Today

16/01/2021 -  Poem a Day Compilation



Today is the first day of the rest of my …

Oh, who am I kidding?

It’s one of those self-help lines

That gets trotted out

By enthusiastic people

Trying to make some kind of lasting change

In an instant.



That’s not how it works.



Today is when you make a decision.



Today doesn’t erase the past

Or the lessons you are supposed to learn

From all those mistakes you made.



Today doesn’t transform you

From the person you were

Into the person you imagine you’d like to be.



Today is when you imagine.



Today is when you look in the mirror

And tell yourself

You’re better than you used to be,

You’re stronger than you were,

You’re capable of doing the things

That you’ve always wanted to do.



So today is THE day,

And so is tomorrow,

And the day after that,

And all the days next week,

Next month, next year.



You only get one first day,

And this isn’t it,

But it’s as good a day as any

To call that friend,

To send that card,

To draw that sketch,

To write that poem.



You’ll never have another today

Quite like the one you have right now

So, grab it with both hands

And make it your day.



Because every day you have is yours

To change and be better

Or to make the world better

For someone else in your life

That deserves the very best of you.



So



What are you going to do?



What are you going to do with all of your todays?

Always on my Mind

09/09/2020 - Poem a Day Compilation



It’s always on my mind:

The unrelenting fear

Of not being enough

In this world so predicated

On the successful of everyone

And failure not being an option,

When I just want to exist,

To be at peace with myself

And the world around me,

Without the constant pressure

To be more than I am

On any given day.



It’s always on my mind:

The deep-seated resentment

I carry around with me,

Like a weight on my shoulders

That I cannot put down,

Burning its way through my soul

With every expectation

Placed mercilessly at my door

By those who choose not to understand

And are then offended by

The anger and bitterness

That spills from my lips.



It’s always on my mind:

The haunting poeticism

Of an everyday life

That is filled with days

And weeks, months, years

Of extraordinary ordinariness

That leaves no mark

And betrays no deeper purpose

Than that which society feels

Should be my place within its confines

And allows no room for self-expression

Or mould-breaking experiences.



It’s always on my mind:

The plaintive melody sung softly

By a heart that yearns to be free

Of the shackles of normalcy

And escape the overarching shadows

That dim the light inside me

To a point where I cannot see

Where I end

And the rest of humanity begins

As we form an amorphous mass

Of pseudo-intellectualism

And rabid hatred of other.