Tag: light

Diamanté Poems

I am switching things up just a bit. I have been writing some poetry in a different format. One that I have not done too much of. Diamanté takes the shape of a diamond. It is a format I am willing to explore more of since when I participated in a competition on DUP with this theme/format in mind one of the poems I wrote got me first place. And the format tends to go like the following:

Line 1: Beginning subject
Line 2: Two describing words about line 1
Line 3: Three doing words about line 1
Line 4: A short phrase about line 1, a short phrase about line 7
Line 5: Three doing words about line 7
Line 6: Two describing words about line 7
Line 7: End subject

Light & Darkness

Light  
steady, strong  
illuminating, blinding, glimmering  
truth reveals itself and knows secrets
blackening, daring, braving  
shadowy, inky
Darkness

Roses & Thorns

rose
delicate, fragrant
blossoming, growing, expanding
in your sunshine there is discomfort
irritating, sharpening, bleeding
prickly, dangerous
thorn

P.S. And as you can see I am keeping this post very short. But the lesson is to always try something new because you never know where it might lead you.

Being Broken

I just want to give a heads up because this is a tricky and difficult subject matter to navigate for a lot of people, including myself. It is tricky because a lot of people do not want to talk about those times when they have been broken. I know I have talked about rough patches and when people struggle. This is one of those things some people struggle with. Being broken may make you think of a rag doll, but it is truly no fun. I have been broken a time or two, but sometimes you do not notice if you are broken until you hit rock bottom and do your best to pull yourself out. There is a quote I found to explain what I mean. “It doesn’t happen all at once, you know? You lose a piece here. You lose a piece there. You slip, stumble, and adjust your grip. A few more pieces fall. It happens so slowly, you don’t even realize you’re broken… until you already are.” So yeah, being broken is equivalent to something like a wall crumbling. You do not always notice it.

The thing about being broken is that you have every right to pull yourself out and try to not be in that same place again. I know because I have been there, but not anymore. The healing part takes the longest because being broken is being depleted of everything. Energy, yourself, etc. Some people do not always realize that they take you down with them. I am proud to say that I am no longer broken. Yeah, sometimes there is a piece or two missing, but it takes great strength and courage to come back from a place of being broken. It makes you appreciate everything so much more like this quote says. “The broken will always be able to love harder than most. Once you’ve been in the dark, you learn to appreciate everything that shines.” Being broken is a lot like being in the dark like that quote says. I couldn’t agree more.

The lesson to this is to never be afraid of being broken. I just hope everyone finds their way out of being broken and in the dark. There is always something on the other side of all of the pain and misery. Furthermore, if you are broken, please do your best to recognize that feeling and try to not bring anybody down with you. Like I said some people do not realize that they do it so if you or anyone you know is feeling this way, just know it is okay to ask for help. Trust me, we can all come out of it. It is difficult and challenging, I know. Just hang in there. I want to leave you all with this last quote for this post. “Until you’re broken, you don’t know what you’re made of. It gives you the ability to build yourself all over again, but stronger than ever.” Here is also a poem to lift your spirits. Much love to you all and always go towards the light.

No Longer Broken

You sneak your way under my exposed skin,
Latching onto sensitive organs. Goosebumps
Dance across my flesh, but every scraped shin
Reminds me of a time when I avoided the jumps
Only to come crashing into you. You tried fixing
And patching me up. Every smile and every laugh
Became raised words with silent actions, mixing
In excuses to throw me off my game. I was not half
Of the woman you made me out to be, but could
Simply be that girl who did not know any better.
You own the bad parts of me, but never the good
Parts too. You could have easily been my sweater,
But you left me standing out in the cold, in need
And begging for more like a drug addict, looking
Over my shoulder. I know you will never succeed
In making me feel that way ever again, hooking
And sinking me with dishonesty while escaping
The truth like the plague. I could not let you
Continue to be molding, forming and shaping
Me into that broken girl again because I have to
Believe in being something other than a rag doll.
I am not the one to kneel down to you and crawl.

Love of the Darkness

I know that I have talked about the combination of the light and darkness, but in this post I am only focusing on the darkness. I know we always want to talk about the light because we all have light and it lets us focus on something we can see. I love the light, but sometimes I like the darkness too. I am probably not alone in that sentiment. I know a lot of people who love the darkness in particular. There is a word for it and that is “nyctophile” which literally means “a person who loves night, darkness.” There is also “nyctophilia” which is defined as “love of darkness or night. Finding relaxation or comfort in the darkness.” Like I have said, I know people who are like that. There is nothing wrong with the darkness because it teaches us something and we learn more about ourselves in the darkness. I am not saying the light is less important that the darkness, but in the darkness we really learn who is there for us and teaches us good lessons.

When people think of darkness, they usually think of something bad, but darkness can be something good as well. In other words, darkness has a bad stigma attached to it. I love the darkness myself because it can be soothing sometimes and I can also see the stars. I am a person who loves the stars so much and maybe I will talk about it in a different post. We love the light for a particular reason and we love the darkness for a particular reason as well. One of those reasons is talked about in this quote by Og Mandino and it is one of my favorite quotes as well. “I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness for it shows me the stars.” We can see the darkness emerge from other people, but it can also come from ourselves. Sometimes we have an irrational fear of the unknown, which is what the darkness sometimes represents. In other words, we know the light so well, but the darkness is the unknown or unfamiliar.

Although darkness can be terrifying, I think that there is something beautiful and amazing that comes from the darkness. That leads me into this quote. “Normal people have no idea how beautiful the darkness is.” Even people who are good are drawn to the darkness and there is nothing wrong with that. That leads me into another quote, which I think came from “The Vampire Diaries” TV show. One of the characters Klaus says it. “Don’t underestimate the allure of darkness. Even the purest of hearts are drawn to it.” In other words, we should never underestimate the power darkness can sometimes have because even the people who have the purest and good intentions can be drawn to it. I think we all have this part within us that are drawn to the darkness and we cannot stop. The darkness helps us see at least a couple of things we would never see otherwise like the stars, for example like I have talked about before. It also shows a part of us that we would never see otherwise.

I want to conclude this post by saying that darkness can have some power, but we cannot let it completely control us because that will take us down a different path. That is a path we sometimes do not want to go down. Sometimes you have to learn to embrace at least some darkness because we would not be here if there was no darkness whatsoever. Think about it this way… where would the stars be without darkness? If we had no darkness there would be no night and certainly no sleep although there are some people who probably do not sleep at all.  I hope my readers, especially those who are afraid of the darkness, learn to love the darkness at least a little bit. It can become your friend and teacher. Enjoy!!

Love of the Dark

Darkness, coming from the shadows
And depths. Like dark ocean water going
Over your head. You are without clothes
Or something to protect you. It is showing
You something about yourself you would
Never see or notice in the light. It is a mirror,
It reflects all of the bad, ugly and good
Parts of yourself. It is murky, but is clearer
Like the dark and starry sky above you
When you lie down on the soft grass.
You begin to lose the brightness and blue
Sky but you get a look through the glass.
It is for the people who are fearless, brave
And not afraid of anything or anyone, not
Even the demons. Do not let it enslave
You or let it become something that brought
You down to your knees and a prayer.
It is more than a simple and cold touch.
Darkness is everything that is threadbare,
Warm and worn out. It is not a crutch.

Guardian Angels/Faith

First of all, I want to wish everybody a happy 2017. This is my first post of the new year. Let us dive right into it. Growing up in a household with a Jewish dad and a Catholic mom has been interesting not only because they are not practicing, but also because my parents have never forced us to choose a religion. They let us make our own decisions when it comes to that. I have never been a strong believer in God or anything like that. However, that does not mean I do not believe in things like guardian angels, etc. I believe that there is someone out there looking after me and if it was not for my guardian angel I would not be here. When people think of a guardian angel they (like myself) automatically believe it to be an actual person, but in my mind it does not necessarily mean it is an actual person. It can be something as simple as a voice you can hear inside of your head.

Angels, whether they are people or voices or objects, are there to ward off evil/bad things. They remind you that there is goodness/light no matter if there is a lot or a little darkness in life. They give you that hope and a reason to hang on. They give you balance and may help restore whatever faith you have. It does not matter what or who you believe in, just know that you always have someone/something watching over you no matter where you are. Somehow, angels are among us. I have also included a quote to remind us of that. “Angels live among us. Sometimes they hide their wings, but there is no disguising the peace and hope they bring.” They are, as this poem reminds us all, our protector/guardian. I hope that this new year brings everybody hope and some kind of faith. Just know that nobody can ever take those away from you. Since we are on the subject here, I will include another poem, below the one I have already included.

This angel in the picture up above was given to me by my 2nd mom after I got my driver’s license back in September and helped, in a sense, with this poem I wrote.

Guardian Angel

What the hell am I going to do?
When the world all around me
Is a mess and I can only think of you

My guardian angel, who will see
The good in me even when I
Am not seeing it. I want to feel free

Without the burdens. Every tear I cry,
You take them away with everything
That is feeling heavy. You fly

Me to a safer place. I want to cling
To you and that protection. During
My darkest times you bring

Me endless light that I find alluring
And peaceful. That voice, telling
Me that I can do this, the reassuring

One in my head is saying to stop dwelling
On the past, on mistakes, on the low-level
Thoughts, and to start living. Stop selling

My soul and heart over to the devil
In disguise. He wants to see me fall apart
Just like the world and wants to revel

In my weakness. My pulsing heart
Is still intact in my angel’s hands.
She is giving me a new start

Every day and when I cannot stand
Anymore. She is my strength, light,
Anchor, protector, and a rubber band,

Keeping everything together tight.
She is my guide through every
Storm, rough wave, and dark night.

P.S. I won a contest with the above poem on a website I have been a part of for a while, called Deep Underground Poetry. The contest theme was angelic protector.

Our Own Version of Faith

I do not pray to the same God as you,
But I still carry that faith and hope
With me like the heavy load. Through

Every hard time, I hang onto the rope
Like a miracle. Somewhere up there
An angel is watching, trying to cope

With brokenness. I will not bear
Anybody else’s crosses except for
My own. You have a prayer

Spilling out of your lips. Save it before
You go preaching to someone who will
Never accept it. I have my own door

To open and walk through. Keep still
While others are feeding you made
Up lies. I hope that you continue to fill

Yourself up with love and every blade
Of grass running through your finger
Tips. Never let those moments fade

Away. Never let your hatred linger
Behind, even when you do not agree
With someone else. Imagine the bigger

Picture of the world. It is more than me
And it is more than you. It is not just
Black and white anymore. It is we

And us. Everything can be discussed
And heard.  Everything could be argued.
How can we ever have such distrust?

Lightness Versus Darkness

I do not know why, but I have almost always been interested in lightness versus darkness. It is a topic that always seem to make an appearance in my work. Maybe it fascinates me or is just something that always comes up. I almost always find ways to compare and contract them because they are so similar yet different at the same time (if that makes sense). People who know me so well know that I have nothing but light within me (hence why I smile a lot), but I (just like almost everybody else) have a dark side and have bad days. Some people come in versions of light and dark (like certain people represent darkness and others represent lightness). On the other hand, there are people who represent both.

I just wish that more people would realize there is a mix of both lightness and darkness in this world (and it always is not a bad thing). There is this quote by Madeleine L’Engle (who wrote “A Wrinkle In Time) that I absolutely love. She says that “Maybe have to know the darkness before you can appreciate the light” and that is so absolutely true. You have to take whatever comes with the darkness and whatever comes with the lightness as well. You cannot always have one without the other. In those times of darkness do not be afraid to ask for help for you to pull yourself up. I also wish that people will show me the darkest parts of themselves because I am not always afraid of those parts of them (I am not that kind of person). I think it is raw and imperfect (to me that is perfectly okay).

So to my readers… I promise you that you are not the only one who deals with darkness because I know I have and other people have done the same as well. Do not be afraid to have a dark side (just as long as you know that you do not have to be there forever). Hang in there… We have all been there and there are certainly better days (hopefully filled with light and better things ahead). Fair warning, these poems are in terms of people and sometimes they come in forms of symbols. Enjoy!!!!!

The Lightness Vs. The Darkness

This guy right in front of me,

He just might be my future.

He’s the one that I’m supposed

To love, to marry, to have kids

With, and to grow old with.

We’re supposed to be happy.

To raise our kids, see them

Grow up and be grandparents

Together. We’re supposed to

Do all of those things together.

But what if everything changes?

How am I going to reassure

This perfect guy and myself that

Everything is going to be okay?

When I know that everything

That we planned might fall

Apart and slip right from our

Grasp. What if it’s him that

I fall in love with? What if

I’m lured away by that guy

In the corner. The guy

I would normally ignore

Because he’s too dark and

Unknown. He’s different than

My future because while my

Future pulls me into the light,

The other drags me away into

The darkness where there is

No light, not even a peak of

Sunlight. Maybe that’s where

I belong. Wherever he goes,

I follow and go along with him

Because even though he may

Not belong in my future, he’s

Still there, waiting for me.

 

Light and Dark

I can see the light behind your

Eyes and I can see the complete darkness

There too. I don’t want to you endure

Any pain. You should also feel the lightness.

It can either put you on your knees with

A prayer on your lips or leave you

Celebrating with the angels. You may wish

And hope that things don’t fall through,

But you may never know that the plans

Are. Sometimes there’s a beacon

Of hope. There might be hands

To give us help. Don’t let the demons

Frighten you. They have no hope.

They only want you to fall and feel heavy.

So while we’re given ways to cope

And deal with all, don’t let the hefty

Weights bring you down. The light

Is there to get you to a positive place.

You are strong enough to fight.

You know you can reach home base.

The cheers and good thoughts should

Propel you forward and lift you up.

There you should see the good.

Don’t let it all buildup.

You have a good heart

And you are kind. Don’t let the

World take it all apart.

You don’t deserve that. Never bet

Against the bad. You should be setting

And smashing your goals. There’s no logic

To being in a life stressing

Mess. There’s no need to suffer a psychotic

Breakdown. There’s no need to suffer

And pay for the dark night.

Be like the summer,

Bright and put on the light.

That smile should glow

And remind you of being positive.

This is your show.

Don’t dwell on the negative.