i was cut open today
by the anguish in the cries
of our young people
insisting to matter
in a world where they don't
in a world where their skin
means criminal,
savage,
and not human.
i was cut open today
by the breaking
of my friend's voice
when he called aloud
the names of all the black
kids,
brothers,
sisters,
mothers,
fathers,
humans
that have been taken from us,
and he said "there are so many,
god, so many,"
but we are only halfway through
a never-ending list.
i was cut open today
by the look of pain
that formed upon the faces
of my beloved sisters
at the apathetic cars that were
too impatient,
too bothered,
too indifferent
to slow down or stop for
our broken hearts,
our broken spirits,
our broken bodies.
in this world,
in this grief,
in this sorrow,
i am cut open
again and again.
i am emptied
then refilled,
emptied,
then refilled
with immense sadness,
with immense rage,
with immense pain.
these waters flow past the brim
and in this release,
there is a break of love,
there is a break of hope,
there is a break of light
that make their way in
briefly yet powerfully.
it is this tormented exhale
that brings the deepest inhale.
i am breathing,
we are breathing,
this is what it means
to be us
and alive.