A poem by Tina Vorreyer, December 2019
I often say that my work can speak for itself but let me give you a bit of insight into how it came about. Human emotion is hard enough to feel at times and even harder to express in the right way. At an early age (cliche but it is true), I found that poetry helped me express fears, triumphs, boredom, and all the other feelings I couldn’t correctly express to others without getting in trouble. Writing it helped me get it out but reading poetry showed me how to understand what was going on inside my head. With all that I write, I hope to express my past and my hopes for the future while also educating others on their own thoughts and memories.
Currently, I have published work in anthologies, ‘Illinois’s Best Emerging Poets’, ‘Wisconsin’s Best Emerging Poets’, ‘America’s Emerging Poets 2018’, and ‘Illinois Best Emerging Poets 2019′ by Z Publishing and recently in Not Very Quiet’s fourth issue and Underwood Press’s Black Works’ second issue. Lastly, the poem entitled, ‘I Can Still Fly’ was picked as the Poetic Musings Contest Winner by Poets’ Choice in September. To find the links to these publications, you can go to www.tinavorreyer.com.
The dream,
as long as my conscious mind can remember,
was to one day be a mother.
Not on its own – there was a particular story
One of a prince and a magical ending
Where we would all live
Happily ever after.
Youth spent rushing and running to
An inevitable future
Of romance and rainbows.
The tween years consumed with
Searching and seeking
The one true love.
It became a job –
One that didn’t excite
the spirit.
Until the proverbial yield sign
Planted itself onto my path –
Forcing me to slow down.
Finally.
Gave me a chance to peak at the
Rearview mirror
And see how empty my past was –
The more I continued to pump the breaks
The further my journey took me.
Until it finally brought me to you –
And after years past my prime, spent on our
Exhilarating adventure,
You continue to keep me captivated
In the present
And blind to the future.
Thus, though the stories
Say that I have failed you –
Having not birthed another just as I
Grew up myself,
It is evident that I found my
Garden of Eden
Right in our backyard.
Riza Press 