A Glimmer of Hope

I looked up

And that’s when I saw

A glimmer of hope

In the shape of your promise

 

Faint though it may have been

I knew it rang true

And that I could trust

The promises would never be broken

 

 

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

October 2022

One Day Here, Next Day Gone

Yesterday you were here 

Laughing and smiling

Making forever promises

Now today you are no more

Taken away from me

In the blink of an eye

Devastation does not cover

Exactly how I am feeling

I am lost, unsure and unsteady

Not knowing what to do next

I go to bed, but you aren’t there

I hug your pillow

To take in your smell

Oh you were too young to go

So much life ahead of you

So much left to give

 

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

October 2022

 

Inspired by ‘Solace House’ by Joy Ellis 

Social Isolation

I was rejected

Yet I was chosen

How can that be?

 

Many times, of pain,

People saying no

Or ignoring my presence

 

Times when I was forgotten

Or told I don’t belong

In the place, I was put

 

Times when words hurt

Because they were said,

By ones I trusted and loved

 

Times when I felt safe

And went with my trusting nature

Led to my biggest hurts

 

Times when my personal space

Was invaded and dismantled

Leaving devastation in its wake

 

Times when I was being judged

For the beliefs that I hold

All because they felt insecure

 

Times when I was bullied

Because people disliked me

As I was good at my job

 

Social isolation from others

Because those who are weak

Gang up to make you feel the same

 

As the saying goes

Sticks and stones may break your bones

But words never will

 

What a lie,

Words can definitely hurt

As they pierce a hole in your heart

 

They enter the head

Where they sit and fester

Eventually being all-consuming

 

Going into your system

Making you believe

That their words were the truth

 

But they are not the truth,

They are lies

And are not a fraction of you

 

They are a reflection of the people

And  symptomatic of their insecurity

All lies, not truth

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

October 2022

Pinpoint

                                                                    

                                                                    

I thought I wasn't angry

But I realise that I am

Though I have pinpointed why

 

It’s because of you

My life was turned upside down

And I had to leave

 

Leave the place I was me,

The place that I felt secure

Where I know I was loved

 

I had to go to a place

Where I never fitted in

And was regularly isolated

 

No one really cared

My feelings were rarely spared

As the bullying continued

 

I was hurting daily

Words speared my heart

And entered my head

 

I was made to feel low

As if I did not belong

I was daily rejected

 

Seven years of misery

Trying to keep on going

To keep my head above water

 

I tried to leave the pain

To let it all go

And disappear completely

 

But I was stopped

Can’t remember if I was grateful,

Or do I live in resentment

 

They say time heals

But that is just a platitude

As more time is needed

 

Time can’t completely heal

Love is needed too

Then the healing process can begin

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

October 2022

Tug of War

  

It was like a tug of war

My head against my heart

The thoughts running wild

And the heart beating fast

 

What was in my head

Did not match the truth

That is in my heart

Lies were being thrown around

 

It was enough to disrupt me

And keep me awake

Lying in the dark alone

Wishing to sleep to come

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

October 2022

Promises

                                                         

All the promises you have made

Have manifested as truth

You are not only a promise maker

You are a promise keeper

 

You gave a promise of rain

Which made one man a fool

But his faith stayed strong

As the rains turned to floods

 

You gave a promise of a new land

But many years passed by,

And the people became frustrated

But in time, the promised land came

 

There aren’t just past promises

They still continue today

Every day is a promise of hope

A promise of a new beginning

 

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

October 2022

Seven Years

  

Seven years invested

But no return yielded

Just seems like a waste,

And a slap on the face

 

I gave my time

I shared my talents

But I got no thanks

Not that any are really needed

 

Yes, this goes two ways

But in the end

It is about community

No person should suffer alone

 

Yet alone I was

And alone I still am

No one has reached out

And I doubt they will

 

I am waiting on a call

Better not hold my breath

As it could be a long wait

Going on past experiences

 

I feel rejected and am hurting

But I need to overcome this

As I bet no sleep is being lost

Over my decision to leave

 

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

October 2022

Thank You

Thank You to the ones

Who have come before me

And had in me their hearts

 

Thank you to the ones

Who have come alongside me

And helped me mend

 

Thank you to the ones

Who when I was young

Helped to shape me

 

Thank you to the one

Who when I was a teenager

Listened to all my ramblings

 

Thank you to the one

Who when I was at university

Loved me as I am

 

Thank you to the ones

Who when I was hurt and broken

Helped me to fix the broken pieces

 

Thank you to the ones

Who when I was in a foreign land

Showed me what friendship truly is

 

Thank you to the ones

Who when I arrived home

Helped me try and fit back in

 

Thank you to the one

Who has stood by me

And became a true friend

 

Thank you to the one

Who gave me the confidence

And showed me I could do it

 

Thank you to the ones

Who have been with me

Throughout the thick and thin

 

And finally, thank you to the one

Who made me who I am

And knew me before I was born

 

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

September 2022

Shadow of a Man

 You were like a shadow of a man

Walking with your head bowed

Shuffling your feet as you walked

 

You stood as still as a statue

Head down and eyes closed

Silently saying goodbye

 

You walked side by side

With your brothers in arms

All so different from each other

 

The emotions escaped you

Your eyes welled up

And your bottom lip was trembling

 

These are difficult days

As they signal an end of an era

And an uncertain future for you

 

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

September 2022

Slow Down

 You just need to chill

Let things go

Lean on those around you

Lose the attitude

 

Talk to people

Get rid of the anger

And realise the truth

You are not ok

 

Life has been tough

Death follows you

You are now alone

Living in an empty nest

 

But know this,

Your attitude and actions

They affect others around you

So please be self-aware

 

You are in pain

It’s easy to see

Your eyes tell is all

They are a window to your soul

 

You think you are the leader

That you know it all

But there are people around you

So, listen to them from time to time

 

Life will get easier

But you need to want it

Aggression is not the answer

So slow down and breathe

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

September 2022

Goodbye

A nation mourns

The end of an era

Now a new beginning

 

A family grieves

In the public eye

All up for scrutiny

 

Four siblings

Walk side by side

Behind their mother’s coffin

 

Brothers come together

After a rough couple of years

Their body language discussed

 

The nation lost a Queen

We are allowed to grieve

And show our respect

 

A family lost their mother,

Grandmother and Great Grandmother

We should let them grieve

 

Respect the family’s privacy

Stop criticising their movements

Just let them grieve

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

September 2022

Gone To Soon

 

There is a pain in my heart

An empty space in my soul

The place where you are meant to be

But you are no longer here

 

You left me before we were finished

One day you were there,

And the next day you were gone

Leaving me with so many questions

 

Why did you leave me?

Was I not good enough for you?

Could I have helped you?

What did I miss?

 

So many questions, so many feelings

I just don’t know what to do with them

You were my friend, my confidant

Now, who do I turn to?

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

August 2022

Supernova

 My memory is leaving me

It won’t be long,

Until one day when I wake

I will not remember your face

 

I am scared about that

As I never want to forget you

Which is why I want to go

Still remembering who we both are

 

Please let me do this for myself,

I want to be remembered

For who I am now

And not what I will eventually become

 

Let me go with dignity

With my pride intact

If you loved me

You would let me go

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

June 2022

 

Inspired by the movie ‘Supernova’

The Parents

 

It’s the image of the four of you

Sitting around the table

Which I can’t get out of my head

 

Seeing you all awkward at first

Unsure of what to say

While also dealing with your grief

 

Trying to both hide your pain

And hold in your tears

At the loss of your child

 

Both couples are grieving parents

But the grief is different

As one life was taken by the other

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

March 2022

 

Inspired by the movie ‘Mass’ 

My Son, the Killer

Both mothers are torn apart

One feels like she has lost part of her

While the other feels like she has failed

 

Her son was a killer

Killing his classmates,

Before killing himself

 

Remorse is shown by the mother

While the father remains stoic

And tries to avoid any blame

 

The tension in the room rises

As voices are raised

And hearts continue to break

 

 

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

March 2022

 

Inspired by the movie ‘Mass’

Pink Mist

 

It was my fault

I suggested it

And now look at us

One addicted to alcohol

One with no legs,

And one dead – that’s me

 

And don’t forget

The widows,

The grieving mothers,

The forgotten sons

All, the consequences of war

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

February 2022

Inspired by Pink Mist by Owen Shears

Struggles

                                                                    You are in this alone

No one else can know

The pain you feel

 

People look at you

And think to themselves

There is nothing wrong with them

 

But they can’t see the inside

The struggle every day,

Of getting out of bed

 

There is no understanding

Of what you are going through

Because they can’t see it at all

 

Can’t see the brain fog

Or the MS hug

Which is not a friendly one at all

 

They don’t see the fact,

That your body is heavy

And feels like led

 

They complain about their pain

And say you wouldn’t know,

What pain is like

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

February 2022

2020

 

2020 saw the start of,

Life being turned upside down

Covid-19 appeared,

And the world stood still

 

The earth was able to breathe

Without the extra pollution

As plans were grounded

And cars stayed stationary

 

Stay at home, don’t go out

Don’t enter other people’s homes

Stay 2 meters apart

Remember parties are banned

 

Well banned for the public

But not the powers to be

They were able to do their own thing

Despite telling us no

 

They make the rules

But believe they are exempt

From obeying the law

Oh, what an example they set!

 

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

February 2022

Turmoil

 

It has been a while

Since I used this medium

To share my thoughts

Or vent my rage

 

But here I am again

Feeling compelled

To write in verse

By using my words

 

So much is happening

A lot of turmoil in the world

From idiotic politicians

To the ongoing pandemic

 

Women not able to go running

Or walk alone in the street

Without being a target

For men to take their life away

 

I wish this world was better

But we are where we are

And we must keep going

And do the best we can

 

We need to think of others

And focus less on us

Because being together

Is better than being alone

 

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

February 2022

Anesthesia

                                                     Every day I walk through that tunnel

And am transported to the past

To the pain and the shame

Living every day on the brink

 

I cope with anesthesia

Drowning out the voices in my head

Living in a state of oblivion

To clear my mind of all thoughts

 

But it doesn’t work

As the memories still flood in

And they mix with the present

Making living a struggle

 

I let people in

But I also keep them out

I try to fix all things

And save those who are lost

 

I don’t succeed in either

I just damage my own life

Leave relationships in tatter

Until you came along

 

You don’t give up

You try to see me as me

And walk beside me

Trying to clear up the debris

 

Jo Anne Kennedy

February 2022

 

 

 

Inspired by ‘Crime’