They taught usÂ
to treat rest like a reward
for our exhaustion
instead of a birthright.
Birthright
Tag: poems
Black Joy
Nobody talks about society’s addiction
to black trauma.
How much more profitable
it is to talk about pain
than poems,
depression
than joy.
Like we don’t have feelings
just bad experiences
turned into songs
of sorrows
and spirituals
of reaching heaven
cause there can’t be no freedom
here on Earth for Black people.
Maybe this world still doesn’t consider us
human enough
to be happy
someone hand society a roadmap
for getting to know black people.
Tell them they can find us laughing
even when life is lifeing
cracking jokes and turning sadness into praise.
Tell them we are not just guns and gangs.
Our hope does not hang on by string
on some cracked-out corner
or trap house
Tell them how we dream.
Big Mama musta had mustard seeds
underneath the mattress
cause she moved mountains.
Food and faith ain’t never been hard to find.
We gone eat.
Talk about our love
our sense of community
our building
our builders
our beauty.
We’ve had a wild ride here
in this country
But it was not all bad.
Together, we forged a world of our own
found solace in the cracks
made meals from scraps
and carved out our own sense of enjoyment and purpose.
Tell them about how the cells of a black woman
saved the world
and the genius of a Black man lit it up.
Talk about how we bless everything we touch.
Tell the whole truth
that we are not made up only of pain.
Joy lives here, too.
You can listen to this poem on TikTok and YouTube! I’m @yecheilyah on both.
Black History Facts is back! If you’ve been waiting for a signed copy, this is your chance to get your hands on it. We are back in stock. Go now to: https://www.blkhistorybook.com/.
To Be Human
I have learned not to neglect the physical
because I live on the physical.
How can I ignore the earth when I was born from it?
Not the first womb.
Not the first place my human self called home.
And I have learned not to neglect the spiritual
because it is higher than the physical.
It will help me to transcend the works of my flesh.
Both important.
Both necessary.
Neither forsaken.
Oh nothing, just getting back to my poetry.
Yecheilyah’s Annual Poetry Contest: Closing for Submissions Midnight!
First, my thoughts and prayers go out to all the Florida fam and anyone in the eye of the storm or who has been affected by Hurricane Ian in any way.
https://www.yecheilyahsannualpoetrycontest.org/
Today is the day!!
If you want a shot at winning one of the top four slots for this year’s poetry contest, be sure to email your poem to me at yecheilyah@yecheilyahysrayl.com by midnight tonight.
That’s 12a EST, 11p CST.
The rest of ya, figure out ya time zone, lol.
I know we can get a bit anxious as we wait for the results, so please take the time to review the following:
- Poetry submissions close at the end of the day on September 30, 2022. I don’t read any poems until after the contest ends, and neither do my fellow judges. Feedback on entries will not be provided until the winners are announced.
- We will announce the winners on November 1, 2022. I am an advocate for questions. Asking questions is how we learn. However, do not ask if I liked your poem or how I feel about it before the winners are announced on 11/1.
- Winners will be notified by email of their win at least one week before the public announcement to prepare them for their promotions. Our first-place winner also wins a personalized frame of their poem that must be customized, so the artist will need these details ahead of time.
- It is imperative that the email you have on file is active and that it is the one you check often. We will need to pick another winner if we cannot contact you about your win in time. Not only do you not want this, but it also creates more work for us, so please be diligent. Start paying attention close to the end of Oct. Check your spam and junk folders. If we follow each other on IG, check your DM’s. Know I will do everything in my power to contact you, but if I have to call the FBI you’re gonna miss out.
- If you submitted a poem, you should have received a reply saying your submission has been received. If you did not get this email, please resend it ASAP.
- We are giving away cash prizes this year, so when contacted about your win, we will ask you how you’d like to receive your money electronically. The other gifts will be shipped off to you.
- You will be promoted on my blog, main author newsletter, Twitter, and IG pages @yecheilyah and @yecheilyahbooksllc. Be sure you are following both (especially @yecheilyah, as it gets the most engagement).
What if I didn’t win?
We are only contacting the four winners. If, on November 1, you do not see your name among the winners, your poem has not been selected.
I want to take the time to thank each and every one of you for participating in this contest. Putting yourself out there is not easy, and I am humbled that you’ve trusted me with your creative work. Make no mistake about it: without your support, there is no contest, so I am grateful, humbled, and excitedddd to read what you’ve blessed us with.
How Can I Read the Poems of Previous Winners?
You can check out the poems and interviews of previous winners at the links below.
- Yecheilyah’s Annual Poetry Contest 2017
- Yecheilyah’s Annual Poetry Contest 2018
- Yecheilyah’s Annual Poetry Contest 2019
- Yecheilyah’s Annual Poetry Contest 2021
**2020 was skipped per Covid when none of us knew what to do next.**
*FINAL CHECK* The little things can sometimes get away from us so remember: get your poem in BEFORE the deadline. Make sure it is on the topic of FREEDOM in some way. Double check you’ve sent it to the CORRECT email and that you are 18+.
Joy
Ransom Note For my Fallopian Tube Back
leave
a fresh caesar salad
a bear hug
a tall glass of Merlot
the truth
a 90s R&B CD
four normal periods
prayers
and a handwritten poem
by my bedside
by the next
new moon.
PS: Breaking the Silence part two is up tomorrow. Be sure you have read part one for the backstory.
PPS. I am back on YouTube. Subscribe here. Also, be sure to follow me on Tik Tok to hear more poems. My name there is the same, yecheilyah.
He Looked Like a Lifetime Supply
He looked like a lifetime supply of confidence
black-gold wrapped in a Hershey’s kiss
like his soul had stretched up to the sun
this melanin-plated skin
When he shined, we were all shade
Sweat looked like honey dripping
from his brow
forming sweet golden pools
Look too closely, and he starts to look
like a lightening
his eyes two backpacks full of moon
and we scatter like children
looking for jars big enough
to capture the illumination of his essence
made up not of blood and bone
but stars
He looked like a lifetime supply of monuments
a dark sun-kissed body
full to the brim
with uncompromising
confidence.
The inspiration for this poem is from a poetry prompt I saw on IG on the topic of “He Looked Like a Lifetime Supply.”
The PBS Blog 