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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
I loosened my grip on yesterday
and watched it fall,
without reaching after it.
Once, I loved you
so deeply
I mistook your leaving
for the end of the world.
The morning came,
but I could not understand
how the sun still rose
when everything inside me
had gone dark.
Your name lived
in the quiet places
between the walls,
inside old songs,
in the empty half
of a bed
I no longer slept in.
I thought heartbreak
was a door slammed shut,
the final page,
the death of every tomorrow.
I mourned the life
I had imagined with you,
and for a while
I could not imagine
a life without you.
Then one morning,
I opened the window.
The air did not ask
what I had lost.
It simply entered.
And somewhere beyond
the ache of yesterday,
a bird was singing
as though the world
had never ended.
That was when I understood
some endings
do not bury us.
Some endings
bury the person
we were before the loss.
I still carry
the shape of what we were.
I still remember
the warmth of your hands,
the promises,
the laughter,
the beautiful foolishness
of believing forever
was something love could guarantee.
But I no longer reach
for what has gone.
I loosened my grip on yesterday
and watched it fall
without reaching after it.
And for the first time,
I did not feel abandoned
by tomorrow.
I felt invited.
So I stepped forward
not because I stopped loving you,
not because it didn't hurt,
but because somewhere
between losing you
and finding myself,
I learned
the world had not ended.
Only ours had.
And there was still
a whole sky
waiting for me
to begin again.
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
Different shapes, different hues,
Different talents, different views,
On the playground side by side,
Every creature filled with pride.
The monkey swung from tree to tree,
“Fish, come climb, and race with me!”
The fish looked up, began to cry,
“I cannot climb, I cannot try.”
The monkey laughed, the crowd did too,
“See, I’m the winner, stronger than you!”
But Rabbit stepped with gentle grace,
“Strength is not the same in every race.”
“Monkey, you’ve won on climbing high,
But now let’s see if you can fly
Or swim as fast as Fish can go,
Into the water, let’s make it so!”
The crowd all cheered, “It’s only fair,
Monkey, swim if you dare!”
The monkey froze, the fish was gone,
Already racing, already won.
The cheers rang loud, the lesson clear,
Respect each gift, hold each dear.
For every creature, great or small,
Has their strength and that is all.
So hear this truth, let it ignite,
Diversity is power, not a fight.
You cannot judge, you cannot compare,
Each soul shines in their own repair.
Together we rise, together we play,
Different, yet equal that’s the way.
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
Love as a Weapon
Love me from afar, don’t come too near,
Your touch is a weapon, your voice is fear.
You call it devotion, but it feels like chains,
A puppet you pull through bruises and pains.
You thrive on my sorrow, my silence, my cries,
Each tear that I shed is the spark in your eyes.
You claim it is love, but it’s hunger for control,
A power-fed fire that devours my soul.
Possession is not love it’s a prisoned embrace,
Authority and ego carved deep in your face.
You beat me to stillness, you break me to dust,
Then whisper “I love you” in lies I can’t trust.
I stay because leaving feels harder than pain,
Because you convinced me I need you to stand.
You are the roof, the food, the lock on the door,
You swear I’d be nothing, less than before.
You promise me change with blood on your hands,
Say “this was the last time,” beg me to understand.
You cry that without me you’ll fall apart,
So I stitch your chaos with my broken heart.
You tell me I’m lucky, no one would stay,
That I’m damaged, unlovable, in everyone’s way.
So fear starts to sound like the price I must pay,
And surviving beside you feels safer than change.
But hear me, woman, reading these scars
If love makes you bleed, it’s not love you are.
Love does not threaten, control, or confine,
It doesn’t demand you shrink to survive.
You are not weak for the nights that you stayed,
You were taught to endure, taught to obey.
But needing someone does not make it right
For them to steal your body, your breath, or your light.
There is a way out, even slow, even small,
Even whispered in fear against a locked wall.
One step, one truth, one moment of air
Is still a beginning still proof you are there.
You are more than the bruises you learned how to hide,
More than the shame he pushed deep inside.
You are not his burden, his cure, or his scar
You are whole, you are worthy, exactly as you are.
So love me from distance, stay out of my skin,
Because closeness with violence is never a win.
I’m tired of hoping your promises last
I choose my own life.
You are my past.
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
Dear shadow,
You cling to me when the sun is high, A faithful ghost beneath the sky. You mimic my steps, my every stride, But vanish the moment the dark arrives.
Where are you when the night turns cold? When silence screams and fears take hold? You flee from me when the stars ignite, Selfish companion of only the light.
You chase me close when the day is bright, But leave me alone in the endless night. When thoughts grow heavy and demons creep, You’re gone, while I drown in secrets deep.
You copy my laughter, my dance, my play, But abandon my sorrow, you turn away. So tell me, shadow, where do you go? When I need you most, you never show.
Are you afraid of the dark I bear? Or do you not care that I gasp for air? You’re loyal only when the world can see, But blind to the battles inside of me.
So curse you, shadow, silent and sly, A fleeting friend beneath the sky. One day I’ll learn to walk alone, In light or dark
I’ll be my own.
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
Where do teardrops go?
The salted water pouring from you
where do they belong?
Do they simply fall to nowhere,
kiss the earth,
then disappear into nothing,
drying beneath the sun
as though they never existed?
Or do they carry pieces of us
grief too heavy for the heart,
love with nowhere left to live,
words too painful to speak?
Perhaps tears are the soul's quiet language,
a release woven into human nature,
a way the body empties
what the heart can no longer hold.
Maybe every tear is a burden set free,
a memory released,
a silent prayer,
a goodbye,
or the first step toward healing.
Where do teardrops go?
Maybe nowhere.
Or maybe they return to the world,
joining rivers, oceans, and rain,
reminding us that even sorrow
becomes part of something greater.
Because tears never truly fall for nothing.
They leave us lighter than they found us
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
The Cost of Your Cruelty
I want you to know what you did to me, Not the joke, not the laugh, not the mockery. Not the version you twist into something small. But the truth, the shadow that swallowed it all.
You embarrassed me till my skin felt too tight, Till mirrors became prisons, till day turned to night. You made me want to vanish, unseen, To crawl inside silence, erase what had been.
Your authority crushed the sound of my voice, You stood tall while I shrank, without any choice. Day after day, you trained me to hide, To bury my spirit, to kill it inside.
Your fists left bruises that faded away, But your words they linger, they still betray. They poisoned the lens through which I see, Mocked my existence, dismantled me.
You turned my pain into a circus show, And the crowd laughed loud they didn’t know. No one saw the nights replayed, The whispered lies that never decayed.
You made me feel worthless, smaller than dust, Like the world would be better without my trust. There were days I wished I could cease, Days I begged for silence, for peace.
But here’s the truth they don’t often tell: Bullying doesn’t end with the school bell. It follows you home, it sits on your chest, It whispers its venom, it robs you of rest.
So hear this clearly each shove, each word, Pushed me closer to edges blurred. I didn’t fall, but others do, And some don’t rise to start anew.
So if you think it’s “just a joke,” If you think it’s harmless, the pain you provoke, Know this: your cruelty leaves scars unseen, It kills the light, it shatters the dream.
Bullying doesn’t make you strong, It makes you dangerous, cruel, and wrong.
And to anyone who feels like me. Your silence is strength; your pain can be free. You are not invisible, not erased by the night, Your life is worth living, your soul worth the fight.
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
The Brain builds walls, the Heart breaks through,
One counts the scars; one paints them new.
The Brain keeps score with brutal sight,
The Heart forgives in endless night.
The Brain says, “Stop, you’ll bleed again,”
The Heart says, “But maybe when…?”
The Brain holds proof, receipts in hand,
The Heart still dreams of promised land.
The Brain cries, “Love’s a scam, a trick!”
The Heart insists, “But it’s worth the risk.”
The Brain sees red flags, sharp and clear,
The Heart sees halos, disappears.
The Brain is armour, cold and wise,
The Heart is reckless, full of tries.
The Brain says, “Block, delete, move on,”
The Heart says, “Wait… what if they’ve grown?”
The Brain is tired of midnight tears,
The Heart still clings across the years.
The Brain says, “Peace is found alone,”
The Heart says, “But I fear the stone.”
And so they war, both scarred, both true,
One fights with facts, one bleeds for you.
But listen close: this war won’t end,
If you keep pretending wounds will mend.
Love is not meant to make you crawl,
Not meant to break, not meant to maul.
The Brain says, “Leave, reclaim your name,”
The Heart resists but feels the flame.
So let the Brain win, let it shout,
Walk away, don’t twist, don’t doubt.
Because staying stuck in what’s not right,
Is choosing darkness over light
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
Hay cuz
So... you're gay.
Some people say they never knew,
But I saw the pieces that made up you.
The towel on your chest, your Beyoncé show,
You weren't hiding you just didn't know.
The world says, "Be yourself," then slams the door,
The minute your truth becomes something more.
It smiles to your face, then talks behind,
Judging a heart they've never climbed inside.
They'll call you weak because you're kind,
As if compassion makes you less than mankind.
They'll question your manhood, question your name,
Trying to make you carry their shame.
They'll ask cruel questions wrapped as jokes,
Then laugh while your confidence slowly chokes.
"Who's the man?"
"Who's the wife?"
As if love can only fit one life.
Some will move when you sit too near,
Mistaking your presence for something to fear.
Some will swear that God's on their side,
While forgetting that love was never meant to divide.
But here's what they never understand...
No one chooses the cards they're handed in their hand.
What people choose is whether they hate...
Or whether they love before it's too late.
The truth is...
People don't fear who you love.
They fear what they cannot control.
They fear a person who refuses
To trade their truth for someone else's approval.
You'll be too loud.
You'll be too proud.
Too soft.
Too bold.
Too young.
Too old.
Too feminine.
Too masculine.
Too much.
Too free.
Until one day you realise...
The problem was never me.
They judged your walk.
They judged your voice.
They judged your clothes.
They judged your choice.
But every stone they threw your way
Said more about them than you that day.
So stand.
Even when your knees both shake.
Stand...
Even when your own heart breaks.
Love without asking permission.
Smile without seeking admission.
Dream without shrinking your light.
Keep choosing yourself every night.
Because courage isn't having no fear...
It's living your truth while fear stands near.
The world may whisper,
"You don't belong."
So answer back...
"I've belonged here all along."
Wear your truth.
Lift your head.
Don't let another cruel word
Live rent-free inside your head.
You are not broken.
You are not less.
You don't need fixing.
You deserve happiness.
And when they try to make you hide,
Remember this with stubborn pride:
The brightest stars were never made
To fit inside the smallest cage.
So shine.
Not because they approve...
But because you were born to.
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
Blind in the Light
I wake up cursing, fists full of rage,
Same damn story, same damn page.
I spit on the morning, I choke on the fight,
Blind to the good though I’m bathed in light.
I think I’m drowning, stuck in the pit,
But others live deeper in darker .
I’ve got one problem, they’ve got ten more,
Yet I slam shut the windows, ignore every door.
Blame on the past, blame on the pain,
Blame on the losses that drive me insane.
I scream at the world, “It’s broken, it’s wrong!”
But the truth is I’m blind to the light all along.
Then a colleague speaks, steady and plain:
“Jocelyn, take a box, cover your frame.
Darkness will swallow, but wait, just a crack
A single beam shines, guiding you back.”
And I see it now the lesson is clear,
The light was around me, always near.
But I chose the shadows, I chose the fight,
Forgetting the power of speaking life.
So I rise with words, sharp as flame,
“I’ll be amazing, I’ll change the game.”
The more I declare it, the more it is true,
The more I see light breaking through.
Others may stumble in total night,
But I’ve been standing in fields of light.
No more backward, no more sorrow,
My tongue shapes the strength of tomorrow.
The box may be heavy, the hole may be small,
But the light beneath it can conquer it all.
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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Jocelyn Theresa Cook Poem
Trust Betrayed, Innocence Slayed"
I trusted you, you filthy snake,
A family bond you chose to break.
You wore the mask of blood and kin,
But inside rotted, soaked in sin.
Your eyes were poison, sick with lust,
You shattered love, betrayed our trust.
Your hands were claws, your breath was rot,
You stole from me what you should not.
I froze in terror, couldn’t scream,
You turned my childhood to a bad dream.
I ran, I cried, I drowned in shame,
You carved my soul, you lit that flame.
Two decades burned, the scars still bleed,
Your sickness planted a twisted seed.
Did it thrill you, did you smile,
To desecrate a child so vile?
I hate you, coward, parasite,
You fed on innocence in the night.
But I won’t carry your disease,
I spit you out, I find my peace.
Forgiveness isn’t for your gain,
It’s how I cut away the chain.
God will judge, His wrath is true,
Your hell awaits — not mine, but you.
Copyright © Jocelyn Theresa Cook | Year Posted 2026
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