Hewo everyone!!!
Most of you already know how this goes by now, but pls remember to only vote after you have read all of the poems and tysm to everyone who had been voting for all the other poetry comps!
This week’s poetry prompt was Music Can Heal, and pls keep in mind that some of these poems might/might not be based off of true stories.
Also, last week’s winner was @CrochetMachine123 , and here is their poem!
Before you read, this poem has a trigger warning of animal abuse and abandonment, just for people who are sensitive to those topics!
An Animal's Perspective
It smells funny here
Surrounded by my brothers and sisters
Other people come by to take them away
I watch them go, and I sit in fear
Why am I still here? All alone on my own
When all of a sudden a Human comes along
Little did I know, that would be My Human, full of love I would be shown
This was the moment I knew I found My Human
They took me home, they looked angry
I wasn’t sure why
I knew how to fix that, I could make them happy
When we arrived, I saw a bed! I ran up to it and got snuggled up
My Human was more angry though, grabbing me by my scruff and dragging me away
Even though it hurt, I loved My Human, so that was okay
I saw another Human, he looked excited! I found out his name was Sammy
We locked eyes and I knew he was the one who I would make happy
Weeks passed, I played with him and found joy with my new boy
But soon after he would become tired, I noticed it was only when I was around, when he was alone he never seemed tired…
I tried to play with My Human, but they were still angry, they shouted when I was near, even while I was napping
Even when they were bored, when I came by, they started snapping…
After about a year or so, my bowl was often empty, I found myself growing weaker, less playful, and so so tired
“Come on, boy! We’re gonna go on a ride!” A ride? I hadn’t been on a ride in so long! I ran to the door, so excited to be going somewhere
Where are we going? Is it fun? Will I get food? I’m hungry! I hope it’s food
We came to a stop, My Human took me out of the car, they were still angry…
“Come 'ere, boy! I got a ball!” Ball? I hadn’t seen that ball since… well, I couldn’t even remember
I chased that ball, unknowing it would be the last time I would ever do that…
I got the ball! The familiar scent of My Human’s car faded as I ran back
I looked around, Human? Huumaann? Where did My Human go?
I never found My Human, but I had a good time with them
I miss My Boy, I wonder if he misses me…
I wish they hadn’t left, but that’s ok… I love My Human!
Right?
I laid down, for the last time, my only thoughts being “I love My Human, right?”
As my senses fade, like sand blowing in the wind
And here are the other poems!
Pls note that some of these poems have trigger warnings like addiction, mental @buse, and grief.
Tysm everyone and happy writing! -Yani, Alora (my pen name)
#1
I never thought something as simple,
As simple as music would change my life.
About a year ago,
I was stuck,
In a hole I could not get out.
Mother was worried,
Father was so upset he left.
He said it would help,
But it didn’t.
It made life far worse.
I kept doing it,
I couldn’t stop,
For the pain on the outside was k!lling me,
However, it would calm.
With the tiniest pill,
The voices in my mind fled.
Even though I was feeling better,
Less stressed,
Less hurt inside,
I had developed an addiction.
Mother tried to get me therapy,
Tried to fix my brokeness,
But nothing worked.
Well, that is until I found,
A whispering melody,
Tuneful chords created,
When pulled from each string.
The melody enchanted me,
So I went into the music room,
Sat on a chair facing a figure,
A kind fellow.
I just started telling him everything,
Although I didn’t know him.
He recommended me to music,
Said it helps us show our inner voice,
Show our vulnerability without feeling shame.
He told me to join,
Said he’d get me started.
I picked out an instrument that day,
I thought he was just saying that,
But when I played,
I felt at peace.
I could be myself.
And no one would judge.
I don’t believe in miracles,
But you could say that day was a miracle.
From that day on,
I fell in love with music.
I guess it is true what they say,
With a small melody,
A drifting note,
Even the deepest wounds,
Can music heal.
I discovered as I played,
Plucking each string,
That I didn’t need no pill,
I didn’t need to hide,
Pretend like I was okay.
The pill was just putting a bandage,
Like putting the strip over a cut,
With no medicine,
No air,
How must it ever heal?
But once music,
Once music had been put into my life,
I was no longer on that pill,
Heck, I didn’t even realize,
That something so small,
Just a hobby,
Could save me from my plight.
The medicine I though I was taking,
Was not medicine,
For the medicine was music.
#2
Strum, strum
I pluck the strings on my guitar,
Feeling the vibration
Make its way to my heart,
To my mind.
What is this feeling?
I strum once more.
Tap, tap, tick, tick.
The tapping from my pick,
The ticking from the metronome,
It’s been a while since I’ve heard
This simple sound,
Played a simple note.
How can a strum, strum help me cope?
Anger, depression, anxietym
Music heals,
Music heals,
Is what they say.
Apparently, it can take the pain away.
1 hour of strumming, 2 hours of tears,
Sadness, pain, and frustration,
Have all but gone away.
If you so choose a drug to be a relief,
Choose the magic and beauty of music.
For all the happiness and joy
That is to come,
All from a simple
Strum, strum.
#3
When I was just a child
I thought everything would stay the same
We would stay together, love forever
Those hopes soon went up in flames
It started with you coughing
It soon went downhill fast
It was too late: the doctors told us
You were already in the past
It was hard to go home
Walking through the door
This was our place: a house: a home
You said you would be with me. You swore
I knew I couldn’t wait anymore
I went into your room
Sitting down on your piano bench
I could still smell your perfume
I grabbed your rusty old guitar
Right off the wooden shelf
I had told you to throw it out but now
I needed it for myself
I grabbed the amp, pick, and cord
I sat down on your bed
I played a song; of my grief and loss
Played until my fingers bled
Sang about a house full of song and music
A house that now was dark
Even though I had never played the song before
My fingers found their mark
After I was done
I told you how much I missed you
Your smile and your laugh
And even though I knew it was impossible
I thought I heard you singing back
#4
Through the sadness and the pain
Through the struggle of my life
Music got me through again
And it does time after time
That time I wanted to leave
I strummed my guitar
The pain in me
Drifting away so far
All those times that you made my life not worth living
All those songs that I wrote
All those lyrics I started believing
All those fears drifted away on a boat
Though I am mentally @bused
I see the power of music
Scared of what you might do
You can’t scare until I lose it
All I need is my music
#5
The drive.
Every day, the drive.
The drive to that big white building,
The one that smelled like chemicals,
The one that felt so very cold.
There were so many sounds,
They bounced off the sterile walls.
The floor squeaking under my shoes,
The beeps of monitors, the soft drips,
The codes called, the charts read.
And worst of all, the Silence.
There were so many sounds,
They bounced inside my head.
The drive.
Every night, the drive.
The drive back to an empty home,
The one where I felt alone,
The one where all I did was cry.
I laid on the couch and just listened to the sounds.
The hum of the lightbulbs, the click of the fridge.
They echoed like memories, footsteps,
The ones trapped in my head.
But nothing could drown out
The Silence.
I drifted through the days,
Lost in the waves of deafening Silence.
But then a sound rose through,
Piercing the muffled blackness.
Piano keys played in G Major,
A song I had never heard before.
The lyrics didn’t fit my pain,
The story belonged to another.
But the meaning was true,
And it reflected in the Silence.
I heard the hope, the fear, the uncertainty.
I knew the desire for renewal.
I joined in the prayer for emergence.
I clung to the sounds like a life raft,
And I let it guide me back to shore.
Wave by wave, day by day,
I let the hope of saxophone notes buoy me,
Until the drives were over.
Until gravity restored.
Until the Silence was broken.
Some days the memories threaten to spill,
A boiling pot ready to bubble over.
But instead I reach for the dial,
And I turn the volume up.
I let the music turn the tide,
And wash the overwhelm back,
Back to the silent depths,
Back to the blackened past.
I won’t go back there.
The music won’t let me.
The Silence can’t drown me,
Not so long as I can hear a harmony.
I will emerge stronger.
No, the Silence can’t break me,
Because I am breaking the Silence.
#6
Sometimes it’s too loud,
Sometimes everyone around me,
Is driving me to a slow dilution of my sanity,
Shrouding me in madness.
Sometimes I can’t handle myself,
Seeing red,
Panicking in place.
Deep breaths shudder,
And then I reach for them.
Slipping in my headphones,
It bubbles around me.
Holding me in place.
Tethering me in peace.
Doesn’t matter whether the rhythm shouts,
Screaming what I feel,
Nor does it when it hums,
Singing soft lullabies,
When I close my eyes,
And slip my thoughts away.
One by one.
The longer I listen the more control I feel,
The longer I listen, the better it is.
The world can hurt me as much as it pleases.
But inside this space I put on,
It only waits.
#7
Ten minutes left, ten minutes left.
The Silence of exams stays.
Not even a cough, a sputter.
Stress spins in my mind.
Silence
Means awkwardness
A not-funny joke,
Gossip that’s not gossip,
A shy girl joining the popular group.
Silence
Means anger
Compressed into our lungs
Wanting to scream
But Silence screams for us.
But Music can heal
It smiles
Pats you
Hugs you
Waits for you.
The social kid breaking the silence
In the popular group.
Birds chirping eagerly
On a drowsy Monday.
Music in the middle of a situation of anger
Calming your mind, relaxing your lungs.
The exam is over.
Everyone exhales.
You put on earbuds and walk out
Of the room.
No matter if it is
The Blue Danube by Strauss
Or
Gnarly performed by KATSEYE
Or
Birds chirping
Pages turning
People speaking
Music heals,
Relieves,
Calms your mind.
- #1
- #2
- #3
- #4
- #5
- #6
- #7
. Don’t worry I undid my vote