humanity

Sonnet for Equality

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Modeled after “Sonnet XVIII” by William Shakespeare

Sonnet for Equality

Shall I compare you to a summer’s dream?
You are permanent in the public’s view
In this new world things can sometimes seem
As fair as fair can be if they ask you
But we all know that you don’t always shine
As bright as King summoned under His light
And with the devil, time oft stays behind
And souls oft forget to fight the good fight
Your absence makes a death toll hard to bear
When those in charge can only summon hate
Yet I know deep down you will always care
For humans who would like to change their fate
Equality, I ask for sweet returns
Into hearts seeking solace for their burns

Climate Change

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winter rollerblades
spray-bottle paths formed by girls
with no snow in sight

a sunny walk home
January thaws… nothing
worried hidden joy

oh but their smiles!
the earth is dying, but them?
they’re just having fun

i skate after them
till the sun escapes the day
tuck sorrow to bed

we all have our paths
formed by small hands and big hearts
climate changes us

Stopping by a Mansion in my Neighborhood

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Modeled after “Stopping in the Woods on a Snowy Evening” by Robert Frost

Whose house this is I think I know
His wealth is in his business though
He will not see me nosing in
Or what news I’ll take when I go.

My little girls must think it odd
To stop here, so detached from God
Where money rules the heart’s desire,
To darkest greed he gives a nod.

They pull my wrists and ask to leave
And wonder why it is I grieve
The only other sound’s the truck
That brings his gold out to his sieve

The house is lovely, tall, and grand
But I will not lose where I stand:
With them I have the upper hand,
With them I have the upper hand.

Marade

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small signs and short legs
blue sky memories of faith
some fear is slipping

but in children’s eyes:
perfect for play and joy
humanity’s rainbow

if we could all climb
to the top of the goal post
his dream would come true

not just a Marade
a gathering of lost souls
hoping for what’s right

with their eyes, see it:
the world he wanted. Here.
not a shot fired.

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Underground

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we’ll never be friends
i mean, she’s just too damn rich
(she’s so nice, i think)

but conversations
that end play dates in our ‘hood
put us in our place

it’s finally done!
it took so long to finish!
now the kids can play!

(unrelated: us
two basement woes, money lost
to floods and landlords)

million-dollar homes
do not need finished basements
but she won’t see that

and we’ll never talk
beyond the superficial
(it’s kept underground)

now the kids can play
1000 square feet: more space
between us and them

Bent

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a mental illness
keeps his secret behind doors
his goal: expose her

but she’s not hiding.
this stigma needs to end. Now.
no more closets, please

she needs compassion
a face grinning with the truth
not a pack of lies

you see, she’s unpacked
the weight loss feels amazing
and eye-opening

if he could see it
he wouldn’t stigmatize her
rather, open doors

yet whispers bend us,
the burden of exposure
too oft hard to bear

if his berating
bends her toward the bottle now
he’s unforgiven

no handsome smile
can bend me back to his side
may her freedom sing

Teaching is a Guest House

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Modeled after “The Guest House” by Rumi

This teaching is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.

A surprise, a sadness, a frustration,
some momentary celebration comes
as an unplanned visitor.

Accept and accommodate them all!
even if they are a crowd of admin
who violently sweep your classroom
empty of its whiteboards,
Still, treat each guest respectfully.
he may be preparing you for
some new adventure.

The homeless student, the refugee, the defiant ones,
meet them at the door with a smile
and let them know they are welcome.

Be grateful for whomever enters,
because each has been sent
to make your life more than
a forgotten promise.

Faces

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Modeled After “Cut While Shaving” by Bukowski

Faces

It’s never quite right, she said,
The way people judge,
the way they are two-faced,
Bright smiles for your face,
Nasty words behind your back

It’s never quite right when the stars don’t shine,
when you are stuck behind a swath of clouds,
when the only sight you can see is the nose in front of your face

It’s never quite right, she said,
to take the easy road of lying,
to be a spy, to blurt and feed lies on either side of your tongue,
to be the unreal you

I walked away from the mirror
onto the icy streets,
Faces everywhere,
too afraid to look at my own.

Catch Me a Moon

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before dawn, i walk
full moon of icy danger
to be there for them

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classroom lit, open
first day, students new to me
i set standards high

phones, backtalk, shouting
first impression resistance
shake me to my core

after school begging
for schedule changes, fallbacks
they hate and love me

i missed my girls’ smiles
their good-morning kisses, hugs
to face this chaos?

slushy post-school walk
to their bright eyes, warm faces
lost in built-up play

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then, online ranting
plagiarizing grown student
demanding grade change

why you, and not them?
the question of my moon day
please… catch me a moon

make it bright like them
shining beyond snowy morn
lighting, guiding love

Life. Uncorked.

/ lovizmytrio / Leave a comment

you’re coming back now
the truth lies behind bottles
wish i could break them

whispers and gossip
that you aren’t ready to face
the rest of your life

how will you swallow
whatever life’s bitter taste
and carry on, safe?

i would walk with you
but i think of empty rooms
how hollow life is

without a family
don’t know if you’re better off
(but i know they are)

all the same, it kills
i worry you’ll die like him
with bottle in hand

to keep it secret
no one will reach out to help
you burden yourself

we all burden this
this fear of speaking the truth
until lies kill us

let’s not speak of death
of morose new beginnings
i wish i’d brought hope

i would uncork it
let its elixir shape you
towards a drink-free life