Tag Archives: in memoriam

Sirens Blazing

24 Sunday May 2015

Posted by in Poetry, Racialization Impacts

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Sirens blazing
Shots fired
Lives lost
Tears flowing

Sirens blazing
Shots fired
Lives lost
Tears flowing

A vicious cycle plaguing a nation full of rage
Rage that was neither emancipated in the age of Lincoln
Nor transcended with the election of Obama
In the spirit of bell hooks,
Black Looks and Killing Rage
Are still points of contingency for The Souls of Black Folk

Where are our Ida B. Wells or Sojourner Truths as the noose is replaced by the shield?
As the white sheets that supposedly aided The Birth of a Nation appear to be replaced by the “women and men in blue”
Is this a visceral reaction to a troubling time in this nation’s history?
For some, the answer will ultimately be “yes” but for others it will be more of the status quo.

A status quo response to the historic oppression and denigration of a collection of people who seem to have never received the promise of humanity
A collection of people whose bodies are riddled with emotional, physical, psychological, and visual assaults

Perceptions that continue for Africana women in the manner in which their bodies are assailed in a land of Patriarchy
Perceptions that continue as men of African descent no matter how well groomed or dressed still receive the “clench your purse” and/or “lock your door” treatment

Sirens blazing
Shots fired
Lives lost
Tears flowing

Sirens blazing
Shots fired
Lives lost
Tears flowing

Bloody streets along dilapidated buildings
Underfunded communities make for easy targets
Not solely for the spectacle of media coverage but for the many corporate and venture capitalists who will undoubtedly swoop in for bargain prices to fulfill their duties of gentrification

Bye-bye Fourth Ward AKA Freedmen’s Town in Houston, TX
Bye-bye to as many indicators of the past that cannot be revised by our Educational Agencies and elected/appointed officials who wish to promote a particular narrative

Sirens blazing
Shots fired
Lives lost
Tears flowing

Sirens blazing
Shots fired
Lives lost
Tears flowing

Are chickens coming home to roost?
El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz once raised such a point
And we are still waiting for an explicit answer

Sirens
Shots
Lives
Tears…

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Through Loss We Find Strength

20 Friday Mar 2015

Posted by in Poetry

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As the years and memories fade and are reimagined
The loss of loved ones endure within us sentiments
Sentiments that recapture what those we’ve loved
have meant and continue to mean each and every day
Losing those whom you love is an inevitable part of living
A part of living that reminds us of how limited our physical time will be on this earth
Reminds us what we too easily forget
the importance not only of loving but being loved
Reminds us that the love we can offer is unique
And truly meaningful
A meaning that we often are painfully reminded of in memoriam
Through loss
We find strength
A strength to cry as we reflect
A strength to mourn as our hearts require
A strength to move one step forward through each tear and moment of sadness
Through loss
We find strength
A strength to share our memories for future generations to know
A strength to help fill a void that loss often creates
Not equally as our predecessor
but only as we can through what we carry with us of them
Through loss
We find strength
A strength that is forged through long nights and pillow soaked mornings
A strength forged through battles with depression and grief
A strength forged through allowing others to see our vulnerabilities
Through loss
We find strength
To continue
To remember
To share
To love
In order that we can continue to live
So that our love for them can too…

In Remembrance

21 Tuesday Oct 2014

Posted by in Poetry

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Taking moments to reflect on what others mean is essential to the growth that each of us should seek
Living up to the lofty expectations that we are ultimately heirs to requires that we commit ourselves
To a vision beyond ourselves
Beyond our egos
Beyond our fears
One that makes those who’ve come before us proud
We can never return to the past
yet we can invoke our memories of them
in the actions that we take in the present
In remembrance
We honor those who’ve fallen
Who’ve been laid to rest
Who’ve transcended their mortal bodies
Who’ve left an indelible mark on us in some profound way
In remembrance
We may plant a tree
Name a future child
Make a contribution in their honor
But most importantly,
We build on their legacy through our gifts
To the future
To the present
To humanity
We each have much to celebrate as we remember those whom we’ve lost
In the physical form
Yet, we hold them tighter within our hearts
In remembrance
With each passing day
I know that each of them protect me
Hear my heart
Comfort me as I long to see them again
My work is not done here as I have come to understand
In remembrance
I am reminded of how fleeting our lives really are
Yet, how impactful our impressions are and can be
on those we leave behind
In remembrance of them
I hope to leave behind much for others
when I rejoin them wherever they maybe
Until that fateful moment
I will continue to fashion
the strands that will be woven to tell my story
Thereby giving further life to their stories
Their memories
Their significance to me
in the ways in which I know how
through these timely key strokes
In remembrance

A Legacy of Love, Laughter, and Wisdom

31 Tuesday Dec 2013

Posted by in Poetry

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As we live this life, we often find ourselves faced with insurmountable challenges
Whether it is about making decisions regarding family, friends, and/or careers
We are placed at proverbial forks in our roads
Often second guessing ourselves and the resulting decisions
I, for one, have been in this place of discomfort more frequently than I would like to ever admit aloud
Yet, today as I come to terms with the realization that we are laying to rest someone who means so much to me and others,
I have to make new decisions to shape the next stage of my journey
I have decided to move on yet never forget
The legacy and man whose life I’ve been so blessed to be a part of
I have decided to become that person who he saw within me
I have decided to love and share myself with others, in my own ways,
To shape my very own legacy
Emulating the man who we are here to celebrate the closing of his chapter on Earth
I have decided to be so much more than what I have made visible
Today marks a day that will remain bittersweet
I am back in a city in which I did not realize that I loved
as a result of the many relationships and experiences
that I have had over the years
Yet I am here for a reason that I still do not wish to accept
and I am still unable to say a name that I have so lovingly come to associate with brotherhood,
kindness, wisdom, giving, food especially salmon, love, family, and honesty
I do not say these words in my own selfishness but in honor of a person who I know has touched the lives of every one who is able to hear my voice
Or who has been fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of a man who commands so much respect and admiration
A man whose heart was as big as they come
A heart that gave until its very last heartbeat
I’m honored that you thought of me in your last days
I’m honored that you embraced me as a fraternity brother
and I truly believe as an adopted son
I’m honored that
Mom, Chawnte, Lil Robert, and Enrico are also my adopted family
My life has truly been made so much better as a result
As we lay you to rest,
I have also made a decision to mend the fences with my other adopted brother, Abasi
that you so patiently waited for me to do.
I have decided to do these things and more
so that you will always be a part of me and my journey.
I love you and them more than these words can ever express
Your legacy continues on as
A husband
A father
Our mentor
Our brother
Our friend
Our “Chef-Boy-R-Ghetto”
Our “TreeBob”
and
My “Denver Dad”…

Emotionally Adrift

13 Friday Dec 2013

Posted by in Live In The Discomfort, Poetry

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The awkwardness of life circumstances
Often bewilder unsuspecting souls
Leaving them wondering what and why.
What is the purpose?
Why did or is it happening?
What can they learn from it?
Derivatives of what and why echo throughout my head and heart
As I grapple with the finality that life’s beginning always requires
Its ending
Grief is something that I know that I have experienced enough for several lifetimes but I know that for each day that I’m afforded
I’m ensured that the experience is not too distant for me to forget its potential return
This is why I continue to struggle with the meaning of personal attachments
We open ourselves up to the beauties of another’s journey
only to one day see it fade away
Whether expected or not
The pain of loss is one that I have yet to master
Ironically the pain of embracing seems to be even more painful for me
I see letting others close to me as a paradox that I’m no longer sure I wish to explore
Why and what, resurface in the most complex ways
Why do we need others in our lives so desperately?
Is something that confounds me and my current state
Why does embracing others into our worlds require such risks for such immeasurable rewards?
What does a life of exile offer us in contrast?
I rely on the thoughts of Said and Sarte to fill my void
Insofar
I still have not figured this out to any real conclusion
In moments of loss and potential gains
Seeds of existential thoughts permeate my realm
As the struggle for control of each circumstance is undertaken
So far the winner does not reside within my shell
Tormented by uncertainties that beg to be asked
Yet frightfully unwilling to seek out the answer
But for tiny increments of time
when I engage my thoughts and imagination
within the written word
I am free of all that burdens me
thereby
provided a release from all that haunts me
beyond what I normally share
Some see this as humanity at its core
I see it as an exercise that I’ve learned,
which seems like so long ago
In a sense this serves as a substitute for the inactivity that entraps me
A paralysis that is of my own doing
I suppose
Emotionally Adrift
This is a journey that I am and have committed myself to
for a plethora of reasons
However
I have yet to construct a path that fits the worlds of so many who I have come in contact with throughout this odyssey
I am not Ulysses
yet I now wonder if
I seek a modern day Penelope and Telemachus
for my own return from my peculiar internal wars
that seem to plague me as if I were in an era long ago
My armor consists of an air indifference to the casual onlooker
My weapon is a lyrical medley of articulations that flow via synapses
Linking eclectic renderings…

The Legacy of Forgiveness and Conviction (Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela July 18, 1918-December 5, 2013)

07 Saturday Dec 2013

Posted by in Poetry

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With the passing of yet another of our important historical figures
I am left to give both pause and thanks
Pause to remember a person who I never had the pleasure of meeting
yet feel as though their vision for social justice, equality, and freedom were envisioned for the journey that I’m currently engaged
Well before I was born,
the legacy against oppression was begun
The mantle has been passed amongst the worthiest candidates of all genders and abilities
Yet again, I am given pause to reflect on yet another figure whose life
as we currently conceive it on Earth has ended
Another figure who engaged in the good fight
Sacrificed and endured for all that he believed in beyond his own needs
Instead for those of his beloved people
Never to be placed on some iconic pedestal that allows for those who deem it necessary
to attempt to unseat him
He was in fact very human and had his flaws as all humans do
Yet I must give thanks
for what he has offered me
is another model
of why my journey is to be as challenging
as it has been
and will be
Yet I must endure
I must recognize that I may also exist in my own form of exile, for not as long, 27 years
Separated from my loved ones and community beyond the limitations of select and sanctioned visitations
The human memory
and the wishes of those who chose to enact revisionist history
should be called into question
as those who are viewed as deviant and/or misguided
are often those who we later realize
we were just unable to comprehend the beauty
of their gift, vision, and/or passion
at the time of our encounter
We must not let ourselves and others
off the hook
for our misguided and/or misplaced deeds and thoughts
We must also hold ourselves
as well as other
accountable
not in the current sense
but one of humanism
The legacy of forgiveness and conviction
calls us to task each and every day
we must consciously seek out our truths, passions, and obligatory destinies
Revelations don’t guarantee change
Our conscious and proactive actions regarding them do
Today, work to become better than you were yesterday
in order to build on that reality tomorrow
with a legacy of forgiveness and conviction as its essence…

Personified Kindness (A Tribute to Janet Lisa Hoag Mieritz)

02 Saturday Nov 2013

Posted by in Poetry, Uncategorized

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The passing of time triggers and often erodes memories
subtly chipping away at those things precious to us—in our worlds
yet if we are lucky
we come across those special few
who touch our lives in the most impressive ways
Over the course of my lifetime
I have had the pleasure of that experience
yet with that pleasure
comes the immense pain
that losing that important figure brings
While focusing on the meaningful and pleasurable memories of those
who have etched themselves
within our hearts and minds
the seemingly insurmountable void is left
for us to acknowledge
through grieving, tribute, and cherishing
all that our minds and hearts can muster
As I painfully write these words
I, too, attempt to do all that I’m suggesting

Janet Lisa Hoag Mieritz was one of those persons for me
Her bridled fierceness was one that I admired
The gentle way in which she would remind me of my significance
in the most opportune moments
She was and remains a gift
that was shared with me during a pivotal time in my development
I didn’t always understand or fully appreciate her significance
I now realize but I’m sincerely thankful nonetheless
Your expressed pleasantries
spoke to me in the midst of occupying a space that structurally sought to strip
most, if not all, of its participants
of our humanity something precious to each and everyone of us
and from time to time
we are fortunate
to meet or have others who affirm it
in ways in which we may never have thought we needed nor were possible
Personified kindness
is not lost on those of us
who are at least remotely conscious of the blessings placed within our lives.
Personified kindness
emanates from the souls of special people
Personified kindness
was and remains in my memories of my friend,
Janet Lisa Hoag Mieritz