Life in Lungs and Clenched Fists | Teen Ink

Life in Lungs and Clenched Fists MAG

October 26, 2013
By StarlitSunrise DIAMOND, Clemmons, North Carolina
StarlitSunrise DIAMOND, Clemmons, North Carolina
56 articles 0 photos 253 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Blessed are they who see beautiful things in humble places where other people see nothing." ~Camille Pissarro


Life is made of gasps of air
And that sounds deep but it's just true
As shallow as our frantic breaths
My chest's been heaving since the womb
So I guess I know the drill

Life breaks down before a fist
An accident can cause a war
Clenched teeth drinking in their claim
Of fear and oxygen
Angry eyes speak words my mouth has
never learned
And I shake beneath my smile

Life knocks on every bolted door
In a rhythm quite familiar
Poetry tapped out in Morse
Vibrations of the soul
Which is to say, our heartbeats
And a couple gasps of air

I've always found it somewhat strange
The way we say that things can come to life
Really, it is life that comes to them
With a pressure on its rib cage
And a weapon by its side



Similar Articles

JOIN THE DISCUSSION

This article has 5 comments.


on Apr. 5 2015 at 4:24 am
SaphiraBrightscales DIAMOND, Islamabad, Other
75 articles 16 photos 1136 comments

Favorite Quote:
I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.
- Maya Angelou
When i was little/I used to point a chubby finger toward the dark sky/And ask my father/why some stars moved and others didn’t/He would laugh and explain that some were airplanes/I still wish on them today ~ Laugh-It-Out
The feathers of a crow are black/The ink of my pen is blacker/The pain of my heart is blackest~ Mckay
If love produced a blossom/I’d take it in my palm/What a blessing, the bright color!/How soothing, such a balm!/I’d keep a petal for my own/The rest, drop from my hands/For such a flower would multiply/And populate the lands~ thesilentraven
And I began to rival legends/Long entombed before my birth./But for all my much envied fame/The lust for more would not abate./The plaques and prizes with my name/Will, like all things, disintegrate. ~ TheEpic95 now known as Helena_Noel

Emily my dearest or as I like to call you: STARR!! HEYYYY I AM JUST POSTING THIS HERE because I know I've been gone. Just plain gone for ages now and I just, I MISS YOU. SO MUCH. It is like I had this amazing friend in you and all of you people and I haven't been able to reach out and it sucks and I just had to come back at least once and say this, that I miss you and I hope that you still remember me. Before I go and leave TeenInk. And well, here's an address: dua.jas (attherateof) hotmail CONGRATULATIONS on winning the contest. You absolutely deserved it! I simply adore this poem and am going to keep it with me forever. In fact I am printing it right now. ^.^ Love always, Dua

on Apr. 13 2014 at 12:33 pm
Rolledthestone SILVER, Nowhere, Other
8 articles 0 photos 108 comments

Favorite Quote:
"You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye." (Matthew 7:5) and "All the poeple who supported slavery were free, all the people who support abortion live..."

Amazing. Just amazing. So true. The title is perfect and it's just...I can't find enough synonyms for awesome.

on Dec. 9 2013 at 1:36 am
TheSkyOwesMeRain GOLD, Irvine, California
13 articles 1 photo 299 comments

Favorite Quote:
Life isn't measured by the number of breaths you take, but by the moments which take your breath away.

You are only as strong as your weakest link.

Amazing! It was particularly satisfying to read out loud, you made really good use of the rhythm :) 

on Nov. 21 2013 at 12:37 am
Ingenious word play. Clearly, you deserve editor's choice. Beautifully and ingeniously written.

on Nov. 3 2013 at 1:40 am
TheMaskedPoet SILVER, Temple, Georgia
9 articles 0 photos 51 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I wish I could be a little less dramatic, like a Kennedy when Camelot went down in Flames." -Miranda Lambert

Honestly, all I can say is wow. It's super structured and you really set a high bar. Great job!