Poetry 2014 - Odessa McNiel (speed reading book .txt) 📗

Nobody 2/5/14

Nobody is my name.

Nobody is my game.

Nobody has my reason.

Nobody has my claim.

 

Rebels 2/6/14

 We used to drag our feet.

We used to shake our shackles.

We used to hang our heads in shame.

But what were we to do with no right to our name?

We were not the ones to be blamed.

Why were we the ones you tamed?

We were not cows nor pigs nor sheep.

Nor did we deserve a floor upon which to sleep.

Now, we are not your equipment,

And you are no longer our boss.

So, sit out for a count,

And take a loss.

We are all free people, by God.

And by God, We are one of Us.

No longer shall we hang our heads in shame.

No longer are we the ones you tame.

And now that we can speak for ourselves,

We have a right to our name.

We may not have come over on the Mayflower,

But that does not mean that we must follow your order.

We came over by your choice.

You wanted us here.

So, here we are America.

Give us the same rights that you fought so fearfully for.

We’ve earned our keep.

We’ve done our part.

Now it’s time to do yours.

 

Pain 2/6/14

They whip the lashes

Up, down, up down.

They dig deeper and deeper and deeper.

Slowly my skin turns to pink.

Thirty is how many I'm to receive.

For feeding my children,

I'm punished as if it were a crime.

I was only trying to save my babies.

For they are starved to skeletons

And worked like mules.

I dare not cry out,

For my children need to know

That there is no shame I need to show.

I took the path I wanted to go.

If white man were in my place,

I'm sure he'd show no haste.

He'd protect His savages,

Those evil satans.

One day, they will regret this.

Every lash they give

Will be bestowed upon them, too.

And they, too, will see

That nothing is ever free.

Freedom 2/6/14

My brethren ran to the North for it.

The 54th fought for it.

Maya Angelou wrote about it.

Martin Luther King, Jr. preached it.

And now, we live with it.

Free,

Free,

Finally Free.

We are now equals to our white neighbors.

Never will they whip us.

Never will they own us.

Never again with they rule us.

We can stand in multiple spectrums.

And instead of individual shades,

We now mix the colors and create love.

Because only love can drive out hate.

Whispers 2/18/14

I listen to the whispers-

The whispers in my head.

Sometimes I think they're real,

But I know they're really dead.

 

No one else can hear them.

It doesn't matter how loud they scream.

Only I can hear them

And only in my dreams.

 

It doesn't matter what they babble.

They don't make any sense.

It's like a game of scrabble,

But all the blocks are blank.

The Meteorologist's Orchestra 7/8/14

A conductor all dressed in black

Shows no sign of slack.

As he faces his band,

They stand at attention

Without any command.

 

They know what to do.

They have done this before.

It is the same tune once more-

Exactly as they have done

Since the beginning of time.

 

He raises his baton,

Cueing them into motion.

Then, the sky rips open,

And the storm starts to spread.

The Tempest begins.

 

Notes scatter far and wide

With the delicacy of piano keys.

They drench the land

In beautiful banter,

Leaving no surface uncovered.

 

The bass drums echo through the sky

Along with the symbols that flash in the night.

They deliver a solo

So harsh and so clean.

The audience can only stare at the beauty they have seen.

 

But only a second passes

Before the flutes start to wail.

They make the trees whisper

And bring all kinds of hail-

To which there is no prevail.

 

The audience flees, looking for protection.

For there is no prevention.

They seek their homes

To wait out this horrible tune,

All the while hoping it won’t bring a monsoon.

 

Then the song ends after several hours,

The members breathless and tired.

There is no recollection

Of the damage they have caused.

They just move along

As if nothing ever happened,

While the audience waits

In nervous anticipation

For the next effervescent calm.

Jam 7/10/14

Plug the headphones in.

Let the record spin.

Lean back.

Let the world dissolve.

This is my jam.

 

The beat floods through the wires,

Making my eardrums hum.

It’s familiar, this gentle thrum.

I crank the volume.

This is my jam.

 

I nod my head and sing along.

I know the words

As if it were my own.

They take root in my nerves.

This is my jam.

 

I get up with a sudden urge.

The words create this rhythm.

It makes me want to dance.

I feel my feet move in beat with this trance.

This is my jam.

 

Rhythms race through my bones.

My body jerks this way and that,

Keeping up with the different tones.

But it all feels natural, this daze I’m in.

This is my jam.

 

It all ends on one final note.

The movements stop, and I’m still again.

I look down, all ready to pout.

Then, I smile.

Good thing I have it on repeat.

Cheater 8/2/14

These endless secrets,

This heavy air,

It's what I see

When you're not there.

 

You're kissing her lips

Instead of mine.

You should be holding my hand

'Til the end of time.

 

The look in your eyes

Is different when you look at

Her and

Me.

 

I can't keep living

With this jealousy.

So be gone

With this secret love.

 

You no longer love me.

You no longer care.

You can't hide these secrets

Because you can't play fair.

 

You're a waste of my time.

I've got better things to do.

I can't stick around

To play with you.

 

I've got my life to live,

And so do you.

I'm done playing these games.

We're through.

Jealousy 9/2/14

 I think of you all the time,

Though you may not know.

It happened the other day,

This flood of memories.

 

You were there in my thoughts,

Clear as day.

And it was awhile

'Til you went away.

 

I though of your lips,

With their passion and love.

I thought of your eyes

With their kindness and affection.

 

I remembered those kisses,

Stolen in dark secret.

I remembered the caresses,

Calming and gentle.

 

Then my reverie was shattered

In the blink of an eye

As I recalled that your heart

Is currently taken.

 

It is a fool, no doubt,

That holds your heart in their