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Bittersweet
By Shekelia Baccus
One word to describe my past…what
better than the word bittersweet?
What’s the point of winning if all you feel is defeat?
Always felt like an outcast…why can’t anybody hear my plea?
Want to scream out for help…who really cares about me?
Who cares about the child who tears they can’t see?
I admit I’m discreet but that don’t mean its deceit
Independence so strong it’s misplaced with conceit
So they ride me with their rumors like a bicycle seat
Because I make it hard to compete my heart they mistreat
But like a soldier in the army I never retreat
Going to rise to the top until I’m queen of the elite
Never ever let me them see…
That it hurt like a burn from standing in summer heat
Forever I keep it moving like an African on an African beat
Still I’m afraid without love I’ll always feel incomplete…
So as you can see…my past …my present…my future…
Remains bittersweet
Seek ye first
By Aeryn
Davis-Batiste
"God, are you there?"
I ask this so often
wondering if
He’s even listening to me.
I pray
and wait
and pray
seems like
an eternity
I’m
sick and tired of struggling
and at times
giving up
seems to be the best bet.
But I remember grandma’s words,
"Child, God ain’t thru with you
yet!"
Seek
ye first the kingdom of God
and His Righteousness.
I was
told that
doing this
would grant me
complete happiness.
Happiness
beyond measure
unattainable in the physical form.
But just as precious
and miraculous
as a baby being born.
So when
will this all happen?
I mean
when will my life
be complete?
Because right now all I see
is pain
and all I feel
is defeat
I’m tired
of praying
and praying!
feels like its all in vain.
When will God bring me
a little sunshine
and take away
all this pain?
I
remember grandma
again
saying
"Seek ye first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness"
But isn’t
that what I’ve been doing
while praying through my distress?
Seek him wholeheartedly
during joy and sorrow.
And let Him
worry about your
tomorrow
Live
today
for Him
as if it were your last!
And forget about the guilt
and mistakes of your past.
"Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness"
and all good things will be given
to you.
Lean not unto your own understanding
for God knows what’s best for you!
Again, it
is said
"Seek
ye first the Kingdom of God"
and all good things will be given to thee.
It’s proven in the greatest
book ever written,
refer to Matthew six
verse thirty
three!
By
TERENTIUS BOOKER
I
once dreamed of a thing dat had love as its theme
invisioned vowels n a ring it was 2 real 2 b a dream
everythang was jus rite clear n brite as heavens lite
dressed accordin 2 accomidate her beautiful n white but look
my dream iz not a dream cus dis dream iz real life marriage
a life long commitment u already my wife
I CANT C CLEARLY DOWN DA PATH I'M
SUPOSE 2 WALK AND MY WORDS WANT COME OUT I CAN BARELY TALK
DA SUN SHINE BRIGHT AND YES THERE ARE SHADY DAYS BECUASE DA
GRASS NEED CUT AND DA WEEDS NEED SHAVED
DA SNAKES ARE LEARKIN IN DA BUSHES WAITIN 4 DA PERFECT TYME
2 STRIKE AND PEOPLE BUGGIN REAL HARD WORKIN HARD LIKE
TERMITES ALL CUS DA GRASS NEED CUT AND DA WEEDS NEED SHAVED
CREATIN A PERFECT ENVIROMENT 4 PEOPLE 2 MISBEHAVE BUT DA
LOVE I HAVE 4 U CAN WITHSTAND DA RAIN SO IT CAN DEFINITELY
MAINTAIN A LIL SLIP AND FALL DAT MAY LEAVE A GRASS STAIN
JUS SOMETHIN 2 REMIND U DA LOVE I HAVE 4 U IZ A LONGTERM
THANG DAT NOTHIN CAN BREAK IT DOWN OR TEAR US APART
I LOVE U BABY
DA RAIN MAY FALL BUT WE'LL MAKE IT
THRU IT ALL: 2DAY IT BEGAN 2 RAIN DA SKY WAS FULL OF THICK
GREY CLOUDS AND DA LIGHT WAS ALL OF A SUDDEN DIM AND DA DAY
TOOK ON A GLOOMINESS DAT SOMEHOW WAS DRAININ ALL OUR ENERGY
BUT WE SMILED AT 1-ANOTHA AND NEW DAT DA RAIN MAY FALL BUT
WE'LL MAKE IT THRU IT ALL: 4EVA MEANS 4 DA REST OF OUR
BREATHIN DAYS EACH DAY IZ A NEW DAY LIVIN AND ENJOYIN A
PLACE FROM WITHIN A LAND OUTSIDE OF DA ACREAGE WE'RE
SURROUNDED BY A BEAUTIFUL PARADISE WHOSE FLOWERS ALWAYS
BLOSSOM AND SUN ALWAYS SHINE WE ARE LIVIN "IN-LOVE" AND WEN
TYMES GET TOUGH WE LOVE HARDER AND THANK 2 OURSELVES DA RAIN
MAY FALL BUT WE'LL MAKE IT THRU IT ALL: I LOVE U WIT NO
LIMIT I SEE U WITHOUT FLAWS AND I THANK OF U AS IF U WERE
PLACED ON DIS EARTH 2 JOIN ME IN A LIFE OF HAPPINESS HOWEVER
B4 U DA HAPPINESS WAS NOT YET KNOWN B4 U AND NOW DAT I HAVE
U IT CANT B AMAGINED WITHOUT U (U COMPLETE ME) B4 IT WAS
DREAMS OF FINDIN SOME-1 SUCH AS YASELF NOW I LIVE EACH DAY
IN DA DREAM DAT SOME-1 ELSE SEE BCUZ WE LIVE DA LOVE LIFE
THEY THANK CAN ONLY B THOUGHT OF AND B4 U I WAS LOST
EVERYDAY SEARCHIN 4 SOME-1 AS GOLDEN AS U AND NOW DAT I KNO
ITS TRU I KNO DAT DA RAIN MAY FALL BUT WE'LL MAKE IT THRU IT
ALL CUZ NOW DAT I HAVE U A LIL RAIN CANT TAKE U AWAY..
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Tuesday
By Ronald Clark It
took 365 days to pass four times but it came.
Heavenly sent courage, to speak words unspoken
but let’s go back to the back story.
Met her on a Tuesday, had a crush on her by Thursday,
friendship every day after that.
Her voice was the last one I heard every night,
sleep deprivation on days when she was grounded.
I nicknamed her Nyquill,
she was my coughing, sneezing, so I can rest easy
medicine.
Corny pick-up lines filtered through our conversations
I practiced all my game on her, her laughter being her
primary reaction
but when I tried to spit realness, cotton mouth got
comfortable,
my quick witted tongue quick sanded and planted itself
in nothingness,
I just couldn’t do it.
So I said screw it and perfected the art of being her
ear and her shoulder,
to listen to her spoken word, she made listening
orgasmic.
She was my release, for four years we spent every waking
moment together.
Every movie from 2000 to 2004 was seen with her,
every poem I wrote was approved by her,
every girl I acted like I liked to get her jealous was
hated by her,
every family gathering was attended by her,
with every family member saying, ‘is that yours?’,
she was mine in every way but…
She was always curious as to why I could never get a
girl,
as to why something always seemed to go wrong
but what was wrong with her having to ask these
questions
was she was the answer.
So on this day, October Third 2004, I drank some water
the cotton mouth disappeared, I spit twice on the
concrete
told mom I would be back in 20 minutes, smiled,
cause mama knows.
Sat down in the driver’s seat, put the keys in the
ignition
cranked up the car for the last time as a single senior
in high school
took the normal three right turns, then a left to her
house.
But the left felt different
the curb seemed to creep onto the street three feet
extra
I tried to miss it but it seemed to follow.
My eyes blinked twice, glanced at the dashboard, then
finally centralized,
but it was too late.
A mano y mano crash put me in this position
now I’m sitting here, in critical condition.
Extremities non-functional, eyes closed to the pain
cotton mouth a permanent resident,
bandages protecting flesh wounds of carnage.
Two hours away from leaving this earth, she came to
visit
I could sense she was crying, she took her two short
breaths then the long
she held my hand, as I prayed one last time,
for the opportunity to tell her what I’d been holding in
since that Tuesday.
God granted this wish, as my right hand tingled,
my right hand wiggled
my right hand motioned for a pen and paper,
she got the gesture.
Placed it gently in my hand, I wrote my final words:
“I love you more than life itself,
four years ago, my heart began to melt
but I took too long, and now its dissolved
right when I was ready to tell you I wanted to be
involved
in the conception of your children, in the beginning of
your life
I wanted you forever, I wanted you as my wife
but love doesn’t wait for impatient people,
so pick up my journal, and I want you to read through
understand the deepness of my love for you,
and realize that not having you, just wouldn’t do,
and as God ends this special request
just remember, on a Tuesday, I was truly blessed.”
The pen dropped to the floor,
and I gave up the fight,
she cried for 365 days, and 365 nights,
woke up on that 366th morning,
smiled for the first time since my death began the
mourning.
She looked at the calendar, with nothing to say
the first day of the rest of her life, a Tuesday.
Ronald P. Clark is a recent graduate of Hampton
University with a degree in Print Journalism. He is a
native of San Diego, CA where he has lived his entire
life. He started to actually believe he was a poet
during his sophomore year at Hampton and has been
published five times. He has performed at multiple
venues around the Hampton roads area.
WUDUP BABY I REALLY DONT HAVE
MANY WORDS SO I'M GONNA LET MY HEART TALK. 1ST MY HEART
TELL ME 2 SAY DAT I LOVE U BUT OF COURSE U HEAR DAT FROM
ME DAILY SO I WONNA GO FURTHA AND MOE IN DEPTH WIT WUT I
INTEND AND SEE 4 US. 1ST I OFFER U MY TYME AND 2 FURTHA
BREAK DOWN TYME DA "T" STANDS 4 TAMU-TERENTIUS-TOGETHA
4EVA, DA "I" STANDS 4 INTEREST: WUTEVA U LIKE I LIKE AND
IF ITS NOT SOMETHIN I'M USUALLY INTO DEN 4 U I WILL
ENJOY IT 4 US, DA "M" REPRESENTS MEANING: EVERYDAY DAT
WE ARE TOGETHA JOINED AS 1 I INTEND ON SHOWIN NOT JUS
TELLIN U JUS HOW MUCH U MEAN 2 ME HONESTLY THERE AINT NO
MOUNTAIN HIGH ANUF AND NO VALLEY WIDE ANUF 2 KEEP ME
FROM U BABY, LAST BUT NOT FINAL DA "E" REPRESENTS
ETERNITY: WHICH DEFINES TIME AS ON GOIN AND IN SO MANY
WAYS DATS HOW I C OUR RELATIONSHIP 4EVA GOIN AND GROWIN
BUT DA "E" ALSO STANDS 4 EFFORT: BECAUSE AT ALL TYMES I
WILL PUT FORTH MAXIMUM EFFORT 2 LET U KNO SOMEBODY LOVES
U BABY AND DAT LOVIN U IZ EASY CUS U R TRUELY BEAUTIFUL.
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