In the seventh grade, I had to write a poem about suicide for my health class. At first I was extremely at a loss for how to approach writing in the form of poetry. The only exposure to poetry I had was the famous poets we read in various language arts classes. As a young 13-year-old, I believed all poetry had to rhyme, so that’s how I wrote my poem for class. After multiple drafts, I finally wrote a poem that I was proud of, so I turned it in.
During my sophomore year in high school, I randomly found that poem I wrote for that health class and it sparked my interest in trying to write again. At first I wrote in rhyming verses, but then I realized that I could write in free verse. When I would find inspiration in something, I would whip out my phone and write a few verses or an idea. At home I would edit my thoughts and create a poem.
Poetry became my outlet. When times were hard, I would attempt to get my thoughts out through words. It became a habit of mine to sort my thoughts out in a creative manner. I decided to take the voice inside my head and turn it into words.
"The Voice" - an original written by yours truly
Everybody has another voice talking to them,
Sometimes it takes over your life
When you think you're doing your best, it tells you you're not
When you think you're happy, it gives you reasons to be sad
When you're talking, it tells you you're being annoying
When you're in school, it tells you that you're dumb
When you're feeling relaxed, it gives you stress
When you're calm, it gives you anxiety
It attacks you
It taunts you
It bullies you
It haunts you
No matter how hard you try,
This voice is the only thing you hear
Day in
Day out
You can't escape
Instead of making one person happy
You must satisfy two
This summer, alongside writing, I turned to slam poetry. I would watch hours of slam poetry (quick shoutout to Button Poetry for being the main homie). Real talk, if you've never watched slam poetry you are missing out on such a powerful world. https://www.youtube.com/user/ButtonPoetry. Here is a link, and now you don't have an excuse. Go on, troll your little heart away for hours and be amazed at the pure talent.
Learn this name.
Learning how to creatively express myself via a safe outlet has truly changed my life. When I am feeling low, I turn to poetry. Life throws curveballs at us, but it is our job to figure out how to catch them. To the few I have shown my poetry to, I have received nothing but positive feedback, and how relatable some of my pieces are. To me, this shows that my thoughts and emotions are real,
and valid. When I am performing my poetry somewhere, or when I become famous, just know you read about me here first.
