Flashback

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my heart stopped.

flashback. what if?

then i thought,

what if they had chosen

blue pill over red pill?

and i never get to hold your hand

ever again?

and i never see your smile

again?

and then my brain freaked out. Continue reading →

Be Kind, Rewind

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Just like those old videotape cassettes from Blockbuster, my life’s mantras include this phrase. Be kind, rewind.

We have a number of encounters daily. We pass by, meet, bump into, smile at, sneer at, throw blank-face looks at strangers. We talk with friends, vent, laugh, swear with and sometimes at them too. We text, we post, we video call, we tag, we call those we love, those in our circles. We send memes, funny videos, screenshots all around.

We should always remember to be kind. Be kind to others should be a necessary rule in every household, to be followed by everyone in the house including mom and dad.

Opportunities to be kind show up in many ways…that are too many to count. Being kind Continue reading →

Doubt

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It crawls into that space left behind

by broken histories and assumed expectations.

It is the offspring of the marriage between

anxiety fueled by a lack of reciprocity

and the perception of fading effort.

It bubbles up within,

threatening to choke and displace

the good feels sparked initially…

And worst of all,

it makes what was once simple,

so rabidly complicated and tainted.

It breaks your heart.

 

Untitled (the day I knew)

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Do not be careless with me

I am frail, propped up by hope

and that wish for a fairy tale ending.

Handle me with care and

if you cannot do this,

then let me go.

I fear, though, it may be too late Continue reading →

A Writing Challenge

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This September, I vow to write something every day for the 30 days in the month. I don’t have a specific reason for picking September except it is the next new month. And I am raring to go. Thanks to the friends joining me in this quest to spark creativity!

 

#30DaysWIS (WIS = Writing in September) Rules + Suggestions aka Guidelines:

A. Write anything. Any format. Haiku, essay, one word piece, sonnet, rap rhymes, poem, short story, letter to the editor. ANY thing.

B. Post it somewhere (preferably link to Twitter) by midnight each day in your timezone.

C. Use the hashtag #30DaysWIS so we can read and give feedback.

And that is it.

The informal rule(s)? Have fun, let your inner writing freak flag fly!

Twende kazi.

A Plea

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Don’t let the flame die

a quick and easy death,

ignored and callously treated.

Treat it like rare gems,

place your gaze upon it often

and if it falters, looks like it is fading,

you will notice it immediately.

Treat it like a living plant,

pour your love and attention upon it often

and if starts to wilt, feed it

what it needs.

Don’t be careless with the flame,

it hides within it a sensitive soul,

scarred by previous upsets,

with scabs left over from idiots and heartbreakers

who came before you and chose a path away.

Away from a flame that they set,

and extinguished without mercy.

Behind this flame that re-lit for you,

fanned by your attention, your promises

of a bright and shared future,

lies a heart that holds misty smoke trails

of a fear of being abandoned.

Do not fear this flame,

as your fear only serves to squash the tendrils

of love that wrap itself around the scarred heart.

Most of all,

do not dare be careless

with this flame,

and the person within whom it burns.