Jason Reynolds's Blog, page 13

Day 30 of 30 (the Toughest 30/30 Ever!)

SPOON AND WELL

a teaspoon dipped

in a well over time

will empty it of water

will tap the well floor

the sound that comes

depends on the

makeup of the well

and the

makeup of the spoon

a wooden spoon

tapping the floor

of a silver well

is a whispered thud

a silver spoon

tapping the floor

of a silver well

is a worriless chime

but what about

a silver spoon

tapping the floor

of a well made of stone?

well that is a peculiar

ugly sound

an echoing scrape

that is the siren of drought

and thirst

Day 29 of 30

THUG

the ones you shake your head at

the ones you cross the street for

the ones you edit out of the picture

every other day of the year

the ones whose neighborhoods

you greenscreen into either

a warzone or a paradise in your mind

the ones you’ve given forked tongues

for having slick mouths

the ones who order wings

from behind bullet-proof glass

the ones with secret handshakes

and heiroglyphic-stained skin

the ones who are loud all the time

who you still don’t hear

the ones you’ve given horns

the ones we’ve all given bricks

we’ve all given up on

let me ask you

when was the last time

you went to one of

the ones

and asked

baby, what’s the matter?

baby, what’s wrong?

Day 28 of 30

UNTITLED (or RESPECTABILITY)

does wrought iron

have a soul?

does it feel pain

being heated

and slowly

forcefully bent

into someone

else’s vision

of ornate?

Day 27 of 30

I know some of you are wondering why I keep writing these poems. Easy answer: because I have to.

PHILIPPE KAHN’S DAUGHTER

In 1997 scientist Philippe Kahn

jury-rigged a camera to his phone

to for the first time

capture and share

through the internet

the birth of his daughter

She is now eighteen

Her life was the impetus

for the camera phone

Her birth was the dropped

pebble in the water

world of waves

rippling and rippling

wider through the years

until eventually reaching

the shaky hand of a

neighborhood newscaster

also eighteen

filming someone else’s death

or almost death

for the

third time

this week

to capture and share

with the internet

in case of another kind

of jury-rig

Day 26 of 30

DAVID COPPERFIELD AND THE NAIVETE OF ILLUSION

all i want is to be able

to saw them in half

to sever them down the middle

separate legs from body

hands from holsters

thought from action

pull a fresh funeral bouquet

from one sleeve

a dove from the other

and a white cloth

long enough to circle the world

and soft enough to dab the tears

of us all

from around my neck

Day 25 of 30

RIOT (for Baltimore)

when a trash can

shatters a car window

in my neighborhood

when a brick

finds a new home in a

closed grocery store

when street signs

are exhumed like bodies

and used like battle axes

and used to bang the ground

to gong out to God

it hurts me

it hurts me more

that you don’t

understand

let me ask you

did you not break

your own toys

during the times

you couldn’t cry away

the anger?

Day 24 of 30

SOLE

Mama used to always say

Son keep your shoes pristine and tied

For even if the soles decay

At least you’ve walked with class and pride

Spit and scrub and buff ’em clean

The bottom stripped of thread and wood

Son be aware the road is mean

But you must make the walk look good

ONE OF THE BEST EMAILS I’VE EVER RECEIVED

From an incredible high school teacher in Milwaukee:

Jason,

The bell is about to ring for another American Studies Block–that is the class that you met a week and a day ago in Milwaukee.  

We miss you.  

The energy and wisdom you gave these young people has been contagious.  Other students have come to talk with them about “that guy sitting in the commons.”  They’ve had critical conversations about who they are as scholars, what they want to tell the world about, how many more songs they need to write, what their beginning and their ending chapter should look like.  They have even started to find out much more about Queen Latifah.

I now am learning much more, too, about Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly” since they seem to see quite a few connections to his new work and your words.  Whew.

I have hit my 20th year of teaching.  In some moments, I wonder if I can reach another year, but then I see them in a room listening to a master craftsman like you and I know that I have found my own place in the world.

Thank you for the gift of your time and your spirit.  You have given us a piece of you that will not break against any harshness in this world.

Peace,
Kelly

I can’t begin to express how grateful and how fortunate I am to have received such a message, and to have shared time with such incredible people — young, old, and everything in between — not just in Milwaukee, but all over this country. Let’s keep working together.

Day 23 of 30

BLEMISH

If for some reason my old face

a magazine cover should grace

I feel the need to make this one thing known

Don’t photoshop my eyes and teeth

Don’t try to blur what lies beneath

Don’t change one nap upon my heath

just leave it all alone

It’s not that I don’t want to seem

like some absurd desired dream

my fragile ego’s made that very clear

But to wash each scar and bruise

To change my skin to different hues

Each person looking then would lose

just how I made it here

Day 22 of 30

FOR KYLIE AND GENERATION WTF

new trending topic

#thelookatyourselfinthemirror

pressyourlipstoyourownreflection

pullawayandsmile

andsayiloveyousomuch

challenge