Tag: Publication

My Beloved Past

Dear Heart: Expressions from within

How frightened were you when you witnessed your protectors’ laying hands on each other? How helpless were you when you realised you couldn’t defend grandma from grandpa’s beating? How scared were you when your friends were punched and robbed right before your eyes? Violence made you timid and quiet, and your screams came out in all the wrong places. You walked with a hunched back as a teenager because of the weight of suffering in silence.

You loved strangers, they posed less threats than people who were close to you. You preferred distance than intimacy. You felt safe with your loved ones when there was a wall between you. You dared not to let them into your heart otherwise they would break into pieces as history had proven itself. You were filled with longing and yet so alone.

I know you danced alone, sang alone and cried alone. I know the trees knew your sorrow, the river carried your sadness, and the sky held your secrets. Before you met your Maker, you gained life from your Maker’s creation. The wind raised you to be strong as a tree; the rain nourished you to be healthy as a flower; the sun shined upon you to be blessed as the favourite one.

It was your Maker who loved you and granted you the ability to love. You were held by your Maker’s hand and travelled back to those violent memories. You no longer faced them alone with weak knees, instead, you rose in your Master’s strength, with humility and compassion. You came to understand that violence was the outwork of human’s corruption, and there was nothing you did to cause that. You were created in your Master’s image, pure and blameless.

There is so much I want to say to you. There is so much absence I want to make up for. There is so much love I want to express. And yet, without all these, you stand tall and beautiful. What’s there left for me to say except ‘I am so proud of you.’?

Thank you for your existence. Thank you for reuniting with me. Thank you for making us whole again.

Love Always,

Now

Pushcart Prize Nomination

THE FIRST IS THE LAST

We are the first born of this land 
But we are cursed
We are the tail of everything

Our land was robbed
Our blood was tainted
Our children were stolen
Our identity was denied

We bury generations of grief
Into drunken days and nights

Our refuge is the dreaming
Under the watch of our sky father
The only place we are the first
And his favourite

 
Writer’s notes: This poem is about the Australian First Nation Peoples (the Aboriginal Australians) who continue to suffer from the oppressed and persecuted past. 

The Short of It

I mostly write short poetry, so it is fitting that my four short poems have been published by Susi’s the short of it.

Wisdom

Older and wiser
Acting more silly



Unintended Strategy

She’s always his unrequited.
That’s how she won him over.



Love

I love you most
When you say very little
And do what’s needed
To keep me smiling



Cracked

I drink too much
Because I cannot bear
To see my sober self
In the mirror
It reminds me of
Every bit of
what’s wrong with me
The day you left

#Publication – The Poets Symphony (re-promotion)

The Poets Symphony
Verses, Melodies, and Lyrical Poems
Published by Raw Earth Ink in 2020
Available at Angus & Robertson, Dymocks, Amazon, Lulu

I have read this anthology again recently, and I feel it’s worth mentioning again. 💚

#Publication – Wounds I Healed


Wounds I Healed, The Poetry of Strong Women
Published by EIF
Edited by Gabriela Marie Milton

Once upon a time

I get to know Alana
she wears leopard print dress
and flaming red nails
she plays the keyboard
in broad daylight
to fight off the blues

We talk about girly stuff
skin exfoliation
hydration mask
hair tossing
and stiletto heels

She tells me about Alan
in corroboree
he wore coloured feathers
and ornamental coverings
he painted white and red bands
across his chest

Alana doesn’t go to corroboree anymore
she cannot bear to see herself
in Alan’s persona with
bare chest and hairy body
she misses her mob
and the land

It is easier to talk about
the Summer makeup trend
balayage hairstyle
slimming corset
and hot pink toes

Writer’s note: This poem was published in Australian Poetry Journal. It highlighted the struggle of being a transgender Aboriginal Australian. They are up against the disapproval of their mobs and elders. The constant feeling of the need to live a double life often adds the stress and mental strain, and subsequently has a negative impact on their mental health.

Social Justice Inks

We are having a launch party at 7pm on June 20 EST Link here

It is a history making anthology in our time. I am touched by each poem because I feel every word.

Social Justice Inks Anthology of Poetry is available now on Amazon and Lulu