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Resilient
Street Roots • July 21 -27, 2017
Poetry
Wonder
by Kareem Ali
by Eileen Vizenor
I’ve been called “resilient,”
Not sure what that word means.
However, if it means that I’m a survivor, then it is true.
I’m a survivor of domestic violence.
I’m a survivor of homelessness.
I’m a survivor of self-hate.
And, at present I am learning to survive IBS health issues.
As well as learning to survive mental health issues.
If the above constitutes being “resilient,” so be it! Because I am.
Wild iris, marigolds and marsh
Tulips rolling in
And moist clumps of clouds
Hovering over a dust of rain.
Across from the old church
Your heart was swallowed up
By a tsunami of despair
While outside
A sea-green twilight grew
And the moisture of your tears
Showered the ground with diamonds
That were almost
Beautiful.
Clarity’s Reality
by Shaggy
Occasionally, I’m scared of me
and who I might turn out to be
Expectations often clash with
Aspirations from my past then
Confidence ebbs and flows
from thoughts and things I’m told
My motivation starts to wane when
life im p e d e s m y c h o se n ro ad
I know I’m capable of more
If only I could find the door
That sets me free so I can see
the path that leads me to my dreams
Until then I’ll wander, and patiently ponder.
How to balance my angels and demons
Paint Floats
by Michone Nettles
To what can we compare this life?
Oil floating on water?
And there you are with your dreams
Of love and beyond!
From poetry I receive truth
That’s abstract! For oil floats
On water, that some have walked on,
Some have swam the distance
While we stand aside and look.
Help me sing a song, and smile
With life