You’ll come to me in whispers

And you’ll visit me in dreams

I’ll awaken from your kisses

Softly lit by radiant beams

In the echos of my life

I will catch your sweetest voice

I will hear our love’s pure song

And my heart will then rejoice

I will strain my tired ear

For each whisper that you gift

As I listen most intently

In our memories I will drift

And one day your gentle whispers

Will be louder and quite clear

We’ll be standing face to face

And our love’s song all will hear

Throughout my life my gram was my other mother, the only one to never judge me, love me unconditionally, believe in me, and always tried to protect me. As of January 27, 2024, she has went on before me. She is now my Angel. Growing up with her, watching her, and hearing her taught me that no matter what I see, think, feel, and hear; I am bigger and better than it. I can and I will come out on top. And so I did just that, thanks to her!

I feel more out of place now than I ever have.
You’re not here to remind me of who I am.
Suddenly it’s like I’m floating in midair.
It almost feels like an outer body experience, which I fear.
Wanting to pick up the phone and make that call.
Drop on by for a smile, hang out for a while and share some words.
Without you here it feels colder than before.
Lonelier than I’ve known.
BUT,
I won’t carry on in sadness and gloom.
I know this is just a stage.
I’ll pick myself up but only for you.
I’ll take what you gave me and shine it bright.
I’ll share all of your love.
I’ll share your life.
The memories are sewn into my soul, streaming through my veins and all of my bones.
Tears are mixed with happy and sad.
Ultimately though, I am glad.
I’m glad to have had the honor of you; your love,
your laughter,
your touch.
Sharing our worlds together and laughing so much.
You went on ahead with the others.
You wait for us to catch up but you’re in no rush.
So until then I’ll leave you with this, a simple little wish.
That as you watch over your loved ones you continue to live through us and with us.
Until we meet again
💗💗💗

I saw you pull up to my parents’ house for a wonderful surprise visit.
You told us you weren’t sure how long you’d stick around for,
But, you did say you would be back soon.

You’ll be back.
You’ll be back soon.
You always come back.

Years passed and you rolled in like it was only yesterday.
Your smile is bright, your stories are wild and we are all laughing together.
You are so much older but not all that different.
We are still exactly 10 years apart.
We are still each other’s favorite cousin.
You are still someone I look up to.
But for now, you’ve got to go again.
You didn’t know when, but you knew you would be back soon.

You’ll be back.
You’ll be back soon.
You always come back.

It’s Thanksgiving at the apartment
My smile was bright, but there were no stories.
Nobody was laughing.
I was a ghost and everyone else was a graveyard.
I left and no one even looked up at me.

I wish I didn’t.

Six years passed
and this time
you
didn’t
come
back.

I wish I knew.

I missed your funeral.
I missed your burial.
I miss you.

I finally returned to the apartment
to sprawl your flowers out over the bay.
My heart dropped at the top of the hill.
I met a lonesome swan that was kooky like you.
He made sure to make me smile bright like you.
The sky was heavenly.
The flag was at half mast.
I wonder if they knew.
I heard your flowers plop into the water and sobbed over the railing.
I almost wished I didn’t let go so soon.

Three months passed and a lot has happened.

You left and the whole world went into lockdown.
You left and society crumbled.
You left and everyone is rioting.
You left and I almost envy you for it.

You left us pictures of your bright smile to look back on.
You left us wild stories to recount.
You left us with fond memories to laugh at.

I swear I saw you drive past my complex today
You were laughing and held your cigarette outside your car window.

It was only for a split second.

But I knew it was you.

I knew you would come back.

And I know you’ll be back soon.

You always come back.

Born in the South, under that Carolina sky,
Josephine Robinson , a strong black woman with pride.
Eighth grade education, couldn’t hold her back,
Racism of the south tried to stop her, but she stayed on track.
To Philly she migrated, dreams in her eyes,
Two kids by her side, she was destined to rise.
Two Turner Street homes, bought with blood, sweat, and tears,
Through the struggles and the pain, she conquered her fears.

Two houses on Turner Street bought from her grind,
With her hard-earned dollars, she redefined.
A matriarch standing, through thick and thin,
When my dad fell short, she did her best to step in.
Showered us with care, love beyond measure,
Grandma Josephine, a timeless treasure.
Her fried chicken thighs, crisp and divine,
Sweet potato pies, yeah they taste so fine.

She showed me strength, resilience, and grace,
In her warm embrace, I found my place.
Through every hardship, she stood tall,
Josephine Robinson, my hero through it all.

Black woman from the South, legacy so deep,
Her memory in my heart, forever I’ll keep.
Fried chicken thighs, golden and crisp,
Sweet potato pies, with a loving twist.
Grandkids gathered around, stories to tell,
In her presence, all was well.
Her Southern cooking, a symbol of care,
Grandma Josephine, always there.

Fried chicken thighs, sweet potato pies,
Grandma’s love, never disguised.
Southern cooking, taste of home,
In her kitchen, love was shown.

From the South to Philly, she paved the way,
With love and strength, she did her best to save the day.
Josephine Robinson your legacy lives on,
In every fried chicken thigh, and every sweet potato pie I ate til it was gone.

This poem is dedicated to my Grandma Josephine Robinson 10-03-1922 to 1-08-2014

Written with love by your Grandson Brandon Basheer Umar Pemberton

The way you lit up whenever I was around.
The way I could trust you with my secrets and know that you would only share the things I wanted known to others.
The hours we spent together in good company playing games, streaming movies, and making plans for the future.
Sometimes I would shut you down when you were acting out of sorts, but I always knew that we could start fresh after taking some time apart, and we would both be better for it.
And while you naturally opened up to anyone who cared to get to know you,
You and I had a special bond and connection that was not easily hacked.
It’s a shame that your time has come to an end, but I will still hold on to you for the treasure that you are to me.
You were a good computer.
Rest in peace.

I yearn for the days we reincarnate as trees
A family of redwoods, sturdy and tall as can be
Storms wouldn’t dare shake us
And our roots grounded in more than just emotion
We’d be patient, we’d listen
We’d see humans making our mistakes
And glisten at the lessons

The party was lovely. Beautiful weather, waves gently rolling over the sand, sun shining. As always, we all gathered there for you, duded out in our best, even though we spent our time together; away from you. Suddenly the weather turned, the sky darkened and the ocean roared. I saw the ship, faintly, behind the curtains of fog and mist and I knew it was for you. Frantic, I told everyone you were leaving, but no one believed me. The horns thundered and it was deafening, I was sure everyone could hear them. I screamed my warning above the sounds, but no one believed me. The lighthouse, always in full vision yet forgotten after so many years, shone its dull light and I jumped up and down and pointed and shouted, but no one believed me. From nowhere, you came to shore. We all gathered round you. I saw the bags at your feet. It was clear you were leaving. I looked into countless eyes, awaiting the understanding nod that yes, they finally saw it too, but still no one believed me. I kissed you goodbye and gave my blessing for a safe journey up North, not realizing that I didn’t believe me too. The baby ran towards the water, my attention caught for a split second, but when I turned back, you were gone. Everyone told me you had left, but I didn’t believe them.
We all dressed in black. We had parties centered around a pretense of love for one another, convincing ourselves that if we held on to each other, maybe we’d find you amongst us. A little in Will, a spot in Anna, a smile in Margret, a talent in Jeremy. But you were no where to be found. I said I loved them as I loved you, but I didn’t believe me. Over time, the party lights became as dull as the lighthouse. They took on a sour scent. Then bitter. It was your light that provided the warmth and clarity, your perfume that kept the stench at bay. The parties became few and far between. Some stopped coming, some disappeared, but the worst of all had more parties, stinking of gangrene decay.
I wish I could’ve bottled that perfume, but silly me, I should’ve known it could never be caught. It was the wild aroma of yellow roses, sunshine, and a humid breeze. No chemical, no matter how strong, could recreate the natural sweetness. I’ve kept what few possessions you and the vultures left behind. They’re shut up tight in decorative boxes and drawers and when I open them, your perfume escapes and while I relish in the embrace, enraptured, I desperately slam closed the boxes and drawers as quickly as possible, so as to never lose your perfume, like I’ve lost you.
That was many years ago, now. No more ships have come in, the lighthouse still stands, the baby is now a boy, and the fog and mist have hung around since you departed. It’s difficult to see and I don’t know which way I’m going, but the boy guides me without intention. In him, I see your smile, your talent, your light, and a perfume much like your own. You told me he would, but I didn’t believe you.

This guitar you handed down,
Shapes music like a lighthouse.
Acoustic memory,
You’re tuning through the keys.
From where you are you amplify,
the song that’s calling me.
These same strings your fingers played,
Connect me to the words you say,
Because life’s foot is on my neck,
Your voice says “sing, until it’s dead.”
“The life you had was a cage”, you said.
“Sing Sweetie. Heart and mind are syncing,
This tower that you built is strong,
And this is gonna hurt,
So sing.
Sing through pain.
Because waves can’t take your breathe away.
Let the sound crash through,
Now that nothing takes from you.
Where your going you don’t need walls,
They never supported you at all.”
Still I’m sitting inland,
And I belong at sea.
“Sing Sweetie.
You shine when you have trimmed the wick,
That’s how you find your reasonance.
Your life is hidden in music.
Face it.
That’s your self healing circuit.”

What I’ve come to realize is that we all long for a type of peace that surpasses all understanding and I’ve found that through Jesus Christ.

In the presence of my Creator I’ve found PEACE.

It’s often unexplainable to put into words how it feels to be at the feet of the one that created you.

Oh to know that there is breakthrough, transformation, surrender, joy, PEACE in His presence makes this race a little bit easier to run.

We can truly come to Jesus whenever and His peace will comfort us like a blanket.

Everything washes away in His presence because He has covered us with His blood.

The sadness is stripped away and peace arises
The heartbreak is stripped away and peace arises
The defeat is stripped away and peace arises
The shame is stripped away and peace arises
The worry is stripped away and peace arises
The fear is stripped away and peace arises
The doubt is stripped away and peace arises

Peace Arises in the Presence of My Creator

In His presence I feel most at peace because my Jesus is the Prince of Peace.

His word says that His peace surpasses all understanding, how beautiful is it to be filled with supernatural peace

You can only truly feel at peace when you encounter Christ

In the beginning things are always fairly out of sorts…

However, if nothing else is gained by all this and there aren’t any more humans left to begrudge their lot in life, once this iteration of life is over,
I hope the Earth recalls the peace…

I hope Gaia remembers the fountainhead of silence arising just before the first cries of a newborn child, our laughter, and ingenuity.

Let us hope the stars align and we find ourselves prepared in our individual capacity, arms outstretched to offer that precious piece of what we have been farming to a grateful universe,
That every near-death experience, birth, and death (and every cacophonous event in between) be tempered by our collective understanding and vision of what it means to be still.

That said, I have found peace in chaos…

Apparently, when this whole universe ordeal began and sent our species tumbling about the world, with a newly formed recognition of what would later cause us to have purpose, chaos was the backdrop upon which we landed.

There is peace in the acceptance of what is, and as that tumbles about like a stone being polished, what is becomes the infinite palette of chaos by which we have been invited to paint our stories.

You see, I have been kidnapped by the throbbing silence at the concussion of a rocket propelled grenade in a place without peace, and found peace entrenched there in the eyes of a child,
I have found it in the doing of things deemed impossible by a mind that would rob me of it, if only to replace it with the temporal anointing of the false gods of comfort and complacency.

And I have climbed the wuthering heights of a synthetic human experience and ramshackle material excesses, only to forget where peace resides.
There is a Latin proverb stating: “Ne Te Quaesiveris Extra” which roughly translates to the fact that there is nothing to search for outside of self, for you are everything,
And into that wisdom, which grants its parishioner the confessional of truth by which all things must be measured to the accrual of life’s wonders, I commit my soul.

In my life I have gleaned peace from everything with the exception of calm environs and found that peace is an ember best kept burning in the heart of the conscious observer, lest it become a light guiding me off the path of my discovery.

Peace from this stalwart vantage point is found in every instant wherein lies the possibility that chaos provides,
It is in the triumphant moment and the silent moment abutting it,
My peace is in the knowing…

To feel the wind from the trees
& instantly smile
Surrounded by the love of life
My world
Mi Amor
The Butterflies i get to see her face i the sunlight
In the moonlight
Underneath the stars
That shine as bright
As her Smile
My heart has never felt such joy
Such peace to be with someone as beautiful & perfect as she is
She is home
My Other Half
My Darling ,Love Of My Life
With her my problems go away
My past doesn’t hurt so bad
When i am sad i think of her
& i am at peace
I could not imagine my life without her
Her Smile
Her Glow
The love i get just by presence
Her Touch
Her Words
By the way she looks at me
She is my happy joyful place
She not only has my heart
But consumes my soul
In every good way i could possibly think of
To my Peace
I love you with my all, My everything
Thank you for making me feel safe
For you to be my peace
Thank you for being there for me

World Dearest. I’m writing to share my thoughts on when and where I feel most at peace. Within the realm of your expanse, often noise just will not cease. But I’ve learned how to grab hold of what for me defines peace. It’s the manner in which I’m able to bring myself into retreat. Whether literally or mentally, I am able to rest myself. It’s like my peace is always readily available, it’s right there on the shelf. Travel and good times have equipped me with memories that I can quickly envision. Large blue bodies of water, desert land, and loved ones, thoughts of these become my mission. But positioning myself on my couch with book in hand combined with the comfort of The Holy Spirit is often the plan, because this is the main time and place where pangs of happenstance, circumstance, and romance for me are muted. This is when and where I’m in a place of [perfect] peace that cannot be disputed.