poet and storyteller
after the meltdown, a few days later it takes a while to descend a mountain carrying wisdom in your hands. if they tell you otherwise, they are lying, do not believe them—it is heavy the road slippery, treacherous when you are walking for two, holding hands. another thing that they do not tell you when... Continue Reading →
it doesn’t just arrive on your doorstep, delivered in the baby hours of the day fresh by a tired man, truck purring in the road a thing idling away, a life ticking. the sidewalks here are dirty. proof that people live here, and dogs—but they know more, always do. things breathe here, are they alive... Continue Reading →
may kind things,honest things,soft things, things that know how to cut fleshfrom gristle, truthfrom lie, find their way past me, as they climb up my throaton strong, bare feet. brave,may they fly,fall, crawl, if they must. find the hungerfind the holes. the placewhere everythingsmells like giving up. there, may they be full. enough. one more... Continue Reading →
vertel vir my hier waar ons sit, skaam mekaar se vrees ontbloot. flardes, flenters gebruikte liefde, oud en stukkend aan mekaar verkoop as iets wat dit nie is nie, nooit sal wees nie, nuut en wit. ongeskond. ek en jy. en ken jy die roep van die tarentaal as die karoo son sak vir haar... Continue Reading →
at the bottom of the field which held my father’s crops, the bees lived. hives of faded wood hugged the river, owned the sun. secret things happened here. when the frames were full,oozing, he would harvest the warmth of summer. forearms straining under the weight of a chipped enamel basin full of a season, he... Continue Reading →
when you are not looking for it, not searching for it under any circumstance, yet still it finds you in all the places where you hide, seeks out all the crackswith patient hands, every scar, fills them up, fallsinto your hands wet with life, clings to your skin,hungry. all the drought that has shaped you,... Continue Reading →
there you are! i have been searching all over for you! where have you been, and why is your heart in pieces on the floor? all the edges sharp and hungry. there is a lazy, late afternoon sun outside, and listen—a little boy is laughing, riding his bicycle in happy circles freedom at last! and... Continue Reading →
may you find love.enough to fill any holes. may you find healing.enough to cover any wounds. may you find hope.enough to keep your dream alive. may everything that was taken from you, return to you as joy. may all your failures grow intocourage. may you find yourself brave enough to try again, and again, and... Continue Reading →
courage fits everyone differently. do you know how beautiful brave looks on you? © Liezel Graham 2020. Photograph by Jon Tyson. Don’t compare your place of courage to that of another. Courage looks different on each of us. Vulnerability looks different on each of us. Do you know how beautiful brave looks on you? liezel
