Without you standing
beside me?
Impressionism? What is
the colour of your soul?
Which brush strokes
were used to create this
bumpy surface, only
appearing in the era of
political control?
Our love a renaissance?
When men keep shooting
each other in
artistic difference?
On your last breathe
paint me the woman
you want me to be
and
then destroy your work
eternally
There is no filter that can capture true beauty. To my little sister, who sent me this picture and became a muse to these writings…
Beautiful, when you were bornNow, fullness of curls, thick hipsA black rose full in bloom
Your laugh always ended in a curl
Fighting conformity effortlesslyForming musical notes, perfectly
I spoke to you as a gemstoneI said never change your skinonly find yourself within it
See it as the perfect sunsetwith different shades and huespainted on the outside of you
Appreciate the rawness of truthFight the lies, contouring featuresthat make-up restrictive dreams
The mirror is not a driving testBeauty does not need a pass markSmash projected imagery in half
Whilst doing so, become wholeYou are beyond this realmwith understanding of your soulChoose wisdom over vanityChoose humility over prideChoose yourself over societywith divine permission to thrive
But most of all choose loveto be the response to thosewho cry at night wishingto be born someone else
Who look at their face, contorteddue to shame and rejectionof something once called beautifulWho pinch and taunt and flexand squeeze and breathe in tightly,just to perform acceptance of self
Be that woman, who is quietwhen everyone else is loud,moving freely to your soundBe her, for everyone who livesin the highlights, waiting to becomesomeone behind a box of brushes
Become a catalyst of confidencefor those who hide every morningSay “I’m beautiful, just this way.”
Don't let the rhythm
inside you die
like a dead eyed butterfly
Be a rare, lost, multi-coloured
gemstone in the sea
surrounded by drops of
invisible, sweet nothings
Be that girl...
who stuffs too much wisdom
into her purse
beside her lipstick and hair gel
hoping for a makeover
of political injustices
Eat the flavours of success
to give access for the poor
With your voice
scream
forgiveness until
your eyes are sore
Hold open the door
of a compliment
to let someone beautiful in
Let no trouble reach
the mind's scaffolding
Smile,
because the weight,
is not impossible
for your holding
#orangeyourhood #16days
To continue of the #16day theme of activism for women who have experienced domestic violence which finishes on 10th Dec, here is another poem I have written...
Love is captivating
A grandeur of irresistible strength
Bars of your bent arms
Around my glass stomach
Squeezing
Until each bit of sharpness
Becomes it's own in a rainbow
I'm yours
Forever
Reflect me
To know love you must know war
Breaking down walls to conquer dreams
In the forgetfulness of sleep
Charge with a battering ram
Into my constructed soft meat
Until there is nothing left but
Surrender
I'm yours
As I lay helplessly
On your floor
Love takes prisoners
Surrounded by muscular men with scars
Who choose their own prisons
And your company
Time has no nights
Torture is optional
So, you choose to scream
I'm yours
Until you die
In his hands
Love is not love without war
