National Poetry Month: Day 1

April is National Poetry Month.  I knew I loved April for a reason!  For this month I will write and post a poem every.single. day.  Hold me to it.  Also the second week of April I will be featuring some of my favorite poets.  i already have 2 lined up, drop me a line at naturallyalise (at) gmail (dot) com if you are interested in being featured as well!  So since this is April 1st, below will be the first of 30 poems to come...  enjoy!

(I will apologize now, the pieces may be raw and/or unfinished, but hell no one would know that but me, lol)


Day1 - I'm Just Sayin'

i am not bragging or boasting
but i think that poetry
[actually i'm quite sure]
was made just for me
i mean think about it:
it listens to all my problems
and i have a lot of those
so i'm sure i keep it pretty occupied
so it couldn't possibly have time for anyone else.
i'm just saying...

Blog Poetry Slam 45: Natural

Hello fellow poetry lovers! Since my stage name is Naturally Alise, and I have natural hair, and I am just generally naturally awesome; I decided for today's topic to be "natural". In the comments write a lovely poem. In can be serious or silly, long or short, even haiku. After the video is my poem. Can't wait to see what you guys come up with!

*I have 2 poems*

Natural Woman

You know Ms. Franklin, I feel ya....

I mean naturally, I should...

pun intended...

Someone walked into my life and inspired me.

in spite of the rain that delivered punches to my soul...

and left my inspiration beaten, bruised, battered and beleaguered.

[sigh, just tired]

...and made me feel

like a natural woman.

©2008 Naturally Alise

Naturally Me
Looking towards unfair standards of beauty

Feeling like fitting in was my duty....

But all that pressure was strand by strand damaging me.

Slowly breaking off from my own hand needlessly.

So scared to cut loose and put my true texture out there for all to see.

So afraid to display the natural me.

Longing to be.... naturally me.


But one day I awoke with a revelation.

That what was on and in my head was more than mere decoration.

It symbolized a needed transformation.

I was craving to be a new creation.

Realizing I didn't need others admiration,

I needed to feed my soul that was suffering from starvation.

Longing to be.... naturally me.


I picked up the scissors and years of insecurity fell to floor with just a few snips.

A sigh of relief quickly left my lips,

Walked to the mirror and saw a glow that nothing could eclipse,

I then looked and saw the beauty of all my features from my dark skin, full lips, and hips.

I now was at ease with my self image, finally coming to grips.

Realized this love for myself is my most important relationship.

And at last I was.... naturally me.
 

©2006 Naturally Alise

*just because here are a few of my favorite natural hair sites*

Leave In The Kinks

Black Girl With Long Hair

Afrobella

Blog Poetry Slam 44: Letters

Dear Readers,

Ever had something you really wanted to say to someone, but just couldn't get it out verbally? i have a huge problem with this, but a tool that works well for me is writing letters. They are soul cleansing even if you never send them. So for today's theme for the Blog Poetry Slam is to write a letter to someone in poem form to let out something that is on your heart that needs to be released.

Leave your poems in the comments sections. After the video is my poem. I can't wait to see what you talented folks come up with.

Love,
Alise

dear dad,


I know that:


hard times cleverly creep into the cracks, crevices, and corners of our lives.


and seek to destroy


but apparently resilient doesn't describe you.


damaged


disjointed


describes the promises.trampled on by you.


your soles


stepped on souls


as your feet rapidly raced from responsibilities.


typical.



still love ya though,


alise

odb..

my life is not a bitch
it is more like a bastard
an old dirty one that is...
because my lifestyle has no father
it is original.


...word to ODB...

click for a musical flasback...

Suggested E-Posse Reading (repost)

The ePosse The PBG, Luvvie, and me have had HILARIOUS adventures together and seperately that you should definitely read about... Trust me, uproarious laughter will ensue.

• The Chinese Juke Joint
• New Jack Library
• Al B. Unsure
• http://pbghappenings.blogspot.com/2009/02/juvenile-hoodrattedness-franklin-arms.html
• Cabbie Quit Me
• Sensitive Thugs - Hourly Wage Warrior Stories

For more ePosse adventures on Black Woman Lost & Found (click here)
Have a great weekend!

the leather chronicles...

*pleather in all its splendor*

It has been a long time since I have had a nice foolery, silly, slightly ignant twitter exchange with one of the members of my  illustrious ePosse, The PBG.  Today she shared one of her always amusing stories of DC Public Transit...  silliness ensued, so I thought I'd share:


thepbg: I wish this dude sittin nxt 2 me in this loud ass "leather" jacket wld keep the fk still. All that squeakin!


NaturallyAlise: "leather adjacent"....

thepbg: "Proximal leather"

NaturallyAlise: "leather twice removed"

thepbg: Assault w/attempted leather

NaturallyAlise: vehicular leather-cide

thepbg: PETA-friendly leather. No cows were harmed in the making of that jacket.

NaturallyAlise:  Objects on this jacket are less leathery than they appear.

thepbg: oh how I missed ur foolery! #ePosse

thepbg: please include the word "leatherette" in there somewhere.

Gotta love us!

Click to get links to ThePBG's blogs and twitter... she is a joy to follow!




Fifty-Two (52) Flavors
Hey, You Asked!
See, What Had Happened Was...
ThePBG on Twitter

for your listening pleasure...

Some new tracks by me... all available at ReverbNation

Blog Poetry Slam 43: Fight!

This weeks topic is: FIGHT. So, all my lovely experinced poets along with those newbies, write a poem about a fight. I often say I am a lover, not a fighter. Yet in reality I fight for my love, maybe not with fists, but it is a fight nonetheless, so that is the direction I took with my piece. I am curious to see what direction you go with it.


Write a poem in the comments. It can be silly or serious, long or short, or even just a haiku. Happy Writing!

i have been to this arena before


where hearts and logic fight to the death


and conundrums are taking bets


and love is the only referee


but is too scared to call off the fight


and for once…


let the heart win by decision.

words at play...

Puns play too much
Hanging out with Hyperbole's instigating ass
and metaphors like to simile in my face
And this damn thesis stay starting something
If these nouns and verbs keep pushing me I'm gonna catch a sentence
So I'll have to give these words a preposition they can't refuse:
"End all this fighting and come hang out in my poem."

things fall apart...

This is a love poem I rarely see written, the poem where someone admits to their own f*ck-ups... I decided to take a stab at it... tell me what ya think:


I am a bitch
And don't worry I'm not saying this just to put myself down
I just want to be accurate
They say hindsight is 20/20 but I say it is 187
Because seeing what I should have done
And what we could have been kills me inside
I was supposed to love you to completion
But I let insecurity only let me give you 359 degrees
And now your heart is 32 degrees Fahrenheit and dropping
And I just want to hold you close so I can melt it
If you would just let me touch you then maybe I can show you
Maybe my love can seep in through osmosis
And maybe you can feel my metamorphosis
I heard someone say that hurt people... hurt people
I know pain in all its forms:

liquid tears, solid fears, and vapors of delusions
all states of matter...
at times I wonder if what I have to say really matters
I couldn't see I had the best thing for me standing in front of me
It has followed me all my days
How can I show you I love you
When my actions didn't always match
I know my words mean little
And that feels so bad because words are what I know
Words are the only things I have left
So I leave you with the five words I possess:
I love you, I'm sorry.

Blog Poetry Slam 42: Clichés

In my lifetime I have heard so many clichés. Some of them were helpful, most weren't. I had an idea to write a poem about a cliche you either agree with or think is full of shit.

Here are some suggestions:

Absence makes the heart grow fonder
Actions speak louder than words.
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
Birds of a feather flock together

Stuff like that. So take it and run with it. Write a poem and leave it in the comments. Your poem can be serious or silly, short or long, or even a haiku. Happy writing!

I chose: "Time heals all wounds" and wrote a series of haiku...


time heals no wounds
so i will face my demons
before it's too late


an infected soul
is all that you are left with
when time heals your wounds


i don't rely on time
I prefer Snoopy Band-Aids
to protect my wounds