Category: 12th

Burning.
Left unsaid, unknown, paper paving the way,
snatches of tragedy and truces melding into cobblestone,
rain pelts the hearts in each word, souls screaming with cold, with want, haunted.
The words, oh the words, they carried a small girl across an ocean,
they saw her through tempests and temptation of dirty red scars,
oozing, bruising, a cataclysmic wave washes away the purity, washes away the disgust,
no longer clean but human, with human wants and human selfishness,
just hold on and don’t let go, don’t not believe, hope, want, steal,
greed should not be repressed it should be indulged,
a greedy man is warm in winter because he took the fire, he burns, he’s bright,
coal condescending those without the gumption to take it home,
At least buy me dinner first they monotone, making mad, making bad.
Why, why does everything slip like silk,
fingers textured but not gripping, slide in ice of regret, no traction, nothing at all,
it has never been smooth, unworn,
life has treated you like sandpaper, you can hold on, don’t let go,
all your life you have compromised, accommodating, settling,
want scorching insides, stirring the thick soup of hot tears and trembling fists,
doe, you are a doe, stop trembling and stand tall,
sun makes patterns in browning fur, white giving way to hard keratin,
wind through the trees faster than wind, arrive in a glade, come home,
don’t be afraid of the hunter and his rifle; he will miss and you will run faster than he could, can.
Nestle into a hollow and become one with stone and let moss cover your scars,
let blooms fall onto your soft head,
be greedy for beauty, for reprieve, for retribution,
you have given and given and given, now take, take the life you want,
seize it by the throat and kiss it gently, softly, safely,
you will learn to love again, you will learn to sing again, you will learn again,
scars full of moss and metamorphosis, unfolding paper wings with words of healing,
doe eyes giving way to you, just you, you are you, not a doe, not a girl, just you,
wait no longer, with hands full of wanton regret,
Fill yourself with greed and greet the world anew.

The love I had for him in my heart
Was like the sun on a summer afternoon
People could look at it and think it was art
It was like a note that was in tune

But soon find out he was immune
The love that I once felt was shattered
He was the raccoon
And my love was the trash scattered

I was left battered
He wasn’t, he shone
My heart was all tattered
Maybe he just wasn’t in my zone

My love for him may have been high
But it was time for me to say goodbye

My grandparents tell me to sit down and think before I act.
My mom says that I need to not renege because they are people that wish they had the opportunities that I have.
I say I collect squishmellows and books with so many words. They said my brain can grow and I
can share more to the world.
My dad tells me to go places he couldn’t.To get a piece of paper that he wish he had to be
able to work at a place that has ac and flexibility.
My mom tells me again she agrees with my dad because she never had to work a 9-5 my dad always had her back till this day.
They say I am a crazy goat that needs to stop popping.
My classmates tell me that awkwardness and weirdness is in the state of mind.
I say how will I control their mind when it’s not mine?
My devious evil twin tells me to do something generous than devious. My generous side feels
bad because she’ll never know if the devious side will change.
I say we are a perfect match. Both sides are what makes me me.
The media has told us gen z we are obnoxious, entitled, dumb . But I say I am different from the
rest.
I say that I want it all and will break my back to get what I want.
My teachers say that they listen as if they were our 2nd pair of parents. I say they built me what I am today.My doctor says Im mocosa.
I say It’s because I have a lot of build-up.
They tell me I can’t do it.
I say anything is possible society says I need to fit a label. I say statistics are misleading.
They say stay with me.
They say I can’t do it alone.
They say I will come back crying
But…
I say I am the moment.
They say I will be okay.
I say I know, with them or without them.

Writing many poems about feeling dark nothing tired I then slept long and awoke
Lighter than air now and able to breathe deeply

Cobwebs and dust settled in me so dark
Swept off with the breeze of good food warmth and sunlight

Tasting deep rich spice and bright sparking citrus
And smelling sun-baked earth and bright green grasses

Every rock plant bug I missed before,
looking down and seeing only my own walking feet,
Feel now as close to my face as my own eyes.

Believing in magic like a child when I watched
and saw how my friends could laugh so loud
and saw teardrops in their eyes, faces pink like infants
Laughing with them too and thinking how strong seemed this light.

Dark nothing tired poems, dark nothing tired times,
yes real. Yes hard and cold and painful,
Long hopeless lonely.
But not forever and not alone.

I promise you that.
hearing my mother’s laughter from the living room
smelling clove vanilla cinnamon from the kitchen simmer pot
tasting water so icy and cold it leaves a frost trail down my throat
Seeing sunset shadows trailing through my window
Feeling light and peaceful and rested,
I can promise you;
Not forever and not alone.

Once I had felt trapped in a box,
like a whale in a lake,
peering at the ceiling while I lay awake,
until my heart eventually stops.
For a character who did his all, I got no props,
nothing more in life at stake,
wanting to believe I was more than just a mistake,
almost like a lost, newborn fox.

Recently I decided to rid of this maze,
locking away the dreadful past,
electing myself to quit being a stray,
beginning to set my heart ablaze,
vulnerability and compassion blossoming at last,
for one day, I said, “hey.”

This ones for all of those leaving us

Taking on new paths and leaving the old

Rain falls today , feet traces are left in the mud

The sun will come out later

Right now the wind breaks , shivering backs

What will we do ?

In a new time , a new place

We can find peace

Climb new trees

Welcome change with open arms

Plants your seed

And leave your mark

And now, my world, it’s time for me to leave
Death, say goodbye through a dense cloudy lens
A brisk, sorrowful treasured life to grieve
Peek through the vale, and losing dearest friends
Who deemed this just, measures deeply cruel?
When I came here my years began at one
Twelve lives, twelve grades, my twelve years of school
I bid farewell, the journey now is done
Snap my fingers, I stare upon the dawn
Turn away, sweetly bid my world adieu
Pray tell me now, I beg, before I’m gone
Did I earn it? What is it that was meant?
My acceptance will wash me of my sins
New lives, new years, for now I’m one again.

You make me feel like every love letter written
Every song sang with that warmth in their voice as they sing of that special someone
Every passionate kiss shared
Every shy peck laid onto someone’s unexpecting lips
You make me feel like two opposite hands sharing a warm pocket on a cold winter day
And every bee landing on a flower
You make me feel like every beach wave crashing against the sand or rocks and that oh so beautiful sound they make
Like every perfectly aligned book
Yet every messily stacked pieces of paper
Every stomach lurching laugh
Every bright smile
Every synced heartbeat
You make me feel like every butterfly in one’s stomach
Every fake scenario thought of before falling asleep
Fresh clothes straight out the dryer
You make me feel like every beautiful thing this world has to offer
And many more

Last night he kept me up, he refused to sleep.
He kept on demanding treats and to be let out for hours, meow after meow.
But if anything happened to him, I would be stricken with grief and do nothing but weep.
At night he always asks for things I disallow.

He can be gross and a bit of a brute.
He’s gotten into so many fights that he’s lost most of his teeth.
But his fluffy orange fur still makes him cute.
Just like me with my allergies, he sometimes struggles to breathe.

I’ve had him since I was almost eleven.
When I do my homework, he drools in my lap.
He’s been alongside me everyday, he’s seven.
He goes insane when I have a snack to unwrap.

A cat like him is one in a million, he has comforted me and made sure I was never alone.
I’m glad I had him when I moved and moved, went through the unknown.

I try to breathe but the pressure drowns me
I can’t stay afloat
I’m trying so hard to reach the top
But it’s always out of reach

I need to stop and flow with the waves
Instead, they take me down
Falling, falling, falling
Further from the top once more

I’ll get back up but what the point
The waves will take me down each time
But, what if it’s different this time
What if the sun shines through and the waves calm and I’m able to reach the top

There isn’t always a storm at sea
The waves do calm eventually
The sun does shine
And laughter returns to the shore

I will wait for the storm to cease
I will breathe again
I will reach the top
I will fight the waves