Elie's Poetry Corner

Don't tell me I've potential, or what you want from me Love should be elemental, cause it should always be. Don't love that you could mold me into what you want some day Just in your arms enfold me and tell me it's okay. Don't love me cause I'm weaker, or cause I need you there. Some times I may be meeker, and other times I'll dare. Don't love me if I'm faithful, then hate me if I roam If you love me truly, I'll always come back home.  It's not because you love me that you strike me when I stray You want to be above me, you want to make me stay. Don't tell me it's your duty, don't treat me like a chore Don't say you love my beauty, love what is at my core. How can it be you love me, yet don't know who I am? In a mold you may shove me, and no matter how you cram I won't fit the shape and then I'll break the mold.

The earth revolves without you, To dawn another day The moon still brings the tide And sends him on his way. The night sky stars still twinkle, They have not lost their glow Time marches on, to that same beat As if he didn't know. The spring will bring her flowers All wond'rous to behold And though we may not like it All flowers one day fold. They must make way for autumn When leaves begin to fall Though some leave before others It happens to us all. And winter, although barren And cold beyond belief Must spread her icy fingers To help us through our grief.  So when that babe comes crying And wailing to our arms We openly embrace them Accepting all their charms. We could just mourn the fallen And refuse to heed spring's song But if we close our hearts off We might as well be gone. I'll live life and embrace it Just as you would have done Hard as it is to see past The setting of your sun.

He only seeks the pleasure of the ride little thinks he of costs that he might pay. Off he jaunts, no matter night or day. He thinks he's safe, if luck is on his side. He grants to some the power to destroy, in what might be the blinking of an eye. They look both ways or so they try, But still they cannot see this boy. He rides atop a coffin with two wheels never knowing what may be his fate. If someone doesn't see, it is too late and he or she a priceless treasure steals. All is lost because of a mistake. Too late for something to be done. One didn't see, another one is gone. Tragedy it is, for heaven's sake. So many gather weeping for the life unlived, and all the years this boy had left. So many tears, he left behind a baby and a wife.

Fear wraps its tentacles around my heart. Fear of not doing enough... not being enough... Even tighter, till my breath is gone and I cannot move. It holds me, its captive. "Fight the deadly serpent," part of me insists. "Do not let this evil win." but the fear is too strong. "I will never let you go!" it cries. "When you want to open up, I'll be there... waiting. I grow stronger when you falter. I rejoice in your mistakes. I will always prevent you from pursuing your dreams. I will always oppose you, you can never defeat me. For I am you!" Again it squeezes to prove its power over me. I shudder and shrink into myself. No one else can see this demon... my fear. "Stop." they tell me. "It's silly to be scared." I know. There is nothing, waiting in the shadows. No dragon lies in wait beyond these walls, the walls I constructed to protect myself the walls I refuse to tear down, immobilized by fe...

I didn't want to face losing you... even though I understood that nothing lasts forever. I didn't want to wake up one day to find that you were gone, out of my life forever. I didn't want to stop hearing your laugh or seeing you smile that sweet crooked smile. I didn't want to stop talking to you and hearing your reply... how I miss your advice. I never thought about how lonely my life would be without you... until you were gone. No matter how long it's been... I can still hear your voice, even though I won't ever again. Memories play like movies in my mind. The time we spent together. I cherish every minute I took for granted then. How I wish I could go back. I knew that it would happen. I knew that you would go. I just didn't want to face it. I told myself, that I would be okay. I told myself you were in a better place. It would have been selfish to make you stay. You were in pain I know. I'm sorry for a...

When someone asks you "how's your day" you say: "Everything's okay." even when you're lying. ... Even when you want to cry you smile at them and meet their eyes. You never, ever, ever say "I need a hug, I need a friend." or: "The pain I feel's too much to bear. I could give up, I'm almost there." They smile and nod and say the same. It's all a part of this little game. They don't tell you: "My dad's in jail and I don't think we'll afford the bail. My house is messy, my job's a bust but I keep going, because I must." And you never know just what's inside, just what that painted on smile can hide even though you do the same.

crying on the inside, turmoil. fear. doubt. dying on the inside weary. sleepless. night. Every day a battle. fighting. for my. life. Every night a struggle. will this. never. end? Too much pain around me. the pain. I see. I feel. If only I could help them. I want. my hands. to heal. For all the good it does me, I bow. my head. to pray. But there is no answer. No one's. listening. anyway.

Time goes on, as if it didn't know For me it's still. If not, it's moving slow. All these smiles, they stab me like a knife and no one knows -- how cruel is this life. I have no grave to visit, nor ashes to spread. I don't even know how long you've been dead. Can I choose to say it isn't so Can I block it out, as if I didn't know? If I could hold a paper in my hand, would I accept it then, would I understand? How did I let the years go by -- without picking up the phone just to say hi? Now simply because I didn't try I'll never even get to say goodbye. Do I even have the right to grieve? Am I allowed redemption or reprieve? Always too busy with my life to hear Always too tired, too stressed to lend an ear. The earth still spins and we have dawn even without you -- cruel life marches on.

Pressed between two pages, in a book upon a shelf. He seeks to hide your beauty, and keep it to himself. He plucked you from your garden, from everything you knew. He trimmed away the childhood friends, along whose sides you grew. He showered you with kindness, and fertilized your hope... before he banished you to darkness, with which you couldn't cope. He knows that you will wither, he knows that you will die. He knows that you cannot escape, because you'll never try. He's warned you of the dangers, that in the world await if ever you decide to roam, beyond his garden gate. You had thorns to protect you, but he wore a glove. He said you didn't need them, because you had his love. He'll let you live in misery, then put you on display He thinks that he's a potter, and you're a piece of clay. You envy things that aren't alive, because they cannot feel. Think maybe it's a nightmare, that none of it is real. You try hard to remember, y...

I know your self-esteem is tangled with his love that's how he knows, no matter what, it'll never be enough... to make you leave. I know you cry at night, and think you're all alone you're praying for a sign, and he throws you a bone so you won't leave. I know you hide the bruise, explain away the scar you never will admit, that he has gone too far and you don't leave. You think that he is broken, and you alone can heal explain away his drinking, it's his only way to deal but you don't leave. I heard last night you left, took all that you could take too bad you're in a sleep, from which you'll never wake.

You stab me with the knife of indifference right before you plunge me into the icy cold depths of apathy. All this as you smirk, and nudge and whisper. But as I get close the talking stops and silence reigns. And it is clear that you... think... you're... better... than... me. Better because: your clothes are neatly pressed... Your children are more well-behaved... you chose not to have children... You don't make as many mistakes... you don't forget things... You make friends easily... You're still married... You chose not to marry... And you smirk and laugh and judge so easily. You think you know me at a glance. You see: The way I dress. My shy manner. My rowdy children. My forgetfulness. You see my mistakes. But you don't see me. You never see me. You never know me. And you lose:  the comfort I give when my friends are in need.  a sympathetic ear. The thought I put into my gifts. My silliness and my humor. my empathy. The fun we coul...

There was a me, who used to be so very long ago. So much I was naïve about so much I didn't know. I thought the world was simple I thought I understood That I knew all about myself that I did what I should But now it's complicated I know that I was wrong. And when I look into the past, should have known all along The knowledge I possess now, was really always there I could have learned it back then, back then I didn't care. If I go back in history, years carefully arranged will I find that catalyst will I know why I changed? And if I met myself back then and took me by the hand, could the me that used to be, ever really understand? The years have shaped me like a potter changes clay they've added things, and molded things and taken things away. Some may say I'm better, Some might think I'm worse Should I stand tall, with head held high, or bear it as a curse?

Somewhere there is a chasm a hole too deep to fill something so deep and hollow that everything is still Watch your step! Don't fall in! You'll never find the light! You'll float in hell forever, until you curse the night. And if by chance you find the edge and pull yourself back out You'll be forever changed by it of this I have no doubt! So if you find this chasm let curiosity slide for you have heard the danger and this warning must abide. Round the chasm may be beautiful you may wonder what it holds You make think that you're prepared for it but please heed what you're told Nary one has entered, and come back without a mark and many more have not returned lost to the depths and dark You may think that there is treasure somewhere to be found But this is a lie, to lure you Nothing in there is profound Many have seen the danger but thought they would prevail They may still live there somewhere we no longer hear them wail. ...

I curse the thoughts I don't invite, which wander to my brain. I curse those feelings yet again, macabre or mundane. I curse the dreams I have at night, which make me toss and turn disturb my rest, mess up my head, and make my loins burn. I curse the fear that binds me, and treats me like its slave it lies about so many things, to keep me in its cave. It tells me who to talk to, and dictates where I go it tries to keep me ignorant, dispelling what I know. I curse a world that keeps you down, no matter how you try. Where most poor people work and work, and only just get by. It's hard to climb the ladder, if you've got a heavy load; The path to wealth is difficult, there's a boulder in the road. I curse the thought of hatred, bred in ignorance and fear which is passed down to the children, and lives another year. I curse every single thought of hate, which finds itself in me if I weren't bound by fear perhaps, I could fight this enemy.

I can kiss the boo-boo, but I can't heal the scar I can hug you when you're hurting, but that won't take away your pain. If you need a shoulder, Mine is always here. And if you need someone to talk to, I'll always lend my ear. If I could take your pain away, I'd bear it in a day, But even if my kindness, can soften all the blows Life will hurt you sometimes and I can't stop it. I try hard to protect you, to keep you safe from harm to feed you when you're hungry, keep you sheltered and warm. And when life gives you sorrow, I can feel it too. But I can't feel it for you, the one thing I can't do. Sometimes you'll feel a heartache that's difficult to bear. And when I see you hurting it hurts me deep inside. Let me heal the hurting, the only way I can. Maybe I can't understand what you feel inside, but let me try to comfort you, it's all that I can do.

"Without me there would be no you, you owe your life to me." Yes this is true, that without you I would not exist. But without them, there'd be no you and this is also true. Back generations unto the dawn of time we owe our lives to those who passed on to us their genes But just because I came to be and lived because of you, that does not mean I cannot have my own point of view. What I am, indeed it's true, that I owe to you, But who I am, that's my choice. I can choose the way I think and what I choose to say. And I can look for my own path that leads another way. I give you the thanks you're due, a couple times a year. But I must live my own life now even if you don't approve.

Mommy please tell me why -- Why do you fret? Why do you cry? Why is there screaming? I want it to stop Please stop the fighting. Isn't there something, that you could do? What will make it better? I get a little scared when, I begin to hear you and daddy fighting. I go into my room, and cover up my ears. Please don't fight. Daddy make it better, I know you can. She won't stay mad forever. Just don't hurt her, let her go. I'm really, really scared now. What is going on? Is this normal? Is this how parents act? Does everybody fight? I fight with my sister, maybe it is. Mommy please stop crying. It will be all right. I just want you to be together for two minutes And not fight.

Crying in the corner, fingering a knife, she wishes she knew how to be a better mom and wife. The laundry's in the hamper, waiting to be done, the kids are outside playing in the summer sun. The dishes on the counter are dirty as can be and dinner isn't ready at seven fifty-three. Toys are scattered on the floor in every single room and the kitchen floor looks as if it's never seen a broom. Her husband's in the shower cooling from the fight. He doesn't feel bad at all, because he knows he's right. He has a right to think, that she should do her part. He's unaware or doesn't care how bad his words can smart. As she pictures plunging, the knife into her heart The door bangs quickly open giving her a start She turns to see the one who, intrudes upon her space and there she sees her oldest a puzzled look upon his face. "Mommy please don't cry now. Whatever can be wrong? If you promise me a smile, I'll s...

Kiss me. Hold me close. Brush your rough fingers over my soft skin. Touch me. Give me goosebumps. Whisper naughty thoughts into my ears. Find me. Discover my secrets. Unfold the mystery that lies beneath my garments. Caress me. Take me to the top. Lead me to the pinnacle of earthly bliss. Then hold me. Let me hear your heart. When I feel your breathing slow and pulse decline Sleep with me. Let me lie in your embrace. And let me wake up in the morning to your face.

I think of all the words in me, that never will be said perhaps one day you'll read them all, after I am dead. One day when I'm underground, my body will decay and everyone will hear the words, I never got to say. All the individuals I never got to know, because I was too shy, to go up and say hello. Because I let myself believe I wasn't good enough Or thought they wouldn't like me and all that silly stuff. Or what I really think of you, but think you wouldn't like Or all the people that I want to tell to take a hike. Or all the words that came out wrong, or were misunderstood And all the friends I've lost that way, possibly for good. Or how sometimes it gets to me, that people think I'm odd Although I feel alien, like I grew from some pod. And that I want to be myself, but that I don't know why, what other people say and think, makes me want to cry. Or how sometimes I feel, that all I want is love then turn around and tell mysel...