Author’s Note: These two poems are meant to feel like a meditation or an exercise in self-compassion. The focus doesn’t have to be about religion. It’s about not putting so much pressure on yourself. My intention is that these poems provide you with stability, peace, and grace during difficult times.
By Tom Cramer
Brand New Start
I’ve been trying to kick them down with force
I’ve been trying to break these walls with all I have in me
I’ve been trying to use all my strength
To find a way
Back to me
Then a small whisper from the heavens above
Said slow down my child
You are enough
You don’t have to hide who you are anymore
Just open your eyes
And open the door
To a brand new place where you are completely free
From all the pain and all the anxiety
To a world where you love yourself for exactly who you are
To a place where you no longer need to scream
All you need to do is a take a breath and breathe
You no longer need to pound the pavement to reach the stars
Just be gentle with yourself
And that will create a brand new start
I’ve been taking up arrows and putting on my boots
Until I realized in this game of life that is how you lose
You need to be strong and you need to be tough
But the best thing you can do
Is remind yourself that you are enough
You don’t get to where you’re going by yelling out loud
You don’t get to where you’re going by making a sound
You find it within you every day that you were born to do this
and you were born to shine
And now is the time to take your place
And remind yourself you can’t be replaced
God is saying slow down child
God is saying no more
The door has been opened
The door to a brand new start
Done The Impossible
In the moments when you feel you can’t
You can
In the moments where you are remembering
Look forward
In the moments where you feel it’s impossible
Remember you’ve done the impossible before
In the moments when you feel scared
Be still
In the moments where you feel afraid
Don’t look away and feel what you’ve always had inside of you
Tap into the determination and the strength
Tap into His wisdom and His grace
Tap into the part of you
That has brought you through the storm
Time and time again
In the moments where you don’t know yourself
And you feel like running away
Remind yourself of who you are within
Not the thoughts
Not the illness
Remind yourself that you won’t hold yourself back any longer
Remind yourself that you are not the picture you have painted for yourself
Remind yourself in the moments it feels it’s impossible
That you’ve done the impossible before
Writing has always been one of Tom’s biggest passions. He graduated with his degree from Eastern Michigan University in Communication, Media and Theatre Arts with a minor in Journalism. He’s struggled with mental health for most of his life and writing has gotten him through some of the darkest times he’s experienced.
Such beautiful poems written from the heart and soul. Keep writing Tom.
Love you, Aunt Laura