Tag: poem

People Who Did Us Wrong

I just want to talk about something, especially after doing another competition on DUP. Like I have said before, there are people we come across. Some people treated us right, but there are people who have been a part of our lives and have treated us horribly aka they did us wrong. It does not matter if they are an ex, a former friend, or someone in our family. I know that we should all behave proper, but in this moment it is okay to bash them, just a little bit and not too much because they are still only human after all. Even if they did you wrong you still have to be a better person while forgiving them and then just moving on. Dwelling on something takes too much energy. Some things you can fix and other times you cannot. This quote says it the best. “Hating is for the weak, loving is for the strong. It takes more to love someone who did you wrong than it does to hate them.” So no, I do not hate anybody, but I forgive and say thank you because I would not be where I am today without them. This is a short post, as all of it is pretty simple. I want to conclude by strongly encouraging my readers to dig deep down and forgive those who did us wrong. Cheers and happy reading! Just a side note that this is directed towards an ex, but can be applied to anyone else who did us wrong. I decided to go with two poems. The second one actually won me a competition on DUP.

Did Me Wrong

My first love… why did you have go ahead and break my heart?
You took it all and tore everything into pieces. Everything was sore
And hurting so much. You knew that everything was falling apart,
But you did nothing, except taking back your promises, your
Words and actions. I was left feeling empty and with a gaping
Hole, but I had to replace you. I could not let the sadness
Wash over me while all of the anger was slowly escaping
From my body. I should have every right to be in the madness
And be pissed off. I am sorry and all the other apologies will
Not be enough. I could have burned everything, but be glad
I am not that kind of ex that is psychotic and crazy. The thrill
And chase of that teenage love is done. We could be friends
Is bullshit. We were down different roads and ends.

 

Everything That is You

I hate you and everything that you truly are.
I once thought that you were the shining star,
But I was a fool because you became a meteorite,
Having everything around me burn red and white.
You said that you loved me, but I was just a pawn
And soldier in your game. Even before the dawn
Came I knew that things could never be the same.
Deep down rooted within me there is pain, shame
And fiery anger. If only you could understand it all,
But you are too selfish to care. I was your rag doll,
Only being pushed around and trying to please you,
But nothing could make you completely happy. To
You I am just another person you can throw away.
But I cannot let you treat me that badly. I still pray
To forgive you because I know that nobody could
Ever truly ever be that bad intentionally. The good
Parts of you are there even if you cannot see them.
I have become sturdy like a flower and its stem.

Natural Beauty

I feel like we live in a world where there is too much people being fake and plastic, as in plastic surgery. We see too many celebrities getting bigger boobs, butts, facelifts and other kinds of surgery. We want to be beautiful I get that, but natural beauty is so much better. Women want to cake on makeup, get their hair straightened and do all sorts of things to make them beautiful, but they are naturally beautiful is what I am saying. This quote says it in a great way. “Natural beauty is the best beauty.” It is simply put. If others cannot come to appreciate us when we are in our natural state like having naturally curly hair or wearing glasses or wearing sweats or having no makeup on then they do not deserve us when we are the opposite. Those people clearly do not know what natural beauty may look or feel like. Those are the people we should not be around.

A lot of the time when someone thinks of beauty they might think of the physical part of beauty, but there is a mental part to it. In other words, it is not just about the physical beauty, but also about what is inside that makes a person naturally beautiful. I think it has to do with personality as well as being real and being yourself. You should never try to pretend to be someone you are not. I think it also has to do with the fact that you should believe that you are beautiful. In other words, if you believe that you are beautiful then others are going to think that too. People will love you for being yourself and for what is on the inside. There is so much more I can say about this, but I think I will leave it at that.

Natural Beauty: Letter to Myself

Green eyes and a smile that shines.
Dark brown hair that falls in curls.
Wrinkles, frowns, and worry lines
Of yesterday are forgotten. Pearls
Of beauty sparkle. Forget about
The stretch marks and every scar
Across your flawless skin. No doubt
That you are the brightest star
Out there in a fake world. Your
Natural body and face should not
Be envious at all. Do not start a war
You know is pointless. They forgot
You because they thought you were
Just one of the several “pretty”
Girls out there when you are the blur
That passes by. You are that city,
Country and beach girl all rolled
Into one. Someone who is really
Unforgettable like a diamond or gold.
Just a simple girl with nothing frilly.

Showing Grace

I know that I have talked about forgiveness in one of my previous posts, but you may have to go back a while ago to find it. I am going to talk about something very similar, but is kind of different at the same time and that is grace. On the first and third Sunday of every month I work at the Live Oak Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Church in Alameda, CA where I help with child care services. We tell stories right before we go to our classroom. This one focused on grace. There was a girl who went to the beach with her dad. Her dad gave her money to go get ice cream. On her way back she fell and dropped the ice cream on the pavement. She went back to her dad and her dad said to go get another one. She did not have any money, but her dad said to ask for another one. She went up and explained to the woman that she dropped her cone, could she get another one. The woman gave her another one.

The moral of the story is explained in this quote I found as well. “There is nothing more classy or powerful than showing forgiveness and grace to someone who does not deserve it.” So for example, like in the story the girl received grace although she did not deserve it. The moral is not only to give grace, but to also receive and accept as well, especially in today’s world. In other words, we have to make room for grace in our hearts because we need it. There is too much cruelness in this world, so we need to be accepting, especially of people’s mistakes and imperfections. I feel like grace, especially receiving as well as giving it, is what makes the world go round. I feel like there would a lot more anger and misunderstanding if there was not any grace at all. When people think of grace, they automatically associate it with religion, especially Christianity, but you do not have to be religious to believe in grace. I just wanted to point that out, especially since I am a non religious person myself.

The whole point of this post is to tell people to open up their hearts. I encourage everybody to do that and to forgive, as hard as it may be, especially if they really hurt you. I want everyone to give grace, as well as receiving it with open arms. Isn’t that what we want to teach the next generation? They look up to us and the best thing we can do is to teach them to do the same. I am posting this right around Thanksgiving because it is that time of year to think about grace, although we can do so much more of it year round. There are many definitions of grace when you look it up in the dictionary. This is one that stood out to me. “The exercise of love, kindness, compassion, mercy, favor; disposition to benefit or serve another.” We should show grace because it is our duty as human beings to do so. There is so much more to say about grace, but all that I have talked about sums it up. I just want to leave you all with one more quote. “Grace changes everything.” I think this quote shows how important grace is. I will leave it at that. Here is a poem to enjoy by yours truly. Enjoy and happy Thanksgiving in advance.

Everlasting Grace

Darling, I always want to live with grace
And forgiveness in my heart even when
The apology is not given. I am in a place
To be living and starting all over again.
Darling, I have been in a place of being
Able to accept everyone’s past mistakes.
I am no longer running away or fleeing
From the pain and hurt. Someone flakes
Out on you or will make you really mad,
And you make the best out of it, no matter
What happens in life. Nobody can be a bad
Person willfully. We have all made a splatter
And a mess out of things in our highly flawed
Ways. You keep your grace from going numb.
You have always broke, fought and clawed
Your way through life, so do not let some
Messed up situations take you back to where
You were before, another place of being
Unwilling to ever accept the idea of
Forgiveness. However, you are now seeing
Things differently, including grace and love.

Namesake

Every name has an importance or meaning. My name, for example is Elena Waller. My first name Elena comes from Helen, a cousin of my dad’s who died before I was born. For people who do not know already, it is a tradition in the Jewish community to name your kids after someone who passes away. My brother’s name, Mikael, comes from my grandfather’s (on my dad’s side) Yiddish name and my sister’s name comes from my grandmother’s (also on my dad’s side) name of Florence. I should mention that my last name came from my mom’s side of the family. On both sides we have strong women.

The reason why I am bringing this up is because my dad and I recently met with Helen’s son a while ago. They were both telling family stories including about Helen. I was thinking to myself and I also asked my dad about this…”Am I living up to my namesake, Helen?” I have heard all of these stories about her over the years. There must have been some reason why I was named after her. As it turns out, I may have at least one thing in common with her. We both love working with children. She was a child’s psychiatrist and Henry (Helen’s son) was telling this story of his mom always being the children’s magnet. She would take any children who were crying and would find some way to make them stop crying just like that. I must say that she is a strong woman because she put herself back through school, especially as an older woman. So to answer my question, I would say without a doubt, absolutely yes!

Anyways, I know that I have talked a lot about the importance of names. I know mine has a lot of meaning and I am sure that others do too. I just want to take this time to acknowledge those who came before us. I am taking the time to do that because it is that time of year when we celebrate Day of the Dead, or Dia de los Muertos in Spanish, which celebrates those who came before us. It especially honors those who have already died. We honor their memory by creating an alter with pictures and mementos. I am concluding with a quote by one of my heroes, Michelle Obama who says the following. “We’ve got a responsibility to live up to the legacy of those who came before us by doing all that we can to help those who come after us.” That ties this post all together because it is about the previous generation, this generation and the next one to follow. That is how we live up to a legacy and the people we are named after. It is a lot of responsibility, but I know that we can do it. I am wishing everyone a happy Halloween and Day of the Dead (let me know what the proper way to say this in the future).

Praise to Helen of Troy and the Name of Helen

“…the face that launch’d a thousand ships…”
– From Doctor Faustus, by Christopher Marlow

What do we know about Helen?
We know that while married to another,
She was desired by Paris. The Trojan prince.

Her rare and perfect beauty. Like a flower,
Which blooms on a rainy day.
Daughter of Zeus, ruler of all
Gods and goddesses.

Helen. A name that launched a war
Lasting 10 gruesome years.
When her husband raised an army
To reclaim what he had lost,
All for this one woman.

Her name is still among us
Although it takes on different forms.
The root, Helen
Coming from the Greek Helenē
Often meaning
“Light”, “torch,” or “bright.”

I share her name, Elena. One of those
Amid the list of so many others–
Ellen, Elaine, Alana, Yelena, Helen, Eleanor.
We are all the “bright ones,”
The one worth fighting for.

When Natural Disasters Strike

I know that I have talked about storms in one of my posts from last year, but nevertheless I am going to talk about something far beyond that…natural disasters. We have all dealt with natural disasters at some point in our lives whether it is an earthquake, a hurricane, a fire or something along those lines. When these types of disasters tend to strike, I know a lot of us tend to panic, but what is amazing is that we all come together, whether it is to help or just be there for each other. Nevertheless, we should be coming together anyways as a nation.

I know that it is nothing to joke about, but about a month after I was born was when the big fire in ’91 happened in Northern California and about a month after my brother was born is when the big earthquake in ’89 happened. It is not something I want our family continue on with when the next generation has kids. I am bringing you to my point which is that there was wildfires in Northern California this month in October. Everyone came together to help fight it, whether it was being one of the first responders, the people who came afterwards and everyone else who spent their time helping. Daryn Kagan says the following about those kind of people. “Bad things do happen in the world, like war, natural disasters, disease. But out of those situations always arise stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things.” I honestly do not think that it should take having a natural disaster to help people because people should be helping other people anyways.

Let me move on further into my point is that when natural disasters strike, it should be a wake up call to us because as humans it is our responsibility to take care of this earth. After all, we live on this earth and we are its caretakers. That leads me into one of my quotes right here by Lora A.R. who says “Natural disasters are a wake up call to humanity that they should stop fucking with the earth!” So yeah, it should definitely be a wake up call to us and to stop messing with this earth because we may not have it for much longer. I cannot help but think of a song Pink and Kenny Chesney did together called “Setting the World On Fire.” Some of the lyrics go like this. “We were strikin’ the matches right down to the ashes/Setting the world on fire, setting the world on fire.” In honor of the wildfires that happened in Northern California, I wrote this poem, which also includes an image to go along with it. Enjoy!!

Catching On Fire

The sunlight shines orange like it is caught in flames
And embers that glow. Maybe this is the end of
The world as we know it. Mother Nature’s claims
And hold on us is strong. She will push and shove
Us to fight against it because isn’t that what we do?
Fight and defend this world that is ours? We cannot
Our earth be taken away. We are sitting on every pew
Praying to the gods and to never give up. We caught
The world in an apocalypse, but we cannot stay there.
We cannot let Mother Nature punish us for making
Mistakes and committing sin. We should always swear
And promise to protect our lush nature. We are waking
Up those who have slept their lives away in a deep
Slumber. We are protectors of every piece and bit
Of rich soil that our roots grow in. We try to keep
Our world away from all that tries to harm it.

Muse and Inspiration

One of the definitions that pops up in the dictionary for the word muse states that it is “a source of inspiration; especially :a guiding genius” (source: Merriam-Webster Dictionary).  So you now know what I am going to be talking about. Muses and inspiration, which is also something that can also motivate you too. What is your muse? What is your inspiration? Those are only a couple of the many questions people ask me, especially when they learn that I write and I have more than one answer for those questions. Sometimes I might say it would everyday life. I might say that a certain situation or place. Sometimes it could be something that could have happened in the past. The list can go on and on. Sometimes my inspiration and muse can take shape. Furthermore, it can turn into a person or vice versa where the person shapes into inspiration. However you want to view that… go ahead. I am sure that everybody has someone or something that inspires them and is a muse. Being a muse dates back years and years. How do you think artists create what they create? There must have been someone to inspire Leonardo da Vinci to paint the Mona Lisa. Without a muse or inspiration there would be no art or music or anything else in this world that we view as art.

This is my opinion, but it feels like there are two different types of people in this world. This quote says it the best. “You’re either the Artist or the Muse. Each comes with its own set of complications; each with its own unwavering power.” There are artists and there are muses. Each one of these people comes with a power. For the artist, it is creating art and for the muse it is being the inspiration/motivation. Like I have said before a muse does not necessarily have to be another person. It could be an object or a major life event. In fact, it could be yourself. One of my favorite artists Friday Kahlo says it the best. “I am my own muse, I am the subject I know best. The subject I want to know better.” I do not know about other people who write or are other versions of artists, but sometimes a muse/inspiration can help my pieces improve drastically. It is because of that I want to take this moment to say thank you to those people, as well as situations and with everything else that been a part of my inspiration. This is for you, although we can also change it.

Muse as a Person

Time stood still when we are face to face.
It is not so much what you look like, but who
You are as a person. I want to continue to trace
Across your chest so I remember it is always you
Who inspires me. You are my muse and my one
True reality. You always feel like the starkness
When all I want is nothing more than to run
Far away from the shadows and the darkness.
You always lift me up and you motivate me
To be a better person. You push me hard
To follow my dreams and aspirations. You see
That I would do the same for you. As scarred
As we might be, we are invincible. The dark
Corners of my mind and the doubts that are
Floating around turn into a beautiful lark,
Flying. Darling, their raw beauty does not mar
Or become ugly like weeds. You somehow
Have that power to turn the wordsmith
Part of me into a songstress and plough
Through the bad days. Your love is no myth

Hindsight and Do Not Look Back

I have been blessed to be a part of this online community called Deep Underground Poetry. It is an online community of poets and writers. You can post your work and get critique. They also host competitions. One of these competitions was for visual poetry and the theme was hindsight. The contest description was “Think back to a difficult time in your life. What would you say to yourself? Or what do you wish someone had said to you at the time.” One of the things I talked about within my piece is to not look back. I remember a post about leaving the past in the past or letting go of the past. That is more or less what I am talking about but the metaphor I would like to use in this case is the rearview mirror. I remember when I posted that piece on DUP and one of my comments on that was “That’s why the windshield is always bigger than the rearview or side mirrors.” I thought to myself that is so true. So one of my metaphors has become to not look back and to stop looking in the rearview mirror because we are not going that way.

I am not saying that we do not learn anything from the past or anything like that because we still do, but we cannot continue to look back when there is so much ahead of this. That is especially important when we go through our difficult times. It is why I never like focusing on the past. It keeps us distracted from where we are going and that is what in part this quote says. “Even thought there are days I wish I could change some things in the past, there’s a reason the rear view mirror is so small and the windshield is so big, where you’re headed is much more important than what you’ve left behind.” That quote is so true because although we want to go back and change things we should not. They are a part of our journey and mistakes give us lessons learned. There will be a post about lessons and mistakes some other time, but the lesson if we were to talk them right here is to essentially look forward instead of backwards. That is what I would highly recommend to my readers as well.

I hope that all of my readers can take this advice and find a way to move forward with their lives. If we are so busy looking backwards and into the rearview mirror then we cannot see what is ahead of us. There is this quote that I love by C.S. Lewis. He says “There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” In other words, we look ahead because there might be better things there than what we leave behind. That is why we try to forget the past as much as we can, especially the painful parts. I know that I keep talking about the past, but I keep talking about it because of its importance. I am doing something a little different here and including one of my visual poems, which pretty much text over an image. The photo was taken on a drive my roommate I decided to go on when we needed a break from studying. I hope everybody enjoys something slightly different from me this time. Cheers!!

Making Choices and Decisions

There is a point in our lives where we have to make choices and decisions, especially really difficult ones. I do not know about my readers, but I am one of those people who can be indecisive, especially when they are put on the spot with questions like “What do you want to eat?” or “Where do you want to go?” Questions like those are hard for me, especially if someone else is asking me. I even just have a hard time making decisions or choices on my own. I know those seem like trivial questions, especially when there are way more difficult choices or decision to make. Sometimes choices and decisions have to be made about people as well. Questions like “Do I want this person to continue to be a part of my life?” or “Should I just walk away?” Those are harder choices to make. Every day there is a choice or decision to be made. We have to do our best to stick with them, no matter how hard or difficult they are. We all know the answers deep within and that voice is something you should listen to. We have all made choices or decisions about the people we want to be, who we want to surround ourselves with, what we want to do for work and for “romantic” relationships/partners. I am going to put a quote right here, which my friend BreAnna has shared too as she had to make a hard decision about leaving her job. “Decisions are the hardest thing to make, especially when it is a choice between where you should be and where you want to be.” That is part of the reason why they are so hard, especially if it is something you have always wanted to or who you always wanted to end up with, etc.

Some people may ask “What should I do when I have to make a hard choice or decision?” There is simply no right or wrong answer to this because every person or situation varies. Sometimes it is easier to ask someone else for help, but sometimes we want to be a grown up and figure it out for ourselves. I know this seems pretty basic, but sometimes you flip a coin. This quote explains why. “When you need to make a hard decision, flip a coin. Why? Because when that coin is in the air you suddenly know what you’re hoping for.” So flipping a coin is not necessarily to make the decision or choice, but you will know the answer when it is up in the air. I also think that there is a 50/50 chance of something happening, hence the coin. I think the very reason why people do not want to make choices or decisions is because sometimes we want others to make them for us. It just happens that way because we like some control, but not always a lot if that makes sense.

Sometimes it feels like we will make a bad decision or choice no matter what we do. Like I said before we have to make a choice or decision and stick with it. That brings me too my next quote by Doe Zantamata, who is another one of my heroes. She says. “Decisions. We can think about things, turn them over in our minds a million times, play out possible scenarios, but really when it comes down to it, you have to go with your heart and move forward. Maybe things will go well. Maybe they’ll turn out poorly. Every decision brings with it some good, some bad, some lessons, and some luck. The only thing that’s for sure is that indecision steals many years from many people who wind up wishing they’d just had the courage to leap.” Maybe deep down that is what is so hard about making decisions because like I have said before it feels like we make a wrong decision or choice, but it is better to make one and stick with it rather that just not making any choices or decisions whatsoever. In other words it is better trying and making mistakes rather than not trying at all. That is just the way life goes.

Here is to all my readers as you all make decisions and choices. I am right there with you and I know how hard it is. Happy reading. P.S. When I posted this poem on DUP, I got some of the best advice. That is and I quote “My Father used to say, ‘When in doubt, wait.’ Sometimes waiting is the next thing to do.” I have to agree with that advice. That goes for any situation. Wait it out because sometimes you do not want to make a choice or decision based what you feel in the moment. You have to make your choices and decisions because it is your life. That is a part of being an adult and being happy. It is all about making decisions and sticking with them. You should love your decisions and choices. So I am going to conclude this post with another quote. “The more you love your decisions, the less you need others to love them.” So in other words, go ahead and make those decisions while being happy about them, then you do not need other people’s approval. Like I said, I am right here for you as you make these sometimes life-altering decisions and choices.

Coming to a Decision

It feels like I will make a wrong decision no matter
What I do. I turn one way and it is my future staring
Me right in the face. When I turn to see the splatter
Of tears, rain and a brewing storm tearing
Across the sky the other way, I am caught right in
The middle. For once I do not know what to do
Or maybe I do know in my heart and under my skin
That I have to make some kind of choice. It is you
Or without you because there is no in between
When you have a spot, but I cannot let you stop
Me from moving on. Life is always a moving screen
And door. Darling, I wish that I could drop
Everything now, but something is keeping me
In place. Maybe it is because we have tried for far
Too long or maybe there is still some hope I see
For a future. I wish I could look to the North Star
So it can point me in the right direction, but
It is all left up to me. Everything might just blow
Up. I hate being stuck in this situation and rut
When I simply do not know where to go
When it comes down to you. I need to find
A solid answer, but something may get left behind.

Losing Friendship

I know that I have talked a lot about this already, but we have all lost something or someone at some point. There is a big chance we lose something as important as a friendship. Maybe you have a difference of opinions or maybe they were never your friend to begin with or the friendship simply fades over time. For one of the first times in my life I lost an important friendship and sometimes there is nothing you can do about it. I will not go into details too much, but let us just say that is a friendship that could be lost forever. I am sorry for how it happened, but in hindsight I could see it coming from a mile away. I know that losing a friendship can be unexpected, but as time goes on it is bound to happen at some point as this quote says. Xzavier Zulu says, “Slowly as the years go on, you lose friends you never thought you would.” Trust me, it can be hard to lose something like that.

I am not here to bash anyone because I am not like that, but sometimes you can gain a friendship just as quickly as you can lose one. That is what I found within this quote. “You can gain a friend in a year but lose a friend in a minute.” In other words, you can lose a good friend just like that. Sometimes you can gain a good friend in the process too. For example, I lost a good friendship, but I became closer to my mom and other people in the meanwhile. I feel like friendship is a very important thing to talk about because without good friends I do not think that I would be here. I hate to be harsh, but I feel like a friend should support you no matter what and if they cannot support you or at least try to then they should not be your friend to begin with. I feel like that you should be making your own decisions and choices while living your life, but try not to let your friends “control” or dictate how you live your life.

So here is to losing friendship, but do not be too down or sad about it because you just have to pick yourself up and move on. There are many more friendships down the line and for the most part they may be better than other ones you have had. What I am saying in all of this is that if they are “toxic” or “bad” or really question and always pick apart your choices then they really are not your friend. Just be thankful for the strong friendships you already have. Be glad for those that have endured over time, no matter of the wear and tear. Do not lose sleep over the lost and ends to friendships. No pun intended. There is an overall lesson to be learned. Enjoy this poem!! Just a side note here… my intention is not to intentionally hurt anyone, but to shine a light, some truth and some insight, even when it may not always come from a good place. I just want to apologize if anybody takes offense to this post. It was not my intention to do so.

End to a Friendship
I could feel us beginning to drift apart
Like cars going in opposite directions
Down the freeway. I knew in my heart
When we could not overcome corrections
To fix our friendship, which was already
On the brink. Something that used to
Bring us together was becoming unsteady
And separating us. Maye you also knew
That all of this was coming to an end.
You are not on my side anymore and
I have to realize you are not a good friend.
Don’t you want to see me happy? We stand
On other sides of the spectrum now.
I still wish you the best because there are
No hard feelings, but I am sad this is how
We ended up. There is going to be a scar
Where you used to be. Now one of my
Closest friendships has died and faded out.
There is no way to give this all another try
Because that was the last and final strikeout.

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.