Saturday 30 April 2016

Farewell to Winter

The rattle of cowbells
is getting louder.
Shouts, whistles and whoops
can be heard from far away.

The herd of sheep fur,
carriages and heaps of hay;
The crowd parts
as they turn the corner:

Wooden masks
with devil's horns,
Long moustaches
and daring grimaces.

Amongst the flock
there are young girls,
Hiding behind
black laced masks.

The crowd begins to follow
the strange white devils
As they carry Winter
in her coffin.

The herd finally stops
as they reach the main square,
In the middle of which
stands a mountain of fire wood.

The crowd falls silent
as the coffin is carried up,
Up to the top
of the firewood mountain.

With a glowing touch
the coffin is set ablaze.
The now dark sky
is lit up by the roaring fire.

The wild flames
burn through Winter,
Allowing the crowd
to welcome Spring.




Two Lives

He was born in '95,
The only son of a proud father.
She was the oldest daughter
Of a widowed man.
Elite schools,
A bright future,
His life could not compare
to the way
She had to live her own:
Alongside of school,
She had to work for several ours
just to pay the bills
So that they could have hot showers.

They grew up
On the opposite sides of town.
They never met until
Both of their lives got turned
Upside down.
He had everything he ever wanted,
Anything he could have wished for.
His luck never seemed to run out.
Her life was never easy,
Having to grow up without
a mother.
She often felt her father
pull away too,
sink into his work,
distance himself from reality.

How many times
could they have passed by
each other on the street,
Looking, but not seeing?
How often could their paths
have come close,
So close,
But they would not meet?

Growing up without struggles,
He searched for a rush,
A thrill
that would make
His monotonous life interesting,
Refreshing,
Different.
But after so many times
he tempted death,
His luck expired
and a situation got out of control.
One accident
and he could never walk again.

After a long battle,
Her father finally gave up.
She was left with no help,
But a large burden
on her shoulders,
While her parents were reunited.
Two little sibling
now relied solely on her:
She left school
to work full time.
She never once let
anyone see her pain.

How many times
could they have passed by
each other on the street,
Looking, but not seeing?
How often could their paths
have come close,
So close,
But they would not meet?

All the people who surrounded him
before he was confined,
Restricted to a wheelchair,
Slowly began to disappear
One by one.
He began to realise
that his previous life
Was no way to live:
He started to reevaluate
Every decision,
Every choice,
Every relationship.

She was finding it hard
to give her siblings
The chances they deserve,
She found it difficult
to handle it on her own.
And that's when she met him,
When she was most in need
of a friend,
Someone with whom
She could share the heavy weight of
Life.

Who would have ever guessed
that they were each other's missing
Puzzle pieces?
They grew up
On the opposite sides of town.
They never met until
Both of their lives got turned
Upside down.
But they made each other whole:
She saw the real person inside him
like no one had ever before,
Not blinded by his wealth,
His status.
He made life so simple,
Easy for her to cope,
He treated her little siblings
like they were his own.

How many times
did they pass by
each other on the street,
until finally they met?
How often did their paths
come so close,
But never join
until the day they let
Their destiny guide them?





When We Were Young

When we were young,
I was Dorothy
and you were the Scarecrow,
Following our yellow-bricked path
to Oz.



When we were young,
You were Tommy
and I was Annika;
Looking for trouble,
Searching for fun
with Pippi by our side.



When we were young,
I was your Wendy
and you were my Peter Pan.
We used to spend our days
living in our own little
Neverland.



When we were young,
You were Teddy
and I was the smiley Michelle.
Nothing could ever
keep us apart.


Nothing,
Except growing up...

Thursday 28 April 2016

Little Miss Not-So-Perfect

Her presence
makes my blood boil.
The sound of her fake laugh
makes the hairs on the back of my neck
stand up.
Her faux smile,
More like a grimace,
disgusts me.

Her eyes are mocking me:
"I can do whatever I want,
I can get away with anything!"
Why are people so blind?
Why can't they see?

Her manipulative trickery,
Her mind-games,
Why can't they see her
for who she really is?

Her fake persona,
Like a mask she wears
to fool unsuspecting strangers.
Nothing about her is authentic!
She pretends to define
perfection,
innocence,
purity.

But every time
she opens her mouth,
Lies pour  out.
It frustrates me,
That I am the
only one,
The only person who knows
that she isn't Little-Miss-Perfect.


Torn

I hate feeling like this:
Lost, confused, overwhelmed.
I'm longing for that kiss,
That forbidden kiss...
I was so unprepared,
You took me by surprise:
I didn't think you could look at me
the way you did last night.

But why now?
After all this time,
After all your chances?
I spent a lifetime
waiting for you,
But you never came.

And now,
Now you come crashing back
into my life,
My mind,
My heart,
A week before my wedding day.




.



Tuesday 26 April 2016

Media Distortion

"He's white,
So by default he is racist.
He's a Christian,
So naturally he stands
for all things anti-liberal,
Unable to see change.

He's a young man,
Therefore he is prejudiced
towards all women.
He lives in England,
So he must be rich."

What they don't see,
Through their distorted looking glass,
Is who he really is.
Their eyes are clouded
by the media,
Fixated on stereotypes.

He is white,
But he works for equality
across the globe.
He's a Christian,
But that makes him want to
Change the world,
To see the best in people,
To make a difference to
their lives,
To celebrate our diversity
which makes us one.

He's a young man,
A man who does not define
a person by their gender;
Who fights for Justice,
Equality
and Freedom for women.
He may be British,
But he comes from a difficult background
with no financial support,
So he has worked hard to be
Where he is today.


Terrified

I'm terrified
that I will wake up one day,
And realise that I've waisted
my life away.

I'm terrified
that I will leave this world behind,
Without contributing
anything to mankind.

I'm terrified
that I will miss my chance
At being being young
and having a wild romance.

I'm terrified
that I'll never dream big,
So I'll never get to lead
the life I want to live.