Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Letting Go and Moving On

A few days ago I received a letter in the mail regarding some information from my last employer. Previously I stated that I was not working for this company anymore, but I never really went into any detail about being with this company. I still don't feel the need to do that now other than to say that I was feeling some animosity and hurt as to how I left. On the day I left, instead of me going to work and "we are going in a different direction", I was sent an email over the weekend, which I didn't receive until Tuesday morning after I had already arrived at work. This was to me, for lack of a better word: tacky. I am not sure why this tactic was used, but I felt I did deserve a much better exit than this.

I was holding a lot of hate and anger inside for months and it was keeping from moving forward. One doesn't realize sometimes how much pain we carry. That kind of pain, hurt feelings and self-loathing can eat you up. I thought I had put it down and moved on. I went about my routine day in and day out since this happened each day searching for work as if nothing happened.  Then I began to look back over the poetry I was writing and began to notice a pattern in my writing. Most of what I was writing was about love, but a lot of it sounded  like depression, and as if I was reaching for something, like I was on the brink of wanting to move forward and let go of the pain, but really didn't know how to.  Truth is, all I had to do was just get honest about it. I had to get honest that I was loathing and seething deep inside and wanted to shout it to the world all that hate I felt.

One thing that sticks out is this sort of self-centered me attitude about the situation. Even though that is not who I am. My personality is always about helping other people. Most of the time, I put me on hold and give to others and never think of me, and here I was again doing the same thing and forgot to take care of what was happening in my own life. So I guess I was thinking, if I help myself, will people think I was being self-centered? Then I thought, you have got to heal from this, because if you don't, you are no good to anyone else. This pain is going to eat you up inside. The other thing is, as I stated before, I am a recovering addict with 15 years clean and using was not an option.

Well, what happened next was that I sat there one day and I just let it go. Everything came to boiling point. My emotions just seemed to surface and I did what I said I wanted to do. Out loud, I stated, "I hate you for treating me like you did. I deserved better than that. I don't wish your business success. The least you could have done was given me the courtesy of a phone call and not an email."   After I ranted and  let my emotions out, I asked God to forgive me for my hateful thoughts. I prayed for being rude and ungrateful.  I asked for healing.




I had not spoken to anyone from this company for sometime and needed to contact them regarding this letter I had received. I don't think I could have done that had I not cleansed myself. I believe it was important for me to let go of the feelings inside before having to contact them. If I had been still seething inside it would have been difficult holding on to all that animosity.

I'm still searching for what I want to do from here, but it's a little easier now. I am in no rush. My husband says to take my time and find what I really want. He wants me to be happy in my soul. So do I.

Monday, June 6, 2011

A Song in My Soul: Pure Emotions

Lights on my face stole
my sleep; now I'm awake
before the dream ended.

Managed to know what it was
I was supposed to remember and
I wrote it down.

The music that haunts me
through the day, I had to
look it up, cause it
must mean something.

The music that keeps playing
over and over. This verse in a
song that keeps running through my
mind.

Are you trying to tell me a story?
Maybe.
About a past friend? A hurting soul?
A wounded bird..who needs a voice?

I played the tracks to reveal
the hidden meaning
from the voice of the past
and it filled the air with music.

Listening, I'm listening
for a sign, I'm listening;
just trying to hear the
inflection in your tone for
what it is in this verse that
continues to run through my
mind day and night...

How sweet is your voice...
so pure...and so emotional;
I mean raw emotion that is
internal; from deep welled up
inside. So vulnerable. Within
the melody, it took hold of
me and pulled me in.

Tell me where you want me
to go from here. The song
has ended.







Please also visit My Word Wizard for more fascinating poetry...

http://www.mywordwizard.com/a-song-in-my-soul-pure-emotions.html

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Give Me a Reason


Unyielding, unbreaking.
Don't tread on me..
don't spit on me..
Lift me up...
Rise up...

Move me up...
Help me up..
Lift me..
Don't tread on me..
Give me strength...
Unyielding, unbreaking.
My spirit to soar above..

Give me a reason to
to rise... give me
a reason to be!

Help me from the madness
of what is the source
of hate. Unblock
and move the stumbles
of bigotry.

Move me up...
Lift me up..
Don't tread on me.
Give me strength..
Rise up and lift
me high!

Unyielding, Unbreaking.
Give me a reason to be!

Uncage me and unleash
the chains that bind
me...

Give me a reason to be....

Monday, May 30, 2011

I Am But a Vessel




I opened myself for complete 
thought and expression; 
I am but a vessel .

The words flow. 
The energy courses
 through me and 
spills forward  onto
 the page.

Hey, I Still Love You


We can't be friends anymore
Why?
I don't know.
What do you mean.
We just can't.
Oh, I see.
Something wrong ?  No.

I love you. I love you
too.

So what happened? I don't
know. OK.


Are you hurt? No.
Did I cause you pain?
No.
Just because.
Sacrifice.

Sacrifice?

That's it?
Yes.
Why?
I don't know.
Weren't you and
I gonna  change the world?
Together?
Yes. We were.
What happened?

I'm following the
crowd.

Oh, OK.. I see.
OK.  I still love
you.
Take care..








Sunday, May 22, 2011

A Reflection in My Heart


I keep hearing your voice;
calling, seeing you, feeling you.
Sometimes not knowing if you are real
or just made up in my mind.
I reach out to touch you and you fade.

I try to focus on the image of you
that I keep seeing in the viewer of  
my mind. The scenes that play run
at a fast pace, and my focus is off.
My thoughts won't let me take hold
of just one.

The stillness of the day is almost
gone, and the background is rising up
to keep me from reaching out to find
you again.
Will I see you again?
If you are real, how will I know
for sure? You sing to me in my dreams,
or were you really standing there
singing a melody that is now binded
forever to my soul.


Healing Love





My love is for more than
just the ones who love me
those who love you and
those who do not know love.

For more than they who don't
know love, are they who have not love.
Hearts not opened have not any love
cannot be true to love.

Broken spirits are broken by hurt;
by words and spite.

Troubled by pain and deceit,
They need healing and need love
that we can give by reaching out
with the spirit of our love as one.
Greater than us is love.

Our spirits soar to reach beyond
ourselves to heal the broken hearts
and soul of man with love that is our love.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Bringing About Change


Will I ever know you?
Will you ever give in to that
place in your heart?
Don't close it.
Have it feel love;
Show that specialness.
Have your love given back.
Talk to me.
Share with the world.
Love is energy.

Place the key inside of you
and turn it around.
Bless the truest of those who
hunger for knowledge.
When given a blessing we can't
hold our fear of the world.
The world will falter. It misses
the love; the love we try and
cling to;  the love we no longer
feel for each other; giving way
to greed. 

Bring back love into our lives.
Our young  should know that love
can bring about change.
Hate has no place.
It breeds misdeeds that feed trouble,
that banishes and dilutes the soul
of man.
It afflicts our hearts, bringing pain
to our brother that he doesn't have
to bear.
Hold up one another to the highest
esteem as we hold ourselves;
that we may succeed to our highest self.



Monday, May 16, 2011

Shadows of the Past (Silhouette of Dance)

What can I do to stop the tears
that keep falling staining my face?
the anger wells up inside.

What can I do to make my pain lessen,
my heart that leaps from my chest with
every breath I take?

How can I heal from my sadness if all
I can focus on is the hurt that engulfs me daily?

Constantly, day and night.

Shadows of the past dance on my walls in a
symphony of music that is silent in silhouette
as I lay awake and wait for the sun to rise each morning.



Man in the Music: The Creative Life and Work of Michael Jackson by Joe Vogel



A positive look at the creative work of Michael Jackson. 


Editorial Reviews

Product Description

"In many ways, an artist is his work."--Michael Jackson

Over his four decades in the public spotlight, Michael Jackson revolutionized the way we experience music. His songs, videos, and live performances not only broke records, they dissolved barriers and inspired generations of fans from every corner of the world.

Yet in spite of his achievements, Jackson's creative work was often overshadowed by the tabloid frenzy that surrounded his controversial life. By the time of his tragic death in 2009, many people had forgotten the talent, originality and ambition that made him a star to begin with. In this lavishly illustrated book, author Joseph Vogel moves past the sensationalism and mythology to reveal the first in-depth assessment of the "man in the music."

Featuring a foreword by Rolling Stone contributing editor Anthony DeCurtis, Man in the Music covers Jackson's entire solo career, from 1979's groundbreaking Off the Wall and 1982's world-conquering Thriller to his frequently overlooked later work, including a glimpse into the music he was creating in his final years. Vogel shows that, contrary to popular belief, the quality of Jackson's work didn't decline after Thriller. Rather, similar to the Beatles, he continued to evolve in interesting and provocative ways.

Meticulously researched and documented, Vogel draws on hundreds of sources, including news archives, Jackson's own words, and personal interviews with Jackson's collaborators (some of whom are speaking publicly about their experiences for the first time). With each album, Vogel takes the reader back in time, placing the music in its social and historical context, discussing its relation to Jackson's personal life, and revealing fascinating, behind-the-scenes details from the studio. Each song is carefully described and interpreted, from well-known masterpieces like "Billie Jean" to lesser-known standouts like "Stranger in Moscow."

With a wealth of color photos and fresh insights, Man in the Music is the most rigorous and reliable assessment of Michael Jackson's artistic achievement to date.

About the Author

Joseph Vogel writes about popular music, culture and politics for The Huffington Post and PopMatters. He has written several exclusive pieces on Michael Jackson, including the first U.S. review of the posthumous album, Michael. Vogel has been interviewed by numerous media outlets, including NPRDemocracy Now!, and The Chronicle of Higher Education. He resides in Western New York where he is an instructor at the University of Rochester.


Visit  Joe Vogel's blog to learn more about him...  http://www.joevogel.net/

You can pre-order this book from www.amazon.com

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Cuts So Deep


Blades of grass coming up from
the ground that cut my fingers
and slice through my heart.
Sharp as they are, Like your words
when spoken so harsh.
They cut so deep
and wounded my soul.



When I wrote this, I was thinking about Michael. He was right there in the front of my mind. It was if he was saying, "they hurt me with their words by calling me names and saying I did these things I didn't do." I felt him saying to me to write it. The words just flowed on the paper as if to say, this was what he wanted me to say.

So, for what the media did to him, for Michael....



Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Seeing Tomorrow

I didn't know I could when I thought I was done.
I was pulled back into this.
Just a thought of yesterday.
I kept willing myself to forget. I can't.
It's right there.
I breathe slowly, and a faraway place
emerges before me.
I hear the seagulls and smell the salt from
the sea, yearning to draw me near.
The call of the fresh morning air.

                                             Seagulls in Flight by H Malot
                                             

Missing Home


My last visit to Pinhook was seven years ago. I hate to think it has been that long ago. I had returned for a funeral.  My mother recently asked me to go back with her to clean out a storage unit of my grandmother’s belongings so we could locate some important papers.  We were in the process of planning a trip back to this spring to take care of this when we got word of all the rain that was beginning to fall and the possibility of the Army Corp. of Engineers breaching the levee.  Never in my wildest dreams did I think they would do this.
I thought back to the floods of 1973 and 1974. We had moved from Pinhook and taken my grandmother’s trailer home to town at the time. Most of the families had decided to leave. My mother was adamant that she was going to remain.  The other families told her she could not stay alone with her two young children.  It was just too dangerous. With the potential of  the water rising, there was no way that it was remotely safe for her to stay. She insisted that she remain and protect her property. After they convinced her to finally leave, we packed up our essential belongings and headed out. Well, my mother, hard-headed as she is, insisted she drive her car. We were placed in the bean truck with a gentleman mother drove Pontiac Le-Mans through the flood waters. Now, imagine, the ditches on either side of the road were at least 6 feet deep or more, and the water on the road was almost covering the hood of the car as we drove slowly for the mile out of this water.  We got through it, on pins and needles no less.  We spent about three or four months away from our beloved Pinhook until it was deemed safe to return home. Our cousin Jerome Robinson and Mr. Eza Lee Cross stayed in our home, at my mother’s request to protect our home.  Jim Robinson and his brothers, Cal and Lynell who were farmers, all remained on Pinhook to protect the property of the homeowners. George Williams, who drove our school bus had moved his family into town as well.
In 1974, we made the move once again into town. Some of us moved to Charleston instead of East Prairie this time.  We again were gone a few months. Now, you must know that during this time, the flood waters never reached the homes on Pinhook on the main road. Jim Robinson and a few 0thers who lived  a few miles a little farther back, weren’t so lucky.  After Jim and his family rebuilt that last time, they made the decision to build closer to other families. Most of us helped in the rebuilding.  My last trip home was to Jim’s funeral.  My grandmother married his uncle, so we were related by marriage.
After my husband and I moved to New York, it became more difficult for us to travel home. We could only make one trip back home a  year. My mom moved away as well, and now she no longer lives in Missouri. We now have to split our time between two families. I miss home more than ever.  When I dream, I dream of Pinhook. Its the only real home I ever had.
Another person who was important to me recently passed away. Mary Williams. She was like a mother to me. I spent more time at her house than mine.  My husband and I had just returned home to New York from Missouri when we received word of her passing.  It’s like losing a part of who you are.  I miss her even though I had not seen Mary in a long time, I still yearned for what was. I miss her children, because they were like my brothers and sisters growing up.
So as I have been sitting here watching the news and the levee being blown up by the Army Corp of Engineers, I think back to all of my childhood memories. That is not to say that I don’t think about them before this. It’s just it has put them at the forefront of my mind on a daily basis more than ever.  I think about the clubhouse that Faye and Vanessa and I used to build.  It all makes me remember us riding our bikes down to the corner, then going down in the field, down that little dirt road past the row of trees, back around  to that little spring and come up in front of Daddy Jim’s house and pick some Pecans.  Maybe ride our bikes down to Retha and Jim’s house.  If that didn’ t suffice, head on over to the church and hang out down by the row of trees and feel the cool breeze by that old tractor.  Maybe have a water fight from house to house. Oh, what about everyone coming to my mom’s house for cool drink of water from her fridge and listen to her get mad about it?
I miss Pinhook.


Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Light of Tomorrow

Bring me the light into the darkness that envelopes
my soul that keeps me in this dark place that cries
at night and weeps for what was, and I can't repair.
It caresses me; no slumber and no rest. I want to bathe
in it's familiar feeling, needing to feel it, feed it. Give it
breath, give it life. Let it take away my pain., my fear.
It hungers for my soul.

The light of tomorrow escapes me. I can't see it. The
darkness calls to me and I refuse to see the light and can't
reach up to it and free myself.




Friday, April 29, 2011

Small Town America Flooded

Today I want to write about something close to my heart. I live in a very big city, but grew up in small town America. I lived in what some call a river town in the Missouri Delta what is known as Pinhook Missouri. I know. Where is that? It sits somewhere between St. Louis and Memphis along the Mississippi River. Right now, because of all the rain, this small town that is caught up in a legal battle with the Army Corp. of Engineers who want to breach a levee. If they breach this levee, this small town/community will cease to exist.

Back in the 1950's, maybe even further back, from what my family tells me, the banks would only sell this land to black families who farmed. This land sits in what is known as a spillway. The spillway is called this because the Mississippi River and the Ohio River back up in this area and overflow onto the land and cause flooding. Sometimes the farmers lose their crops when this occurs. There is much farmland in these areas, according to the  Army Corp. of engineers about 130,000 acres of land.

Over the years, a project was developed to close a 1500 foot gap in the levee in this region which is the Birds Point/New Madrid area. Most people have  heard of New Madrid because of the fault line that sits near hear. We hear about the big earthquake that may hit near here. These are two different issues, however a catastrophic earthquake could potentially destroy a levee I am sure. By closing the gap in the levee, it would let the water flow back into the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers and keep the water off the farmland in the Pinhook Community, as well as the communities of Dorena, Windyville, Cairo, IL, and others to name a few.

After the Army Corp. of Engineers did their studies, along with the EPA and others, the cost of the project was a few million dollars. It came to light that they wanted the farming communities to pay for half of the project. The people who live here are not rich by any means and don't have this kind of money. From what we know, I don't think people in other communities in other states were asked to pay. So the gap was never repaired. This fight to get it fixed has gone on for years. As a child, we had to move from our homes in 1973, 1974, and 1975. I do believe in 1976 we all decided to remain as a group and hang tight.

One of my relatives spoke before the US Senate again asking for assistance to close the gap in the levee and for the federal assistance that was promised to the people of the community in 2002. Again, to no avail.  He passed away never seeing any relief.

Today, there is a court battle brewing to stop the Army Corp. of Engineers from destroying Pinhook, Dorena and Windyville. If the Army Corp. of Engineers breaches the levee, a 15 foot wall of water will wash away my childhood, my home. I doubt there would be anything left. It leaves me to wonder if they just want this land. Most of the people who live there are not rich by any stretch, but comfortable. They have their homes and their land. What happens after they destroy it?  Today, there aren't many left in this area.. By the picture I post, you can see how many are left. Doesn't mean it needs to be destroyed....




Friday, April 22, 2011

Life On Life's Terms

Sometimes we forget that life will show up no matter what we do. The unexpected always happens, no matter what. My husband is ill right now and was admitted to the hospital last night. How do you cope when the person you love and the one who is your rock is missing from your day to day activities?  When you have to leave them in the care of someone else? It's not easy. When you come home to an empty house or apartment, everything is still. Sometimes, I have imagined what life would be like without all the noise and the hustle and bustle of preparing a meal for someone else, or finding a lost item for my husband that he can't locate. Those little annoyances that come along with marriage that right now don't seem to matter. When all is said and done, he is the one that matters to me. My life doesn't work without him. He is the stability that has seen us through those darkest moments when we had to struggle through some really hard times during the beginnings of our marriage. We each other to lean on, and when one of us is away, it doesn't all add up. it makes me appreciate what we have even more. My love for him grows even greater.
So, for now since life has shown up, and I know that he needs to be where he is at the moment, we will get through this. I just miss him.


Friday, April 15, 2011

Broken Soul

From the depths of my soul,
deep in my being lies a wounded
child who cries to be heard.
Muffled by the pain and heartache
of yesterday's past.
Torched and bleeding, limped
back deep into the wells of my
being only to never surface.





Monday, April 11, 2011

Fading in the Mist


My Turn.....
If I see it...I reach behind me 
looking for it, 
but it's fading fast in the mist.




Seeing it Clearer

Clearly, Clearly seeing it all much to my amazement.
I wasn't able to before.
The mist kept me short-sighted.
As the fog lifted, it's clearer.



Photo by: Alice Christin (thank you, Alice)