Silence, Shame
We always
Smile
Never
Cry
Laugh as we
die
No one
Needs
To know our
business
We sustain
Silence
From
generation to generation
We
Say
How this pains me so
But no one
can know
I’ll never
forget
Dad says
“Never let
them see you sweat”
Oh, but
whispered
History
Is a rag
soaking this in
A 16
year-old labors
To bear her
uncle’s child
Sisters
fragmented
Reveal
shame-stories through
Poisoned
intention
Until
All that is
heard
Are the
Scrape
slide
Scrape
slide
Of forks on
Bad china
and
Rice and
peas gliding
Gummy down
regretful throats
I’ll never
forget
Dad says
“Never let
them see you sweat”
Until
Brother’s
gone mad
Sister’s
gone missing
Auntie’s
obsessed with
Which man
we’re kissing
Until
Grandmother
dies
Didn’t know
her real name
One girl’s
not by the casket
The
daughter of shame
But
That’s okay
We always
Smile
Never
Cry
Laugh as we
die
No one
Needs
To know our
business
But don’t
we?
Family?
We sustain
Silence
But
No one
Ever
Forgets
We smile
And we
laugh
We scrape
And we
glide
Through
Birth and
Through
Death
We
Worship
Our
Pride
Sharifa Stevens
Sharifa Stevens is a Manhattan-born, Bronx-raised child of the King, born to Jamaican immigrants, and currently living in Dallas. Sharifa's been singing since she was born. Her passion is to serve God's kingdom by leading His people in worship through music, speaking and writing, and relationships with people. Her heart is also unity, inspired by John. Sharifa hates exercise but likes Chipotle, bagels with a schmeer and lox, salmon sushi, chicken tikka, curried goat (yeah, it's good) with rice and peas, and chocolate lava cakes. She's been happily married to Jonathan since 2006...and he buys her Chipotle.
10 Comments
Sharifa Stevens
Why I Wrote This Poem
We never
spoke about certain things in my family. Secrets floated like helium-filled
elephants. Shame mingled with pride at weddings and especially funerals,
confounding the young folks, choking the older ones.
Terri Moore
I’m trying to find the
I’m trying to find the words…absolutely beautiful, heartwrenching, powerful. Thanks.
Sue Bohlin
Wow.
Sharifa. . . your words are heartbreakingly beautiful. As in, "beauty from ashes."
One of my mentors taught that "whatever is never talked about in your family is considered shameful." Which is why shame and silence go together, and always will.
Sharifa Stevens
Amen to the power of the
Amen to the power of the Word, piercing the silence
Lenita
silenced no more
praise God for your words, they are truly healing and encourages me to speak to the unspoken, cry about the pain in my family, beseech my Father’s throne on behalf of my family, so thank you, thank you. I love this piece and encourage you to continue to share and write, see you at the spoken word event at DTS 🙂
Sandra Glahn
Powerful stuff
They stood by, hands folded, mouths shut. This makes me think ofJacob after Dinah
Gwynne Johnson
Giving voice to the unspeakable wrongs…
What a beautiful tribute to those who suffer in silence.
Heather A. Goodman
This is beautiful, Sharifa.
This is beautiful, Sharifa. Thanks for sharing.
Laura (Jones) Singleton
“You don’t mean that.”
That’s the response I got when I attempted, as a child, to bring light to a situation. “You don’t mean that.” The four-word education burned like a brand: the information was shameful, and I was shameful for bringing it up. I’ve often wondered if my relative recalls the terse conversation. Yet, even as an adult, I haven’t asked. I’ve talked about it to others, but with my family, I still remain silent. Thanks for making me think about it. Perhaps it’s time to reexamine the lessons.
Inspirational Bible
Poem
I like it a lot! So full of emotion and reflection. Old wounds are the hardest to heal, especially ones we’ve gotten growing up. Thank you for sharing.