Resilience Poems
Philadelphia, 6/25/25
by Michael Banning
This morning, a cardinal
lands on my back fence,
opens its beak.
Nothing.
Even the birds
save their songs
for weather worth singing about.
The papi store thermometer
......
We Are The Weed People
by Jim Kelly
We Are The Weed People
We are the weeds—
rooted deep in resilience.
Dropped here from distant lands,
we rise,
storm after storm,
spirit ever higher.
......
Mr. Tree
by Rohan Dhulipalla
the sakura tree
in the dusty ol’ dark corner of the failing shop,
(although the owner would beg to disagree)
priced at $7.95
with a cardboard sign fastened with white cable ties
reading “UNLIKELY TO STAY ALIVE”
it appears that it was trying to expand,
to spread its branches,
but expansions weren’t in demand
......
Wilted Sunflower
by Prachi Sheoran
On the verge of death, a mighty star,
Conceived a delicate flower.
Dainty, pure, and bright,
Her soul alit by the last light.
Left in a field both radiant and vile,
She bloomed eternal but servile.
A little droopy, a little broke, and plenty shunned,
......
I KNOW MY PEOPLE
by Eric Washington
I know my people.
I've seen their suffering and their tears,
Their anger and their fears.
I've seen them work amongst the mills,
In cotton and sugar fields.
Working with bleeding hands,
And refusing to give up then.
While tortured with whips and ropes,
And they still believe in hope.
I know my people.
......
We Are The Weed People
by Jim Kelly
We Are The Weed People
We are the weeds—
rooted deep in resilience.
Dropped here from distant lands,
we rise,
storm after storm,
spirit ever higher.
......
Philadelphia, 6/25/25
by Michael Banning
This morning, a cardinal
lands on my back fence,
opens its beak.
Nothing.
Even the birds
save their songs
for weather worth singing about.
The papi store thermometer
......
I KNOW MY PEOPLE
by Eric Washington
I know my people.
I've seen their suffering and their tears,
Their anger and their fears.
I've seen them work amongst the mills,
In cotton and sugar fields.
Working with bleeding hands,
And refusing to give up then.
While tortured with whips and ropes,
And they still believe in hope.
I know my people.
......
Stranger to Belonging
by Nai'a Safir
I am most at peace when others would break,
Floating above my body after the fall,
Calm in the car that became our home,
Finding stillness in what should destroy.
They ask who I am-as if I should know,
......
Autumn
by Lady Stardust
As autumn whispers through the trees
A chill wraps me up in my memories
Muffled cries, shadows cast
Echoes f a close past.
The fallen leaves dance in twirling hues
Filling my heart with bittersweet blues
Each shuffling sound, a haunting call
A reminder of the rise and fall.
......
