Poem: “Anthony Reads His Own Palm”

“Anthony Reads His Own Palm”

I come from the heart of the streets
where the gorillas can’t be beat
And the untamed animals won’t
be defeated

Disasters happen and the darkness
can’t be treated

Therefore, I lean on my right and play to
the left
Hopin’ I don’t get left

I come from a family of animosity
But it’s hard to see
So there ain’t no need to let the father speak
Weaknesses and cramps
Working up and hard-headed like a concentration camp

I come from a short life so my life can
be cut short
So I gotta stay on track and pray to
The Lord

25 Comments

  1. DiamondsAndDogs on July 1, 2010 at 1:11 AM

    Very nice. Well done

  2. shaguftaabbas on July 1, 2010 at 2:23 AM

    I come from a short life so my life can
    be cut short
    So I gotta stay on track and pray to
    The Lord

    -there’s something magnetic in this stanza, makes me read it again n again!

  3. Emmanuel Ibok on July 1, 2010 at 2:35 AM

    The interpretation of the palm gives an interesting feel while this is being read…Nice!

  4. buttercup600 on July 1, 2010 at 5:06 AM

    A wonderful poem…keep up the good work:)

  5. Jingle on July 1, 2010 at 11:16 AM

    powerful words..

  6. D.S. Lear on July 1, 2010 at 3:26 PM

    hard hitting words powerfully written..nice work!

  7. megzone on July 1, 2010 at 4:54 PM

    lvoely poem there 🙂

    here from Jingle’s Rally
    you can check my poem at
    http://megzone.wordpress.com/2010/07/01/thursday-poets-rally-footboard-traveller/

  8. Morganna on July 1, 2010 at 8:51 PM

    Nice. Have you thought of setting this to music?

  9. dustus on July 1, 2010 at 11:15 PM

    great job. Like the way you express so many influences that are very revealing.

  10. heartspell on July 2, 2010 at 12:42 AM

    strong words of hope about living… nice. Heartspell

  11. nanno1982 on July 2, 2010 at 1:05 AM

    nice imagery.. thanks for sharing

  12. lazylinerazmattazz on July 2, 2010 at 7:27 AM

    I liked the rhythm of this very much – the subject matter is hard hitting and the ending really impacts. Nice work.

  13. PinkLady on July 2, 2010 at 2:36 PM

    you won’t ever go wrong if you stay with the Lord. what an inspiring poem!

  14. Dyemone on October 20, 2020 at 12:33 PM

    Loved the emotions that was present while reading this poem. I loved every line. I hope that you continue to write more in the future.

  15. Steffy on October 28, 2020 at 3:12 PM

    The flow of your poem is incredible. It is an incredibly inspiring and beautiful message that you are sharing.

  16. kassidilenae on November 17, 2020 at 2:32 PM

    Thank you for sharing this! I love your perspective on life. It can be so hard to stay on track, especially when we encounter hardships. I challenge you to keep praying and living knowing that life i precious. Keep writing!

    KC

  17. Samantha on January 30, 2021 at 7:37 PM

    A,

    I really love the rhythm of this poem! I loved how you took a really challenging subject, and wrote it out so beautifully! Well, well done! It flowed with ease, but we could still feel the tension and the struggle of the circumstance. Nicely done balancing those two things!

    Best,

    Samantha

  18. Kylie on April 6, 2021 at 12:40 PM

    I really like the rhythmic style you’ve written this in, it works really well. I think that your word choice is excellent, I particularly liked the section about families and fathers. I think overall this piece is very intriguing and lays out it’s subject matter well. Keep up the good work!

  19. BF on April 12, 2021 at 4:36 PM

    Dear author,
    I really admire the rhyme. The flow and pace of the poem really gives it life. I love this poem. Thank you for sharing your realness with us. Please keep writing poetry.

  20. Billie Marcheva on May 7, 2021 at 9:43 AM

    A,

    This is a heavy poem and it speaks volumes. There are so many aspects of our life we can’t control. We are born into families and systems we didn’t choose, led down a path we might not have chosen if we had other opportunities. I appreciate you sharing this work. Thank you.

  21. Ayzhiana Basallo on May 10, 2021 at 2:53 PM

    Your poem just blew me away. It has so much in it yet it is worded so great to where a person like me can relate and understand what you are going through. I really felt deeply with this one and just can’t wait to have you write more. What you are talking about is such a strong set of emotions and I cannot imagine how you deal with what it is.

  22. Jaxson Pawlowski on November 6, 2022 at 5:01 PM

    This poem describes the troubles of being born and raised in the streets, you automatically assume that you can’t make it far so you do what you can to get by. A lot of them do not think they will live a long life…

    I hope you are able to stay on track as well! I hope writing has been helping with that! I wish you the best on your journey!

    ~JP

  23. McKenzie Gordon on November 17, 2022 at 12:02 PM

    This could be turned into a rap. I can feel the passion not only through the words but in the stylistic choices you made.

  24. Austin Hendrick on April 11, 2023 at 8:54 AM

    I loved the poem and do not forget god has a plan for you and trust god.

  25. Colleen on April 13, 2023 at 12:41 PM

    I really like your comparison of animals to life. Untamed animals is a good way of describing certain people. It is interesting how you described streets you’re familiar with like this, too. Very well written poem.

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