Alexandra, the police will beat us...

by Karla   Oct 7, 2012


If you haven't found anything you are willing to die for, you aren't fit to live."
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Alexandra, the police will beat us...

Today my mind reveled in unaccustomed delight:
I voted for hope as my past was granted amnesty.

When I pressed the button, my shouts could be heard again
echoing across the mad streets, exploding the dirty buildings,
destroying twenty one years of fragmentation.
(Alexandra, the police will beat us if we make any move)

120 exiled voices crossed the borders freeing us
from historical amnesia as my uncle threw marbles
at the horse soldiers, inflaming us.

The rebel in me knelt down with a sword in her hands,
thinking of my father crying when tears he didn't have any more:
I would die for my country; I am ready to live.

Today I exercised my citizenship
and Mother Democracy lulled me
singing The National Anthem,
putting sugar on my lips.

Karla Bardanza

*Alexandra is a friend of mine.

Copyright.Karla Bardanza 2012

http//asmoonsewsthesatinstars.blogspot.com
http://skycladatmidnight.tumblr.com

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  • 12 years ago

    by Amreen

    This one has so much of strong emotions shown.with every word... I could feel this act through your words, emotions... Very powerful piece...
    Good one karla...:)

  • 12 years ago

    by L

    I love the name Alexandra
    In this piece, it adds more elegance.

    I voted for hope as my past was granted amnesty

    ^ I also like this line so much because hope can let us advance farther in life instead of having us stuck in the past. By having hope, one looks ahead instead of staying in the same place.

    The rebel in me knelt down with a sword in her hands,
    thinking of my father crying when tears he didn't have any more:
    I would die for my country; I am ready to live.

    ^^ Out of the whole piece, the middle sentence was the one that caught me off guard, rather the part that took me more time to understand.

    the reason is because when I read it, I heard a different voice.

    When I read the sentence, Thinking of my father crying when tears he didn't have any more...
    in this line you are telling me what you are doing at that moment..rather you are telling me what you are thinking.. I'm guessing that's part of stream of consciousness.

    :You are telling us a short story, but you are also letting us know what you are thinking at that moment. That adds a special something to this piece.

    The image of you kneeling down and holding that sword while your father jumps in your mind is priceless. By this I mean, your words did an excellent job implanting that image in my head

    Overall, I think this poem is about the struggle it took for people to make their vote count. When it finally was achieve there is more than satisfaction "Putting sugar on my lips." I got the feeling of feeling free and that one is some body. There is more but I can't explain the feeling, your words have done that with this piece.

  • 12 years ago

    by nouriguess

    Karla,

    You moved me endlessly with this write. Just amazing. Emotions are scattered all over your words, so magical.

    That being said, you have one little typo there: 'kneeled' is wrong, it should be 'knelt'. I just had to pinpoint it since this poem had been nominated and if it gets to the front page, you don't want 'some' to pick it, ha?
    ; )

    Well-done!

  • 12 years ago

    by Darren

    Another awesome write, even when they are as short as this, they are still full to the brim with power.

    deserves more than 1 comment

  • 12 years ago

    by Hellon

    I know you said you'd rather I avoided leaving a comment on your poems and I have but..when I nominate one...I never do without stating the reason why so....I'll make it brief.....outstanding!