
Guttural, loud, violent ,
Gunfire that is ricocheting 
Through your mind, body, soul.

A scream of joy is a breath of fresh air,
A sense of calm that is washed over you.
While screaming your body erupts
into the flames of thousands of fireworks 
that shine so bright everything else melts,
as they melt into the night sky.

Pain is a complex emotion
but so is joy.
Something that consumes you,
yet connects you to reality,
It’s what makes us human.

You can tell the difference between fireworks and gunfire 
But what about joy and pain?
With two emotions so similar and wound together,
one would simply not exist without the other.

Listen closely to screams,
They connect us to our souls
and show our true emotions.