Recycled hugs spiraled through tattered curls, and
indigo eyes developed cavities where her hope
should be, while spherical condolences racked
her ribs, searching for a way to tell her it would be okay.
Her ears burned with the false stars falling off tongues,
and she couldn't find enough ice in the kitchen to
put out the fire, every time she closed her eyes she
saw tear gas and acetone signs littered with scarring words,
defining the history of South Africa.
Scotch tape wasn't enough to mend the holes in her bones,
even though she tried, and neither was the word 'hero' latched
to her parent's name, somehow when she looked around she
couldn't see that tomorrow might be different, or that in five
years, townships might not exist.
Providence rung in the empty spaces of the liberated
surrounding her, believing that change was possible,
and Riana couldn't bear to whisper the sounds
of gunshots breaking open marches, and the
way her momma's body spasmed as she died.
All she knew about 'freedom' was the word ephemeral.
She didn't need to know the definition
Author notes
W r I t I n g 0 f r e e do m
A contest entry
- &idon'tknowhowtolove; i get too tired after midday. by dieu..
401 points, ended July 14, 12 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Gimme yo nom noms!!! by cookie-monster.
475 points, ended July 12, 75 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Prewrites, show me what you got. by GraveyardGoddess.
400 points, ended July 22, 97 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
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Very, very good.
Thanks for entering;
Good luck. -
the last full stanza was the one that really hit me, great writing in there. and the line "freedom... ephemeral" just great stuff. good luck in the contest
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This was awesome.
thx for entering
-
here's a few words:
cavity
ice
spherical
spiral
ephemeral
providence
recycled
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