Young Poets Anonymous is a series I've decided to start where many young poets come together, share personal poems with the world and publish them online. The first one will be my own. I figured it is probably most telling of my campaign if I were to share my own writing from a recent time with my readers than to get right into to other young poets without showing my own voice. So, without further ado, here is my first slam poem I've ever shared with an audience:

What I Was

I was dirt.

I was a loose t-shirt that fit a little too baggy.

I was unhinged jaw, waiting to snap.

I was waiting to scream, waiting to kill.

I was with you and you were with me,

and together?

We were great,

we were amazing. A cataclysm of stars,

arguing to each other quietly; carelessly whispering.

But we were not right. We had jagged edges that didn't fit quite right

but we were the we that we wanted to be, it was you and it was me

and we raged against judgement

I was love

I was waiting for it, searching for it, made of it kind of love

I was "Where is Prince Charming when there's milkshakes to share and doors to open?"

I was night lights in dark rooms at night because I sleep better but hate not seeing things

Despite that I saw life in a blur

And occasionally when I blinked everything froze up a little

and i had to start moving faster to get it back to normal

I was where is it?

-my favorite jacket

-the grocery store

-love when you need it

I was wearing two different socks to remember that sometimes you can find unity in two things that are similar in some ways and different in others.

I was in love with you

My heart loved you and when we saw you we screamed with such excitement:

"Welcome home! Where have you been? We know it's messy and there are clothes on the floor but we missed you."

I was band aids

Oh, I was so many band aids

Grass stains made their way onto my heart

I fell like the leaves in spring

I was broken bones and broken hearts

Not at all my brokenness was from you

I was "where is my sister?"

I was sissy, sassy and still trying to get out of this town

I was please don't follow me but please don't leave

I was lonely

I was surrounded by bees and craved a dragonfly

I was drowning in ellipses and yet I craved and exclamation point

I was music

Music that didn't sound right

and have everybody chills down their spines

I was chills

Boy, did I love being the chills

Still starkly memorable even after they're gone

I was your bones

forming your structure

I craved you

I begged to be your chills

I was messy

Even worse,

I was an organized chaos.

Every mess had a place and every place had a mess.

It was the way I lived,

but you liked white walls and uncluttered rooms.

I was wait but man I was far too impatient to actually do that

I was moving

I was one speed better fit all

I was loud, obnoxiously loud

still am

I was miss

Miss Hoffman, missed that ball, and miss you even more

I was dirt

but now?

Now, I'm seed.

Now I am put me in the dirt

The fertile soil of who I was

now I am deeply rooted

roots

rooted deep in my mom's fingers tips and my dad's blood stream

I am so many things

Wrapped in Halloween candy wrappers and strung together with so much love

I am dirt.

I am me.