- BrooksAY
Excerpt from Butterfly, Fly! (set to release late-2021)
Updated: Jan 26, 2022
In the midst of a global pandemic, the slogan, “we’re in this together” became the tagline uniting all of humanity. It seemed that tagline might actually supersede any divisive act from history’s past that sought to divide and conquer. In the face of an unprecedented pandemic, in the midst of being “… in this together”, police misconduct towards people of color continued to thrive. This piece was birthed as I sat reflecting on police misconduct towards people of color.
“This Gum”
I chew, I pop, I think
I chew, I think
I chew
I chew
I breathe
I must remember to breathe
These stories keep surfacing
I can feel her plight
I envision her passion
I chew, I pop, I think
I chew, I think
I chew
I chew
I breathe
I keep forgetting to breathe
Keep hearing “I can’t breathe” echoing in my subconscious
What is air?
What is breath to the Black man (woman) in America?
What is the flavor of this gum?
I’ve literally exhausted all of its substance
These moments seem to drain and exhaust our substance
I chew
I chew
I cry
I chew…fighting back the tears
I cry,
I chew, I cry
I can’t recall the rhythm of my breath
Or the thud of my heart
My heart!!!?
What is the condition of my heart!!!?
I can’t breathe!
Yet again.
Breath gone from her lungs, a misunderstanding
Relationships broken
He said, she said
She will never be able to share her story, her plight, her passion
A hurting soul unable to be rehabilitated
The masses inundated with sorrow, with grief
The division, the tension rises
I chew,
I chew,
I chew,
I think,
I cry,
I breathe
God, enlighten the masses to live with purpose
While we all still breathe
Why do we all still breathe?
Endow us with hope
Empower us to take notes from history and her-story
Please endow this Earth with vision, with wisdom, with peace, with faith
I chew until this gum has lost its purpose
I cry,
I cry,
I cry,
I dry my eyes
I pray
I chew,
I think
I breathe
I think I need a new piece of gum
Butterfly, Fly! by Angela Brooks is a transparent book of poetry that touches on racial trauma, compromised mental health, hope, and spirituality.
