I started to read

And the words that I read were the ones that I wrote when I was sixteen

And because they were my own words I was able to read between the lines

And look into my mind of 10 years ago

And all that rage anger and pain I’ll probably never let go

Ever since 10, I had a lot of pain pent up in my heart

I never knew where to start but once the pen touched the paper the words seemed to bleed

So I kept on writing because I wanted the blood to run dry

It must have been my tears coming out of my pen because I didn’t want to cry

My emotions had no other way out but the pen

I would scream and shout but no one would listen

I would ask for help but no one would listen

I would talk to the sky but it never gave me a reply

So the words would fall back on my head like rain

After that, I had no choice but to choke and hide my pain

After that, not only the pages but my soul started to bleed

And this is what those words told me when I started to read

So I compared it to my latest poem and didn’t see any growth

My words got fancier my lines got heavier but the pain was still the same

I was still talking to myself, with myself about myself because I wanted to help myself

Appreciate myself and not hate myself just hug myself

So I continued to read

I picked up Langston Hughes because I found his blues complementing my own

After reading his words I didn’t feel so alone

It was like he was sitting next to me

Talking to me, explaining to me how to carry on and move on

Took me under his wing all the while rhyming and telling me

That if my soul has grown deep like the rivers, let it flow

Don’t let anyone in the world tell you no

Because people will always try to stop you from things they couldn’t achieve

Hold you in the same failure as them but you can always leave

And I was inspired so I kept on reading

I picked up Maya Angelou and the words she threw

Rang true, I loved the grace of her style as she all the while

Talked to me about my past, and how I can move past it

How I can forgive but not forget, I always knew the concept

But never applied it, I had too much hate in my heart and never knew where to start

As it had it hands on my mind and tried to rip it apart

She put her hands on my knuckles and told me

Nobody but nobody can make it out here alone

And now I was intrigued so I kept on reading

Until I hit Dante, I stopped and had to say wow

He took me to hell and back, he made the sky turn black

Magic oozed from his thoughts as his told his story

If life is a joke then he truly created a divine comedy

Opened my mind’s eye allowed me to die and return

So then I figured it was my turn

So I continued to read

And I read Shakespeare and he took me into a whole different world

Because that is what words are the gates to another world

And I have been blessed with the gift of writing

So every letter and sentence I’m reciting could be the prelude to whatever I wish

I have created galaxies and destroyed planets

I have illustrated landscapes and gave stars habits

I have created life’s and destroyed marriages

I rewrote history and crushed averages

I made 7 into 11 and extracted angels from heaven

I made wars get fought with words instead of guns

I cooled down and froze a million suns

I made mothers commit adultery

I created world peace and made all gossip cease

I gave people the power to create their ideal partner

I traveled to the moon and had a drink on mars

I have slept on clouds and created my own gods

I created all this and I got inspired by reading

So I kept on reading until I felt it was my time to write

Vino