Writhing
Screaming
Locked up
Inside
Our own
Home.

Caged
Slaughtered
Lifeless bodies
Are scattered about
Decaying
In public.

Dignity is lost
As humanity is
On both sides.
Shameless nudity.
Heartless laughter.
Vacant heads.
Boys, numbed.

Guns.
Gas.
Injections.
Poison.
Starvation.
Experiments.

Death is
Almost
A gift.

I Am From...

I am from the muddy field.
Filthy but lovely.
Squelches between your toes.

I am from the thunderstorm.
Intimidating but thrilling.
Flashes and rumbles shake the house.

I am from the blazing sun.
Scorching but energizing.
Warmth overflows within you.

I am from the crashing sea.
Terrifying but rejuvenation.
Power breaks into you.

I am from the falling snowflakes.
Bitter but perfect.
Each one adds to this white blanket.
I am from the desert sand.
Fiery but beautiful.
Rolling dunes mile after mile.

I am from the tornado.
Electrifying but admirable.
Mighty winds forceful.

I am from the clouds.
Threatening but soft.
A spot to sleep upon.

I am from the Earth.
Intense but my home.
Commanding
All of who I am.

A Picture of You

I catch you laughing
I remember you spinning
I see you
Palms up
Head towards the sky.

I picture your joy
I recall your smile lines
I hear you
Giggling
The wind blows your hair.

I find your scent
I reminisce about it
I breathe you
Sweet daffodils
Surround me.

I freeze you
In a moment of time
Because with you
That’s all I have left
And it’ll always be mine.

I Was Born...

I was born of your wails
Your piercing shrieks
Your cries.

I was born of your
Vulnerability
Calling for help.

I was born of the rain
Pounding that day
Like tears rushing down
Your beautiful face.

I was born of the lies
He fed to you
To get you to follow.

I was born of the squeal
OF the truck’s rubber wheels
Stealing you far, far away.

I was born of the thud
Of my anxiety-ridden heart
Pushing me to get in the car.

I was born of the glint
Of that stone, cold knife
It was ready and willing
To take your life.

I was born of the slugs
He threw out at you
Knocking you to the ground.

I was born of the cackle
He let out
When you pleaded.

I was born of the panic
Written inside your eyes
You struggled to escape
You struggled to survive.

I was born of the realization
That he would kill you
Unless I figured out something to do.

I was born of his ignorance
He never looked around
That’s all that I needed.

I was born of your wails
Your piercing shrieks
Your cries.
And the day I was born
Was also the day that I died.

Swallow your pride
Look me in the eye
Tell me that you’re sorry
Just don’t lie.

Admit that you were wrong
Accept that I am right
Know that I’m not sorry
Now that your cold heart’s in plain sight.

So when you come back
Grovelling at my knees
I’ll tell you you’re pathetic
And that the world agrees

If you don’t come back
I’m better off alone
I don’t need you here
From your betrayal I’ve grown.

I’m happy without you
Like I never was before
I will not go back
Because I know there is more.

More to what you
Made me out to be
More to what you
Made others see.

You’ve no longer got
Any sort of hold
Over me
And I will not be who you told
Me to be.

How do I speak
When there’s nothing to say?
You cry and you shriek
While I walk away.

There’s nothing else
That I can do
To stop myself
From hurting you.

Because we’ve hurled
Nasty words
You broke my world
Into thirds.

Me, you
And the fights
So what is true?
Have we reached full height?

Have we stopped growing
All I know is that
You’ve stopped hoping.
So then how do we know where we’re at?

We’re moving
On.
Moving forward.
But what do you do
When you can’t catch
Up?

When you fall behind
Lying alone
In the dirt
Your shoes are
Muddy.
Your clothes are
Ragged.
Your body is
Worn.
You
Can’t
Go
On.

She attacks
With a venomous
Fury.

She knows no
Pain
Merely existing.

She fights
To be free
Of the barriers

Put up
By human
Mentality.

But she cannot
And this
Infuriates her.

She pounds
Harder
And harder

On the barriers
Needing
To be heard

To be noticed
And not just
Gazed at.

But why
Would we listen
When we can

Live
Ignorant
Blissful
Blind.

Picture Perfect

Shall I paint you,
A picture?
It’s black
And white.

Its colors
Have drained away
Waning hope
Is here to stay

Do you understand
What’s going on?
Or are you simply
Ignorant , like the rest?

There
Are broken bodies
Aching souls
Do you see?

Is your world
Picture perfect?
If it is
You live a lie.

Just because you
Have something to eat
A loving family
In the winter you switch on the heat.

It doesn’t mean
The world is great
Life is easy
Or perfect.

People starve
Children beaten
Now can you see
So many defeated?

The way the world
Is painted
Is something
We cannot change

No matter
What we do
But filling in the colors
That starts with you.

Tsunami Poem

I'm working on a school project called Personal Project. I get to choose what I want to do as long as I relate it to the Areas of Interaction (AOI's). I've decided to write a book of poems on poverty and I'll be posting these poems up on my blog over the summer. This one is on the Tsunami.



The wave comes near
I hold on tight
No one can help us
In our plight

It crashes down
Destroying everything around
I scream with terror
As my father falls to the ground

I open my eyes
And take a deep breath
No matter how hard I tried
I couldn’t prevent his death

It’s over now
And this is reality
Dirty shack
Poverty is all you see

My belongings are gone
Taken away
By the wave
I didn’t have a say

So I get up in the morning
And go to work
I have duties
Which I cannot shirk

Because I have a baby sister
And a mother
My life is hard
Sometimes I wish for another

I want to leave this place
I want to get us out of here
I want to save my family
I want to steer

Us out of destitution
But I cannot
Because an education
Must be bought.

I don’t go to school
Because I must provide
I only wish I had
Someone to guide

Me out of this black hole
With no future
I am stuck
I don’t think there’s a cure.

So what can I do?
I just keep going on
Because if I don’t work
My family will be gone.

Tears of Death

These tears that fall
Are not my own
That something deep within me
Makes me feel so alone.

It’s eating me away
And forcing out these stranger’s tears
Consuming what I have left
And as I try to steer

Myself out of this hole
The tears keep falling
I cannot feel them anymore
I can only hear my brother calling

Waiting to be saved
Wanting to stay
But leaving too soon
I miss him everyday.

So whose tars are these?
Why are they here?
When will they stop?
It started with that single tear


It trickled down my face
It burned a path on its way
And reminded me of
What he will never say.

Where he will never go
What he will never feel
IF this is not a fantasy
Why doesn’t it feel real?

There should be cloudy skies
Mourning his departure
The rain should be pouring down
Wiping away his bright future

But instead
All that’s left
Are me and my tears.
My tears of death.

A Child Called 'It'

He feels her eyes
Glower at him
He continues to scrub
His prospects are grim

She’s holding a glass
Of what he’s not sure
What he knows is that
It transforms her.

He trembles inside
But does not let his fear show
This is what she wants
For his terror to grow.

He finishes the dishes
Then turns around
Picks up a mop
To make a picture perfect ground.

The glass clinks
As she sets it on the counter
Her heels click
As she saunters

Over to where he is
He looks at his feet
She slaps him till he falls
And the back of his head meets

The edge of the kitchen table
He feels that familiar
Bold, wet sensation
As he holds back the tears

‘You’re no one!’ she screams
She continues to kick
Him while he’s down
‘You’re disgusting! You’re sick!’

Her yells grow louder
He tries to crawl away
But she puls him closer
He cannot keep her at bay

SO he’s dragged along
Until they’re in the kitchen again
He’s forced to the stove
His courage begins to drain

She turns the gas on
And wrenches his arm
He fights back
To keep himself from harm

Yet his strength is worthless
Against his mother’s fury
His arm consumed with pain
His eyesight goes blurry

She let’s go of him
Satisfied at last
She knocks him down
As she walks past

Crumpled on the floor
Defeated within
He tries to control
His quivering chin
However many times
She may beat him
He will keep going
He won’t let her win.

What He Said

Picking up the pieces
That used to be my life
I can still feel the bruises
That came from that night

I let the tears slide down
It’s okay to do that now
Because no one else is around.

So I let it out
Instead of keeping it in
I did not doubt
His heart and hands

He said he loved me
An that he’d wait
I trusted him blindly

Is it my fault,
For not seeing through him?
But this was assault
I said no again and again

In the end
He didn’t listen
Neither did he intend

To hurt me or my heart
But he did and I’m in pain
I think we need to stay apart
Because I can’t handle his face

His is the face
Which lied to me
Which I’m trying to erase

From my head
I want to undo
The words that he said,
Come on baby, I know you want this too.

Desire

When a person wants something it is because they do not have it. When they finally aqcuire it they do not want it anymore. Of course this is obviously true in the case of materialistic possesions like iPhones, cameras and jewelery. In other scenarios like getting a tan, beauty or perhaps drama in life it is different.

People who are able to get tan easily do not want to stay in the sun. They don't want to get to get darker because they aim for fairness. Those who are "white" stay out in the sun bearing sunburns and other pains to finally get the perfect tan. Desire is accessory to a person's living conditions and their natural bodies. Generally a person who's able to get something greatly longed for by others does not want this item or thing. The other people want it because they do not have it and cannot come across it easily.

Beauty is a controversial issue. Those who have natural beauty sometimes do not want it because they have it but they may not want it anymore because it is too much work. They pressures and issues which come along with beauty may be too much for a person to handle. They are pressured to always remain completely gorgeous and at the same time have a jealous hatred directed towards them. Has our world really sunk so low that we cannot be civil to a person because of their outer appearance? This works vice versa. A person who is not considered "beautiful" may strive for perfection and good looks. Everyone wants to be on the other side of the wall, where they think life is easy.

People who want drama in their lives may want this because they think their life is boring, with nothing interesting happening. People who have drama so not usually welcome it invitingly. They have a strong desire to have a life where there isn't so much stress whirling about, what with projects, fights, break ups and scandals.

The human race can never be satisfied. Once we get what we thought we wanted we are unhappy again. I believe this is what drives us to achieve. Society continues to advance because we cannot be satiated. Our world develops because of this "greed" I guess you could call it. But I think it is a positive thing, something which allows our lives to move forward. The great thinkers of this world wanted something. Many of them got it and today we keep on wondering how it would be if we had...

The Death Penalty

Who has the right to end someone’s life? This is a question we must ask ourselves continuously. With the crimes committed in this world we’ve come up with a punishment, the death penalty. A punishment only used on the most heinous offenses.

How can we be absolutely sure of someone’s conviction? We can’t. But we continue to depend on evidence, lawyers and judges for the outcome of a person’s life. What if the evidence is wrong? What if somewhere along the line someone made a mistake? Now someone else is paying for that mistake with their life.

The death penalty is legal in 38 out of 50 states in the US. That’s 76% of the US which condones this very possibly unjust practice. It is used only for ‘murder, conspiracy to commit murder and treason.’

Some of these people are innocent. They’ve been framed or perhaps even forced through blackmail to commit the crime. If you believe these people are wrong to give in to blackmail ask yourself this, what would you do? What if they had your family?

It’d be easier to have a stranger die at your hands rather than your family. These stories are unbelievable to the court and so lawyers spin lies to make their clients look innocent. If we can’t even tel the truth to the authorities then what kind of world do we live in?

One where we are terrified to reveal the truth because our lives may be in danger. I do not believe in the death penalty. It is an abuse of power. I think that there is always another story behind the one we’re told. If we decide to kill an innocent person then we’re no better than the person who committed the crime.

Long Distance Friendships

I never want to say goodbye. But I must. I never want to not be able to go back. Bt I can't. Those of us who make real friends, who form true bods, are the ones who're hurt most. At least we think we've formed true bods. The moment we say farewell everything changes.

I don't believe in longe distance relationships. I don't believ in long distance friendships (LDF's) either. Believe me, I've tried them and they generally don't work out. I know the older generations say we have it much easier what with emails and internet and I agree, we do. But I still cannot accept a LDF to be real. Most are artificial with a 'Oh, how've you been?' thrown carelessly about. The person asking is usually not genuine. I know it's hard to hear bu they don't care that much anymore.

In your average freindship you come into physical contact almost everyday. You talk, you hug, you laugh, you joke. All of this is done together. And the things you two talk about are things both of you have experienced or will experience; together

Together. That's the key word here. How can you mantain a healthy friendship if everything you try to talk about is strange and foreign to one person? You may say that the friend can understand the basic idea of what the other wone's saying but it's not the same. It is not the same.

You shared so much of your lives together before but now... Now everything you two go through is diffeerent. When you talk to eachother it's like telling a story, that's how much your lives have changed. And this story is only partially complete. There gaps and hles where important events should be because guess what? Your new life cannot fit on Facebook chat. It cannot be recited over Skype. By repeating events you cut back on time to tell your feelings. And in this short time you two talk you have tow stories t tell. Stories which are chopped, cut, and sliced up so that you can give eachother a brief update.

Not only this but you need to go live these stories. Eventually you don't have time to continue this LDF. Eventually you both drift away.

After Watching Blood Diamond

He spins around
And watches as they push
His mother to the ground
He fights against the arms

Holding him down
He kicks and he screams
They’ve destroyed his hometown
Along with its people

These people he’d lived with
All of his life
He now sees the blacksmith
Lying in a pool of his blood

He cries out again
His mind cannot think
Past the blockade of pain
Which drives him to attack

His captors
His enemies
He struggles as they catch er
In a hold too tight

A hold too merciless
One which would end her life
He feels the gun’s bluntness
As he tries to break free

He hears the cruel laughter
As he curls up with broken teeth
He realizes after
They slit him mother’s throat

That he should’ve tried harder
He should’ve wrestled away
And gone up to save her
But now all that’s left

Is his broken body and heart
For all to hear about
But none are torn apart
By this tragedy of life

This tragedy he feels
It’s deep within him
Creating a wound
Which will never heal.

USA: Land of the Free

Is the United States a threat to our world? We eat through the world's supply of resources faster than any country, increasing the debt to our planet. In fact if everyone lived as the US does we'd need 5.3 planets to sustain our population. Fortunately for us not everyone does. Note the 'for us'. Is it fair that while we live in luxury others are left to suffer? Is it fair that we terroize and plunder other countries, snatching up their precious resources? Just think about it.

We are able to live in these conditions because they are facing destitution. We depend on their suffering to live comfortably. Not only do we take their resources, we also pollute their planet. Our planet.

Our sins affect others lives. We squeeze the earth dry and then create toxic chemicals and release them into the atmosphere. In 2009 the US CO2 emission was 20.2% of the world's emission's. All of this just to create a simple plastic toy or a radio which will go to waste after a few years, polluting our planet further. This pollution breaks down the o-zone layer causing global warming. This phenomen changes people's lives greatly. But not the people who are to blame. Global warming affects those who did nothing to cause it most. It is us, the MEDC's who contribute the most to global warming, the US being one of the largest contributors.

So why don't we stop? Because we cannot. Everything about our governments and economies are based on this unecessary squandering. We put a system in place when we gained independence in 1786. This system cannot be so easily demolished. It is the foundation of our entire society and without it our way of life would go crasing down.

It demonstrates how the world is interconnected. Our economy depends on the excessive usage of resources. Products are created using these resources. The creation of these products causes pollution. Living conditions in LEDC's beome worse as global warming increases. The poor we abuse are most affected by global warming.

We are one of the top powers in the world. A great accomplishement. We started out small and eventually became the 2nd biggest country in the world. But we are abusing our power now. We use our influence and this power to steal other country's natural resources. We enter a country loking for a fight. We've made a bad name for ourselves. We may be percieved as strong but also cruel and injust, A mighty country, which in its greed, desires more than required. A nation which wants more than can be provided will never be satisfied. We are this type of nation and the farther we go down this road the harder it is to go back. The U.S. has power. We must end this crisis. Put the two together. What do you come up with?

How Much Longer?

I wait for the tears

That come each night

The ones I fear

Will take my sight

Time heals all wounds

That's wht they told me

So why do I still stifle that sound?

Wasn't getting better a guarantee?

I feel so alone

Because the pain stays the same

I still want to go home

And I need someone to blame

Someone's at fault

For what I am feeling

Someone should understand

What I've been concealing

I'm no longer waiting

The tears have arrived

That someone never came

But I still survived.

Be Yourself

"God gave you them shoes, so walk in them" Eminem

"Well I am what I am" Enrique Iglesias

"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." Dr. Seuss

All are quotes which portray the same message, be yourself. A message which has been emphasized in today's times through some magazines and media. It brings up important issues of individualism and the courage to be your own perosn. Many different people have tried to express this idea to the public, stressing how important it is. yet we still haven't nailied it down.

Despite their different backgrounds rapper Eminem, singer Enrique Iglesias and children's author Dr. Seuss all linked their work back to the central issue, be yourself. They are famous and role models to many. From young children to middle aged people this message has ben spread to this wide range of people through their art. And although it has been spread and we've all been told this time after time at a very early age, not many follow it.

Society has created an anorexic image which each individual must fit under to be considered 'cool'. We are stiff and unchanging. Most people you come across are the same in so many ways. Same shoes, jeans, t-sirts and hairstyles. This deosn't stop at the exterior. Along with the desire to look the same comes the need to act the same. To climb up this twisted social ladder created by the bodies of boys and girls not labeled 'cool', you must change your personality.

They laugh at the autistic in 7th grade, you do too. They only eat salads for lunch, you do too. They only talk about things like shoes and lip gloss, you do too. You take action and change your very being. You crush your individualism until you are no more than one of the mindless, 'popular' girls who grace the halls with their presence.

Oh, you get priveleges to. You'll never be publicly humiliated again because the only ones who could do that are now your 'friends'. You get invited to all the parties. You're always at the 'place to be'. You know all the gossip first. You get the guys you want. You are a trendestter, people are watching you.

But is it worth all the unhappiness it causes? Not only are they watching you. They are judging you. Giving themselves an idea of who you are by the actions you take. Actions which do not show your true personality but a stranger who helped bring you up the social ladder. And to climb up it you must abandon thosw who actually loved you. Who actually cared how you were feeling, not just looking for a way to bring you down. Once you are ontop of the foodchain you can no longer trust thosw around you. All you want is to stay at the top.

To do this you remain vacant, empty as broken eggshell, with nothing to offer. Following the crowd, always knowing what's new and hot. All of this is done to 'fit in'. What kind of statement is that? It tells you to force yourself into someone else's idea of pretty or cool. To make yourself fit into an image created by others. Why would you do this when you could just 'be yourself'?

Forgotten

What happens if you're forgotten? What do you do? The person who told you that they loved you just...forgets. Everything you two had is gone, forgotten. Like a whisper in the wind. Fading away. Along with the life you used to have.

It hurts. A lot. To find out that those who were supposed to be there no matter what have moved on to 'better' things. It's a blow to not only your ego but simply your state of mind.

How can you depend on those around you when you've experienced this? When you know you can be forgotten by the ones you hold closed. How can you trust that they won't forget about you and you won't have to go through it all over again?

If you know this kind of pain you can also understand this inablility to rely on your friends. The fear of the possibility that this event could repeat itself. And you don't want it to. You don't want to feel like you did ever again. Because it hurts too much. Being abandoned by one you had so much faith in. Whom you shared so much with. If those 'friends' can do it then what do these new bonds mean? What do they represent?

Just another friendship to be broken? Another way to be forgotten? Or a way to start over? A new beginning.

Still Around

When you were still around

We'd play hide and go seek

I wasn't allowed to make a sound

And you would never peek

When you were still around

We'd take pictures of the sky

Of the trees and of the ground

Now all I do is cry

When you were still around

We'd stay up late on Christmas Eve

Trying not to be found

Because in Santa Claus we believed

When you were still around

I didn't carry so much pain

It wouldn't surround me

And show up on my pillows as tearstains

If you were still around

And not with God as Mommy says

The world would be our playground

With everlasting days.

Can You Trust Them?

No matter how low you percieve a person to be, they can stoop lower. Age, gender, and intelligence. None of it affects a person's personality and their capacity to hurt another human being. You label a person as decent or at least above a certain level of cruelty but they continue to shock you by truly hurting a person you care about. You cannot always trust those around you. If you believe all think in the same way as you then you're wrong. If you think they'd never consider following such measures as a pathetic cry for attention or to try and make themselves look better then you are wrong. There are people out there like this.

They steal, hurt and manipulate to get what they want. Whether it's for their own popularity or your downfall they will use poison filled words and actions to accomplish their goals. It's unbelievable what some people will go to but of course we all know that. As time goes on the people in your life do not change. There are always a bitter, twisted, jealous people out there who will do anything to climb to the top of society. They don't care who they crush on the way. They cannot be changed. All we can do is keep going and leave those people to get what's coming to them.