social commentary
There's a rich history of poetry serving as social commentary, intended to inspire calls to action.
The Reaper’s Hourglass
Inverted hourglass Sand slipping through time until Reaper knocks it down Author’s Note: I’m on day six of the fifty-day song/lyric-inspired haiku (or should it be senryū?) challenge. Today’s poem is inspired by Breathe (2 AM) by Anna Nalick, which you can listen to below.
By Stephanie Hoogstad2 months ago in Poets
Thorns
For years, she dwelled within the shade a maiden born of night with darkened lips, dressed all in black hiding from the light 🌹 She shaved off her eyebrows dressed as a vampire queen and rumors echoed through the halls They wanted her to feel unseen 🌹 "No more black," the mother spat "I will not support this phase!" Bashing all the onyx threads that made her daughters days 🌹 Along came the girl of flowers and field who mocked the dark girls art She sneered at nails of painted jet and claimed a bright, pure heart 🌹 But as the seasons slowly passed the imp pulled off a theft She stole the bats, the dark, the notes Till nothing true was left 🌹 Now posing in a borrowed face she claims she built the throne while painting over history to claim it as her own 🌹 No pictures hanging in the hall she can't hold a memory for long The wicked mother praises the fake and calls the true one wrong 🌹 She spun her lies for sixty years with no ounce of regret She blamed the court's old, darkened knight for seeds he never set 🌹 "Since when," she spat, "Do you adore this dark and dreary lace?" The daughter shoved a handful of photos in her empty, ignorant face 🌹 A hundred portraits from the past skin pale, eyes dark and bold proved every word the mother spoke was toxic, rotten mold 🌹 At her side, the shape shifting imp who once wore fields and bloom who sneered at nails and vampire tales came slinking in the room 🌹 She pulls her mask upon her face and shouts her new decree "I know the rules of dark and night, You're not as goth as me!" 🌹 "You cannot think or feel that way! My scrolls declare it so! I read the guide online today... so, I'm the one who knows!" 🌹 She points a plastic finger down and sneers with bitter pride "You do not fit the trend right now! Go step away and hide!" 🌹 "You're a fake!" the imp shrieks "A poser in the light!" While clinging to the brand new script she memorized last night 🌹 She once sang of butterflies and wore a preppy gown Now she steals bats off the walls and wears a 3D printed crown 🌹 She cakes her face in makeup and changes up her name She scrolls through instant witch scrolls to learn the ancient game 🌹 She preaches rules she never learned "You must be this or that!" She hides behind a darkened filter A fake and fleeting bat 🌹 She calls the originals 'a fraud' to hide her filtered skin Denying everything she mocked before she jumped right in 🌹 The queen who earned her velvet dress through decades in the cold now watches lemmings trade their silk for trendy, painted gold 🌹 She wears a crown of twisted thorns a shield no fraud can break Her dark roots tangled deep in earth A place untainted by the fake 🌹 Imps lie and claim they 'live their truth' They blind their eyes to spite Protecting every fake facade to keep their hatred bright 🌹 They all can slither in stolen clothes their trends will rot and fade Queens are born of real obsidian Not cheap online parade
By Sara Wilson2 months ago in Poets
Look Back
Yesterday is gone but should we not look back for lessons for today Author’s Note: This is day five of the fifty-day song/lyric-inspired haiku challenge. Today’s poem is brought to you by “Don’t Stop” by Fleetwood Mac. You’ll probably be seeing a lot of Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks in particular; they’re easily among my favorite if not my favorite performers.
By Stephanie Hoogstad2 months ago in Poets
