Masks

Masks

“In America,” they say,
“We are all free, and all created equal to live in this utopia.”

It is just
masks.

For here, the inequality still lies.
We have never all been created equal.

Call me pessimistic,
Say that I only look at the bad in our country,
and that I should just focus on the good,

And I’ll just tell you, “
I don’t only see the bad,
but what is right in front of my face.”

For the upper class in this unfair,
poorly run country, this is a utopia,
but for the people of color living in forced poverty,
and the women losing their rights,
and the people being shamed by society to be who they feel they are,
it is just a masked prison

A prison where they were and still are pushed out of places like schools,
jobs,
and anywhere the racist community can
Push
Push
Push

For who were previously
not allowed to speak their language,
and are still given weird and bad vibes on
being them.

It is a mask for the women who have yet to be granted equal pay,
rights,
and
more.

For the women who are losing their right to themselves.
Their safety
and
their
life.

It is a mask for those who feel they were born inside of the wrong gender,
and for those who want to
love who they love.

For who are being shamed on this,
and who may lose the right
to be them, along with
the women trapped in our masks.

This is not what I would call a
utopia.
An equally created community.
A fair life.

Like the many heroes and activists have said,
I dream of a world where people won’t be judged by their skin,
but by their character.

And that we should no longer accept the things we cannot change,
but that we are changing the things we cannot accept.

And I know that I cannot accept
the violence
the racism
the inequality
the misogyny
and these masks of a utopia.

We have a right to a fair community,
if our country decides to take off
these covers.

These sheets.

These
Masks.

ADHD

No one knows
how hard
it is
to be smart
and have
ADHD.

“You just need to focus,”
they say,
as if
I can
control it.

ADHD
is like a grip
that won’t
let go.

I try
to focus,
to not
work ahead
but I just
can’t escape
from its grasp.

People ask me,
“Why don’t you like
to read?”
Why?

I can’t.
I try
to pick up a book
and finish it
but I can’t.

My brain
just wants me
to move on,
to leave
it all
behind.

ADHD
grabs me
and pulls me down,
far under.
It makes an overachiever
underachieve.

My brain
just won’t stop
changing
its mind.

Pain

Pain is sharp like a knife
Comes quick but doesn’t leave
It’s there to meet you when you fall
There it is, I hear a scream
Sometimes it leaves a scar for you to show
Oh yes, I know.
I’ve had plenty for the injuries out there.

The ascension to night

The moon at night is a like a king on his throne… inevitable.

and when it rises to the top of the cool crisp air and up to the sky as
The night’s silent heir.

beckoning the day goodbye as it ascends into the sky,
the ruler of the night, the bringer of the tide, and the sun of the dark, the moon.

Nature

Sometimes if you look around,
you notice how the wind is blowing,
and how the trees are swaying,
and how every little animal is scurrying around.
Nature is beautiful in every way,
Just like me.

The Winter Knight

The winter knight rides like a freezing gust of wind.

In his wake, he leaves a trail of snow and ice and frost and sleet.

Near the end of his reign, he sets off to battle his rival spring.

They joust with each other and spring triumphs.

Defeated, the winter knight seeks his fortune elsewhere.

Te amo, Mamá

Thoughtful y dulce
Easygoing and inteligente
Amable y cariñosa
Magnificently bella
Ojos como eucalipto
Majestic and mágica
Awesome y increíble
Muy, muy hermosa!
¡Amo a mi mamá con todo mi corazón!

Note acrostic poem spells out “Te amo, Mamá”