April is National Poetry Month: Day 14

MASQUERADE BALL

A man with everything

Always lacks some one

Don’t let ‘em fool ya

People who brag about being some one-

Are usually no one

People who think themselves poor

Are actually quite rich

People who think they’ve arrived

Usually have a gazillion miles to go

People who think they shine

Are actually a galore of bore

People who think they’re hot

Are truly not

People who think too much

Do the thinking of the ones who don’t

People who think they are blind,

can actually see..if they so choose to.

People who claim they can’t hear-

Hear more than they let on

People who think themselves puny-

are usually the hidden giants among us.

People who think they’ve nothing to say-

Are the ones you wish would stay

People who think themselves mighty

Should see themselves first as lowly

People who think themselves dull

Are actually great beacons of  light,

leading ships into harbor

that have lost all their sight.

People who think themselves wise

Are usually the ones who fall for all their lies

Don’t judge a book by its cover?

Yeah, don’t be too quick to judge a man

Sit still in his presence

Soon you’ll see his true lover.

EVA SANTIAGO copyright 2013

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HEARTS EXPLODE

What causes a heart to explode
Bad news
Good news
Losing touch with its muse

What causes a heart to burst
A smile
A hug
A touch from a child

What makes a heart boom
A kiss from a lover
A love letter
Decimates all the gloom

What makes a heart blow up
Injustice
Violence
With no end in sight

What makes a heart fly into pieces
Tragedy and promise of love
Hatred and love divine
Darkness and light
Defeat and victory

We’re all living one breath away from :
Tragedy and promise of love
Hatred and love divine
Darkness and light
Defeat and victory

-Eva Santiago  Copyright  2013

 

 

 

THAT PLACE

There is a place where no one knows if it’s day or night because it’s always light.

There is a place where no one cries because there is no more fight.

There is a place where no one dies
Because no one speaks any more lies
There is a place
There is a place
Where there is no fear
Because heaven is near
There is a place
Oh there is a place
Where the fires of passion burn
Where your longings churn
And nothing gets held back
And no one is slack

There is a place
Where lovers stop time
Give in to the chase
Where lovers stop time
See eye to eye-face to face
Lips on lips
Hand in hand
THIS is that place!

-Eva Santiago copyright 2013

 

 

 

This is THAT place!

 

 

 

THAT GIRL

There is this girl

She is meek,she is mild

She rocks my world

My worries melt when I see her smile.

She is soft, she is fragile

But don’t ever underestimate her

Though soft and fragile;

Inside she is a mighty fortress

One I turn to in distress

She laughs at hardship

She winks at the moon

Lifting her arms in worship

She knows pain and sorrow end soon

She laughs at the darkness

She sings from her pain

When my world is all madness

Every note she sings keeps me sane

She is a bundle of contradictions:

Tiny yet mighty

Fragile yet strong

Soft yet hard

She laughs while she cries

She sings through her tears

She dances past the lies

Her music dispels all my fears

She is that girl

She alone can rock my world!

-EVA SANTIAGO copyright 2013

Word Picture #14

FOR: RLND…

It’s cold outside. The birds don’t even come out to sing  They’re barely looking for food.

It’s so cold outside, the sky is frigid and still;

as when someone holds toward you ill will.

ILL WILL

It’s so cold outside,

the bare branches on the tree look arthritic.

It’s so cold outside;

the wind pierces my skin and bones;

as his bitter words once pierced my heart.

It’s so cold outside;

all the chimneys sit back smoking away their worries

and telling old, sad stories.

It’s so cold outside;

the ground froze like a face does during a stroke.

It’s so cold outside;

I feel like I’m going to choke…..

 

 

It’s so cold outside;

but I’m all warm inside.

The birds outside with no song to utter

but my heart is a flutter

The sky maybe still-

but my heart will never get its fill.

And though the wind pierces my skin and bones,

thoughts of you mean I’m not all alone.

It’s cold outside;

but inside of me spring is giving way to summer.

-EVA SANTIAGO copyright 2012

Word Picture #13

She sits there in the cold
A hooded head
Hair face a wrinkled map
Missing her teeth
She is far from dead

She sits there in the cold
Her tiny frame
Trying to be bold
And she has no one to hold

She sits there in the cold
Her aged eyes
Tell you no lies
Her soul she never sold

She sits there in the cold
Folding her fragile hands
In the folds of her coat
Her life story is hidden in the sands

-EVA SANTIAGO copyright 2012

Word Picture #2

WORD PICTURES

Who is he anymore? Why doesn’t he give a damn? Knowing that he doesn’t; why does he expect anyone else to care? He sucks the life out of everyone and then wonders why they stay away. He is a bankrupt soul. She won’t let him put her in the red because she won’t give him the power or permission to do so. Their little girl asks, “ Is he ashamed of what he does?” And there is a clear answer to her alarming question: “ No he is not.”

He is a wreck who has tried to demolish other lives and yet there is one life he can’t touch. Oh, he persisted incessantly but he failed. His bitterness oozes out of the volcano that is his heart. The turbid lava oozes out and scorches everything that gets in his way. It is vile what he does, and he sees it not.  Hatred blinds the soul and it does more than that. Animosity pierces his heart and he becomes the scorpion who stings himself to death. He inflicts his poison on himself and when he opens his mouth everyone runs for cover.

He wasn’t always a beast. She remembers when his touch was gentle; when she could lay her weary head on his shoulder and everything in her world was fine. He let her see the good guy in him when their love was new and budding. He gave her hope because she was running on empty. She let down the moat to her isolated heart just this once because back then he was a knight minus the shining amour. This knight was different because his armor was covered with the dents and chinks that come from the many wars he’d fought. He’d lost more battles than he wanted to admit. He still had bits of his heart left. She let him in.

That was then, this is now. The good memories persist in her mind because that is all that she has left of him now. He walks about the place looking to pick on the weaker ones. She dodges his flaming arrows. At night she goes to sleep alone and wondering when the end will come. Her tears drench her pillow as she pleads with her God to bring an end to the suffering. She slips away into her dreams of a better tomorrow where they are both free from each other. Where they both have found peace.

-Eva Santiago copyright 2012

Guard Your Heart and Mind

I read this message I’m posting by Tyler Perry this morning and  it’s what I needed today. So I’m sharing it with you in hopes it’ll give you a great start to a good week-end. Happy Friday all :)

Hey guys,If you can get this, this will change your life… I was out taking my morning run. I love how still it is when I’m running. I can hear clearly and really commune with God. I wanted to share this with you. It’s a lesson I had to learn.

One of the keys to success is to be able to guard your heart. Now, usually when someone says guard your heart they are talking about keeping yourself from heartbreak. Although that is important (as long as you don’t go overboard… but that’s another conversation) that isn’t what I’m talking about. When we are born into this world we enter with such a pure heart but as we grow older situations, circumstances and people tend to make us change. Now I know it is nearly impossible to keep a childlike innocence in our hearts all of our lives, especially after people have betrayed, lied, mistreated and downright been the devil. Trust me when I tell you, I have seen it all. I have been there big time. If you’re like me you’ve been there too. But if this is your situation I want you to know two very important things about those moments of heartbreak. Number one, learn the lesson in it. See how it will work together for your good, because it will. Once you do, it’s easier to forgive and move on. Secondly, and this is just as important as the first one, you must not let that person or people change your heart. What do I mean by that? Well, if you are a giver and someone you have given to misuses your gift, don’t stop giving… just give to someone else. If you are a person that loves people and someone you love hates you, don’t stop loving… love someone else. Eventually, you will find people who appreciate your kindness and your love. Remember this, lots of people have been conditioned to not be able to accept purity of heart. They can’t take it in. Most times it’s not even their fault. It’s just what has happened to them on their journey in life. But don’t let them turn you into one of them. There will be a lot of people in your life who will not appreciate your pureness of heart. If they hurt you don’t stop being you… just be you with someone else.
Why is this so important? Because God blesses you according to what is in your heart. If you are being kind, giving, loving and sharing because it is in your heart and you are not looking for anything in return, then that is a heart that God wants to bless. If you change who you are because you’ve been hurt, then you’ve changed the thing that God wants to bless you according to, and that is your heart. The people who hurt you are not worth that. You can lose everything that you have, but don’t let anybody change your heart.

Tyler

365 Snap Shots of Life: Day 229

HOLA!! Here comes yet another edited poem that didn’t make it into my new book, SALSA! THE TASTE of LIFE which will be out in a little while. I wrote this when I was going through a rough spot of feeling as if life were passing me by. I sat down and this poem just came gushing out of my pen and unto the pages of my journal. I felt so good after I finished it because I took it as God comforting me and letting me know He never forgets me. I hope this soothes you as it did me  :) HUGS!!!!

Your Tears

The wind howls outside,

“Won’t you let me come in?”

It beckons: “Follow me!

Girl! Get up and at ‘em!

Your life IS passing you by.”

 

 

The wind howls outside my window;

Knock, knock, a knocking on my resistance.

Whispers ever so cunningly,

“Surely there is somewhere way better.

Won’t you find out?”

 

 

The wind, it blows in my ear;

a strange lover seducing me with sweet songs:

“You are too good for this, Mujer.

You deserve BETTER.

What are you doing just giving your life away,

for the sake of others?

No one does THAT anymore!”

 

 

The wind scolds me;

I feel it, a whip stinging my raw emotions—

¡Estupida! When are you going to learn:

In this life, nice never pays!

GO! Find your way.

GO! Get your life back.

You should’ve never thrown it away, ¡Tonta!

 

 

“Be still, mi alma!”

 

 

Silence…

 

 

Uno, dos, tres…

 

 

Here comes the gentle breeze,

the one who doesn’t knock me around,

rocks me gently to and fro.

Sweet, sweet lullaby in the night;

I fall deep in a restful slumber,

only to wake up to your gentle caresses.

The lover of my soul whispering to me,

“You are my girl, the one I lose sleep over.

The one I weep for as I pick up your tears

and collect them in this flask,

and with which I bathe my face.

 

 

Your tears are the fragrance I wear.

Never stop shedding them;

I gave them as my gift, so your heart can be healed.

In my world, nothing is wasted,

Not even one single tear.”

 

One day I will show you

what your tears have done.

For now I will tell you,

every single tear you’ve shed,

since the day your heart broke

for the very first time.

I stored your tears in a safe place;

as a rich man hordes gold.

 

 

Your tears have set the captives free,

watered thirsty travelers.

Your tears have nourished dying souls,

and watered many gardens.

Your tears have brought conviction,

turning stony hearts into repentant souls.

Your tears have set one thousand to flight,

and dispelled irksome fears.

Your tears have turned the dry arid desert

into a beautiful oasis where many come,

from near and far, to rest,

before continuing their journey.

 

 

And your tears now fill a vast ocean

that teems with life,

because when you gave away yours,

it was so I could give you something better.

 

 

From a child they forbade you to cry,

because your tears make people feel-

something people don’t want to do anymore.

I designed you to feel…that’s why you weep,

because hard hearts are dry hearts,

who are all bitter and brittle.

“My daughter, my child,

I gave you a lamenting heart:

A fountain, a reservoir full of living water.

when you weep, my river of living waters flows,

through you…my vessel of honor.”

-EVA SANTIAGO copyright 2012

365 Snap Shots of Life: Day 124

ALL NIGHT

I stayed up all night,
pondering and pacing,
with sweaty palms and heart racing;
what to do what’s the next step?
You don’t care, this I know.
All that concerns you,
is your one man show.

I stayed up all night,
pondering and pacing,
with sweaty palms and heart racing,
What are you gonna do girl?
You are here and he’s in another world.

I stayed up all night,
pondering and pacing,
with sweaty palms and heart racing,
4 young souls looking at me,
they all seek an answer.

I stayed up all night,
pondering and pacing,
with sweaty palms and heart racing,
Why are you so mean?
Won’t you ever come clean?

Alas, sleep came ever so sweetly,
I fought her I did,
sleep came ever so sweetly,
weighing down both my eye lids,
took my cares away and I left the scene quickly.

Eva Santiago © 2012