March 2021

‘Spring‘

Yesterday a birds nest discovered in the clothespin bag

five perfect eggs, creamy white and dollhouse size

magic in plain sight

strong winds overnight knocked the bag to the ground

smashing the eggs

I took the nest out, out it on the patio table

wondering if the mama will come looking for her babies

I’ll let the kids bury them, make a grave behind the garage

next to the others we’ve held services for

a strange thing to do, maybe

growing up we regularly found abandoned babies

bunnies and robins

I would smash up worms and warm milk

feed their tiny mouths

try as I might, they never survived

needing their mother who had disappeared

but I buried them in shoe boxes

thought of the often wondered if I did it

If I had hurt them

now I know that I didn’t

they would have died anyway

natural selection

evolution

something scientific

I just wanted

needed

to care for something

now I have filled my own nest and I let them see death

understand that even the tiniest death

was still a life once Lori Lux Fearless Writers Intern 2020 – 2021

Inspired by Assata Shakur

what tradition does the future hold

a crystal ball swirling glitter

lighting faces light, dark

in between

we gaze deep searching for solid ground

“if I jump where will I land?”

when George Floyd died

I thought of his mother

prayed a decade of Hail Marys

envisioning her on her knees

being held by the Divine Mother

mothers imprisoned

dark skinned babies stolen from women whose hands are shackled

today

this happens today

and there’s Assata

ancestral bravery rushing through her veins

and yet she runs

runs for her life

what tradition does the future hold

can we gather bits of Earth

crystals and water

light a flame

and embrace

speak what we want into the great cosmos

we want change!

we love each other!

can’t you see?

stop making them run

there will come a day

when we will all be touched by Assata bravery

drink it down

smash the cups

and fight our own ancestors

dropping the bloodline

once and for all Lori Lux Fearless Writers Intern 2020 – 2021

inspired by Ericka Huggins

resistance breeds repression

and an olive branch

can be set aflame

action and peace

shoulder to shoulder

there is nothing new under the sun

echoes through the crowds

and over dead bodies

killed for their color

caged for fear of other

held accountable for someone else’s sin

all holding some type

of Christ magic

sacrificed

as if that is necessary

little boys locked up at 14

with fathers staked out

keeping eyes down and crossing the street

when a white woman passes

because she might be scared

actively trying to be smaller

less

silenced over and over

and all I want to do is make eye contact

say hello and not pretend

say I see you

and I’m still not scared

can I give you a daisy

the flower of friendship

and will you believe me

probably not and that is deserved

know that I am trying

I am listening

I am asking questions

and searching my soul

knowing that you are tired

of listening

and asking questions and searching

can we stand together for a moment

and see how that feels Lori Lux Fearless Writers Intern 2020 – 2021

Implicit Bias
I see my bias
look at it and pluck it from my thoughts
turn it over in my hands
examining angles and edges
take it in honestly
then set it aside
the pile is growing unsteady
almost toppling
but I know each one
they are my own
each held captive
to be picked up another day
perhaps even seconds later
that’s ok
that’s growth
that’s real Lori Lux Fearless Writers Intern 2020 – 2021

Flirtatious

Something about the sun, it just brings out the wild in me. Is it because my seasonal depression is gone or the fact the days are a little bit longer so I can actually enjoy it. I don’t know what it is but I love it. As I begin to take in the rays of the light and my feet are planted on the ground. I begin to feel whole and complete, its just the earth and me. Daija Banks- Fearless Writers Intern

UTOPIA

Love has finally won the war, evil is gone. Hate no longer walks the earth and we all get along. Love has won, we all love our neighbor, the kids can go play after dark, and you don’t even have to lock your door at night. Love has won, the babies are out of cage and reunited with families. Mothers are not burying their sons and living to be great-grandmothers. Skin color is no longer a threat and you can kiss the same sex without being shunned. Love has finally won and I’m finally home. Daija Banks- Fearless Writers Intern

….

When this is over, I will never doubt how strong I am again. I’ll hug my family more and come to more social gatherings, starting telling people I love them more. I won’t be afraid to talk or smile at strangers because I honestly never know anymore. When this is over I’ll be more thankful and enjoy the smaller things in life. Daija Banks-Fearless Writers Intern