Wordsmith

They call me wordsmith;
I'm not sure what that means.
I do not create anything of use;
I create nonsensical or depressing phrases
That hold no meaning for anyone but myself.

They call me poet;
I'm not sure how to respond.
I write rhymes and verses:
Little webs to hold my feelings, trapped,
But somehow, others feel what I locked away.

They call me artist,
But I disagree.
I simply vomited words out,
And tried vainly to sort through them.
That's not what I'd call art.

They call me wordsmith;
I don't know what to say.
Poet, artist--what does that mean?
It doesn't matter really.
I can be a wordsmith.

Dragon Soul

Look at her, that girl,
So broken, so tired.
Can you see that she,
That one, on her knees,
Holds inside her fragile form
The soul of a mighty dragon?
She's falling to pieces before our eyes,
But her dragon soul refuses to give up the fight,
So she stands, alone, unchallenged,
Against Heaven, Earth, and Hell,
But the girl with the soul of a dragon
Shall not fall, shall not bow,
Not to you, nor anyone.
Despite everything she's seen,
There's fire in her eyes, on her tongue, in her soul;
There's fire in her dragon soul.
Her scales protect her from the harshness of the world;
Her claws and teeth fight tirelessly;
Her wings carry her high above the rest;
Her eyes see the truth and read our stories;
Her fire burns bright with passion.
She has a dragon soul.
She's broken, shattered, falling apart,
But she'll always have
A dragon soul.

Heart

Yes, that's a heart,
On the rough, hard ground.
It looks like that because it's broken,
Shattered into a billion pieces.
Hearts are fragile, tender things,
Even the guarded, cold ones.
And the strongest can only take so much.
Yes, that's my heart,
In a pool of my own blood.
It looks like that because I ripped it out,
A swift jerk to end the pain.
Though it's cold and strong,
It shattered into a billion pieces,
Pieces that cut too deep,
Pieces too hard to put together.
It's not worth it.
Yes, that's a heart,
Still beating, still intact,
But barely.
It's tired and sore and bleeding,
But yes, it's a heart.
A cold one that shattered.
Into a billion pieces.

If I Said Everything

There are so many things I want to say to you
That I fight to keep them down.
Everything I want to say is true;
It tries to get out when you're around.

If I said everything, all of it,
You'd run off in tears,
You'd throw an angry fit,
But you'd also be in fear.

I love and I hate you,
And I have too much to say.
You don't even have a clue
How far you'd run away.

If I said everything to your face,
I'm sure you may break mine.
So I tuck it into a quiet space,
And store it between the lines.

There are too many things to be said
And not enough words to say them.
Tonight, out of me, they bled,
Into the form of a poem.

I Hope You Care

"I don't care what anyone thinks,"
You say, so filled with pride.
Why? Why are you proud?
I hope you care
What some of us think
Of you.
I hope you care what your parents,
Your friends, your family,
Your God, your neighbors,
And your teachers think
Of you.
I hope you care if you're kind,
If you're polite, if you're honest.
I hope you care if those who matter
Like you.
I hope you care if you're a good person or not.
I hope you care, because if you don't,
Then you are one of the rude,
The selfish, the proud, the ignorant,
And you don't even realize it.
I hope you care at least an ounce,
But no more than a pound,
Because if you care too much,
It can start to weigh you down.
I hope you care enough to know
If you're indecent or not.
I hope you care enough what others think
That you can see how you make them feel.
I hope you care what I think of you,
If only because I love you.

The Dam

An ocean of tears,
Uncried, they are held back
By the dam.
Waves of emotion,
Terrible, unchecked,
By nothing
But the dam.
Fearsome anger, wrath,
And love, tender mercy,
All equally held back,
Contained,
By the dam.
Sadness, deep sorrow,
And agonizing pain,
Kept sealed away,
By the dam.
Nothing displayed;
All feelings hidden,
Behind the dam.

Stupid Little Things

How broken must you be
When even stupid little things
Bring you to the point of tears?
When dumb, normal, everyday problems
Become overwhelming and painful,
How broken are you?
In what world do you belong
When all the stupid little things
Break you completely down?
When the simplest, most mundane trials
Bring you, shattered, to your knees,
What is there left to save?
How broken must I be
When even stupid little things,
Bring me to the point of tears?

Keep it Closed

Everyone has a door,
A door they don't want to open,
Standing, dark, in their past.
Keep it closed,
Keep it closed.
It looms with fierce pride,
Glaring down upon us, enraged.
We made the decision.
Keep it closed,
Keep it closed.
Do not open that door.
You really, really don't want to.
Do not knock, do not peek in.
Keep it closed,
Keep it closed.
Protect yourself from it,
From what lurks behind that door.
Do not unlock that door.
Keep it closed,
Keep it closed.
Don't listen to its whispers,
Do not let the pain control you.
It belongs in the past.
Keep it closed,
Keep it closed.
Just keep it closed.

Awhile

Hey there.
It's been awhile.
I thought I'd say hello.
I suppose I just couldn't
Stand the silence
Any longer.
We used to talk so much.
Hey there.
Haven't heard your voice
In awhile.
Hey there,
How have you been?
It's been awhile.
I'm okay;
You're okay;
You and I and everyone else
Are okay.
But it's been awhile,
And I'm okay,
But I miss you.
'Cause it's been awhile.
Hey there, you.
I thought I'd say hello.
It's been awhile
Since last we spoke.
Hey there,
I thought I'd say hello,
'Cause it's been awhile.

We Want

There are so many things
That we want.

We want to be loved,
To be respected,
To be known,
To be accepted.
We want to be strong,
To be brave,
To be free,
Not slaves.

But we are slaves.
Slaves to the world we made,
Slaves to half-broken promises,
And we'll never be free,
Because, to our wants,
We are simply slaves.

We want to be seen,
To be adored,
To be heard,
Not ignored.
We want to be happy,
To be joyous and glad,
To be ever-smiling,
But still, we are sad.

There are so many things
That we want.

Sealed Away

Sweet joy,
Enduring hope,
Angry wrath,
Laughter,
Ever-true faith,
Deep trust,

All the feelings
Which I feel
Are sealed away,
Yes, sealed, in the words of a poem.

It

"Don't run from it," they say
"You can't just flee forever."
I want to run from it, hide it away,
But it is fierce, it is clever,
And it's coming after me.
They want me to challenge it,
To set that monster free,
But I run, so I don't get bit.
It is mighty, it is strong,
And I can't take it down.
We could fight it all day long
And never bring it to the ground.
It's coming fast through the night,
To hunt and catch my soul.
It opens massive jaws to bite,
And its eyes burn orange like coal.
On misshapen black wings it flies,
Circling overhead.
It spreads its words of hate and lies
Until we all are dead.
With razor keen teeth and claws,
It prowls stealthily through the dark.
I stare it down, yield to its laws,
And it bites out my heart.

A Mother's Tears

The most valuable of diamonds
Cannot compare to the beauty
And the strength
Of a mother's tears.
These are tears that build a world,
Or two, or three, or five, or more.
These are tears that fall
Alongside blood and sweat
To give it all for someone else,
Someone who doesn't understand
The pain and agony she took
For their sake.
A mother's tears tell stories
Of the creation of a life
And the heartbreak of a love
That will always burn.
A mother's tears show fear,
And strength, and sacrifice.
These are tears that can build a world;
These are tears that can break a heart;
These are tears that can heal any wound;
These are a mother's tears.

Dragons in the Sky

There are dragons in the sky tonight,
Ripping into each other with steel teeth.
Their thundering roars shake the clouds;
Their fury shakes the earth below.
The dragons in the sky don't care
If they rain down destruction upon us.
They fight with iron claws of death,
Tooth and claw and scale and breath.
Their blood of stones falls to the ground,
Pounding out their song.
There are dragons in the sky.
Their wings stir the air to foam,
Bringing wintry chills;
Their tongues of fire scorch the clouds,
And their fury shakes the earth.
There are dragons in the sky,
Voicing thunderous rage;
They rip each other with steel fangs,
For there are dragons in the sky tonight.

Between the Lines

Read between the lines of life;
Find loopholes in the cords.
Dance in all the empty space
In between the lines.
Read between the lines of me;
Look past the outer shell.
Find the tender, broken soul
Between the iron lines.
Step between the lines of lies;
Don't get tangled up inside.
Look for the hidden truth
And read between the lines.
Look between the lines of truth
To find the world's true secrets;
Take the leap of faith and jump
In between the lines.

Precious

You are precious.
Worth more than gold,
More than silver,
More than platinum.
You are a diamond,
Forged by pressure,
By heat, and by precise cuts.
And you are so precious.
You are too valuable for money,
Or for gemstones in rings,
Too valuable for numbers
To even compare.
So precious, you are worth
Blood, sweat, tears,
And so much more.
You are a diamond,
And you are precious.

My Brother's Tears

My brother's tears fall,
Diamonds on his skin,
Carrying emotions
Revealed from deep within.
My brother's tears shine,
Reflective in the dark.
I see my brother's tears,
And they break my heart.
My brother's tears glisten,
And they dance down his face,
They choke my throat;
They fill up space.
My brother's tears show
What lies underneath.
They're the only sign
That inside, he bleeds.
My brother's tears know
The secrets of his heart.
My brother's tears fall,
Like diamonds in the dark.

The Curb

From my perch on the curb,
I sit, I watch, I observe.
I see all that happens,
And I wait for this to end.
I fight the constant pull
Of the lies and all the bull,
I try not to feel like trash,
But inside, I'm being smashed.
From the curb I have a great view;
It's your fault I'm here, but I don't blame you.
You left me on the curb,
Where I watch, I see, I observe.
I know you're slipping from my grasp--
This isn't the first time, or the last--
I leave, but I always return.
I get put back in my place on the curb.
I can watch, listen, and see.
If you looked, you'd see me bleed.
I see I'm losing you,
Because I have a great view
From this spot on the curb,
Where I watch, listen, observe.
I've been here too many times,
But to leave I would need to climb,
And my limbs are weak;
The future seems bleak.
I have not the strength required
To leave the curb--I'm tired,
And even I can barely take
All of this heartbreak.
So I shall stay on the curb.
I shall watch; I shall observe.
And I will still protect you,
Because danger is in my view,
Though you put me here,
There is no blame, do not fear.
I will not hate you.
I will not blame you.
I will watch, I will observe,
From my place on the curb.

Lonely Road

He walks a lonely road,
A lonely road that he chose,
A path trodden not by friends;
He walks a road bathed in silence,
A road without laughter or love,
A path of loneliness;
He walks a road of sorrow,
A lonely road of agony,
A path of tears and blood;
He walks a road of pain,
A road without voice,
A lonely path of quiet;
He walks a road of whispers.