RACISM KILLS (For Omar Thornton)

RACISM KILLS

Racists encamp all around me. Daily I endure the stings of their hatred

All I desire is a fair chance as a man but I am ignored and abhorred

Cuz my shade means to degrade to those whose hearts are impure

I am smashed between a rock and given a hard place. Unwarranted mistreatment

Suffocates my soul and mangles my mind state. As flesh I’ve done my best to stay strong

Mine eyes now reveal that I am ill from infection of their contagious hate

Keep the faith they told me, report their evils, document and note their taunts

I gave them what they want, yet there is no record because I handed it over to devils

Left with no choice, I brandished 2 burners and a shotgun to help the deaf hear my voice

Let my light of ammo shine into the darkened hearts of 5 plus who ridiculed me just because

So much blood, yet it fails in contrast to my tears of despair spilled on a beer plantation near Hartford

R.I.P. Omar Thornton

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa
© 2010. All Rights Reserved

Note: Readers, please understand that when I wrote this piece, I am in NO WAY condoning such awful behavior. This situation should have NEVER been handled in such a manner. It is cowardly, weak and not a positive action as a solution. He is no hero and should not be viewed as one. No one has the right to take another's life, I don't care for what reason they may feel justified in doing so. I wrote the piece from the perspective of someone who could do such a thing. How pressure can build up in someone and explode negatively. I wrote it from someone who feels hopeless in their situation and environment. I read over 20 articles about the story before writing and saw that he claimed racism on other jobs as well. He lived, not only worked, in an area saturated with "acceptable racism" - Racial mistreatment that is perceived as normal and accepted as so. I take it he wasn't strong enough mentally to leave this position, as he had left others, only to acquire another position to endure and experience more of the same. Hopelessness is the theme of the piece. Not being a hero or murdering as a way to fight back. This act was the result of the breaking point in one’s life when they “throw their hands up.”

Path to Eternal Life - a Senryu poem

Path to Eternal Life

This course is coarse child

But don’t break nor brake your stride

He’ll heal your torn heels

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

CONFIDENCE - an Acrostic poem

CONFIDENCE

Could call her conceited, could call him cocky - Will answer to confident

Out of the box and secure; so convinced and certain of purpose

Never narcissistic but naturally noble

Full of optimism

Infallible self-esteem

Definitely certain of one’s ability

Exceptional forward perspective

Necessary nerve to conquer

Courageous character

Eccentric - Excellent attitude to achieve

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Beautiful * Exquisite * Divine

Warning: This poem is rated Mature and may contain material unsuitable for readers under 18.

Beautiful * Exquisite * Divine

I came and he went...

He kneeled before me enveloped by a copper aura
A reflection emitting off of his sun-bronzed skin
His shimmering smile told me he was pleased by my presence
My erect nipples told him I was pleased by his... Just beautiful
I was paused unable to move
My lungs beckoned me to breathe
He was so imperial that to say he was phyne would be considered disrespect
He was a dream manifest
The most not the less
The very work of art mounted on the walls of my skipping heart... Just beautiful
His splendor was an amazing discovery within my reach
He was grand, like ripples on undisturbed desert sands
A majestic image within the canvas of my eyes... Just beautiful

The scent of his cologne made me moan within like an aroused feline
Making my mouth water craving the taste of skin on his chiseled physique
Dulce de leche sweet
Couldn’t move my feet
Opened my mouth, but could not speak
The windows of my soul mirrored and exposed my unwritten prose... So exquisite
He was a kneeling monument without flaw or speck
Long locs dropped and draped past the nape of his neck
Strong as Samson
Handsome
Lips plump and coated with ambrosia nectar
Dimples deep and inviting
Visually exciting, was he
A Titan in my midst... So exquisite


There was a fiery sunrise in his eyes
of amber and sierra brown shades
He was without doubt something that the Lord had made
A + Grade
Had me nervous and shook, not my usual brave
His loveliness was the very vision above cloud 9... Simply divine
He said, “I want to taste you...”
And the baritone in his voice soaked me past moist
I closed my eyes as he parted my thighs
He licked with quick tongue flicks
I melted and dripped
He slurped and lipped – this feeling?… Simply divine
Through his locs my fingers squeezed and roamed
as we sang together a duet of moans
I transcended and morphed into an artist and he my passionate muse
Where we moved to a rhythm and grooved to a sweet blues
I penned a sonnet of his greatness
Strummed a tune on my lyre solely for his ears
Formed a constellation around his brilliance
Painted him naked limb to limb
Surrounded by winged cherubim and seraphim
Bottled his essence and sprayed him all over my being
So the scent would remind me of this deity before me kneeling... Simply divine
I prayed for strength
To breathe
To move
To speak
I peaked, and poof!
He was gone without sign
His image now only seared in my mind
Just beautiful...
So exquisite...
and Simply divine

I came and he went...

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Hood Spotlight: Detroit, MI - a Haiku poem

Hood Spotlight: Detroit, MI

Blood stains on the couch

Shot dead, another Cop botch

Seven? – in Heaven

R.I.P. Aiyana Stanley Jones

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Rapture - a Tanka poem

Rapture

Yearning eyes connect

Scent of clover permeates

Both breathe in deeply

Swallowtails flutter within

Exhaling through kissed lips - Lust

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Where There is No Love

Where There is No Love

I
Need
You...
I need you to live
But you have no love for me
You fight with might of medication and therapy
With the Sword of Hope and dedication to my retreat
My ultimate defeat
You wage war and come for my life
Wielding weapons of massive light against my dark strike
You have no love for me
When I am the very reason you are now stronger
Why you want to live longer
Why you strive to survive and thrive
You are alive
And I...
I am dying


I am the beast within
Opposite of friend
I am darkness suppressing your light
That do go harshly into that good night
I am a pernicious crab clawing at your soul
I am insatiable feeding on your whole
Flagrant I am, and do not play fair
I am survival in a drowning pool gasping for air
Feel me deeply embedded in your core
And listen in closely as I roar
I am extreme weight loss
That persistent cough
That rash, that lump, that stinging pain
I am that growing tumor in your brain
I am consistent fatigue
Why it's hard to breathe
The mystery in those frequent nose bleeds
I am burning fever and that white spot on your tongue
I am in the aged, I am in the young
Existing in a sinister polyp, red and swelling
I am what is wrong with your demeanor without you telling
I can scream from the largest bone or whisper from the smallest mole
I am the evidence of your worst nightmare, awake as it unfolds
I am that cringe of fear across your face at the diagnosis of my name
I am the reason for lost medical coverage, I am the blame
I am the tears of "Why me?" streaming down your face behind closed doors
I belong to no one else at this moment, I am all yours
I am why you lost your house
Why you lost your spouse
Why you wear a wig
And why you cannot have kids
I am why loved ones are no longer here
I am the answer that no one wants to hear
And I…


I
Needed
You
I needed you in order to live
But you had no love for me
You fought with might of medication and therapy
With the Sword of Hope and dedication to my retreat
My ultimate defeat
You waged war and came for my life
Wielding weapons of massive light against my dark strike
You had no love for me
When I am the very reason you are now stronger
Why you want to live longer
Why you strive to survive and thrive
You are alive
And I...
I am no more
 

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa
© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Risen

Risen

I am aborted thought sought

Now caught and

reborn into this scribe

Alive

Breathing in inspiration

Exhaling an incantation

of rhythmic syllables sung from nouns and verbs

Parasitic upon the sole power of words

Drinking in its vernacular life force

The fountain source

of this resurrection and expression

of reconstructed muse

Echoing off of the page through the mic

as your triumph, your fancy or your blues

I am that lost point of view

Refocused, reshaped and now used

I am everything that was missing

The paradigm for the vision

I am not forgotten

I exist as authentic dynamism

I am that release of pressure

That puff of air out of the spout of your pen

I am an indelible crucifix

I am thought risen!

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa
© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

The Air of Love - a Tanka poem

The Air of Love

New love in my view…

Lips drip stardust as they kiss

Their essence released

I breathed them in and wrote down

Love – Together Forever

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Solamente Amigas - a Loop poem

Solamente Amigas


She and I – we
We agreed to be friends
Friends and nothing more
More involved disappointment and tears
Tears streaming from insecurity
Insecurity fueled by my mistrust 
Mistrust brought on by her addiction
Addiction to all that I am not
Not that it matters at this point
Point fingers, we both can blame
Blame would just push us further away
Away from the friends that we agreed to be
Be my friend she said
Said be my friend after everything!
Everything we had been through
Through tears of love lost, I agreed
Agreed to just be friends
Friends are what we agreed, but what I cannot be...

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa
© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Untitled 1

Untitled 1

The man from my dream last night

walked onto the evening train

I spoke his name

But…

He didn’t respond to my call

I mean, he didn’t look my way at all

He took his seat six benches away from me

Facing me

I stared hoping our eyes would meet

And he would recollect our sweet-heat retreat

And recognize me

No dice

The train began to move in its groove

Swaying…

Rocking…

and trembling our bodies across the tracks

And I again envisioned him embracing my body into his from the back

Softly blowing a pink and red swirl of rose petals around my throat
Whispering Najee type saxophone notes like…

*Doobie, doobie dooooo – woo, woo – ooh-woo-wee, ooooooh*

Translation: “Prayer complete: My love… I have arrived”

Every dead nerve ending in my being was resurrected alive

Surging the urge to merge

As he licked the upper tip of my ear

I could hear the atmosphere

From the beach in Negril

where we chilled and spilled

out our hearts desires near a crackling fire

of past betrayal and hurt

He fed me chocolate-dipped passion fruit without his shirt

He sang for me my favorite song and I hummed along

while belly dancing and blowing kisses of affection

in his direction

An undisguised blessing

He kept me yessing

and yessing, and yessing

over and over again

A soft wind

Brought in the calming scent of the moonlit ocean

With devotion

We walked hand in hand

forming heart-shaped footprints

in midnight blue sands

Speaking our imminence

until the golden sunrise peaked over the land

Six benches away from me was THIS man

Who had me pondering because

Him ignoring me

and not adoring me

was the thing I just could not understand

The train began its pause for the next station

by slowing in a jerking motion

My ebony love potion

Stood

and still never looked my way

He exited the train

as a single tear drop streamed down my face

He walked up the stairs

with all of my cares

I stared

Reminiscing on what I would never forget

As the train and I rolled away Westbound

into the lavender and crimson laced sunset

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Nature's Design (Six Sense) - a linked Haiku

Nature's Design
(Six Sense)

Taste

Savor the flavor
Part lips – taste maple sap drips
nil preservatives

Touch

Beauty felt with care
Nip your tip on pricks like Rose
Bougainvillea

Smell

Breathe in the blue sea
Fragrant – crisp, clean, and salty
Sail away and… breathe

Sight

Gaze upon the Aves
View the hue of Peacock blue
Grace the snow owl face

Hearing

Listen to the sound
of a campfire crackle
Listen to flames dine

Spiritual

Mystical signals
Intuition’s sensory
Supernatural

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa
© 2009. All Rights Reserved.

Choices

Choices

INSECURITY chose me
My turn
I chose you
Trust is essential
– I can only control me
IMPATIENCE chose me
My turn
I chose you
Because there is a time
for every matter under Heaven
TEMPTATION chose me
My turn
I chose you
For your value exceeds
the selfish need of the deed
VENGEANCE chose me
My turn
I chose you
For I know that an eye for an eye
would make the whole world blind
ANGER chose me
My turn
I chose you
Because anger is one
letter short of – danger
HATE chose me
My turn
I chose you
For God is love and where hate resides
Jesus can only knock on the door
SELFISHNESS chose me
My turn
I chose you
For I know that vanity
is a deadly sin – for a reason
GAME chose me
My turn
I chose you
Knowing a Queen is the most
powerful piece on the board
– but she can be taken
LOVE chose me
My turn
I chose love-in youLovin you…
I choose you in everyway
I choose you everyday
I choose you as I pray
My love is here to stay
Always and in all-ways
I
Choose
You
Infinity…Your turn

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2009. All Rights Reserved.

Juneteenth (Freedom) - an ekphrastic poem

"Freedom" by Kadir Nelson

*Inspired by the above artwork (Ekphrasis)


Juneteenth (Freedom)

You see these hands…
they knows the pricks from cotton leaves of this foreign land
You see these eyes…
they know the cries of 6 sons sold
One snatched right outta my arms, only a few years old
If you could see my back…
it would show you the pain from that day
When Massa Joe Redding took the only man I ever loved away
You see that there tree…
it knows the weight of his lifeless remains
He was a warrior from the Igbo tribe
His name was Chidumaga, not slave
Massa called him Beast ‘cuz he couldn’t tame him with the lash
So he beat him bloody, strung him up and skinned him ‘live
to show us White wrath
You see that sun up in the sky…
it was hiding behind rain clouds on the day I called slave
My home is Ghana, my name is Mawusi but he named me Camilla Faye
They say some soldiers come into town today with words
that we no mo' slave, but free
Free to walk away from all we know of this land
Free to just be free-woman or free-man
But where can I go?
I would like to go home but I come by ship
I scared I may die this time for the ride made me deathly sick
Ellis say North is best for free…
But how can I get there, I can’t read
Alls I know is cotton from sun up to sun down
Never even been to town…
Clara Jane say town is up the road and over yonder somewhere
I reckon I’ll walk with the others there
But I fear nightfall, ‘cuz I’ll have to sleep in the woods under the trees
With all the snakes and wild animals looking for food to feed
But I’z free…
So I’ll walk North at night guided by the brightest star above
I’ll walk hand to heart with Yahweh's guidance and divine love
I’ll make it North
I’ll just keep my mind stayed on thee
My boys, I believes they too is free
I’ll go searching the rest of my days for them
I hope they too will be looking for me

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenea
© 2009. All Rights Reserved

.

Poetry Is Freedom - a double acrostic poem

POETRY IS FREEDOM

Pen to page, mic to stage from the dam of creativity I siP
Opening the vaults of my thoughts freeing the ego of my id and superegO
Expressing, phonetically, prophetically, poetically via versE
Tranquility and agility conveyed in my lyrical ability’s effecT
Rendering writes of passage into the realm of prose and rhyme’s creatoR
Yachting across a pink ink ocean of imagination gazing upon a paisley skY

In the looking glass of uninhibited expression is me, myself and dotted i
Scribing, surviving, relying on the flow of surrealism as I text and profesS

Floating on a quill carpet of dangling participles wielding an acrostic stafF
Releasing the breath of wonder into word sands on the isle of grammaR
Exploring the heights with a telekinetic font kite or calligraphy engravE
Ethereal staves fragrant with epiphany flowers watered with an elephant’s nosE
Definition inventions morph traditional comprehension so cerebral eyes stanD
Out of the pores of poetry streams the river of emancipation on the plantation of nO
Meet me in the dark that glows, near the pretzel-shaped rose and bring me a piece of cloud guM

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenea
© 2009. All Rights Reserved.

DADDY DEAREST - an acrostic poem

DADDY DEAREST (For my Father, James aka Slim)

Don’t ever question my love for you…
And don’t you ever wonder if I appreciate all that you do
Don’t you know that you are my earthly King?
Don’t you know all the joy, affection, and protection you bring?
You are my Daddy Dearest – the man whom I cherish, love and adore

Designated by the Divine to be my parent, my friend, my life mentor
Encouraging my talent, believing in my dreams, complimenting my beauty
Always nourishing my esteem. It’s always my pleasure to hear God’s word
Resonate from your lips. Like King Solomon to his child your instruction was strict
Extra thick with knowledge, wisdom, self-respect and sophistication
So much emphasis placed on education and I thank you. I know I am special in your eyes
That I am sure, and I love you, I love you – I love you everyday Daddy, more and more

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenea

© 2009. All Rights Reserved.

For The King (Michael Jackson Tribute)

*Inspired by his legacy and discography

For The King

He’s the King of Pop
There is none higher!

There’ll never be another
So we call him Sire!

I can remember the time when I first met you on the tube
Belting out ABC with your brothers on the J5 cartoon
Then I heard you on the radio crooning with youthful energy and grace
No motion can describe the way you make me feel,
except for the smile on my face
You give me butterflies and delightful chills
And fill me with 2000 watts of
Shoo-be-doo-be-doo-da-day thrills
I can’t help it…you bring me musical joy like I’ve never known since
And I just can’t stop loving you of that I am convinced
Heaven can wait longer for you I said, but God and you disagreed, I guess
To hear of your untimely demise left me shocked and utterly speechless
June 25th was a bad day for my listening ears
Because I’d heard that you departed our earthly premises
after only 50 years
My hands could not repel the sonic boom of worldwide cries
invading my ears
I ran to find shelter from the torrent flood of the peoples tears
But…
There was no vacancy at Heartbreak Hotel
No more could enter, for the capacity had swelled
It was sold out by fans who loved you so…
There was no place in the whole wide world that I could go
Our love is here and you are gone
No more live shows for you to sing our songs
For all the things you are, we are the world who will forever adore you
A crowd thriller giving the greatest show on Earth in the way
that only you can do
A musical genius who we had the honor and pleasure
of enjoying in the spirit and the flesh
An innovative choreographer and 300 million plus philanthropist
Gone too soon…
Yet your legend is invincible and will forever reign
Whether yellow, brown, red, black or white we all agree the same
You are our musical King
Who healed the world and gave the Earth song and dance
And communicated across dialects from Istanbul to France
We will continue to rock with you in our hearts and jam
until the break of dawn
Musically immortal you are, so in our spirits you shall live on
Amongst all of our love and adoration though is darkness that
I’m sure you knew was coming
For ain’t no sunshine in some of the media for they
always wanna be startin’ somethin’
Haters wanna be where you are – On top, undefeated
But haters never prosper so they can just beat it!
Say, say, say what they will or may
You ARE Michael Jackson, what else is there to say?
And as your music continues to play
And as future generations ask who is it streaming through the airwaves
I’ll say…
THIS is the epitome of music at its core and so much more
And when they cry and ask why aren’t you here anymore?
I’ll tell them as you told me in lyrics so pure
Death is a part of life - It’s simply human nature

He’s the King of Pop
There is none higher!

There’ll never be another
So we call him Sire!

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2009. All Rights Reserved.

Fruit of Her Spirit - A linked Haiku

Fruit of Her Spirit
(For Ruby Diva, my Mother)

Love

Beautiful Brown eyes
shimmer with adoration
reflecting her love

Joy

Memories bring bliss
of her Eskimo nose kiss
and tummy tickle

Gentleness

Gentle hands cleanse wounds
Healing lips kiss away pain
within her embrace

Patience

Tears supplied dry soil
believing her rose would bloom
and anoint the world

Peace

I count it all joy
as her prayers console me
ministering peace

Self-Control

Temptations managed
by showing thyself approved
Keeping her way clean

Faithfulness

Weathering life’s storms
Hiding God’s word in her heart
Spiritual teacher

Kindness

Compassionate heart
exudes deeds of charity
for all God’s children

Goodness

Woman of virtue
whose price exceeds her namesake
A treasured jewel

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa
© 2009. All Rights Reserved.

It Is Written...

It Is Written…

I want to write a song about a love so true
Scribble a lyrical feeling involving all that love can do
I want to write a dissertation of a world that makes one want to wake up tomorrow
To beam a smile that is genuine, joyous, and lacks sorrow

I want to write a verse that will empower and take the pain away
A psalm of strength to pray on a tested day
When I am tried in the fire and feeling the burn
When I am at the crossroads of life and don’t know which way to turn

I want to write a poem that resurrects the dead inside
A scribe that breathes life into a soul and revives
I want to write a stanza that will hug a spirit when it is down
A piece that will dam the flood of tears saturating the ground

I want to write a letter to tell how God so loved creation
An epistle in every dialect to convey to every nation
I want to write it but such has already been written
So I’ll just read the Bible instead and receive what The Father has given

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa
© 2009. All Rights Reserved.

Who am I?

Who am I?

I am African blood + unknown = x
I am diluted…
Wishing to be pure
Wishing to be more… like you…
Wishing to be painted in your exact hue
Envying you
With all sincerity
Coveting your level of purity
For this shade of skin leaves me pondering
And guessing…
Seeking answers
Vexing…
Over this mysterious truth that…
I am African blood + unknown = x
I am ambiguous and complex
My melanin is less
My ancestry has been breached and modified
I’ve heard I’m of Indian descent
But am I Santee or Chicora tribe?
It has also been said that I too am French
Perhaps, a Louisiana Purchase descendant?
It is known that great-great granddaddy Roy
Had blue eyes, 6 girls, and 11 boys
And yet there is more…
His parents came to Ellis Island from
either Sweden or Switzerland’s shore?
Were unsure…
I am African blood + unknown = x
I am diluted…
Wishing to be pure
Wishing to be more… like you…
Wishing to be painted in your exact hue
Envying you
With all sincerity
Coveting your level of surety
For this shade of skin leaves me pondering
And guessing…
Seeking answers
Vexing…
Over this mysterious truth that…
I am African blood + unknown = x

Tara S. Gause aka Poetic Goddess Tara Shenéa

© 2009. All Rights Reserved.