Stage Fright

In Honor of World Poetry Day:

Words that spill onto the page

Words that carry love and rage

Verses constructed just in time

Viewers reading line by line

Power written in the words

Striking, rapid, in a verb

Punctual, progressive, sharp

Is this what people call my art?

Some faces smile in the crowd

Others can't help but boo real loud

A privilege that I’m finally here 

A hope that I will be endeared

The stage trembles under me

My body aches from the prolonged speech

For fear sinks in and drowns my heart

A repetition that plays its part

Recited in my own way and time

Adjusted in the wake of night

Subtracted from and torn in two

Reimagined like there was no you

Erased, redrawn, and thought over

Compared and thrown onto the floor

Picked up, uncrumpled, redesigned

Viewed in a light that makes it shine

So here I stand under the light

With a poem who put up a fight 

I feel it melt into my hands

And this is how I make my stand

Chin held high and voice booming loud

Over the heads that make the crowd

A giant now with height and skill

A master, making this moment real 

I was so scared to raise my voice

To let it’s boom light up my poise

I was a mouse in a lion's den

Afraid to learn to live again

But as I stand I must decide

To live with fear or to die with pride

I need not hide my words anymore 

I now project them, they fly and soar

This moment that I cherish the most

A moment where I finally let go

And through imbalances in refrains

After standing on this stage, I will never be the same. 

/October 1, 2019/