In the darkness
Of the landing
I stand afraid
Unsure of what I
see
There are only
shadows
Creeping all around
Words being said
Like whispers in a
tree
The blackness is
suffocating
The lines are
blurred
I take a step back
And fall to the
ground
I awake startled
No idea of who I
am
How did I end up
here
In this land of
make-believe?
Jo Anne Kennedy
December 2022
I need to tell you
I love you
But I can’t
As I don’t know if
it is true
I want to tell you
You are loved
But again I can’t
As I don’t know if
it is true
I want you to know
That you are
loveable
I know that is true
But you can’t
accept it yet
Jo Anne Kennedy
November 2022
In the darkness, you shine
The light radiates off you
Lighting up your whole
face
Making you glow
Your presence is
overpowering
It's hard to be around
you
As your infectious
smile
Tries to win me
over
I don’t want to be
overpowered
I want to empower
But you are
standing in front
Creating a barrier
for me
Why am I so resistant?
To be where you
are
Am I scared of
what may be
Of what I may
become?
But there is no
need to fear
Because you mean
no harm
You reach out your
arms to me
And bring me in
close
Your arms envelop
me
And your warmth is
effective
In making me feel
safe
And secure in your
presence
But I need to let
go
To hold you at
arm's length
But you know that
is okay
As it is what you
want
You want me to be able
To stand on my own
two feet
So I will be able to say
I am who I am meant
to be
Jo Anne Kennedy
November 2022
When you look at me
What do you see?
Do you see a rose
Standing tall and
straight?
Or do you see a
sponge?
All wet and limp
As its being
squeezed
One too many
times?
When you look at
me
Do you see beauty
Or do you see ugliness
All crumpled up
and used?
Do you see someone
Who is strong and
stable
Or someone who is
unable
To stand on their
own
Because when I see
you
I crack into pieces
And try to
withdraw
So you cannot hurt
me again
But I say no more
to that
I want to be
strong
To have the keys
to my castle
And keep my heart
safe
Boundaries need to
be raised
Protection put into
place
So you cannot come
in
And try to
dominate
I want to stand
tall
and start to take control
to relish in my
identity
and believe my
roots are planted deep
Jo Anne Kennedy
November 2022
There you are, I see you
Walking down the
street
Strutting towards
me
As if you were the
king
You are as always
Wearing your lanyard
The one with the
false identities
You show the
world
You don’t know you
do it
But it is obvious
to us
That while you say
one thing
You really mean
the opposite
You portray yourself
as a warrior
When you are actually
a victim
And it is all
because
You want to be
better than you are
Jo Anne Kennedy
November 2022
We walk secretly
And silently in contentment
We walk openly
Greeting others
who walk with us
We walk humbly
Serving others in
need
We walk with perseverance
Pushing through
the walls and barriers
We walk with assurance
Knowing that we are
not alone
We walk in the knowledge
Of the enormous price
paid for us
We walk in
captivation
Of the beauty
around us
We walk out of
time
In the world, we
live in
We walk in time
With the one, we
belong to
We walk along
ancient paths
Forging new ones
on the way
We walk with purpose
Keeping our eyes
on the road ahead
We walk with hope
Knowing that it
will all be worth it
Jo Anne Kennedy
November 2022
In the first act,
All was right in
the world
Life was mainly sunny
With a couple of
rain showers
The second act was
stormy
The tempest came
And the whirlwind happened
And caused a lot
of wreckage
Near the end of
that act
The tempest calmed
down
When a ray of sunshine
came
And brightened up
the day
That was the time
when,
The rains finished
And the rainbow
appeared
Showing there was
hope in the world
Then we come to the next
scene
Where the ground
began to give way
And the clouds
gathered
Signaling darkness
on the horizon
The final scene
saw a real turnaround
And the darkness
gave way
To the land of eternal
sunshine
Where mountains
stood tall
Yes there were a
few tremors
When the earth
shook
But the ground
held together
And flowers
started to appear
But then a huge
crack appeared
The ground gave
way again
The sky plummeted
And the world was
about to change
Work has been done
And is still in
progress
To help repair the
damage
And bring healing
all around
Jo Anne Kennedy
November 2022
We need to embrace the brokenness
Let the tears stream
down your face
Courageously surrender
our pain and fears
We need to trust
and acknowledge
That the healing that
comes
Is far greater
than our brokenness
The trust may be
reckless
But we have seen
it happen
As we stand in the
fiery furnace
Transformation can
begin
Then we can be
delivered
From all that
holds us back
From being who we
are,
To who we are truly meant to be
Jo Anne Kennedy
November 2022
Why do we hide?
When we know the truth
In that, you can see
us clearly
Why hide behind a
tree?
Or in a winepress
Or in the desert
Does the cave
exclude us
From being seen?
No, you see us all
the time
When we are sleeping
Or watching sheep
You always see us
You see the orphan
You see the
prostitute
And the teenage
peasant
You see us all
You see everything
we do
Even when we think
you don’t
There is no point
in hiding
When you see everything
Nothing we do
escapes you
And the best thing
is
You include us all
In your wondrous
plan
You guide us
You hold us tight
And love us no
matter what
Jo Anne Kennedy
November 2022
It is amazing how
in life
You can belong to
a place
But after a few
years
Realise you never
really belonged
It is amazing how
in life
You can go to a
new place
And after a few
weeks
Feel you are at
home
Jo Anne Kennedy
October 2022
There was one
Who meant the
world to me
But because I was
scared
I pushed him away
There was one
Who saw me as me
But because I was weak
I pushed him away
There was one
Who made me feel
special
But because I was
ashamed
I pushed him away
There are many others
Who have come
close to me
But then turned on
their heels
And walked away
But there are
others
Who sought a friendship
But then I turned
on my heel
And walked away
from them
Then there are
those
Who have come into
my life
And will always be
with me
Forever in my
heart
Jo Anne Kennedy
October 2022
