The Poetry Marathon

In the early morning sun, the 

Scent of the lilacs wafts into my

Bedroom. I rearrange my whole 

Space to move the bed closer, 

Envelop myself in the comfort

Of the smell I have always

Associated with my mother. 

In the shifting light of sunrise,

The lilacs caress me, comfort me,

Remind me that the best things

In life are temporary. 

They’ll be gone in two weeks, but 

This memory will get me through

The year until they return. 

And so life will go, when I

Must grasp the painful parting

With my mother, when the 

Pain and fear of life without her

Overwhelms me, I will be 

Reminded that it is only 

Temporary, and memory can

Pull me through until we 

Return to one another.

When you ask why I went to the protest,

I am speechless. I am speechless because 

I even have to explain, speechless at the 

Pure disgust in your voice when you ask. 

I go to the protest because I cannot

Fathom not being there. Because 

It matters too much to sit at home. 

Someone wrote once about 

Speaking out because one day it 

May be you they come for and no one 

Will be left to defend you but – 

That’s not why it matters. 

I do not protest out of a selfish 

Need for reciprocation. I am there

Because how can you see the suffering

Of other human beings and not care? 

How does the injustice not make your

Blood boil, make fear bubble up inside you

For the future? 

How are you not speechless at the horror? 

So when you ask why I traveled

Eight hours just to tell Donald Trump where 

He could shove it, when you ask why I 

Went back for more tear gas just to

Hammer home to the Rochester Police Department

That Black Lives Matter, 

Maybe the question you should be asking is, 

Why didn’t you?

“No matter the wreckage, they still sing for you.” – Kate Baer

How many times have I laid awake

All night, convinced this was the end? 

So often, I have believed that this

Was the Thing I could not recover from. 

Yet, the morning sun still pokes through

The lace curtains and dispels the shadows. 

The birds still greet the day with their songs. 

The world awakens around me and moves on. 

I am resurrected with the new day,

So long as I am breathing it will

Never be too late to start it all over. 

After tragedies big and small, there is

No other choice.

I am not what happened to me. 

I survived the abuse and it 

Forged the reckless kindness in me.

I am not what happened to me. 

Harassment and sleepless nights

Turned into art, catharsis. 

I am not what happened to me. 

Your addictions will not drag me

Back to the hell I clawed out of. 

Maybe I am what happened to me, but

I know better now, I can work on the 

Bad habits that clung to me. The 

Cycle ends with me.

It’s been a long journey to not

Hate what I see in the mirror but

Now that I have seen what I have, how can I? 

How can I hate the long, hooked nose

That is a perfect replica of my grandfather’s?

At least I still have a piece of him left. 

How do I dislike the same oversized feet

That have carried my father so far, when

I get to have them too? 

My mother’s freckles, my grandmother’s stature, 

My eyes a perfect blending of shades. 

To hate myself is to hate every person

Who came before me and molded me. 

The love and reverence I have for them

Can be turned to me now, to carry them

With me. I only hope that I get to see them

Surface again someday in my children.

When I meet my ending, 

Here is what I hope – 

I hope that those around me 

Never question how much I love them. 

I hope that I leave things a little

Better than I found them, 

That I have been able to see the world

And meet her people, learning much,

Endlessly laughing. I hope that when

I go, that laughter is still ringing in my ears,

Music of a life well spent.

My name is Liz, but I usually just go by CoffeyWrites on all my socials. This is my first attempt at the marathon and I was very ambitious in signing up for the full shot! I’m currently trying to put together my first collection of poetry so I’m hoping this can be an opportunity to get into a flow and make something happen to get it finished. I’m based in Rochester, NY and have an adorable epileptic beagle named Molly, who I share with my fiance. Excited to get to know all of you and do this thing!