Under pressure won’t fold, he’ll respond accordingly and then takes control.
Stands strong and stays bold and always plays his role.
He doesn’t take the beaten path, he provides his own road.

Why don’t you come and join me in giving them their flowers?

Bouquets of fresh-plucked justice abiding
In urban gardens overlayed with morning dew
That seeps into soft brown bodies

Welcome back
You were always whole.
As the curtain of
Dandelion seeds
Stare
In front your nose

Just blow.

– blew kind
from “Exploring my grief, Part 1”

the arrow of time flies
swift, straight
there is luck in the leftovers
a mingle of delights to merge with the hardships

every sheet of paper
has two sides

my difficulty has made me a jewel

– Allison Whittenberg
from “Swedge”

my own voice speaks loudly
“DO NOT SUCCUMB”
she says…
I listen
for now

– Debra Powell-Wright
from “Remembering 2020 and Still”

We can hear you
Your voice, mine
Beside
Before you
And behind
Deep breath in
Closed eyes Exhale
Are you sure sweetheart…?
I am.
“Be well.”

Our instincts whisper before the deception.
They point toward peace before we bite into pain.
But when the world is loud,
when our hearts are weary,
we forget that power begins in choice.

Its ok to shed those tears …its ok to feel but it is ok to heal..
I know the pain runs deep. I know it hurts.
Close your eyes..deep breaths..put your hand on your chest.
That beat is life..stay still.
I still feel you
I hear you deeper than you know.. im with you and I won’t let go

droplets of love falling from the sky
touching the hearts of those who have lost their loved ones

in the sphere of this world
its roundness as we are still looking for love

and kindness in a circulatory infinite manner
that we all can feel in the streets of germantown

as we reach out each day to step into this world
expecting something good happening

in our lives through the violence
that we continue to walk in

so let us no longer suffer in despair
no longer fret in the turmoil

of what is happening our streets
let us begin to focus on self and how to make change

seek goodness in all that you do
for all that you touch

in your walk going forward
in your life today in peace

I want to be soft,
Full lips pursed

Active in wishing.
I want to be cool breath

Ushering seeds
On gallant pilgrimages.

I want to be liminal wind,
Gentle enough to carry,

Forceful enough
To respect.

I want to be a fertile place
For myself to land.

I didn’t know then
when my bike first met you
that you would teach me how to cry.

First, it was the sunset breeze
that sent me back to slicing down
switchbacks in the Cascades

and then the front stoops cutting into
your geometry that brought me home
to the paper streets of Pittsburgh

but most of all today it was your icy morning wind.
I was rushing through it when the first droplet
streamed across my cheek. This is how

it feels, I thought, to be a person. What a wonder
how easily these tears come. No longer a task to
be struggled at–just an unclenching of fists.

before you knew the difference between mutuality and mutual funds
before you grew teeth
before you could spell your own name backwards
while standing on one foot and dialing a fax

before the gerbils died of neglect
before the graffiti screams on vacant walls
before kindness got stuck between the pages
of a magazine and the subway forgot to stop
but kept chewing tunnels under every-
thing we said

before you owned even a single cabbage
before someone bought the sky
before the difference between you and I
grew wide enough to fire a bullet through

before all that
before the song, before
the first note rose like a prayer and
shivered

City lines with tainted minds

Dotted lines, souls hard to find

Feeling like the end of times

I pray over mine

Leave the drama at your door

Guns down start praying more

Because these lives we can’t afford

To lose for sure

Bad vibes cutting like knives

Put faith where the hate thrives

Fixing community ties

So love survives

I put my heart into this city

Head high shoutout the bity

Cus there’s no other city

to do it like Philly

Not in an eternal way
But in a temporary
Just long enough to stop sobbing
Way
Not in a way that
Removes pain
But just long enough for you to catch your breath
Before you remember again
Rest
To relax your face
Maybe hide from the world a little bit
This already cold world
On the brink of winter
On the brink of revolution
Rest now
Because when you awake
When your feet hit the floor
It may be a while
Before you see your bed
Or the Dawn
Again.
Rest
So your body can reset
So your mind can quiet
If only for a moment
If only for 5 minutes
If only you could rest
Without the threat of fascism
Ever present
Like the god they say they serve
And that’s why
You need to
Rest
Reclaim the moments that don’t serve them
Because every moment of stress
Anxiety
Depression
Capitalism
Feeds the monster
Of the structure that steals your
Rest
Reclaim
Restore
Restart
Repeat
Rest
Resist
Remember
Recall
Repeat
Rest
The Revolution is upon us
And we need you
You need you
I need you
To rest.

When we get together at the top of each morning, the music is just right
We speak of love and compassion for the collective
Each of us striving for a breakthrough
Eventually we settle into the Black quietude; these become the most profound moments

When they ask us what we are made of
we tell them all the lives we have lived
all we have done and undone to get us here;
each one longing for a home

We are always

We are water and chicken from the bone
We are made of a tender hearts
We are made of girls with gaps in their front teeth

We are always

In the mornings we come to give each other sweet risings
we crave the makings of Summer days and moonlit fields of laughter
when the rain disappears
we become raw fruit for the throat and all the colors of love

We want more of each other’s gifts adding water to fire and soil
Gentle hands of many makers sow seeds of togetherness that germinate under
the swamps of Germantown

We are always

Hey you, I love me.
I am the only one that can love me like I do.
I love me.
Like an apple loves the branches on its tree.
I love me.
Like the waves in the ocean, loves the pull in the gravity.
I love me.
Like a singer loves to control vibrations in their vocal cords.
I love me.
Like a foot loves the arch bend in its stride.
Oh, this feeling I just can’t hide.
I love me.
Like no other man, woman or child.
Hm, I don’t play when it comes to me.
My feelings for me are oh so wild.
Oh, I just love myself some me!
Because I am the only one that can love me quite like I do.
Enough said, so now I will just conclude.
I love me!

She rose through them waters

Waters of doubt, pain, and confusion

Waters that were filled with pebbles of struggles

Rocks of pain

And waves of turbulence

Waves that were filled with doubt

But with the help of The Divine

She rose through them waters

She began to walk proudly over the pebbles of struggles

She jumped over the rocks of pain

She swam calmy through the waves of turbulence

She dived into the waves of doubt

And found herself to swim with the fishes of hopes and dreams

As she rose to the surface

She found the same pebbles and rocks to be illuminated with shine from the sun

The waves were calm and at peace

As she reflects

She realizes that although these things seem harmful

They were nothing but lessons guiding her to swim

Guiding her to see what have been waiting for her

As she rose through them waters

Is that a Sonia
Walking Germantown streets
Basketing beauty

She walks in Sonia
Carrying faraway hums
A smoke signal sound

She dwells in language
Mapping routes for travelers
Trailing us back home

Ginger snap Sonia
Lyrical honeying words
She gives us sweet bread

She, a small package
Fire forever contained
Do you smell her smoke

In the wind her words
Shimmering like night crystals
Clinking memory
She cooks books with words
Down to the bone delicious
We eat and evoke

Return with the rabbit pulled from the hat

that sits wedged between the child’s teeth.

A whirlwind of eyes reveal the watch,

of taunting tears fall to the lion’s den.

Knowing if I beg for them to disappear,

they will only bite back, teeth bared.

I briefly talk with the stars

who see the arrow pierce my lower back.

Spring is on its high horse.

A pending war wages between mice,

moths, and the great big hand.

Punishing those who wait idly by

for the better things of this life.

Today I sit by the open window.

Allowing the harsh breeze

to raise hairs on my forearms.

A foolish smile makes its gentle way,

if only for a blushing moment.

I hum along to the tunes breathing

life and rhythm in my beating heart.

A solar flare from two days in the dark
reaches Earth pushing the Northern
Lights down just far enough to touch
a part of the city not blinded
by LEDs leaving a ruby maybe crimson
streak across the evening sky
as the students sit on the evening
steps reading the entire name of every
woman man child son sister friend
killed in Gaza a task that will end
sometime into the night
then begin again and last
until they graduate
then they’ll pass
the list on down.

no more pins and needles
sitting
waiting
for the other shoe
it already dropped
eggshells cracked
chickens came home and roosted
earth swallowed and spit out
sea boiled—storm raged
back plastered against the wall
axe chopped
bottom dropped out

you changed your middle name to tender
your body’s map leads you to streets
paved with kindness
you befriended a girl named grace
and you two frolic wildly:
you made all the green lights on germantown ave
you tasted the ginger, cardamom and cloves in your chai
you read the books you’ve written
you rsvp to your grand life
you are a spout now
joy trickles
onto the everyday things
and you catch the nectar
they say you can’t come back from the darkest days
it’s a lie
congratulations

I always love rain at a funeral.
At least when I’m outside
the raindrops collide
with the sadness on my face,
so no one can see me cry.

A deluge of emotions washes over me
when I’m sad.
The showers outside camouflage
the torrent of salt water
emerging from my eyes.

When I don’t completely wipe my face,
the dew from teardrops remains.
Just a sprinkle of what
used to be a flood.

Those other times
when someone touches my heart
with sweet sentiments;
when there is no sadness
or death in the air,
other teardrops fall and I
embrace the liquid sunshine.

A Cry For Peace
Police sirens,
Family’s crying…
Too much mourning, due to Gun Violence…
The echoes of silence, races, of heart trauma…

We were put on earth to be giants,
Too many teen dreams left paralyzed, to be martyred…
Too many stories unauthored…
Narratives furthered, but never fully reached their destination…

Broken clocks of life,
When LOVE should have been the Prototype for the stories we write…

A helping hand, a helping heart, the art of sacrifice…
We should never have to pay the price for our rights,
When we are trying to pave a way for our life’s mission…

Pavements full of blood from the wisdom of our fallen soldiers…

Heroes,
Leaders,
Dreamers,
Believers,
Overachievers

The people who gave all for their life’s meaning…
To seek the rewards of life’s freedom…
Our kings & Queens…

Some who never got to fully live on the other side of those dreams…

Not celebrated enough here on earth…
But celebrated on the turf in the afterlife way too soon…

When most people imagine grief

Dark grey clouds tumble across the sky

Tears flow like rivers swelling oceans in the eyes

I know what ‘typical sadness’ looks like

It reeks of burnt toast on the last slices of bread

Tornadoes of chaos twister in your head

Hesitant to pray because…where do you begin?

Questioning yourself over and over again

Sometimes grief is obvious

A tangible definition of clenched teeth frowning

But what happens when grief is in disquise?

Crawling into your head – an unpleasant surprise

Sometimes grief isn’t mourning anyone else but yourself

The person you could have been if you

Followed through with those feelings you felt

I often cry internally thinking of the person

I never got to be

Letting fear get in the way and all the things

I never got to see

That is grief too

When you analyze you

You know you’re not happy

Yet you smile like you’re supposed to

The world asks: “How are you?”

You lie and say: “I’m fine.”

A true look in the mirror cures this sickness every time

It’s a different kind of sad

When it’s not you – it’s really me

Do the work to heal your mind

Then move forward

Faithfully

Because I have neither cart nor basket
and because my arms are full,
the man in front of me clears a space
in his cart, offers, “please, place
your things here.”

A simple gesture, no fuss.
Not even a smile.
Just a plain face with eyes
that know weariness, too,
a body, I imagine, mapped
by ache and longing, and also

small kindnesses, the ones
he didn’t expect, like someone
making room for what he carries,
a sudden softness parting the fray
of blundered chances, old critiques.

“Please, place your things here.”

A moment. A passed on goodness.
The eyes we lock between the citrus
and the berries, a warmth that skitters
as my lettuce, Brussels sprouts, spinach
and beets land in his basket.

And I fall silent, deserted, except
for “thank you,” by the chatter I easily spin,
aware of my bracing, how these days
it comes too easily

and how it comes undone.

It’s been a long time coming.
I trust this is not the end, so
I have hope.
I’m waiting for the rain to fall
Pouring life down on me,
Washing away
All the tears
Of the regrets of yesterday,
Nourishing my soul
While I wait
To see my way.

There is a heaviness in the air.
Tiny drops of condensation
Spirals of indecision
Collecting,
Little by little
Like these tears
That build and burn
In the corners of my eyes.
Soon,
They gonna plop
I feel it.

I wait in suspense
In suspended animation.
Holding my problems tight—
Close and familiar,
They feel like home.
Soon,
They will reach a nexus
Join a fresh set
On the horizon.

Positivity calls them challenges.
Challenges to overcome
Challenges to give life
A purpose and meaning.
Soon,
The tension that’s building
Will reach a point of no return.

Fortifying my resilience
Leaning on my community
Gives me the strength
To lay down my burdens,
In the path of blessed relief.
There has to be relief.
I reach down, deep inside
Blocking the cacophony of doubt.
I plant my feet– firm,
Hope transferred into action.
This cannot be where the story ends
No!

I can’t see where this all ends
But
I know
The way I will go.

Alone But Not Lonely

Alone
But not lonely
Like the sparkle
Of a solitary
Drop of morning dew
Alone
But not lonely
Not filling
The silence
Not filling the void
With useless
Endevours
Meaningless interactions
Learning to be at peace
With yourself
No one else
Peace of mind
The greatest reward
Learning to get
Over the hurdles

Of what should have been
Could have been
Didn’t happen
Forgive and forget
Lay down all regrets
The sound of
A solitary voice
Speaking louder than
The millions that surround it.

No showers for a week
Worse, no phones
But mostly, being a terrible cook
When the paring knife slips and takes part of your thumb with it

Suddenly you are child again, tumbling out of playground slides, not yet knowing how to brace yourself
against the crack of wood chips in your palms. You don’t know how to swear yet. Instead, when you cry,
they wonder how June thunderstorms in Georgia came before you, all the raw and tender boiling at your
fingertips. Someday, even this present will be memory you call nostalgia

Some days, you’re still running. Others, you find yourself in memory,
All the Western light still brimming in your eyes
Every poem a proclamation that you are still trying
To remember
That night in Virginia so crisp you thought civilization quietly called it quits
Smog sliding back into pipes & tunnels devoid of trains
Count our blessings like hopscotch
Watch boxcars rattle like rivers, humanity run parallel to nature
Tell them you hope
Hope you find the peace you afford so freely to others
Hope that you can still call the present your own

Remembrance clear as air;
Blank spaces, familiar stares.

Moving softly,
holding one’s tongue;
A silent Roar.

Headstones are only markers, reminding us;
our link to ancestors’ lands.

Spilling words of softness;
seeing silhouettes of grace.

Actions create communal exchanges,
Imperfect choices.

Free-will unifies;
Creating hardship in the mourning age.

Painful choices, acceptance of self;
Intentions of the heart, secrets abound.

Shading the past with beautiful dreams;
Empathy surpasses,devotion is long.

Searching one’s soul;
Comfort soothes ancestral pain.

Constant truths, fleeting in flight;
Jealousy spreads through those without.

Hi momma, the comfort of time;
Kindness uncovered truthful sighs-
with stillness of memory, Love.

Age 14
Your first year in high school
A football scrimmage
A volley of gunfire
Your mom’s only child
Dying in her arms

I didn’t know you
But your death broke me
I read about you in the newspaper
Because you mattered

Your grandmother reached out to me
I’m a grief tender with a mic on G-Town Radio
I helped bring a wind phone to Vernon Park
Where grievers can speak aloud to their dearly departed ones
Because they hear us
I called you and introduced myself
Told you that your grandmother and I are friends
I said that I was so hurt by your death
And that your life, your example, still inspires
You hear me

You cared deeply about the environment
You loved animals, especially wolves
You drank Sprite
To honor you, I stopped using plastic straws
I drink Sprite
I wear a memorial sweatshirt that speaks of your love for wolves

Occasionally I see your face
I think that you are still here in other bodies
Your grandmother received signs from you too
Nick Elizalde lives.

joy comes in the mo(u)rning
and sometimes the wailing

removes her silk bonnet and
gets dressed as the soft white space between
a dream and a fresh and new mercy

as a warfare prayer sent up by a woman
that sticks the landing on a daughter
deep in her depression.

she meets Messiah at rock bottom
with a handful of hymns
and a grandmother’s forehead kiss

the amapiano and afrobeat between a rock
and a hard place

a fresh, new set of braids swinging
upon a scalp sealing the most harrowing thoughts
that God makes sure to massage
with gentle fingers three times a day

she be bliss between lovers that actually like
each other

she’s a knowing
despite your feeling
like you are a body full of ancestral horrors
Instead of a cathedral for their prayers finally come alive

she’s the miracle of the three cans in the pantry
that fed the five

she be belly laughs at the repass
she be Father, Son and Holy Spirit’s secret handshake

she’s a heart broken open to let the light in
as she praises in advance as for the
peace that surpasses all understanding

the quiet tears in the silence of a Son risen
over a desolate land of stolen dignity
restoring exceedingly and abundantly in my city

you see joy died to herself over and over again
until flesh became spirit

just to feel a little lighter

so I couldn’t find her
in the end of a blunt that’s always kept me hanging
or empty sex that left me feening

she was nowhere to be found but in the
leaning into everything that makes me human.

Glass under my bare feet
cuts deep.
Every step painful,
But I gain mo’
Than I lose
When I choose
To pay my dues
In blood sweat and tears
‘Til my debt is clear
As transparencies
I’m worried like parents be
Of failure
Tailored specifically for me and mine
It’s do or die time
We gotta buff harder than ever to shine
Bright
Whether it’s daytime or night
I gotta get it down
So I won’t put it down
Unless it’s right
I won’t devise a plan unless it’s airtight
My goals so high
in the sky
The seem years of light away
From times of today
But struggles a blessing
See, a gain without no pain ain’t no lesson
And stopping ain’t no option I’m adopting
Gotta keep it popping ‘til I’m gone
No matter how rough this road I struggle on,
I said stopping ain’t no option I’m adopting
Gotta keep it popping ‘til I’m gone
No matter how rough this road I struggle on,

My soul was dry, cracked,
the roots were weak.
Still, something waited inside,

for me to remember
how to hold things gently-
how to sit in a sunlit room with laughter
and not flinch at the brightness.

I am like the trees now
the ones that bow
from the weight of wet weather,
yet blooms without apology.

Some nights I still cry for that version of me
who thought love had to hurt
to be real.

But mornings bring regeneration
with the realization that
everyone deserves to know
I should not have been treated that way
and feel free to refill that space
to be soft to what remains

I’m softer now—
I crave the kind of peace
that grows in the cracks
of yesterday’s heaviness,

And I know
the world doesn’t hate me.
It just rains sometimes.

Which we all need to grow.

I’ve been powering up like Mario
When he gets those mushrooms—
“Mamma Mia!”

I’ve been focused on my shine,
Developing a new character.

I came from Ready Player One,
Working my way up
To final level boss.

But I won’t be defeated—
’Cause this my game,
And I’ve been playing for quite some time.

Lost a few lives,
Had some challenging opponents
That I’ve been fighting
Since before PlayStation 3.

I’ve been on levels
Where the life got knocked out of me—
They almost yelled out,
“Finish him!”

But this ain’t no fatality.
See, I’ma take every adversary
Built up against me,
And start from that opening line:
“PlayStation.” Every time.

This game don’t end.

I got that Donkey Kong vibe—

Banging on my chest,
Throwing barrels,
Unlocking new levels,
New characters,
Hidden bonus rounds
And side missions.

I’m your worst nightmare:
That character you’ll never defeat—
The one at the end
With 12 arms made of knives
And all the special moves
You’ll never see coming.

Or—
I might be that underdog character
You skipped over,
But later find out
I’m the secret weapon.

I’ve been too busy working
On this character development
To worry about an NPC.

This game?
Rated R.

So you?
You can’t come see about me.

Oh my sweet summer child, if I could reach back through time, I’d draw you up and
hold you tight.

And at the risk of sounding cliche (you’ll roll your eyes at me I know) I’d remind
you that everything will pass the way it has and always will.

I’d tell you, every time you think the world is ending, it’s only the beginning.

I’d let you know one day you’re going to be happier than you ever imagined
possible.

One day you’re going to wake up to the clatter of skillets in the kitchen, the sun
peeking through your shades, the smell of coffee and cologne and dog hair and
possibility in every sense of the word

And you’re going to know you’ve come a long way, but you’re going much farther.

Dried flowers, Shot glasses
Plates and cups that ain’t for the masses.
Cake toppers, model cars
Small trinkets from near and far.

Shiny silverware, porcelain dolls with long hair
Anything that resides in there, you better handle with care!
Handle with care? Don’t make the fuss,
There ain’t nothing in there that we can touch!

Children don’t walk too hard around this place,
‘Cuz everything in there cannot be replaced.
Good company around? Guests from out of town?
Put up the plastic stuff and bring the china down!

What you say? Sista’ won an award?
Put it in the china cabinet next to Bruh Bruh’s graduation cords.
Daddy got a trophy, cuz those pins strike clean.
Put it in there too, so that can be seen!

Obituaries displayed, with spots from dried tears,
Sit in the china cabinet to remind us they still here.

Holy Bible and lapel pins, If it matters to this family, it’s going in.
May not sell for too much, but I promise you in there aint no junk,
Put our pride on display, not in the bed trunk.

This is a temple, things we cherish, you see ‘em
We curated these things, it’s our home museum!
Good grades, grocery lists, go on with ‘frigerator magnets,
But the things that remind us how blessed we are…
Go in the china cabinet.

Let the water wash over you
Let the water watch over you

Let the water wash over you
Let it carry you and rock you,
Let it be a mothers womb
Let it bid you to rest
Let you not be afraid
To be held
To be cleansed
To be renewed
To be baptized in what you’re made of
Let you not fight the flow
or war the current
Let the tears come
Let the tears go
Let the deep transform you
Let it help you know the beauty, power, and magic of depth
Let the waves move you to healing
Move you to wholeness
Let it drown out any thought of lack
Any thought of unworthiness
Let the water guide you back to a river of memory
To an ocean of whispers that call you home
And let those whisper be a compass
till they become more than a hush you hush
More than a rush you rush from
Let the water dance
Let you water dance

Give space for your tears to fall
Give space for your truth all and all
Give space for your anger to rise
Give space for your silent cries
Give space for your sacred sorrow
Give space to do nothing until tomorrow
Give space for the rise of your screams
Give space for the loss of the dreams
Give space for all of you to be all of you
Give space for the truth of your blue
Give space for the weeping of the night
Give space for the joy that comes in morning light
Give Space

I remember my first ships’ bilges were Terra Cotta
Let it be a reminder to me of simpler times. You were proud of me
Because we need to know that though I wasn’t there, you were always in my heart
You were the anchor of the family
We were father and son
I will never forget who you are to me
It will always make me a better man
Remember this, I am my Grandfather’s son
We will through memory, make you proud
The streets, I now protect them
I hold onto who we were, who we are, and who I want to be today.

Let it go
Let it ebb and flow
Because I need peaceful nights
And easy days
I am the phoenix
Rising from the ashes
Again and Again
No one can keep me down
They’ve tried
I am fire
I will not stop
I am greatness
I am love
I am me

Dear Philly,
I love your mixture of high rises and nature parks to walk.
I wish you didn’t have streets that cry the sound of blood shed and anguish.
I hope the sound changes to harmony of love, celebration, unity, and life.
Dear blocks that I journeyed as I grew up,
I am disappointed when I see what could be, not be.
In my dreams, you are generational wealth, love, prosperity, life
giving not life taking.
I love how despite the pain of adversity, one learns perseverance.
Dear brotherly love,
I love that there are times when we are unified soaring
wings of EAGLES.
I wish you didn’t hold the blood of my brother or the others I’ve
seen or didn’t, but instead their life.
I hope you elevate, that redemption finds you
and you embrace it.
I will pray for you
and give back to
you the blessings God gave me.

Dear Philly
you have so much love
diversity…culture

Don’t waste it
it is only a dream one
would think
A dream to clean our
streets from the mayhem
of gun violence

It is a nightmare to keep
the city in gun violence

We can work together
work to stop the danger
we can save it from nightmares
of violence

Not by killing but by changing
loving…and caring
let us make it safe
more love…and more free

We can

Outside my window I see the privileged
side of the G and backyards
invisible to the streets
I hear 808s from Dreams and
Nightmares, but I don’t see
the car it blasts from
I taste my last meal, courtesy of
my mom or OG
I smell the “fresh” air tainted by
cigarette smoke and piss reminding
me of endless coughing and lung damage
I feel as if I am outside of where I am
and it feels like a lie to me.
I move silently and efficiently because I
got stuff to do.
I fear nothing, but I know what
happens on these sidewalks.
I hope for a safe journey to and
back.
I am my guardian, my lookout,
my messenger.

Outside my window I see police cars flying and
Mommas crying about their sons dying
I hear gun shots going off and a disabled elderly getting robbed, but I don’t
Want that to be something that reminds me of my City.
I taste the cold lemony and sour apple flavor of my water ice and it reminds me of
Something I could get when the sun’s beaming outside while hanging out with my friends
I smell weed and cigarettes when I turn most corners just like how
It used to be around the 40th and Market townhouses
I feel a sense of friendliness when I meet new people and it feels good to me.
I fear someone I care for getting shot and being in the hospital, but I
Know My City Philly tends to persevere through our challenges.

If u learn to forgive
U learn a new step in life
If u learn to forgive
U learn to resolve a conflict without a fight
If u learn to forgive
U can allow yourself to put up with an awkward date
If u learn to forgive you always are safe
If u learn to forgive
You can always handle something
If you know your worth u know how to forgive
It’s hard sometimes but u don’t learn anything without a struggle
I know you know so
i’m gonna say it now

Learn to forgive and learn to forgive and forget

grief is a matter of love
as a matter of grief

i’m on the porch
and you’re chiming
through

call me in the breeze
phone me through birds

did you know
  that you could

rain a friend
and feel cloudy
  later?
sun to me as I
tend to the blues

as a matter of grief
grief is a matter of love

If you have had a bullet
Stop your child’s beautiful beating heart
And… it has made you curse every breath you take
I sing you a song of God’s fresh air
Full of promise
And…lighter days to come
And…someone who will
Understand your pain
And…be brave enough
To sit in the silence with you

This is medicine music,
Prescription of frequency
Where the dose is influenced
By the state of the culture,
Lacking some nourishment
Hella deficient of love
They needed encouragement
But taught to get numb off the drugs
Started to notice the loose screws
Tend to my toolbox
Cus how can you mend the issue
When you gotta bruised heart
Mentally been scarred
Physically been barred
Ready for rebirth but spiritually it’s been hard

Let me take you through some steps that i done learned loved one
Cus it don’t happen overnight
This healing’s earned loved one
It comes with practice
Releasing your distractions
Setting healthy boundaries
And managing attachments
We made in God’s image
But we started walking backwards
When we gave away our power by submitting to a master
Then they pimped our infrastructure
Changed the pricing and the package
Told you if you want it back
It’s in blood, cus they attacking

If you wanna free your mind and free your spirit from the toxic
Gotta vow to kill the poison of the snakes that’s in your garden
Only giving your attention to the things that bring you honor
Keep your vibes sucker free and your circle free from drama
Shit life crazy when you really think about it
And shit could get wicked if you really aint moving solid
I’m praying you don’t risk your whole life
Just for a dollar and you conquer your demons
Before you end up gettin conquered
So I gift you this medicine music

Remember when we were in the depths of darkness?

You may not know this, but I loved you.

Remember when the bullet tore through your chest splitting it in half exposing your
insides red, brown, white and wet?

I tried to tell you this is not the way it’s just an excuse laid in your head. Hardheaded
they use to call you with the soft behind …

Now you lay here with a hole in your chest you may feel dumb, not smart at all.

Just know I still love you though

Infinite
possibilities connected
to divine guidance.
Together we are strong
Infinite
Everlasting.

Birds singing in the morning
Birds bathing in an ___
Birds flying in the sky
Folding in and out their wings
As they find packs moving south

Shooting star in the night
Full moon shining so bright
Sunrise at the break of dawn

Children playing nicely in a beautiful garden
Heavy rain falling rooftops
In the streets
Piling up against my windowpane

Skipping rocks in the ocean
The forest
The jungle

A lovely bouquet
A scenery filled with lots of greenery
The lightning
The thunder
The rainbow
The falling of leaves

This is what I call
A thing of joy

I want to heal my heart’s brain
My friendship muscle
And that sacrum that’s been burning
Since seven years after birth

I will heal the brain
That barrels about in my heart
Like a rock in a tumbler
Pop it open and remove the gleaming glass stone
I give it a polish
And I hold it close

I want to remember the feel of heat rising from tarred streets
And red-bricked rowhomes on an early summer morning
When I ran out of my grandmother’s home
For a long day of play on my block.

I want to forget how things fell apart
When friends became enemies
And one by one, they dropped
Or got caught, and our streets fell silent
And cold.

Dear Young Bul,
We are connected
Philly took our innocence.
We can’t seem to escape that fact.
Remember when we normalized it
And we told ourselves this is regular.
We can’t change it anyway.
You may not know this but you can change it.
And all we can do is survive, is a lie that they told us.
You are doing it now. Surviving.
And you are a survivor.
When will you start thriving.

They call me Marina
But I call myself the universe
I am from many lives ago
I am enclosed in this body

I used to be hostage
But now I’m free.

Dear Eddie
You are my heart
Circumstances took you away
We can’t belly laugh again
Remember we used to talk for hours
And we told ourselves we would live forever
We knew it wasn’t true.
You may not know this but I still have your shirt
And all I can do is hug it when I’m missing you
You are doing great things even though you’re not here
And you are impacting lives through film
When will I see you in my dreams again

Let this be a song of change
Let this be a song of forward thinking
Let them hear the sounds of the people
May we never be put in a box

And many artists, activists, politicians, revolutionists live here
Hear our voices
In the midst of crossing the tracks, we
See hope faith, courage, love that lives here

And everybody knows nothing lasts forever
But nobody knows the after
What we need you to know is “the gift” is life, and that matters

Uptop Germantown is multi cultured

Diverse community & helping hands

We see multi generations of family. We tell

Ourselves we make a difference in other

People’s lives. We know it can be challenging

At times. We try our best to treat each and

Everyone equally and with respect.

Covenant House family. We have the joy

And impact we make, we feel overjoyed and

A sense of accomplishment. We need under-

Standing, patience, courage and a love for

People. Let it begin with us. We give

100%.

We fear God and letting our community down

We would like to see our community grow continuously

We want to share all that CHI has to offer

We are the extended family of Covenant House

Dear Markette,
You are — or you were — originally from West Philly on Conestoga
We can’t seem to talk anymore
Remember when I used to take you to the park
You may not know this, but I imagined big things for you,
And all we can do is go down memory lane
You are doing nothing these days.
And you are buried in a grass of Tiger Lilies.
When will the violence stop?
I tried to remember your big brown eyes
But it all has faded with time.
You feel nothing, and I also feel nothing,
But I cannot forget your smile.
I hope you know your mother loved you,
And I will always help her remember your positives
Even if the light has dimmed

I will always remember the pride, joy, & love you brought to all of us

Let this be a song of grace unfolding and peace, that bold peace it holds
Let this be a song of the beauty of love, that beauty that comes from within, from above
Let them hear the sound of hope, the joy that’s birthed from within
May we never be silenced or paralyzed

Peace lives here
Hear our joy, hear our love
In the every space of life
Grace untold lives here

Everybody knows Him, His intimacy
But nobody knows when
What we need you to know is He lives, He loves

Grace unfolding

If I lose I will win again

If I lose I will win again

In the future will I sin again?

No guarantees!

It’s guaranteed that I will be my friend

No guarantees!

It’s guaranteed that I will be a friend

To myself and Love me first.

So natural,

Real Organic.

Not the kind you can Rehearse

Loving you, bringing peace first

Know your worth.

Make it work.

Make it worth it.

Will it hurt?

If you don’t,

It probably will.

Keep moving and progressing

Because Pain is normally still.

Like fruits and berries

You can smash, cut, or peel

You can’t run away from pain.

So I recommend you Heal.

Every since a youngen, I was getting into trouble / thinking about my life, how I was
going through them struggles / my mom wasn’t there, so my grandma took her place /
she put some clothes on my back, and some food on my plate /

I ain’t had no job, I had to stand on them corners / all them lonely nights, it was cold and
moving slow / talking to myself, hoping the money will come quicker / in and out of jail,
grandma said I better change quicker /

I don’t even freestyle, I just write how I feel yea / grandma raised me and sister well, the
best way she could yea / ever since she passed on us, a lot things got real yea / family
changes on us, pretending they don’t know who we is /

Hoping things will change, because this is really sad / wish I could take the time back,
with the knowledge that I have / gave my loyalty to people, that I thought had my back /
should’ve listen to my grandma, don’t hang with guys that put me last /

through bitter day
in biting night
we meet for coffee and spirit
searching for hope
in a mug
in a glass
in a laugh
in a note of
song
flavor
delight
we create home in communion
not knowing what will
become of us
but this is nurtured earth
cultivated glory
in moments
shared
with another
over savory potion
and golden root
out of solitude
free of the labyrinth of alarm
even if only for a moon’s embrace

together

The heart is hot but the world is cold
They say they all love you but in the end who really do know
Until the day you die that is when it all shows
To a place where we all must go
We must lay down in the grave

But until that death day everyone is judged
They judge you for what you like what you love and where you work
But the bottom line is the joke is on them
Because a comment is just like an educated rumor
Everybody has an opinion
So forget about the nonbelievers and the believers
Live your best life until the end of time
In the final day when god calls us he gets to see us all really shine

Let this be a song of hand clapping scatting and humming
Let there be a song of neighborhood potlucks & game nights
Let them hear voices in harmony for togetherness
May we never be in disaccord

Or hear our unity is strong as a marching band
In the HBC Homecoming event
Greatness lives here

And everybody knows we can accomplish miracles together
But nobody knows how tired we really are
What we need you to know is there is so much power when neighbors unite!

A heap of community

A dash of commitment

A teaspoon of curiosity

A tablespoon of trust

A quart of freedom

A dollop of intention

Tons of forgiveness

Take a hand

Add another

Mix together

Boil over

Bake until

Brown bubbles form unity

Serve seconds!

As often as possible

I feel for y’all I really do

I’m a product of my environment I’m from Philly too

Hold off, give me a second to think, I feel like only when I got my weapon I’m safe

I used to not want to carry it and stay in my place

Go in my crib have my girl cook potatoes and steak, now they drilling you can die over anything
nowadays instead of a Job youngins is thinking that crime pays

Naw don’t do that youngin you feeling pain and we all go through that youngin, you gonna make
your mama cry because you don’t got no pics but ISH, he’s the wrong one to shoot at youngin
(uh) people dying to get ops but get a opp and die man When will that ish stop? I’m OT

low-key if you know me

Crossbreed of a real 🥷 mix with a OG,

I slide by myself don’t nobody control me no co’d no telling that’s what they told me

on Ella Sherell🙏🏾

I remember everything that you showed me

everybody ain’t bro and be aware of your Homies (uh)

You build a bridge for somebody to burn it 🔥from now on you want my loyalty then you’ve got
to earn it.

Let this be a song of today, tomorrow, and even yesterday
Let this be a song of joy, sorrow, and everything in between
Let them hear the sounds of birds chirping, children laughing
May we never be in fear, with tears, and feeling devastating emotion

Individuals of humankind live here
Hear our words, our thoughts, our feelings and prayers
In the world around us with so much to see, do, and experience
Individuals of all humankind live here

Everybody knows we have just one life to live
But nobody knows for just how long that life will be
What we need you to know is that every second counts until our last breath

Sometimes we can get lost in what led us here; a world of change
Walking up the sidewalk towards your present circumstance
Speaking to the voices in your brain; simmer down, it’s only change
Once we went forward; you can do it again, cross the threshold of murky horizons
Back into the crystal clarity; it’s only change that brought you here
The sky is opened
We look for the light
One night of shadows can’t change what was, not even what might come.
Right outside our center of comfort — there is change
Today is one of those days, where we can
Hold on to the peace of acceptance, the peace of joy — soul manufactured
As if time is and always will be in your favor, as if time
Can stand still.

Our Hearts need more Love…
From carrying burdens on shoulders,
Our Hearts need more Hugs…
We watch Doves soar with closed eyes…
2 many Tears cried…

What happens when Love outweighs Pride…

Chapters worth Believing…

Agreeing for our Freedom…

To Love,
Our Hearts need more Hugs…

They look for something
But want to give nothing
Except for gunplay and Black hands
Against Black youth and Black lives
Bloodstain on urban concrete
Right outside Black lives
A future dies at the age of 12 +
16 and little Black children taken
In between
Today is one of those sad days

And on December 19th, I’ll be even older
But yesterday
Black lives..a gun in the hand of a black boy at the age of 14
Took the life of a Black boy 14 and hurt 2 other young teens
In between 12 and 16
While bloodstain and a life lost is being power washed
Next to a skating rink
In Dilworth Park and now no one sings
Yuletides and Christmas songs as 14 year old children should sing

They look for something
But want to give nothing
Not even a Christmas song
Next to a skating rink
Except…
Bloodstain and life lost is being power washed

Again, today is one of those sad days

Let this be a song of Joy, Peace, Brotherly & Sisterly Love
Let this be a song of Solemness, Sweet Silence, and Serenity
Let them hear Childless mothers, Fathers’ Blues,
Siblings for a change who never get to speak
May we never be in pain again, feeling this insane again

And let them see
Love and undying faith live here
Hear our pleas for better community, more unity
In the mindset of unity
Let there be Hope, perseverance, determination, and strength
They all live here

Everybody knows this is Philly
But nobody knows we don’t stop till change happens
What we need you to know is
This is still Philly!

A Child
Black
Yet loved to the brim of an empty Remy bottle
Not spilled, but poured in the name of the reflection.
And his reflections ask if they were going to be next.
Killed doing something legal like
Smiling, or laughing, or holding their children close
To their chest, or, like he was, walking to work.
The Library is now + forever be the place where
Your memory was seared into mine
Tears that flooded worse than Katrina.

The tears were necessary, for those waters would’ve
Drowned them from within.
Those same tears led to joy
Led to fond memories
Led to breathing
Led to proper grieving
Led to them believing life was worth living
All in the name of you my dear brother

Before you can know what Grief really is
You must Die
Feel the de-cathexis in an accepting way
Like death in an unknowledgeable / triple darkness kind of way.
Before you learn the reality of Healing
You must let triggers go where the sea of forgiveness accepts what is cast there.
You must know the future
You must speak to your dreams
You must wake up to your potential
You must see the Truth.

Then it is only awareness that makes you smart
Only acceptance that evil is your opponent, and an opponent that I must fight
And sends you out into scenarios and brave challenges
That raises your intelligence
That fills your heart
And soothes your heart and soul
It is the answer you have been looking for
And purpose goes with you everywhere
Like a badge of honor and a reason for being.

Before you can know
what living really is,
you must hold your momma
dead in your arms
on the floor of your living room.
Feel the agony in a moment,
whisping away the breath of a woman
that held you for years
against her breast…
Stroke, they say.

Before you can know
what living really is,
you must get a call that your
older brother
was gunned down
in front his house, as Medgar,
walking into his once-thought
Sanctuary.
Weeks by you travel,
back to the patched grass
and touch the blood stained dirt
with your fingertips.
Breathing in all
that you have left.

Then, it is only sitting in the magic
that makes each
moment
pulse
through your veins,
sends you into an ecstatic jolt,
that raises your lashes
to the tree painted sky
so you can truly
Live.

On that street
where love poured in
our house to the fill line,
where nightmares pierced sleep
and gunfire pierced dreams,
where I reached
for your arms to feel mine,

Now children squeal,
glare at me through glass eyes
want me to buy plastic jewelry
tuned with their mother’s love;

You are gone
belated, busy falling
in love with another city
and I am home–crossing
into a fall forlorn and spotted

I am home, waiting
for the crosswalk to forget you
and the community fridge to forget you
                                     to go forward
into the pool of memory
and find only gratitude
and great surprise
at this dream’s ending.

Before the sound of a
Piercing bullet tore through
The upper reaches of the atmosphere scattering
All of the dark matter across
The universe I did believe
That everyone was wonderful
Once.

In that late night
Philadelphia soulcry my eyes
Turned a fish belly white.
And I knew then and there
That you cannot return to certain
Sites, even in the dark haze
Of a memory

While this is happening to you,
You are also happening.

To mourn is a dynamic and constructive ritual
Of passing a portal into the threshold of
No undoing
Of unfinished business
Of hissing winds and sour downpours

When we arrive there,
do the cosmos wink at us in the face?
I imagine so.
Even for those who have died too soon or lived too long.

I imagine the terrain is warm and lush.

I imagine a hand may stretch across
An open ocean to accompany you through
The ether into a newness untouched

I imagine it is like a dream full to the brim
Of crisp uncertainty
Memorialized in memory
Revolving back and forth across the edge of our eyelids

Those of us earthbound weep, howl, laugh,
Implode from the guts up, touch other flesh desperately,
Sleep never again unless with only one eye open

All of us feverishly wrapped inside the melancholy glee of grief

Evolving…

We lose ourselves
In the lost
To find ourselves
Losing
More
Hashtags, tattoos
Items in memory
Of
Loss
As we want to
Be healed
Version of
Ourself
The healing
Hurts and
Necessary
To live with loss
As communal
As the community
We live in
Love

25¢ candies, jump roping @ the front steps
mom + pop shops, slow summer day laying in the shade
sweeping up the street
as the neighbors say hey
neighborhood watch knew everybody name + everybody business
that’s what it meant to be
each other’s harvest
the world got itself into a big rush
too many cars, not enough room on the bus
fast food replaced our plates — no more space to play
trees cut down to put up poles for electricity
cement poured over a whole city
concrete heat, boiling yungbloods
til the pot runs over
pop pop goes the water on flame
pop pop goes the sound of pain
a garden needs to bloom here