time passes by too quickly
crossing off each day on the calendar
soon your red pen has slashed through
all 365 boxes, and we start again
one day you’re basking under the golden sun
the next you’re boarded up in your room
draped in blankets as you turn the heat on
as if you haven’t seen the real sun in years
thoughts of summer are slipping away
the same sensation as a tickle in your nose
but you’re pale as a ghost
and just as soon, the new comforter you 
bought for extra warmth that winter
is tearing at the seams; you’re overheating
under it anyways, the summer heat returned
you used to sit down and write about these
moments, the little things in life
everyday…
			until you ran out of time.
always chasing the clock
they say, “we all have the same amount of hours
in a day, it’s what you do with them”
but does it really matter what we do
when the clock is always ticking?
because no matter how much time you have
you’re never going to do that thing
that you wished to have more time for
it’s always been your choice: 
			frantically race against the clock
			or follow your heart and
			let yourself
					run 
						out of	
							time.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! Funnily enough, I wrote this before COVID-19 even hit… it only rings more true now. Time is short and extremely valuable, so I hope you all are making the best of your situations and hopefully doing well… how is it already spring? Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

We write because we need to
Our unique voices yearn for validation
For words on the page that scream our stories
It may feel as if we don't belong
But we're here for an important reason
This world needs us as much as anyone else
Our unique backgrounds, our vivid imaginations
Allow us to hone our personal craft
Leaving a wash of color on a world
That normally comes in shades of black and white
We write because we want to share pieces of ourselves
Serving our hearts on platters and hoping
That someone relates or understands
If no one does, if we're truly alone, 
That might be even better
Because now our thoughts are out there
Waiting for the next person to stumble upon them
To find everything they've ever thought in solitude
In the written word, speaking directly to them
To sift through the pages of a book that builds their world
Creating a safe haven for them to take shelter in
We write for these people
The future readers, the future writers

I hope you enjoyed this piece! It’s actually another older one I dug up– as I’m currently having a little bit of writer’s block, it seemed fitting. This was the exact poem I needed to write at the time, and it’s the exact poem I needed to read at the moment. Even if it’s a bit cheesy, maybe it can cheer some of you up. Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

why does the sun shine
in a way that sometimes
creates iridescent ripples
across the shallow blue waters
of my slightly dirty swimming pool?

why does the sun shine
in a way that sometimes
beams directly into our eyes
blocking our vision
from anything else in the world?

why does the sun shine 
in a way that sometimes
illuminates the best in things
or the worst in things
rather than letting us see the full picture?

it would be interesting to see the world
from outside of the sun's shadows
but without the sun, our world couldn't exist
do you believe what you see?

whether you're staring into the sunlight
or glaring at a pitch-black sky
it's important to remember
that the shadows may be cast by the sun,
but they're a reflection of us
and you can still see shadows in the dark

I hope you enjoyed this piece! I actually wrote it over a year ago, so this is a bit of a flashback. It’s interesting to look back on old poems and see how much my writing has changed– it’s also just proof of how much I’ve changed. Look back on your old work– you might be surprised what you find. Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

Driving too fast,
it is easy to miss the signs.
Days are crossed off
on the calendar, and we 
keep waiting for signs--
to hear something,
see something.
Are we not looking
hard enough, listening
carefully enough
as it is? It's easy to read
into things, and just as easy
to ignore them altogether.
Wait for the signs you want,
you might be waiting
a while. I'll stay with you, 
keep driving until 
we see something we like.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! It’s funny how often driving shows up in my poems ever since I got my license. Feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke