poetry

UV-Ray Vision – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
some people wish for x-ray vision as a superpower
but i wish for uv-ray vision as mine.

to stare into the glowing orb of light we call the sun,
to look past the sunspots and stop our eyes from

watering when it's a sunny day and we look into 
the sky. to see what we can only partially see

to know more about our favorite star and be 
able to gaze into her eyes. to prevent her from

blinding us when we just want to get to know her.
to take in even more of her light, and become light ourselves

I hope you enjoyed this poem. I know it was a short one, but if you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you might notice I mainly write short poems. I’m working on a few longer ones to post in the near future 🙂 Please let me know if you have any feedback on this piece or any writing challenges you’d like me to try out in the near future. Stay safe and healthy.

Brooke

Daily Dose – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
there's a shooting pain in the crook of my neck
but i refuse to take an aspirin today. i refuse to 

take an aspirin most days. it depends on my mood,
how independent or dependent i'm willing to feel

i tilt my head back slowly, until i'm looking up at 
my smooth white ceiling and i feel it- the pain.

i turn to the left to look at myself in my chipped
full-length mirror. if i turn more than that, i 

feel it. i can't stop feeling it and i can't resist 
turning. i don't want my vision to be restricted

to one field, not even right now. i don't want to 
always be chasing my own tail (figuratively, of 

course) and if the pain's going to stick around,
                                                        i want to feel it.

I hope you enjoyed this piece. It’s a little bit more dramatic, but I will admit I’ve been struggling with pain as described in the poem. I’m not exactly sure how to deal with it other than writing, but it’s not too bad; creative license was used 🙂 Please let me know if you have any feedback on this piece or any writing challenges for me to try out in the near future. Stay safe and healthy.

Brooke

Morning – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
i don't know whether i dread or look forward to
the dizzy sensation of waking up and stumbling

out of bed. realizing it's another day, opening the
blinds, and letting the light stream in to my tiny 

bedroom. gaining my footing like a duck coming
back onto land, and getting ready for the day.

my head spins a little bit- jumping out of bed jump
starts my senses. my eyes can only see colored spots

for a moment, and i almost lose my balance while 
standing in front of the bathroom sink. 

the light becomes visible and my eyes zero in on the 
brightness; i can see my neighbors going for a walk

outside. the ground feels solid again, and i can go 
along with my day- it all took less than sixty seconds.

I hope you enjoyed this poem! It’s a little mundane, but I got the inspiration to write it when I was going through all of these morning routine motions this morning. There is something to be said about the odd, lightheaded feeling I get when I first wake up… hopefully that’s not just me! 🙂 Please let me know if you have any feedback on this piece or any writing challenges for me to try out in the near future. Stay safe and healthy.

Brooke

When The Ink Runs Out – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
i drew the big dipper on my inner thigh
accidentally, of course; the pen jabbed 
into my flesh before i could stop the ink
from soaking into my skin and

it just happened to look like my old
favorite constellation. on my other
leg, you might notice a few random dots
and lines. guilty as charged, i don't

seem to have control over my pen.
and yet the ink ran out that day, thick
black letters becoming a meek shell
of what they used to be as the dry

tip of the rollerball dragged across
the page. i couldn't help thinking
these marks on my thighs were a 
waste of this precious commodity

but i didn't care. when the ink runs out,
you know where to find me.

I hope you enjoyed this poem! I actually do have a line that looks somewhat like the Big Dipper on my inner thigh right now. I’m weird and often do my work at my desk with one leg raised up (not very ladylike, I know), and sometimes when I’m writing really fast or get distracted, I end up making marks on myself. I’m just clumsy like that- there’s no other way to explain it. 🙂 Please let me know if you have any feedback on this piece or if you have any writing challenges you’d like me to try out in the future. Stay safe and healthy.

Brooke

Be Silent – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
the quiet envelopes us in this room
       we say nothing to break the silence
but i like spending this time with you
       and the outside world is too loud

if only everyone could learn to be silent
       the birds pecking at the trees in the yard
the neighbors mowing their lawn 
       the kids across the street who don't

yet know how quiet the world can get
        if you just let it be

This is a super short piece, even for me, but I felt it was best to keep it short. I mean, that’s kind of the point of it. I hope you enjoyed it, and I would love for you to leave any feedback or any writing challenges you may have for me to try in the future in the comments. Stay safe and healthy!

Brooke

Bumpy – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
i hadn't ridden a bike in a long time, but here i was- three miles
         on the smooth, flat Palm Springs streets. all identical,
brown tones, desert landscaping, community pools
          seemingly endless, which is why i kept going. i'd never gone

on such a long ride. a mirage; i showed no signs of tiring, even
          in the April desert heat, instead picking up speed, whizzing 
by golf carts and happy families unloading their cars. 
           i probably wouldn't have stopped, if i didn't find myself 

back at the vacation rental. i put the bike in the garage, where it 
           wouldn't be touched for who knows how long. but i didn't 
even consider going on a bike ride when we came home.
            "the roads are too bumpy" was the excuse i'd give

i didn't want to navigate the sloping, cracked streets of my
              neighborhood, or pass by people i knew. i wanted to chase 
that desert mirage, and navigate the roads of life that were less
               bumpy.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! It was a fun one to write; I got the idea while I was reminiscing on my spring break vacation to Palm Springs last April. Luckily, the weather is heating up where I live and it’s pretty nice (not as hot as the desert, that’s for sure!) so I can comfortably blog from my backyard while basking in the sun. Let me know if you have any feedback on this piece or any writing challenges for me to try out in the future! Stay safe and healthy.

Brooke

After Dark – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
i can't remember the last time i was out after dark
the oranges, pinks, purples, and reds of the sunset

mark the ending of my day. i close the blinds, 
get ready for bed, and wait until the sun returns

but i'm tired of playing by the sun's rules, everyone's
rules. maybe i want to be a walking cliché

dancing in the moonlight, taking walks in the dark
while the summer heat and humidity lingers

surrounding my body like invisible sparks in the night
invincible strolling down the streets

the night lasting forever because 
i don't want to go back home

I hope you enjoyed this poem. It’s not my favorite, but I couldn’t put my finger on anything specific I wanted to change. It’s definitely a very accurate portrayal of my thought process regarding summer and staying out late- as much as I want to have the stereotypical teen adventures, I’m a grandma and usually don’t go out past ten 🙂 Let me know if you have any feedback on this piece or writing challenges for me to try out in the future!

Brooke

Shadow in the Mirror – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
i have a thousand different faces
that have been reflected 

in this prism of light and dark
not one of them has stuck around

my stomach sticks out and lies flat
my face fattens and thins out
my legs lengthen and shorten
my hair grows and disappears

i am a thousand different people
but i have not seen myself

i am a shadow, wondering which
of my disguises will be reflected

the next time i look into the 
wretched panel of glass

This was a really short piece, but I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless. Body image is something everyone struggles with at one point, and I’ve found a lot of comfort in reading pieces about it. Let me know if you have any feedback on this piece, or any writing challenges for me to try out in the future!

Brooke

Personal – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
how personal is too personal for us?
i pour my heart, soul, and the entire
fiber of my being into you
and i'm not sure if i should regret it

you can't trust anyone but yourself
an old mantra of mine
the only person you can count on is yourself
another old mantra of mine

when i met you, these mantras were
forgotten

am i wrong to trust you?
am i wrong to count on you?

the answers are personal, and
yet to be determined

As always, I hope you enjoyed this piece. The idea of certain things and topics being “personal” was something I wanted to make one of my “deep questions” opinion-type posts, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet. And what’s more personal than sharing my poem about getting personal with someone new? 🙂 Please let me know if you have any feedback on this piece or writing challenges for me to try out in the future.

Brooke

War on Bugs – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
my room became a little habitat
first the little spiders scuttling
from wall to wall, using my comforter 
as a launch pad

then the speedy silverfish my
brother tried to kill with his shoe;
he missed and it scuttled behind 
the dresser, not to be seen again

an unidentified bug paid his 
respects the next day, but
my mom successfully stamped
out his existence

bugs, i plead, please don't come 
and visit this room, my habitat
you have the great outdoors
and i have this room

I hope you enjoyed this poem! I actually have found a lot of bugs in my room lately, which is pretty disturbing for me (I am extremely afraid of bugs/spiders), but it makes sense since the California sun is finally shining, and it is hot! Please let me know if you have any feedback on this piece you’d like to share, or writing challenges for me to use in the future 🙂

Brooke