Poor Choices

On my own again

Stranded on an island

Of my thoughts-

The waters that surround me

Are currents of my memories,

Swirling whirlpools of chaos

Keeping me isolated.

 

I can’t escape

The dangerous waves of

“What ifs”

Formed with the wind and the choices of my past-

But I’ll construct

My escape from this godforsaken island

With a study raft of good intentions

And move forward on unsteady waters

To a new world yet unexplored.

On My Mind

Midnight thoughts

Intrude on seductive sleep

And push it away,

Pulling my mind

Into a late night tango

Of past moments and parallels.

This exhausting dance,

My body moving to the tempo,

Keeps moving to the music

Until my legs can’t keep up.

These thoughts,

These nights,

These unforgettable moments

Make for mental messes

To be ignored- an insomniac’s gift-

Until the next late night

Where my mind won’t stop dancing

To the beats of the past.

Where We Came From

Let’s reminisce

About the days

When we were old enough

To know better

But young enough

Not to care.

When we spent

Our hard earned money

On temporary satisfaction

Gone as soon

As they’d been obtained.

Liquid courage

To get us through

The days to come-

And the only things

We have to show

For our mistakes

Are the friendships

That made us stronger

And the lessons

We’ll never forget.

 

Extraordinary You

You are more
Than the sum
Of your lessons
Since the beginning of your time,
Stepping stones that lead
To potential
Forks, pitfalls, and hills
On this journey of life.

You are more
Than the difference
Of past and future colliding
The Impossible distance
From where you’ve been
And the peaks you’ve conquered
To where you’ll go
Speeding ahead into the unknown.

You are more
Than the quotient
Of your loved ones
Provided by a lottery
Good or bad
And the ones you choose
To reveal yourself to
Based on circumstance.

You are more
Than the product
Of society and individuality,
Pressure and instinct,
Colluding with each other
In public and in private
To create a version of yourself
For your success.

You are more
Than a complex equation
Of contradictories
That takes time and patience
For a solution.

You are more.
You are so much more.

Work in Progress

Vivid white paper

Stands out against dark lines

Waiting to be written upon.

Words may come

Words may be erased

But thoughts are never ending.

This time,

Write in pen

To immortalize your intentions.

Take action to show improvement-

As all living things

Are a work in progress.

Fighting For Freedom

Age-old stories of coming to America

With nothing but minuscule amounts of money

To determine worth

And sell your soul.

How can you free yourself

From societal binds and pressures

Without first succumbing to them?

Monopolize your time

Build properties on your day to day life

And watch them come tumbling down

With every step forward that you make.

Has the patriarchy crushed you?

What about all the world’s woes?

When are we free

If we have done nothing to fight?

Lace your shoes tight

And fight with your sole-

Getting closer to your goal

Step by step.

 

Finding Myself

Exhausted with potential interests

I bury myself deep

Layers upon layers of comfort

Holding me back from exploring.

A fire burns within me

But my cold emotions seek solace.

Envy’s seeds are planted within,

A hint that spring is coming.

How do I plant seeds of hope instead?

I want to change along with the seasons

But what can I do

To break free from old habits

To explore new possibilities

And to find myself whole?

New

A metamorphosis

Shedding skin

Beauty

And youthful wonder

To gain something more mature.

It’s not abandoning the old

But keeping it in a memory box

Pulling out the past

To renew

Become anew.

Martians

What would our lives

Involve on a planet

We evolved to survive?

Are our current threats

Legitimate concerns, or

Have we grown numb

To the harsh realities

Of survival?

Has luxurious living

Weakened our instincts?

Would we be able to

Adapt and thrive

Or would we be

A cautionary tale

Of the dangers of comfort?