Sometimes It Just Hurts

"Sometimes it just hurts

Being alive

A slap or a word that's curt

You just want to get away

Just for a while

An hour, a day"

~Grace Marshall

From my poem, "Sometimes It Just Hurts"

Vietnam Boy

"It wasn't that I knew him

I couldn't bear to know him

It wasn't that I thought him dangerous

I had to believe he was

It wasn't that I liked violence

I was used to blood

It wasn't that I wanted to fire

I didn't have a choice

It wasn't that I had courage

I was too afraid not to

It wasn't that I enjoyed war

I hated it as much as it hated me

It wasn't that I was used to rain

I continued to hump forward

It wasn't that I was used to mud

I  had to carry it"

~Grace Marshall

From my poem, "Vietnam Boy"

Another Chance

"So this is another chance

Just another

Another one of those chances

Like the sun

Getting another chance to brighten

The world

Like the deer

Getting another chance

With its newborn fawn

Like each brand new day

Getting another chance

To be brand new

Before the next day

And the next"

~Grace Marshall

From my poem, "Another Chance"

"Way Out"

"Broken inside

Trying to run

Trying to hide

Battered and bruised

So desperate for healing

So utterly used

Crying and sick

But even while dying

There is a slap and a kick

Trying to see

My body shaking

I wanna be free"

~Grace Marshall

From my poem, "Way Out"

"Her"

"She was lying on the grass

Dirt covered her bare feet

She was a dark, boney lass

Her relaxed muscles soaked up the heat

THe tips of stalks tickled her arms

The sunlight teased her eyelids

She had no fear of harm

Her laughter had never been hid"

From my poem, "Her"

From "Keep Our Memories"

"While riding Mr. Freeze

We've held each other's hands

We've turned into tomatoes

While sculpting in the sand

We've given and taken lessons

While swimming in a pool

We've tutored each other

When we cared about school"

~Grace Marshall

From my Poem, "Keep Our Memories"