Strength

An open book that’s been read

Pages bent, torn from mishandled hands

That angrily scraped the beauty off the front cover

Composed of brightest reds 

That screamed love, passion for a life of endeavors 

Yet, naïve to life’s dangerous complications

As it aged with time

Experiences seemed to overtake the beauty of the outside

Countless lies ripped the trust sewed deep in the pages

From deceitful people unpleased with what they see

Ignoring the truth that lies beneath

The ugly framed structure that holds together paper sheets

But if you glance real hard

Open gracefully and handle with care

Read every single word and line

You might realize that the beauty remains

Edged inside in the strength

That can never to be taken away

Our Last Walk

One crooked step after the other

Like drunken man

Stumbling, struggling to walk straight

The cold breeze strikes up again

An intense gust this time hit hard against my cheeks

Causing my rosy complication to glow with misery  

Short legs take longer strides trying escape this discomfort

Flowing through every inch of me now, causing my body to ache

My chattering teeth, an obnoxious vibration increases with each step

Blocking out the surrounding of these angry streets

Yet, aside from the cars speeding past me, honking, blazing with rage 

There’s a shadow holding me back to my right

Towering over me

Like a tree protects the sun’s heat from those who enjoy the shade

But protection is far from this scene

More so holding me back, forcing me to slow my pace

A kind gesture, required

An invitation meant to be thrown away

With each step longer than the next

As if I am escaping fear every time my shoe touches the pavement

Determined to escape the shadow clenching onto my existence

Yet, the shadow does not go away

Screeching now for attention

Throwing bricks of insults in my face

A shadow of ignorance, oblivious I was from the start

Fakeness used to roll me in, compelling me to accept

Yet one step inside the building away from the cold breeze

My realization takes over, a rush of excitement replaces the aches

To finally be done with the darkness of your shadow

Now I am awake

What Work Means to Me

After asking people what they think work is

I came to the conclusion that no one knows.

Money is the number one motivation aside from power

But where is the happiness?

When do we actually enjoy life in the now

Rather than living to get ahead of others

So I decided to take this year and think through everything I have been through

To decipher what work is to me

Work to me is saying goodbye to regular routines

People I have known my whole life

To enter in a life that provides a crystal clean start

Work to me is living with a complete stranger

In an unfamiliar room tying us together

Work to me is pretending not to notice the rude remarks that spill behind my back

From a jealous heart and prosperous structure who judge innocent beings

With their ignorant heads

Work to me is saying goodbye to my partner in crime

Choosing temporary happiness that diminished before this years end

Work to me is realizing not everyone has the same intention as me

Being weak will label you as a prey in those shallow hearts of some

Work to me is facing those who destroyed my vision of love

Looking him in the eye, and spitting truth in his face

Finally receiving the closure I longed for all along

Work to me spending nights infested in a textbook

While those around me waste their money on alcohol and uneventful nights

Work to me is saying no to evil poisons

That display short-lived happiness found in a dead end way

Work to me is forcing myself to see strangers in people I thought would never leave

Dodging their waves and smiles as I pretend to never see

Looking down at my feet avoiding another awkward encounter

I’ve become so used to living in this unsocial building

Work to me is shedding my old ways in seeing love as my only way to survive

Settling for childish beings that use words to lure in the weak

Work to me is finding happiness in myself 

Never again will I see myself as beneath

Thanks to this year I now see what real work is

Not money or power or a superficial definition 

But the work to finding strength in hardships

In a life I’m proud to call my own