Tell no one your deepest dreams
Those valuable things
That manifest in the heart's nebula
The burning factory of creation
Tucked securely in your soul
They are precious treasures
Composed of ether and moonlight
Not fit for just anyone's consumption
-gws
Dear woman in the mirror
How are you today?
Did you sleep well?
I’d like to ask you to be my Valentine?
My Gal-entine?
My number one relationship
Will you dream with me of our happiness?
Will you help me manifest our joy?
I promise to shower you in compliments
To speak softly and gently to you
I will hold your wellbeing above all things
I know I haven’t always been your cheerleader
I have often been your worst critic
And I’m sorry for that
I’m learning how to treat you better
I’m learning how to better support you
To do more than acknowledge you have needs
I wish to meet those needs
I wish to show you the deepest kindness
I wish to reflect your incomparable worthiness
Because you are always worthy
No matter what others say or do to prove otherwise
Would you like a cup of tea?
How about a blanket and a good book?
Do you need a moment in the sun,
Or perhaps a nap buried beneath mounds of blankets?
You and me are the OG
We’ve got to take care of each other
Because no matter who comes and goes
We will always have each other
We’ve endured a lot together
I know you are so tired
I promise you that we will learn to move
From surviving to thriving
You and I
Let’s start today, my Valentine
By promising to say these three words
Every time we see each other
I love you
I love you
I love you
(I love me)
(I love me)
(I love me)
-gws
If you miss me
When you miss me
Fill the emptiness with music and dancing
I call on the photographers, poets, dancers, writers, creators, dreamers
I have left a hole in this world to fill and it's up to you to fill it
My light may be extinguished
But the spark remains
And I pass it on to you
To light the darkness with creation
If you miss me
When you miss me
Create boldly
Sing loudly
Dance joyfully
Write prolifically
Daydream often
If you miss me
When you miss me
Cook your favorite meal
Watch your favorite movie
Make a date with friends
Buy a new pen and notebook
Wish on the biggest fluffy dandelions you can find
If you miss me
When you miss me
Live a stereophonic life
Make everyday a symphony full of
Crescendos and decrescendos
Adagios to allegros and back again
And let it into your bones
The achingly beautiful and the triumphantly bold
For this is how life is
Textured, varied, colorful and subdued
If you miss me
When you miss me
Remember to laugh often
Speak your truth honestly, but kindly
Live authentically
Love fiercely
Be the spark of magic and madness the world needs
If you miss me
When you miss me
Do the things that bring you contentment
Enjoy them without the burden of guilt
Life is meant to be experienced
And I wish you a lifetime of fulfilling experiences
If you miss me
When you miss me
Make a wish on a star
Write me a letter
Hug someone you love
Surround yourself with love
Walk through the world with love
And compassion
And empathy
If you miss me
When you miss me
Know that I miss you too
I will never be far from you
Ready to celebrate you
Support you
Comfort you
Love you
From wherever I am
If you miss me
When you miss me
Read this poem
And know I miss you too
-gws
Please forgive my silence
It is not easy to converse
When I don't have much to say
Not for want of company
But for lack of breath to speak
I have been gasping lately
In pain
In tears
In prayer
Gasping for air in a chest too tight
On days when getting up takes
All my might
All my fight
Please forgive my silence
My burdens are so much to bare
I hold myself too tightly wound
For fear of shaking into pieces
And if I set my voice free
I worry what will become of me
-gws
Sometimes when I lay down my head
All tucked up tight upon my bed
I drift and float and start to dream
Cascades of words just like a stream
I wonder at this gift of mine
Delighted I can dream in rhyme
No two dreams are quite the same
My poet's mind did birth this game
Though rhyming dreams are often fun
It's time to call this poem done.
-gws
I am from slave ships, cotton fields, and courthouse slave trades
I am from generations of strong women who fought to do more than simply survive
From an oldest, broken white son with a poet's heart and a love of rivers
I am from a youngest, determined black daughter who sacrificed so much for those she loves
I am from a loving grandmother who wore her traumas as bitterness
While she fixed fried chicken and collard greens with ease
I am from Saturday morning chores with the "golden oldies" playing
I am from love and struggle and sacrifice, the latter two I was rarely aware of
I am from church on Sundays to commune with a God I knew better than most in that place
And who wore a virgin mother's countenance
I am from morning and afternoon cartoon blocks
And Saturday mornings in front of the TV singing to School House Rock
I am from riding my bike for miles and for hours
I am from being too curvy to be a real dancer
While I danced my heart to joyful dust on every stage
I am from having so much to say but rarely feeling heard
I am from watching TV at the same time as a friend while on a phone attached to a wall
And playing chicken with who will hang up before a parent yelled at both of us to get off the phone
I am from acid washed jeans, baby doll tops, denim, velour, and asymmetrical collars and hems
Hammer pants, jelly shoes, banana clips, mismatched pairs of accessories, side ponytails
From French-cut leotards, stirrup pants, Lycra biker shorts, flavored lip gloss, and neon everything
I am from My Little Pony, Strawberry Shortcake, Rainbow Bright, Cabbage Patch Kids, He-Man, and She-Ra
I am from Voltron, Robotech, GI Joe, Snorks, Smurfs, reruns of Loony Tunes, and Scooby-Doo
From Newton's Apple, Square One TV, 321 Contact, Not Another Science Show, and Read It
I am from Garbage Pail Kids, Magic: The Gathering, Pogs, and Beanie Babies
I am from "Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret?" and "The Dollhouse Murders"
From Choose Your Own Adventures, and Encyclopedia Brown
Christopher Pike, Diane Duane, collections of "true" ghost stories and tales of the strange
I am from Dallas, Dynasty, Rescue 911, and Unsolved Mysteries
Fantasy Island, The Cosby Show, and The Wonderful World of Disney
I am from "At the sound of the tone *chime sound* turn the page."
From hitting record on my tape deck hoping to catch my favorite song without a DJ's voice
I am from Fisher Price record players, dual tape decks, and dropping mix tapes for mix CDs
From VHS winning over beta-max and laser disc
From spending hours in mall bookstores, arcades, and food courts
I am from dreams and imaginings
Soap bubble fairy wishes and hours of made up worlds alone and with friends
From possibilities and plans
I am from "You will have more than I did."
And "You will want for little."
I am from a loving mother who never let me feel alone
I am from good friends who never made me feel like the weird kid I kinda was
I am from "You are as good, if not better, than EVERYONE else, and don't you forget it!"
And "You can do anything you put your mind to."
I am from a tapestry of experiences and influences
From a variety of adventures and explorations
I am from a life full of love and support and as much opportunity as could be afforded
And though not always easy or smooth
I am from the just-right mix that created the me you see
-gws
I didn't need to have a reason
But I did
The reason I avoided that place
Was you
Was me
Was us
You see
That was the place you decided that
Us ceased to be
That was the place where
I returned to being just me
The place where your voice
Was replaced by the sound of slowly cracking glass
As my heart shattered in my chest
Your eyes pitied me
While your lips spilled more
Shattered glass to fill my roaring ears
I forgot how to breathe
And my now shattered heart forgot how to beat
And your eyes pleaded with me
Because you were already gone
You had dismantled us
Placed the pieces into a shoebox
And buried me alive in a shallow grave
I love you-s replaced by
I'm sorry-s
Those brown eyes indeed sorrowful
As my soul was felled by a thousand surgical cuts
Sundering two halves into two less-than wholes
I just wanted you to stop talking
To stop looking at me that way
To stop tearing down my world
Then you left
And I stayed
I didn't need to have a reason to avoid that place
But I did
-gws
Ecstasy illuminates
It amplifies joy
Making time feel inconsequential
Grounding me deep in the moment
Called by the here and now
Allowing full presence in the experience of it
Ecstasy demands we be seated in our bodies
To experience pleasure
And laughter
And belonging as part of the great tapestry of living
Our senses acute and engaged
Begging we greedily partake
In the gifts that life offers
Richly
Vividly
Intricately
With all of our senses
Inciting never ending curiosity
And a desire for the bliss of it to never end
-gws
My name is: Woman Daughter Wife Mother Teacher Student Warrior Healer Friend Foe Philosopher Dreamer Writer Lover Artist Seer Goddess Spirit Light Gladys -gws
In another life I might have been A pirate queen A courtesan A poison-wielding spy A teacher's pet A protégé The apple of your eye A doe-eyed starlet A beatnik poet A comic, humor wry An astronaut A swimming star A mime who would not cry And yet I have this life to live One shot for this go 'round For all the mes that might have been I like the me I found -gws
Words Wishes and Wisdom 