August

STEPHANIE QUINTERO

This is a collection of poems that I wrote while I was in my first year of Girls Write Now. It speaks to the experiences of girls my age through feelings.

RAW AND NAKED

raw and naked.

imperfections are let loose

but he takes them all in with love and hunger.

her moans crack through walls

while the world is fast asleep.

their intimate moment not so intimate

anymore.

he finds pride in having her, and she is absolutely careless,

enjoying every second flirting with danger.

they share a connection that seems unbreakable

but is completely shattered under her eyes

when truth decides to spill over.

BRIGHT ROSE

I held on to a bright red

rose

the thorns made their way into

my veins

as I bleed for days and years

and somehow I was still alive

I removed the thorns with my teeth

while my teeth turned old

I was bruised

the kind of bruise that lasts

forever

LAYERS OF BEAUTY

you are covered in layers of beauty

beauty that shines bright enough to blind

weak eyes

layers of beauty that cover a scarred

canvas of skin

skin so scarred that you are confused

when you see your reflection

do the layers of beauty define you?

or do they speak out loud enough to show

the world what a great liar you are?

Your hands are on foreign skin

Your eyes are on unknown lips,

Your eyes are searching blindly

Do not question your mind

Darkness has washed over you

And now you find pleasure

Inflicting pain that multiplies

THE THOUGHT BUBBLES OF AN EIGHT-YEAR-OLD

The feeling of uncertainty was familiar

Because the questioning had begun from

A very young age

Dominoes six feet tall in a dark place fell

Equally

One tumbling as the others continued

The godly figures of hands putting together

A human being

Made much more sense than two people

Coming together to create a child

The spirit of the physical body floats

But is it just the mind itself?

What is the point of living if we live to die?

PEN AND PAPER

Can descriptive words explain a feeling?

The pen maneuvers in a sensational way

As the fingers grip on to the pen tighter

The ink stays on the paper forever

A multitude of worlds will read this

And live in my world

Yet others will feel foreign

But one day

All worlds will collide

And that will be the end of all living.

ALLURE

Every word carved invisible scars

As time

Overly carved my skin

I became numb

A living body with an empty soul

Time reached out

Begging me to undress my confidence

Begging me to flavor self-love

On my tongue

Begging me to murder my insecurities

That were carved deep within me

With my hands.

THE MOON

As the sun falls asleep

Her true self awakens

Her skin is bare

Her emotions stripped raw

She is no longer proud

And no longer pretends

She is exposed.

High up,

I am caressed by confidence.

Growth lies under my feet

And dances its way up,

Through my curves.

The sun glows

On my vibrant caramel skin,

That belongs to the sand

On my fingertips.

My eyes glow

And the future awaits,

On the waves of the ocean.