24 Poems ~ 24 Hours
Homecoming
As angelic lights summon me home
I am welcomed by those that I love
No more am I destined to roam
While my solace comes from above
I am welcomed by those that I love
Their warmth brings incredible ease
While my solace comes from above
My faith has me down on my knees
Their warmth brings incredible ease
No more am I destined to roam
My faith has me down to my knees
As angelic lights summon me home
Five firetrucks contending with Atlanta traffic
men inside sweating from the heat
but otherwise unbothered
it’s a violent city
Seven police cars blaring sirens
action movie driving stunts
up on sidewalks
yelling at peds to get going already
Two ambulances with EMTs
roused from a leisurely evening at Chipotle
finishing last minute tortilla chips
as they burn out of the parking lot
Millions of cars slowing down in a line
and her saying
‘I forgot the film,’ defeated
I’m glad, sure what she had planned was illegal
My phone reads these text messages out loud
‘No we didn’t see anything,’
‘Bummed that it’s on the complete other side,’
‘Thought of asking neighbors but hate them,’
Traffic is at a standstill a block away
flashing lights going on into the night
she’s asleep now, her head listing to the right
my phone is on silent, I read the message
‘We’re getting coffee, feel free to join,’
I put my blinker on
and start to merge into the left lane
away from the scene
toward some better direction.
Yawning little tiger
Curled up by the pool
Starts to grr and rumble
Like kitty on a stool
Meanwhile a lion rawrs
Tired on its face
Matching me extensively
4 hours til it wakes
My sisters and I grew up in the same state
The same town
The same house
But we had very different childhoods
We had the same brother
But he was 1 year older than me
10 years older than them
And liked a bit of fight with his afternoon delight
We had the same mother
But she raised me from birth
And I stayed home to raise them
For nearly a decade
We had the same father
Except he was my step-father
So when he got his own kids
Just call my Cinderella
When I turned 16
My mother bought me a car
So that I could drive “the girls”
Wherever they needed to go
When they turned 16
She bought them cars
So they could drive
For freedom’s sake
It used to be
Whenever my sisters and I
Spoke of our childhood
I couldn’t understand the disconnect
How I could feel such disdain
For the home that they loved
The brother they grieved
The parents they’d die for
And then I remember
My sisters and I grew up in the same state
The same town
The same house
But we had very different childhoods
Darkness and a shred of light
A weighted thing lays atop me
My words the only thing in sight
And the whirling wind blowing at three
Trapped in a corner, I can move freely
The shred of light I can blow out
There’s nothing to scare me really
I’ll wake up to light eventually no doubt
(I forgot to publish this poem for Hour 19, it was still in my notebook 😂)
Running from it all,
Once small and meek.
Watching as they pass,
Hiding in the shadows.
I cower alone,
Remaining unnoticed.
Now,
Brave,
Strong,
Fierce.
A force to be reckoned with,
I emerge from the shadows.
They take notice,
Now they are the ones running.
I remember this day with grief, a great contradiction.
A part of me is bound for every year I become older.
With each passing hour, I bid farewell to the embrace of youth.
To commemorate this birthday, I grieve the loss of my previous flower.
I’m killing my younger self in a serious, sad ritual.
As the light of wisdom replaces the light of innocence and amazement,
The child I used to be, with such pure and wild fantasies,
A sweet inner child now sleeps in memory’s arms.
With lights glowing brilliantly and a delicious cake,
As stars in heaven sparkle, I lament what has vanished.
However, with each passing year, a new chapter is written.
A patchwork of stories gets told in the process of evolving.
So raise a glass to the youngster who used to play.
In this grieving celebration, a memorial to yesterday,
Because with each passing birthday, a piece of me dies.
But in the act of living, I’ll soar to the heavens.
Running through my head
Like all the things you said
And all the things I failed to
Simulation shift
This is not the time
To get caught and phase through
Though I appear calm
I’m running right ahead
My heart racing
At the speed of thought
Simulation drift
Situation dead
Driving past and pacing
Blank look no ace
Blank book, no space
Now always running the refrain
Tired goose, held place
Lonely friend just in case
Watching from the rain
And I could keep it going
Let loose as loose can be
Find an excuse to be obtuse
Perhaps a lil mean
Doing my best and resting
But clearly has you’ve seen
But I just keep running
SELF LOVE
I am a woman
I am a mother, a sister, a daughter
I love myself, my family, and my friends.
I am passionate about many things
That is what makes me who I am today
I love the way I look in my new dress,
I love the simplicity on my face
I love the way I look in a photograph
Especially when my eyes are closed, and my smile is real.
I deserve unconditional love
I deserve the yummiest of food
I deserve my gold and diamonds
And Universe wants only my good
I am not perfect
I am not always right
But that does not mean
That others can hurt me with their nasty words and unnecessarily fight
Love your neighbour, love your spouse
Love your kids and even love your pet mouse
Most importantly, love yourself
Your health is your wealth
Your smile is worth millions
You are priceless.
POEM BY SHREYA SURAJ,
Running.
I hit the ground running
and never broke a stride
never gave you reason
enough to hide.
yet you took my trust
and tossed it aside,
who knew that your betrayal
was so easy to find?
It was complacent
believing
you were on my side
But you turned out
to be an ordinary thief
the kind I deride.
no break in my stride,
still running.