Words hurt
by Jamie Husemann
I want to feel something, as I float under the weight of your words.
I want my life and how I lived to truly mean something, regardless of what you say.
You stand there as my lips turn blue and I gasp for air.
A smug look on your face.
I try to reach to pull myself out of the water around me.
Your words hurt.
I am slowly being sucked down by the waterfall that comes from your mouth.
Drowning.
And just as I don’t think I can stand it any longer, my fins appear.
I have adapted to the water around me.
I am becoming something new.
There is only a small part of who I once was left.
I used the pain to become something beautiful.
You can’t hurt me anymore.
Your words mean nothing.
And once the transformation is complete, I will live in the water, free to be who I was meant to be all along.
Beautiful and free.
Mermaid Love Within
by Joy & Co
Love of the sea and love of the land
Who is this brown shoed gentleman?
It appears she wants what she can’t have
Or so it may seem…
For if she accepts this as her truth
It’s all just a sweet dream.
She tosses and turns and yearns to grow
Out of her shell for all to know
She doesn’t realize her inner strength
Will guide her to her greatest lengths.
Her tail provides momentum
To move on, move forward, and go
But tis her soul’s inner strength
That truly runs the show.
The feelings come in waves for her
Self-doubt, denial, and guilt
She keeps rejecting her power
And that’s not how she was built.
Her source of strength has been with her
For all eternity
It’s acceptance and evolution
That can set her wild and free.
“Expanding within her comfort zone”
Will slowly allow her growth
Versus “stepping outside” her comfort zone
That will impact her most.
“Stepping out” feels so vulnerable
When she doesn’t have her feet
Slow expansion provides loving flow
And the feeling’s oh, so sweet.
Hour by hour and day by day
Letting inner wisdom pave the way
To grow her feet so she may say
“I’ve arrived and here I’ll stay!”
Until… her shell grows back, and then
The process starts all over again.
So, What is YOUR brown shoed gentleman?
You think you can’t and
WE know you can.
Fairy tale
by Amy Rodeffer Thompson
I have a confession to make
Its mildly embarrassing and silly but here goes
I’ve always fantasized about having a secret power
Something unexpected, a latent talent
Lurking beneath an otherwise rather common exterior
Perhaps it was the fictional stories I read as a kid
Stirring up the imagination
Would it be cool if
Secretly practicing telekinesis to no avail
My powers were simply ordinary
Other stories reignited that small flame
Regular, everyday folks
Thrust into adventure
Wits and courage, their super powers
Ah ha! An attainable storyline
Not requiring the luck of mutated genetics
It’s a funny thing to crave being different, special
There is an equally strong pull to belong, be a part of
Accepted, appreciated by others
Keeping the powers secret to avoid rejection, judgment
I can see why a hero chooses to disguise their identity
This is the dance of life, exploring desire
Keeping some deliciously to ourselves
Knowing that some parts are for public consumption
And some simply are not
If God were a Man
by Michelle Burke
If God were a man…
He would not see me.
He’d want me on land
to walk beside him.
If God were a man…
I wouldn’t be free.
My powers would cease
without my spirit to guide me.
If God were a man…
My soul would dry up.
With no water as fuel
to heal me and all others.
If God were a man…
I couldn’t breathe.
The world’s air in my lungs
and my siren song gone.
If God were a man…
desire would fade.
My magical moon
producing no fire or lightning.
Thank God I’m a maid…
in His image I’m built.
He saved us all creatures
the masses and lost.
Thank God I’m a maid…
A man is just here.
I will give freely
Regardless the cost.
