Silenced for Safety by Valerie Parente
Few things feel as bad
as leaving people you love with no explanation
not because they don’t deserve one,
but because you’ve been traumatized to the point that it feels safer just to stay silent.
– Valerie Parente (2-18-2020)
Hostile Environment by Valerie Parente
It was never about correcting actions,
it was about control.
It was never about bettering me,
it was about bullying me.
It was never about teamwork,
it was about tyranny.
It was never about reaching out,
it was about retaliating.
It was never about improvement
it was about intimidation.
It was never about positivity,
it was about your power trip.
It was never about building me up,
it was about breaking me down until I finally gave up.
And you might think that you’ve won
but the fact that I left before you could have the satisfaction of spitting in my face one last time says otherwise.
– Valerie Parente (2-18-2020)
Lost by Valerie Parente
You are not lost.
I just lost my ability to find you.
– Valerie Parente (2-11-2020)
Surreal by Valerie Parente
It’s so hard to believe that from now on when we talk about your presence
it’s going to be in past tense.
What we feel is what is real to us
and we still feel that you are here with us.
– Valerie Parente (2-10-2020)
Love Is Immortal by Valerie Parente
Love
is when your soul
recognizes another soul
and you’ll know when you feel that love
because the body will seem as inanimate as clay
while the ego is just an arbitrary layer in space
and the light you sense through this reality charade
could ignite an entire universe with a single gaze
Because love
is when two energies combine
and spawn an endless chain of life.
– Valerie Parente (2-7-2020)
Connection by Valerie Parente
I’ve been looking for a way out of this mind
And somewhere along the line I realized
that connecting to someone else was my way out
and that’s why I acted like it was do or die
when I recognized your third eye
I was crazy and intense and emotions were high
because I swore this connection was my only chance
to be freed from the pain I idealized
and when you say something I really want to know why
because finally I’m intrigued by a mind other than mine.
– Valerie Parente (2-6-2020)
Playtime by Valerie Parente
He doesn’t know how emotions work
that’s why he plays with mine
like building blocks
towering so high.
But if you’re going to toy with me
then make me your doll
because I’d rather feel pretty
than be built up to fall.
– Valerie Parente (2-2-2020)
Cruelty & Credulity by Valerie Parente
Not knowing what is normal has become the norm for me.
And not knowing what’s real has become my reality.
I’m trying to be mindful of what’s fabricated in my mind.
So the cruelest thing you could do is make me believe that my perception is make-believe.
– Valerie Parente (1-31-2020)
It’s Not You, It’s Me by Valerie Parente
the problem isn’t you
it’s me
and my inability
to see you differently
– Valerie Parente (1-29-2020)
I’m The Crazy One by Valerie Parente
I’m the crazy one
because I say how I feel right from the start
I’m the crazy one
because I’m brutally honest in all of my art
I’m the crazy one
because I try so hard to be my own savior
then fall prey to self-destructive behavior
and I’m not fucking sure who to trust
the girl I’ve rationalized within me
or the crazy one you all claim to see.
– Valerie Parente (1-11-2020)
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