A Slow Process

The process of healing from anything is slow.

All it takes is a little faith, patience and trust.

There were times that I didn’t have time to trust the process.

Life was pushing me to hurry up a slow process.

Sometimes I would just forget about the whole process altogether.

Healing took too much time.

I couldn’t afford to give healing all my time.

Life had all my time.

The problems of life were always on my mind.

The pursuit of healing and happiness seemed like an impossible dream.

It seemed like only a few could have it.

Why couldn’t I be a part of the few?

Why was I a part of the masses that couldn’t heal or find happiness?

I wondered.

Every little thing in life just distracted me.

All the pain and hurt I kept inside held me hostage.

I could never be free.

I was always a slave to the past.

I thought freedom was an impossibility.

I’m free from bandage now.

Yet the wounds are still fresh and visible to me.

I hope they can disappear soon.

Or maybe they’ll just end up being a scar I barely notice.

It’s important to remember healing requires faith, patience and trust.

Healing is a slow process.

A Silly, Old Picture

I found a silly, old picture of myself.

It was taken years ago.

I looked so young.

I seemed so happy in this picture.

I also looked so silly.

Why did I close my eyes in this picture?

Actually, I did that a lot in pictures when I was younger.

It’s a shame.

I really do have some nice, light brown eyes.

I really had a lot of hair.

I can’t imagine myself with a lot of hair today.

Why did my parents decide to cut it?

I guess it would’ve been a lot to take care of it.

They had their own problems to deal with at that time.

They had some serious problems that they could never solve.

My hair was one less problem for them.

I really had a big smile in this picture.

I didn’t care that my teeth were all over the place.

It didn’t matter to me.

I just wanted to smile.

Why was it so easy to smile?

Now, it’s a little hard with my crooked smile.

I try to hide it at times because it doesn’t look right to me.

I got braces now to help with that problem.

Hopefully, I can have the perfect smile soon.

Life seemed so easy.

Life seemed so simple.

Life seemed like something else in this silly, old picture.

Happy Days

Lately it’s been easier to smile.

It feels like I haven’t had a sad thought in ages.

I’m proud of myself.

I’m proud of who I’m becoming and who I will be.

I can see myself clearly in the mirror.

There’s a certain level of excitement that I have for myself.

It’s a new feeling that I never thought I could have.

I really am heading in the right direction.

There’s no misdirection in sight.

Everything for me is visible and seen.

I feel visible and seen.

I remember carrying so much hurt.

I remember handling unnecessary shame.

I remember fighting demons.

I remember being lost and afraid.

I remember those days all too well.

Those days remain in the past.

Yet they haunt me every now and then in the present.

I hope I don’t have those days again in the future.

For now, I want to enjoy these days I’m having now.

They’re precious and priceless to me.

They mean everything to me.

I want them to last forever.

I’m thankful for these days.

These happy days.

An Empty Glass

I have an empty glass in my hand.

I long and thirst for something.

I look around and see nothing.

Total darkness surrounds me.

I feel like I belong in this black world.

A world of no color, light or joy.

A world that is simply a dark place.

An endless void of nothingness.

A world that I can relax in peace with no distractions.

Can this last forever?

A table appears in front of me.

On it appears to be two jars of liquid.

One jar has water in it.

The other jar has some sort of red liquid in it.

I have an opportunity to no longer thirst.

This was something I was waiting for.

Something I was hoping and praying for.

I look to choose a jar,

But I’m hesitant.

I shake the feeling away,

But then I stop myself.

I quickly realize that I will change.

I will no longer thirst.

If I no longer thirst,

Then where will I go?

Will I go to a better place?

Or will I go to an unimaginable, scarier place?

Plus, which jar should I choose?

Will water be enough to quench my thirst?

It’s pure and untainted.

It has a familiar taste that I need.

I have nothing to fear with water.

We all need water.

Yet, how do I know that this is good water?

Looks can be deceiving.

Maybe I’m supposed to choose the jar with the red liquid.

Perhaps I’m being tested,

And need to choose the red liquid.

Maybe it’s the one with the right nutrients and essentials,

And it could be a nourishment to my body.

Maybe it will help me survive.

Perhaps it’s the most honest,

Despite it’s unique look.

But it could be poisonous.

Perhaps there’s something fatal in the red liquid.

It could hurt me in more ways than one.

The possibilities are endless.

Which one should I choose?

I choose neither.

I turn my back away from the table.

I walk away from the two jars full of liquid that could’ve saved or killed me.

Why take an unnecessary risk?

I walk into total darkness.

I walk around and see nothing.

An endless void of nothingness.

A world that is simply a dark place.

A world of no color, light or joy.

A black world that I feel like I belong in.

Yet there’s something missing for me.

I long and thirst for something.

I have an empty glass in my hand.

Late Night Call

I remember the first and only time I heard your voice on the phone.

It was late at night,

And I was relaxing in bed.

You called me,

And I eagerly answered.

I was excited to hear your soothing, gentle voice

On a quiet, sleepless night.

It was warm and calming

Like a campfire on a beach.

Your voice put me in a dream-like, relaxing place.

A place that I really can’t describe.

A place that I never wanted to leave.

I remember wanting to learn everything about you.

I was intrigued and eager to learn.

I didn’t want you to hold anything back.

Thankfully, you didn’t disappoint me.

You told me about your dream of being a housewife.

Your desire to be more spiritual and closer to God.

Your obsession over a specific actor and his movies.

Your fears and worries,

You told me these things and many more without hesitation.

I admired you for that.

You were so open and honest with me.

You were real and authentic.

But most importantly,

You were not afraid to share yourself with me.

I was afraid to share myself with you that night.

I couldn’t share all of me with you.

There were reasons holding me back from doing such a thing.

Reasons that I couldn’t really ignore,

Despite you giving me such a sweet dream.

Reasons were telling me to wait.

Reasons were telling me to stay back,

When I wanted to get closer to you.

I wanted to open myself up to you.

I wanted to trust you so much that night,

But reasons wouldn’t allow it.

They refused to allow it.

How could they be so unfair to you?

Our late night call had a time limit,

And it was coming to an end.

It was late at night,

And we both had work in the morning.

We needed to end our call.

I didn’t want to say goodbye to you.

I didn’t want to wake up to reality.

I wanted to stay with you in this pleasant dream,

But I remember dreams don’t last forever.

They’re temporary,

And they end in an instant with or without your approval.

They may also never come back to you again,

Just like our first and only late night call.

Just For Today

I want nothing on my mind,

I just don’t want to think about anything.

It’s a terrible day to do such a thing.

I’m just having one of those days.

You know about those days, right?

It’s perfectly normal to have these days, right?

It just feels like I have them all the time.

I just have days of wanting to feel nothing,

When I’m feeling everything.

Why do I have these days?

What’s wrong with me?

No, nothing is wrong with me, right?

It’s just one of those days, right?

I just have to get through today.

Just deal with it all today.

Just for today.

Far, Far Away

I wonder about our future together,

I wonder if we’re meant to last forever,

I wonder to avoid the harsh reality,

I slip down the rabbit hole,

And I know I shouldn’t get lost like Alice in Wonderland

But I can’t help it,

Wondering is just another way of avoiding.

I should just talk to you

And tell you how I feel,

But I can’t do such a thing,

I’m too afraid to do such a trivial thing,

Yet I act like I’m so big, bold and strong

When I’m a really a cowardly lion in Oz.

There’s no place like you,

Yet I want to be in a world of pure imagination,

A place like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory

Full of sweets and all my desires,

Can that really be a better paradise than you?

There’s no way of knowing without going,

Yet I don’t want to be far from you,

I don’t want to be far from home,

But it’s too late,

I’m already far, far away.

An Undesirable Gem in America

My people are an undesirable gem in America.

We’re special and priceless,

But worthless in America,

Unless we’re submissive to the rules of America,

No matter how unfair or unreasonable they are to us.

We have to shut up and be grateful.

Shut up and America will treat us right on their own time.

Shut up or America will tear gas us.

Shut up or America will shoot us without hesitation.

Shut up or America will suffocate us,

So that we can’t breathe.

All we have to do is shut up,

Then we’ll be worthy of America’s conditional love.

After all, America is known as the land of the free,

Yet my people have never seen freedom in America.

We have only seen enslavement, torture, persecution and abuse,

That never ends because of the color of our black skin.

Police officers must be happy they can choose when to be blue.

Police officers can be free whenever.

That form of freedom must be nice.

Don’t we have a right to fight for freedom?

Don’t we have a right to want more?

Don’t we have a right to want a better future?

Don’t we have a right to matter?

No, that’s too much in America.

We’re asking for too much in America.

America would like it better if we didn’t ask at all.

Is that too much to ask?

America wonders.

Meanwhile, America’s other gem can do whatever they want,

Thanks to the color of their white skin.

They don’t have to worry about basic human rights.

They don’t have to worry about freedom.

They don’t have to worry about mattering.

America loves them.

They can protest little inconveniences like wearing a mask.

They can even storm and terrorize the Capitol Building,

Simply because an election did not go their way.

No repercussions will come their way.

America will think about them.

America will see the hurt that they’re going through.

America will be patient with them.

America will be kind to them.

America will listen.

America will hope to alleviate the pain and stop the crying,

Because they matter.

I wish for my people to matter to America.

I wish America could see my people’s priceless worth.

I wish my people can have the privileges of the other gem.

I pray my people never forget we are priceless and special.

We are black and proud,

We are worthy of freedom and love in this country.

We have to remember and know our worth and beauty,

Despite being an undesirable gem in America.

Letting You Go

I thought that it would be impossible to let you go.

It’s a miracle that I was able to do so.

You always had me itching and wanting your attention and love.

You were medicine for me.

It’s a fact,

I can’t lie about that.

You were a drug that gave me a special kind of high,

Yet you were also a drug that was detrimental to my mind, body and soul.

You were a goddess in my eyes.

I worshipped you without hesitation.

I believed in you with determination,

When I should’ve known that you were a false idol.

I never had a chance,

I was lost in your trance.

I was hypnotized by your physical beauty.

I fantasized about you,

When I knew that I should’ve kept my distance.

But you would not allow it.

You depended on me.

You told me I was a comfort for you.

You told me I was reassurance for you.

You told me I was an angel to you.

You told me I was the sweetest and kindest to you.

You told me I was somebody that you could count on.

You told me I was so much for you,

Yet you were so little for me.

You were never going to let me go.

You intended to keep me as your prisoner,

But I longed for freedom.

It was tiring and exhausting to be with you.

I had to give you so much,

And you were content in giving me so little.

That was never going to change.

You envisioned a future with me.

You had these big plans and dreams for us,

But they were not meant to be.

Disappointments, heartache and hurt was our future.

You tried to tell me that things would get better between us.

You tried to tell me that you were going to change.

At that point,

I knew that they were just mere words.

I could finally tell.

You did not mean any of those words you spoke to me.

They were just lies to keep me under your spell.

I had a chance at love with you,

But I knew that it was not going to be real love.

It would have been an illusion with you.

I even had this delusion that you loved me in your own way.

Maybe I just needed to take a chance with you

And hope you would change in time.

Sadly, I could not trust in chance and hope.

I had to trust the evidence.

I had to let you go.

Dream Girls: Part Ten

I’m alone right now in scorching heat.

I’m laying down, and I can’t move.

I’m in a place of hurt and pain.

Wait, have I been here before?

This feels all too familiar.

I look around and see that I’m in a desert.

Brown sand is all around me,

No other colors are in sight.

I look up and the sky is blue with white clouds,

And the sun looks like a yellow light bulb.

It’s bright and intense.

The sky is strangely so familiar to me as well.

I feel like I’ve been here before,

But there’s just something missing.

Something that’s not making me see this place clearly enough.

Pain starts to intensify in my body.

My throat is swelling up,

Breathing is a struggle.

The yellow sun is baking me to a crisp,

The brown sand is only getting hotter and crueler to my skin,

I’m paralyzed,

I desperately need to be saved.

I hear footsteps in the sand coming towards me.

They get closer and closer,

I’m not sure if I should scared or relieved.

I’m not sure if I will be punished or saved by the person walking towards me.

To my surprise, a woman in a white robe stands above me.

She’s a beautiful and a sight to behold.

I want to beg her to help me,

But I can’t do such a thing.

My throat is swollen,

And excruciating suffering is trickling down my body.

I’m helpless,

And I can only depend on the woman in the white robe.

The woman in the white robe stares at me.

She smiles at me and pulls something out of her robe.

They are red sunglasses.

She kneels down to my level and puts them on my face.

She whispers in my ear that I must see and gently kisses my cheek.

Then, the woman in white robe walks away from me.

I don’t understand why she left me.

How could she not save me?

What did she mean that I must see.

I look around and recognize that this place is different.

The red sunglasses changed this place.

I’m now surrounded by black sand.

I look up and the sky is red with pink clouds,

And the sun looks like a big, white light bulb.

I kinda hear water and waves crashing somewhere in the distance,

Am I near an ocean?

Am I actually not at a desert, but somewhere else?

Everything turns black.

I wake up from a strange, yet familiar dream.

I can’t help but remember.

I thought I was at a desert,

But I’m not sure anymore.

I might have been somewhere else.

Yet, there’s something I can’t help but wonder

Why was I not saved by the dream girl?

This is the end of part ten of the Dream Girls series. Be sure to like, share or comment your thoughts on this poem.

There are more parts in this Dream Girls series, but I have decided that part ten will be the last part I post and share with you all for now. Thank you to those that have been reading and following along with this series, it means a lot to me. Hope you enjoyed it!