Read Poem: (Revolutionary), by Behzad Asadi 

This is the beginning of a revolution
I saw in the darkest penetration
I will summarize you, but
In the form of tattoos all over my body

This is the beginning of a revolution
The war of lions and deer is the beginning
The best time to hunt wolves and ewes
The last black dot of the dawn time

Not everything is glorious
The rebellious symbol of change within
The thought that eats away at your soul
Resurrection is something that’s out

We are a secular mentality, but
You are objectively a revolutionary
Take the button off your shirt
Until the hair becomes gently blue

You are like the eighty-eighth catastrophe
You taught us a great lesson
Each single branch dies soon
Reason is the only way to freedom

You are a revolutionary for me
Eternal avant-garde on a strip
Greater than Marx and Hegel
You have a higher thought than Nietzsche

You are a revolutionary for me
This penetrating presence is not accidental
The meaning of your gaze mediates me
There is no split in our bond

Behzad Asadi

Read Poem: a collapse. by gabriel edwards

lights flashed through the car window
illuminating your face, even for a brief moment
your beauty shined brighter
than any luminous entity
that could have made itself present
through that car window
on that very night

rob scallon was playing through the stereo
the song happened to be called
“a collapse”
i think of it as
a collapse of skewed views
of previous opinions
on what love really is
a collapse of fear
pressure
doubt
pain
instead, it shall be a rise
a rise of trust
happiness
pleasure
strength
safety
love.
my love for you doesn’t fade
it will always be present
just like the lights flashing through the car window
on that very night
on your very face
with such a pretty smile

Read Poem: One at a Time: For the writing class, by Bob Conder

8 May 2020

One at a time, they drop in and say hi.
One at a time, they try not to die.
One at a time, they listen and write.
One at a time, they make the words tight.

One at a time, they listen and learn.
One at a time, to finish, they yearn.
One at a time, they explore their mind.
One at a time, the words they grind.

One at a time, they seek inspiration.
One at a time, they find admiration.
One at a time, to write; they will.
One at a time, their babies they kill.

Read Poem: I am Three in One, by Rodney Damon Collins

I am three in one,
Yes, there is a body, but what is not seen is the mind and soul that guide the actions of this body
The mind is the gift of reason and creativity given from the one above
The soul guides my morality, it’s the essence of how I view reality
Mind, will and emotions, I am three in one.
3 stands for perfection whether it’s past, present, and future or birth, life, and death or
beginning, middle, and end, it all represents completion.
By being three in one, I am a divine creation with a god-given purpose
That purpose can be seen in the way I live, the way I love, and the way I laugh
I am three in one
This body that I have been given is a covered in a beautiful brown skin, this skin is fine, it’s
desired by all, it’s protection from winter, spring, summer and fall
My mind is exceptional
With my thoughts, I can create an entire world
What I see I can make a reality
Which is why it is treasured as one of the world’s most precious pearls
My soul is eternal
While my body will decay and my mind could slip away, my soul will see past the 24 hours we
have in a day
I am a living miracle
Some may say I’m dope
Which is why I can never live with my potential tied to a rope
Coloring outside the lines, is what I was born to do
Which is why I have permission from my Father
who said I love you go do what you do!
So I am bold in every step I take
Because time is fleeting with every day I wake
Some may say your too old to do this or that, look what others have done
E.T. says leave on E!
Living a life so full that you leave it empty!
I say my life’s just starting since I am three in one

Read Poem: Soulmates by Definition of Love, by Sharon Braxton

Wedding Poem from A Crying Shame, novel by Sharon Braxton

WE STAND BEFORE GOD

OUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS

A VOW TO LOVE EACH OTHER THROUGH THICK AND THIN

AS EACH DAY PASSES, WE SHALL ALWAYS BE ONE

UNTIL THE LAST HOUR OF THE SETTING SUN

I LOVE YOU MORE THAN EVER BEFORE

TOGETHER WE SHALL WALK THROUGH THAT OPEN DOOR

******************

SOULMATES BY DEFINITION OF LOVE

GOD HAS PLACED YOU IN MY WORLD

I’LL BE THERE FOR YOU

BECAUSE YOU COMPLETE ME

TOGETHER WE’RE ONE

ON A SPIRITUAL JOURNEY

******************

A LOVE LIKE TWO BIRDS CHIRPING IN A TREE

STORMING RAINY DAYS, JUST YOU AND ME

TOGETHER FOREVER A SENSE OF SERENITY

TAKING IT BACK TO THE DAYS OF

JUMPING THE BROOM STICK

LOVE IS DEEP ISN’T IT!

******************

TWO HEARTS CONNECTED AS ONE

JOINED TOGETHER THROUGH LOVE AND DEVOTION

SLOW WALKS IN THE PARK

LONG TALKS IN THE DARK

HOW BEAUTIFUL WE ARE TOGETHER

LOVING ONE ON ONE FOREVER.

*******************

AT PEACE I AM WITH HE

A MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN SO WONDERFUL AS THEE

I’M HERE FOR YOU AND YOU FOR ME

LOVING YOU HAS MADE MY LIFE CHANGE

ETERNALLY YOURS, BEST FRIENDS FOR LIFE

I THANK GOD I AM YOUR WIFE

*********************

GOD HAS PLACED YOU IN MY WORLD

I’LL BE THERE FOR YOU

BECAUSE YOU COMPLETE ME

TOGETHER WE’RE ONE

ON A SPIRITUAL JOURNEY

SOULMATES BY DEFINITION OF LOVE

Read Poem: WITHIN MY WOMB, by J.S. Wolfe

you taught me a game I refined
And I wish I never tried
you feasted on what men were denied

Left with less to lose
Lost racing the rising moon
With no roads left to choose

you planted scars within my womb
your silence resting within my wounds
your eternal fire died too soon

I spilled my life into your soul
you devoured me whole
you stranger you joker you fool

The games burnt your mind
Your hand destroyed mine
My ace was rendered poor

you taught me a game I’ll regret
I will remember to forget
Let your silence rest

Deep within my womb

Read Poem: Back in the Day, by J. Quinzelle

hey remember when We used to
_____ride____
in Your caddie? when You
shaved_that_loco_coco
and I tresflores My feathers back
and We would … flyàthroughàthe Valley?
We used to listen to doo-wop and zapp&roger
among the southside cholo beats
riot/chaos/bedlam
wearing dickies We put time into creasing
DAMN! We looked good haHAha
but! We never claimed…
…We were guilty by association
in the frigid vineyards the kegs&blunts
galore and bliss
talking/eating/dealing shit
wearing rags hanging from the back pocket
FUCK! We were Raza
and we were PROUD of it…
…not racist: AZN in the crew.
hey remember the nicknames
casper willy blackie that fool bling bling?
We trusted/betrayed/suspected/forgave
but it was all in fun
fights&blood&tags&cops
We would runrunrunhide
then lick Our wounds with lies
i still remember…

Read Poem: Big Mama, by Johnnie Mack 

Her hands divided into 360
Sun flowers bowed before her
The stars martyred themselves as thread
For the revolution
She hummed the music of the spheres
A tune in her head
As she wove the universe from every corner
Until she made it to the middle of the universe
A black hole larger than any sun
Her quiet place
The spot where her thoughts get caught up
The bad ones
History repeats itself blisters of memory
And prophecy
Time is not linear
Sun flowers bow before her
Floating in the garden of the galaxy
Her brown eyes in retrograde
Her heart a super nova
Looking at the pain of the chain around the neck of the slain
Her kin, her children
Lambs in a den of lions
The great mother pauses
She who braided the universe into plats stopped
Reconsidered if anything differed if she changed one flick of her wrist
Were her children of a darker hue destined to be used and abused
She wept
Asteroids cracked
Comets flew into the sun
The stars multiply in hopes that their shine would cheer her
All of what she made swirled around her hum
Her drum
Her song
Her lamentations of her creations
Even her black hole was loud with the music of her pain
But as she repented to twist braids
In her travail and labor she gave birth to those who are alive
Made their melanin magical
The mitochondria to all humanity
To remind the off spring to fall in line so summer can be longer than winter
She hummed this mom
This galactic diva
She wrote spells and incantations on our skin
So in times when our stress sinks within
Her sun on our skin can begin to shine the light
And recharge the melody
The music of the spheres
The song of hope that helped the mother give
Birth
To all colors dyes hues electrical reflections of
Light, Big Mama gave her milk to the Spectrum
To overcome the crashing planets
To joy in the life of life
Love you Big Mama