I am not a Poet

I love poetry, but I am not a poet
poets fascinate me
But I never said, ‘I am a poet’:
because I have sabotaged my courage,
wounded my conscience,
closed my eyes, trusting my ears,
learned how to live, deceiving my heart.
Because I refused to sacrifice for truth,
I walk down cast.
I have become the grave of my emotions.
Sir, Madam, you are wrong!
I am not who you say I am.
What is a mere poet!?
What is a mere poetess!?
Life’s surface is not its true depth
The tongue is not the emotion.
Having read, examined, and documented
truth, love, conscience, and justice combined
the poet abides in struggle, listens to his heart
for the sake of beauty
advocates for the muzzled, oppressed
his gasp as self-sabotaging payment.
The pen is his candle, emotion his sword
the poet is the light and the candle
I cannot accept an honor that I cannot uphold--
I do not simply want to be but to act.

Are You Writing?
Are you writing, sketching and scribbling,
Silently roaring and arguing?
Engraving your deep emotions
with a dough of tears!

That give off steam and heat
there and then
When truth battles to speak,
and justice is hijacked
compassion is trampled,
and love screams
when the center cannot hold
and anarchy is loose
do you shudder away by the pain and noise?
Or do you withhold, observe,
and stay and write?

Their lie is called truth,
your truth falsehood
their bigotry is called honor,
your courage is paid in death.

How could you then not not-write--
while standing there and it is fleeting before you--
of course, you would write. How couldn’t you!

Go then and write, let it flow.

But where is the paper?
just write it in the mind,
or conceal it in the heart for now The safe store,
where the wind cannot reach
and the flood cannot destroy.

Die Gefängniszelle passt zu meinen Körpermaßen
Der Lehmfußboden ersetzt mein Bett.

Ich ersticke fast, jeder Sonnenstrahl, jeder Lufthauch ist Medizin
Die Zelle eine Hölle, ihre Tür ein Schlangenmaul

Ich halt‘ es nicht mehr aus
Selbst wenn der Teufel fragt "kommst Du mit"?

Ich würde folgen egal wohin