haiku cries...

don't know what to say

poet at a loss for words

i'll use tears instead

Blog Poetry Slam 33: Miracles

So today I am kind of out of it... but right now on my mind is on miracles... whether they be small everyday ones, miracles in relationships, miracles on a grand scale, just write about it... cheer me up, please....

Please write a poem to fit the theme in the comments... Your poems can be long, short or even a haiku! If you do not write poetry, then tell the poets you think of their pieces. Thanks for coming by and please cheer this sad, pitiful creature named Alise up by writing something special... Thanks in advance...



my eyes parted his soul like the Red Sea
a man of great faith
made way for thousands of enslaved emotions into his arms
a miracle
that is all mine
and i thank the most high...

i love you
and for me to prove it may take
... a miracle
but they do
...happen

(and i'm worth it)

pressure.

pressure is a funny thing
but not like ha ha
it can create
and destroy
but always changes
things.

(originally posted 12/14/08.... feeling it today, for realz....)

twitter inspiration...

Today on Twitter I asked for someone to give me a topic besides love to write about, my good pal @llrenae (http://twitter.com/llrenae) responded: "write about a life of broke-ness," so I did. Here it goes:

this poem will be short
similar to my cash flow...
money elusive
my status is conclusive: broke
broke pockets
plus bills
plus wants
equals a broken spirit
i always did hate word problems.

*Click here*

sampling...

...done right







Peace Y'all...

sampling...

done right...






...peace y'all

my faves...

Not only do I love to write and perform poetry, but I love even more reading and listening to other poets. I often make the mistake of comparing myself to these great artists. Then I snap out of it and realize that no two poets are alike and that it is not a competition. It is about the art. It is about learning. It is about expressing yourself from an honest place. It is about pushing through the conventional and finding your own voice. With all of that being said, I'd like to share some poems and performances that have touched me deeply, I present to you a few of my favorites:

Nikki Giovanni, "Choices"

if i can't do
what i want to do
then my job is to not
do what i don't want
to do

it's not the same thing
but it's the best i can
do

if i can't have
what i want . . . then
my job is to want
what i've got
and be satisfied
that at least there
is something more to want

since i can't go
where i need
to go . . . then i must . . . go
where the signs point
through always understanding
parallel movement
isn't lateral

when i can't express
what i really feel
i practice feeling
what i can express
and none of it is equal
i know
but that's why mankind
alone among the animals
learns to cry




Marc Marcel,"New Money"




Original Woman, "Why She Cries (Barbie)"




Alice Walker, "Gift"

You intend no doubt
to give me nothing,
and are not aware
the gift has already been
received.
Curse me then,
and take away
the spell.
For I am rich;
no cheap and ragged
beggar
but a queen,
to rouse the king
I need in you.


just a few that mean a lot to me... what are some of your favorite poems?

Look at me....

It's me! Check it out!

Blog Poetry Slam 32: School

*yeah that's me... OLD SCHOOL!*

Sorry I missed last week's poetry slam, guess what has me busy???? SCHOOL... so please give me a pass! So today's slam topic is school... Whether you want to write something about your favorite subject, your know about how your heart plus my heart equals a divine word problem (ooh, let me write that down) or about new school, old school, even a school of fish, whatever it is GO FOR IT! I wrote the beginning of a piece i am working on for this that I hope you like and I can't wait to see your poems in the comments following mine... Your poems can be long, short or even a haiku! If you do not write poetry, then tell the poets you think of their pieces. Good luck!

i hate science
so i need your help
with a few questions...
how is it that
when we're two-gether
i feel l-one-ly
what theory is that?
maybe Newton was right and our two hearts can't occupy the same place at the same time...


i'm not great at history
and it shows
i keep repeating it
you know:
civil wars of the soul
revolutions of resentment
famine of the heart...


but philosophy i know
and a guy once said
true wisdom
is realizing you know nothing
and with this love thing:
i feel wise as hell....

(just a rough draft by the way)

YOUR TURN!

(I have news about the giveaway winner coming tomorrow!)

boom...

i am not a supporting actress

i am not a backdrop

i am not a stage to be tread upon

i am not even the play

nor the playwright

but what i am

is...

i am the the late night idea

i am the eureka moment

i am the gray matter

i am the bundle of nerves

i am that neuron

in fact i am the atom

and when i split

... you better watch out.

why write?

i write...

because

my mouth is an impostor

my pride is a coward

my heart ain't loud enough

just like everyone else

they fail under pressure

only cooperate when things are sunny

and that is

bullshit

so i write...

open...

haiku:

when you're wide open

the good and bad can enter

i need a screen door

laughs...

Need a laugh or twelve? I promised some of my buddies on facebook that we are going to have a fabulous Thursday no matter what. I figure I will help us along that path with some laughs. Over at my other blog, The Latte Mug, that I co-host with my very dear friend Tiha we have been doing some interesting and silly Blog Series. Come by and check a few out:

• Left To Our Own Literary Devices
• Seuss Deez
• Under the Influence
• Life Lessons Learned
• Wu are You?

love and such...

This quote is speaking volumes to me this week:

"Of all forms of caution, caution in love is perhaps the most fatal to true happiness." ~Bertrand Russell

it inspired a short little something:

you worry
too much...
love is...
at (y)our door
just let it in
and see where it takes
u(s)...
if you're scared
say you're scared
but come along
anyway.

...something wonderful

this song is just.... just.... everything. talk about a little song summing up your whole mood and state of mind. Thanks Amel....

haiku: i can relate...

i do understand

i am no stranger to pain

i hope you know that

Giveaways & Guest Poet: SheHateMe

Now I am a poor little student, but I wanted to do a giveaway for my lovely readers for your continued support. So it is not extravagant, but I think it is something you will enjoy. I will be giving away a package including: my book, "Alise in Wonderland," a fabulous journal, and a few CD's from some of Durham NC's greatest local spokenword artists. To win, just leave a poem (doesn't have to be new, any length, any topic) and your email address. You can email me your entry or post it in today's comments! I will throw the names in a bowl and have my Mommy pull out a name... I am leaving this open until next Thursday 9/17/09 and announce the winner on next Friday 9/18/09. Good Luck!


I will leave you with the final guest poet for the week, he goes by the web moniker of SheHateMe. We started the week off with some testosterone and we will end it that way. Please show some love to a very intelligent, interesting, intriguing guy that I have had the pleasure of befriending through the web. I know you will enjoy his writing as much as I do. Also be sure to visit his blog, Blogs of the Invisible Soul and show him some love :

Enjoy:

Well, what can I say about myself that would be accurate? Well, I'm a Gemini. I'm also a father, a son, a brother, a cousin, a nephew, a best friend, a lover, a secret lover (!), a diary for the masses, and the best man for the job, whatever that may be. I am also a hopeful romantic. Yes, you read that right. I am still full of hope that one day, I will find a woman who is just as into me as I am into her. I am a writer; I write what I feel, I pen what I see, I note what I hear. My mind is pretty complex; one person told me that my mind was like my own beautiful universe. I have a knack of always showing you exactly where I live, but never inviting you in. I am a confident, witty, and sarcastic person. I am unique. I am also a non-conformist conforming to non-conforming. I love that phrase. But enough about me.

This... this is something new. I'm pretty much writing how I feel at the moment. Breaking it down to a basic notion, I am falling for a friend. It's hard to not cross the line with the opposite sex, it's even harder when you both feel the same way for each other. We had a falling out because of past events and this represents my heart's emotions: the fire in my heart tells the story, my mind translates it into vocal form, my mouth speaks it, my actions show it. My love for her is indescribable. I am simply the interpreter. Here is what my heart has to say:

Wishing I was who you wanted me to be
Because I need you, like I hoped you needed me
But alas, one of the things I learned is
that nothing is set in stone, so in turn
I tried to turn away from you, from myself, from our feelings
And I said our, because they were our feelings
built up and put together during our dealings
I'm sorry, but I need to be really revealing
About how much I care for you, and yes I talk about you
Because I'm so proud of you, and never did I doubt you
But our past is like Jason, always tracking us down
No matter how fast we run, it's always around
So, if we're heartbroken right now, and it's in the picture
Imagine what will happen the moment our hearts become richer
And I'm willing to fight the past right now in the present
to preserve out future, to make things pleasant
But I need you to fight with me, let's stop the blame game
Let's admit to each other our love is one and the same
I'm holding out my hand, I'm not asking for nothing
Place your hand in mine, let's make US something
No titles, no expectations, no boxes, no cramped hallways
Just what we deserve; a person in our corner forever and always
I could go on and on and have a 50 page list too.
But I guess all I'm trying to say is I miss you.

Thank you for reading.

Guest Poet: "Directing Traffic"

Our guest poet for today, Candace, is a beautiful sister. She is a young lady in college who is wise well beyond her years and her creative energy and passion inspires me greatly. Show her love. Also, visit her at Verbfashion Blog, you'll be glad I sent you.


Poetess, you now have the floor...

Yo, I'm a well written script coming to you live. I'm a student that will probably make a lot of money doing what comes naturally to me but I hope to evolve in poetry and conclude in this life doing what I love doing, writing. I'm passionate about many things and very few people; guess that's what makes the very few significant. If I could be compared to any one thing, I'd say I'm like a Rubik Cube (complex and colorful). Some figure me out and feel accomplished. Those that can't, keep shifting and turning only to sigh deeply when I do land in the hands of other brilliant minds. They're always angry temporarily but they always keep trying. It's interesting because like those close to me just when I think I've gotten me figured out, an experience, person, or situation becomes my journal's inspiration.

-Candace



What do you when you know something is just not good for you yet you long for it? It's not even that the person isn't a good person so much as the situation is effortlessly flawed. Adaptability and compatibility are all wrong and it's up to me to quit - I'm used to walking away to force the other person to put in the effort so this time I've challenge myself and stayed. And with all this complexity registering momentarily I let out this:

Directing Traffic

opposites attracting is bulls***
we're in love with our opposite directions so much
we're opponents
we've openly discussed how situated we are in our
subjectivity to everything
what was our objective?
I, to break from my in-dependency
I'm so dependent on me
you, to end what you've always been
you're so used to the simple-minded
my complexity...
laps your simplicity so much
it threatens breaking up with me if i stay stationed
in complicity
which I've denied being a possibility
diction used for our 'screwed' description, explicit
head strong for potential has driven me insane
review, peep my exhaustion as I pass in the oncoming lane

Guest Poet: "Grey Matters"

My guest poet for today is a very awesome woman and author by the name of Ain. We are mutual fans of each other. She has featured me a few times on her blogs and I could not wait for the opportunity to extend the invitation to her. She graciously accepted and sent me this lovely piece. Also, make sure to visit her blog and go ahead and subscribe while you are at it, I'll leave the links at the end of her poem!

Enjoy:

Grey Matters

He loves me

Some

We kiss on the moon

And cuddle with the sun

He writes partial love notes

But on shady days

He ends them with “Peace, Me”

We shun exclusiveness

While jealousy resides in us

He loves me

Some

Me, skip a seat, him

At the movies

And he leans over to kiss my forehead

He loves me

Some

He thinks of me everyday

And calls me every other

When I cry, we cry

We dream different dreams

Together

He slow dances with my smile

And laughs at my frown

He loves me

Some

Ain HD
http://ainhd.blogspot.com/
Poem from [If] Life's Rotten, Write to the Core: http://www.amazon.com/If-Lifes-Rotten-Write-Core/dp/0557003067

She also can be found at Rhyme Revival...

Blog Poetry Slam 31: Road

Today's topic and poem comes to us from my favorite poet, Elliot Axiom (I'm a little biased, but really, he is dope!) I love the poem of his I will present and think it would be interesting to write from the perspective of love, life, and/or dreams in the the sense of a road or journey. I think we all can pull something beautiful out of that. So as always please post a poem in the comments inspired by the topic, poem, or picture. It can be long, short or even a haiku! If you do not write then tell the poets or the guest poet what you think of their pieces. I will be writing in the comments as well. Below will be a picture for inspiration and following that will be his poem, "The Road Calls Me."

*Elliot actually took this pic*

She asked where and why I was going?
What was I running from, looking for, hoping to see?
Why, she asked tearfully, why do you have to leave?

Leaning back I let go the key
Then I answer
The road calls me
A lover’s whisper in my ear saying
Come to me. Follow me.
Ride me like I’ve never been ridden
Position yourself between my guiding lines and
Push
Harder than ever
Don’t look back
Keep your eyes on me
Move faster than the speed of thought
Cause if you think…you wont
But take your time
Cause if you don’t, you’ll miss the purpose
Don’t’ fly through the journey
Taste me
Lick asphalt. Kiss concrete
Suck exhaust till exhausted
Then rest your weary bones in my median
Never leave me

They say you're running from your demons but you see them,
Face them, you look in the mirror, do you see him?
Not a demon. Your father
Gone 13 years but still here you look just like him
I started smoking at his bedside beside him
Watching him die of cancer
Lit 2 cigarettes
1 for him, 1 for me
having found the answer
of how to commit suicide
slowly

The road calls me
Like a father
Teasing a child that’s too scared to jump off the high board
Who starts to walk back but instead moves forward to face the teasing
“Daddy watch me” he says before leaping
as feet leave safety for uncertainty
Faith overcomes Fear becoming Bravery
And now he’s happy that he’s falling
Free falling
Feeling free for the minute suspended as water rushes up to meet him
Will he smash or splash?
No one knows…so
Daddy watch me
I’m leaping
Falling horizontally toward a horizon I’ll never reach
Wind whipping passed me at furious speeds
Will uncertainty pull me to earth to smash?
Or can I fly faithfully into the sun to splash?

The road calls me
Like a mother
Trying to teach lessons only experience can make you learn
Teach me mother
Teach me love
Teach me tired
Teach me fear
Teach me while I’m here
Why I’m here
Teach me to reach
Teach me to teach, no better
Teach me to learn
She says
The lesson’s of the road aren’t elusive my son
You will learn at every turn
Teach yourself!!!

The road calls me
Like a bully
Like a child curiously
Like a stranger dangerous with the danger of strangeness
Like chocolate served on lava
A fiery sweetness
Or shy Amazon
Uncertainly massive
An unrecognizable song
Beautiful but deadly
Medley too clear for foggy morning air
Coming from over there, nowhere and everywhere
Don’t know if its damnation or salvation
Worse
Don’t know if you really care
The road calls me
Like it did at 16
when I left behind all family and friends
The road calls me
20 years later
and I answer
once again

Now she understands
So I turn the key
And leave...

Elliot Axiom 2008


*YOUR TURN*

agenda...

I have decided to have our week long celebration this week. This week we will be blessed by some poets I love very much. Below is the schedule, and each guest's respective blogs/websites:

Tuesday: Elliot Axiom of Project:Roam , will present the 31st Blog Poetry Slam topic and poem

Wednesday: Ain HD of Ain HD: Honorable Discourse and Rhyme Revival. will present us with a poetic selection

Thursday: Verb Fashion of Verb Fashion Blog will also present us with a poetic selection

Friday: Giveaways!!! Free Stuff!!! (and hopefully a surprise poet)



I will leave you with a poem today, please come back all week for the fun


I wrote this in about 2005/2006, enjoy:

So you want to know what I can bring to the table

But can your TV tray hold this food for thought?

Because you need to know:

Every word I speak is nourishment…

No empty calories..

No fillers…

No artificial preservatives…

Just organic truth…

You are what you eat…

And I would feed you a helping of insight…

Some complex verbal-hydrates…

To give you the energy to burn off that excess negativity.

And I do give to the needy…

But only the ones that hungry enough to receive it.

My cup runs over with compassion,

But I will offer no pity birthday party cake…..

I don't fill your heart with greasy, grimy thoughtless ramblings…

I take the time to wash what I say…

Let my thoughts cook fully..

And offer you up a gourmet conversation…. Let you digest every course.

I start with some soup to warm your soul…

Then let you savor the meaty knowledge I have to offer.

A little wine and cheese to mellow out your mood,

And a something a little sweet to inspire and lift your spirits…

But of course everything in moderation….

I won't overfeed you with superfluous chatter,

Or stuff you with nonsensical ranting.

In fact I'll give just enough words to fill you up….

Leave a good taste in your mouth,

And you will eagerly anticipate the next meal…

So are you ready to taste my world?

announcement...

Since I didn't get any of my guest bloggers' entries for this week, I will do the giveaways and everything another week. sigh...

rainy parades...

I was really looking forward to this week, but for me personally it is has been a painful week. I tend to find my life works this way. Just when I think things are lining up in my favor: something, someone, or some force will collectively come and bulldoze it. It never ceases to amaze me that everytime I have an extreme high, joyous, fulfilling experience that destruction is not far behind it, and I don't mean months or years later, I am talking the next day. I know I am supposed to be optimistic and faithful, I know all of this. But can someone convey that message to my spirit. Good luck, because it is impossible to fill up a broken vessel...

I know I usually don't get this deep or personal about my life except directly through poetry.... but it ain't about what I usually do anymore,
it's not about people's perceptions of me anymore,
it's not about always hiding my feelings to protect others anymore,
it's not about withholding tears anymore,
it's not about thinking my opinion is less important anymore,
it's not about defining my worth through other people's eyes anymore,
it's not about me tap dancing for people and pretending to like them because they are in my "circle" anymore,
it is about me, and if that leaves me lonely and alone.
then so be it.



parades
are no fun
in the rain.
on the backs
of pink elephants.