Poets And Poetesses

Come Slide Through

Ain’t no pressure, no chains,
no demands in my tone
you a man with your own road
and I got one of my own
But whenever our paths cross somewhere in between
there’s a warmth in my heart,
you know what I mean

It’s in the curve of my verse,
the curl of my lips
in the pause of my lines
and the sway of my hips
It’s in our rhythmic tension,
the tease we’ve found
the hush in my lines when
you slide through unbound

I ain’t chasing your shadow,
I don’t need to pursue
but the rhythm in my body
whispers only for you
Every glance, each wink
and every pause got a pull
like my words know your touch
and you make us whole
With your name on my breath,
your shadow in my song
come slide through my world,
I been waiting too long

Copyright
Rebel Chiri 3/14/26

I Stepped Out

I didn’t go out trying to be brave
just couldn’t sit still, couldn’t behave
The news kept talking like nothing was new
another name dropped, and it stuck like glue

So I grabbed my coat, didn’t check the time
told myself I’d just walk, no reason, no sign
Streets felt colder than they should’ve been
or maybe that’s just how everything’s been

People were there, kind of spaced out
no big speeches, no screaming or shout
Just faces that looked like they didn’t sleep
like everyone there was holding something deep

Some signs were messy, words running wide
marker bleeding straight through the other side
Didn’t matter no one came for the art
we came with heavy chests, half-open hearts

Her name moved soft, not yelled, not thrown
like you’d say it careful over the phone
Like saying it loud might break something more
like it already hadn’t broken before

Lights flashed red, then blue, then red
that color combo that messes with your head
That pause where you wonder what’s coming next
and feel it sit tight right under your chest

They say “stay calm,” they say “wait your turn,”
like patience ever stopped a lesson from burning
Like time ever handed a life back whole
or rules ever softened the loss they stole

Someone cried near me, quiet and slow
no drama, just tears letting gravity go
I didn’t look over it felt wrong to stare
some pain doesn’t want witnesses there

We didn’t break things, we didn’t run
just stood in the cold till our fingers went numb
Cause staying inside felt heavier still
than standing outside with no answers, no will

I walked home numb, hands aching from cold
no clarity gained, no change foretold
But I knew one thing walking back through my front door
silence felt like lying and I couldn’t do that anymore

RIP: Renee Nicole Good

Brenda Chiri

Scarlett Moon

Looking for good homes……