24 Poems ~ 24 Hours
Haras Shirley is a twenty-seven year old trans man from the Midwest. He currently works as a middle school English teacher. When he isn’t hard at work, he is an avid reader and writer. Haras also enjoys staying active and training with his German Shepherd, Tonks, or cuddling with his cats, Sev and Dobby. Haras graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelors degree in English Education. He has taken Andrea Gibson’s poetry course, Write Your Heart In, and four sessions of Megan Falley’s course, Poems that Don’t Suck, for community and enrichment.
Bleach
Clean / wrapped in your embrace / freckled hands / chemical / red from intensive labor / pristine linen sheets / sanitized dishes / the five second rule / does not apply / to tile floor / in our house / white cottons / doused / holds memory / stains on colors / gently remind / my love / for you / mom/
Secret Love
Bottled feelings and
side swept glances
silence the middle
of our conversation.
You hide the love
you share,
unspoken aloud.
When will you try
to ask if it’s
reciprocated?
Life is short
or endless.
The result ultimately leaves you breathless.
So why wait?
-thisisyoursign,tellthem
Second-hand Addiction
The first joint… It got you.
The bottle… It got you.
The pills… It got you.
Heroin and meth HOOKED.
Watched you stumble,
roll through
everyone else’s rock bottom
except your own.
Repetitive cycle. Hooked.
You don’t have a
problem though—
no care for the ones
that you love.
Communication is Bare Minimum
I’m on the edge
of your lips
holding on
to the safety in your voice.
-raiseyourexpectations
Time and Forgetting
Felt the sting / drag / last cigarette / back / throat / drowning / the alcohol on their breath / clinging reality / smash my fist / colors / reminder / blushed cheeks / dull ache / night alone / curled up / without you / empty bed / no more memories / cloud my head /
Broken Windows Policing
Chairs are filled
at a table of under qualified
applicants,
Poor training—
and we wonder why there’s no change?
Flawed from the start,
the old system
is still upheld today.
How many more witnesses
are needed
for us to do better?
To find a solution—
I joined the problem,
adopt policy changes,
ensure I practice and cross examine myself.
One day I’ll only hire people with no desire for broken windows.
Leaving You
Leaving you,
my life shattered.
Bits of mirror
in my fists,
reflect false hopes and promises.
We called it love.
Leaving you— was not a loss.
I mourned
the life we’d planned,
bought
a new mirror.
-timeforselflove
Watermelon Seeds
Swallowing a watermelon seed
today took me back to when
I was four, thought
the seed would implant itself in my stomach
roots and tendrils infiltrating my body
a nightmare, how comforting
it is to know that like watermelon seeds–
Swallowing trauma and pain
will not truly root in me to fester
– I can choose what I hold onto
Grief
has a funny way of creeping up on us / one day / feel nothing / numb / another / feel everything / skin buzzing / hive mind / racing thoughts / confusion / resentment / acceptance / denial / back & forth / crescendo of emotion / again / and again / nothing once more / did you ever feel at all / ever stop / no / not once / brought to the surface / time / an ally / an enemy / your storm / your peace /