i
am the
warrior princess
translucent black crystal time evolution
of djembe heart beat kings and
queens
who set the day
in rhythmic regality
(refuse to eulogize living definitions)
i
am not plastic
do not sell my self
to the plastic gods
i am sparkling diamond strong—
scintillating facets of me/of us
winds hurl sticks against me
cut the face that will not
be broken
my ideas wrap around me
warm like
any mink coat
i
am the brainchild of thrift
and duality
(there is a use for everything)
confetti rains from above – i am
the survivor
of the survivors
i don’t need a named boat
to announce my presence
the blues is my paramour
i am muse-ic
can’t find a groove
without me
i get frantic funky
windex that rhetoric
you tellin me
i’m in your face
and i
swing Truth
and cultivate it
brilliant twinkling stars float from the sky
blind innocence long escaped
but my smile like an emerging sun
brings illumination to your
dull knifed world
my hair scents of violet ginger
hands not cuffed
feet not shackled
i dance the dance of Hope
prosperity
self-love
and brotherly embrace my
intonations reverberate honey
dripped
intensive color
brief menace of time
you want to catch me with the net you throw into the sea
but i elude you
until the designer in you tailors an approach that
makes me want…
to be caught
let the winds caress – i am nefertiti captivating
schools
only suffocate me with
what i already know
the Universe within
i have only to ask
and then bask in Sun
knock
the latched door opens
i run with gazelles’ swift Grace
won’t stop for rest
explosive spirit
my make-up is not hideous when i sweat
my rose bushes blossom
rich/positively red
i am the brash brilliant colors of invention
the notes of remorse
the brushstroke reality
the brick-laying of fantasy
the bronze clay moldings of genius
my tears nourish the inheritance garden
i don’t walk on stilettos
my feet firm on soil
make whole impact with the terrain
i won’t tip through life
for anybody
you can tell by my gait
i got it covered/
tonto
without the lone ranger
roll out the mud cloth rugs for me to walk on
barefoot
‘cause i am
Photo: Shutterstock
Jacquese Armstrong is a writer/poet/mental health advocate residing in Central New Jersey. Her work has appeared in Black Mental Health Network, Black Magnolias Literary Journal and BLACKBERRY: a magazine, among others. She was a 2015 recipient of the State of New Jersey Governor's Council on Mental Health Stigma Ambassador Award.
am the
warrior princess
translucent black crystal time evolution
of djembe heart beat kings and
queens
who set the day
in rhythmic regality
(refuse to eulogize living definitions)
i
am not plastic
do not sell my self
to the plastic gods
i am sparkling diamond strong—
scintillating facets of me/of us
winds hurl sticks against me
cut the face that will not
be broken
my ideas wrap around me
warm like
any mink coat
i
am the brainchild of thrift
and duality
(there is a use for everything)
confetti rains from above – i am
the survivor
of the survivors
i don’t need a named boat
to announce my presence
the blues is my paramour
i am muse-ic
can’t find a groove
without me
i get frantic funky
windex that rhetoric
you tellin me
i’m in your face
and i
swing Truth
and cultivate it
brilliant twinkling stars float from the sky
blind innocence long escaped
but my smile like an emerging sun
brings illumination to your
dull knifed world
my hair scents of violet ginger
hands not cuffed
feet not shackled
i dance the dance of Hope
prosperity
self-love
and brotherly embrace my
intonations reverberate honey
dripped
intensive color
brief menace of time
you want to catch me with the net you throw into the sea
but i elude you
until the designer in you tailors an approach that
makes me want…
to be caught
let the winds caress – i am nefertiti captivating
schools
only suffocate me with
what i already know
the Universe within
i have only to ask
and then bask in Sun
knock
the latched door opens
i run with gazelles’ swift Grace
won’t stop for rest
explosive spirit
my make-up is not hideous when i sweat
my rose bushes blossom
rich/positively red
i am the brash brilliant colors of invention
the notes of remorse
the brushstroke reality
the brick-laying of fantasy
the bronze clay moldings of genius
my tears nourish the inheritance garden
i don’t walk on stilettos
my feet firm on soil
make whole impact with the terrain
i won’t tip through life
for anybody
you can tell by my gait
i got it covered/
tonto
without the lone ranger
roll out the mud cloth rugs for me to walk on
barefoot
‘cause i am
Photo: Shutterstock
Jacquese Armstrong is a writer/poet/mental health advocate residing in Central New Jersey. Her work has appeared in Black Mental Health Network, Black Magnolias Literary Journal and BLACKBERRY: a magazine, among others. She was a 2015 recipient of the State of New Jersey Governor's Council on Mental Health Stigma Ambassador Award.
