Memento Vivere

Memento Vivere by Valerie Parente

When hatred took a life
and people gathered to grieve
the Devil cruelly boasted
about the havoc that he wreaked
praising the power of hatred
when there is tragedy.
He looked out to all the people
and he shamelessly teased,
“How could you pitiful humans
see catastrophe then denounce me?
Look how people come together
because of the hate I unleashed!”
But the clouds began to part
and the angels looked down lovingly
as the humans who still lived
engaged in their ceremony
watching the overflow of love
in the name of rest in peace.
“People do not come together because of you,”
the angels said with ease,
“People come together in spite of you
and any form of catastrophe.
The power does not stem
from the hate you have breathed
it comes from rejecting the hate
and the Devil’s very defeat.
Hate has no power on earth
it only temporarily fleets
and what withstands after you
is their newfound unity.”

– Valerie Parente (9-30-2025)

Free In My Own Skin

Free In My Own Skin by Valerie Parente

If there were no men I’d be naked all of the time.
If there was no threat I’d be making my own highs.
If there was no sex I’d be vacant in my mind.
And I am compelled to be a sin in their eyes.

I don’t do provocative for them, I do it for me
because being feminine makes me feel free
and the fact that that’s a danger to society
is nothing short of chauvinism at its peak.

– Valerie Parente (7-11-2024)

Knives for Tears

Knives for Tears by Valerie Parente

I had a nightmare
that I had knives
instead of tears
embedded under my eyes
from when someone stabbed me
but I survived.

I woke up
only to realize
it wasn’t a nightmare at all
but a beautiful sign
of my scathing resilience
when they thought I’d cry.

– Valerie Parente (5-10-2024)

Divinity

"You Are Divine" by Valerie Parente

“Dear child,” the being of light proclaimed, “For too long you have been wrapping your identity around victimhood. You are not a victim. You are Divine. You are strong. You are powerful. You are made of the most powerful forces in the universe and that is why you are conscious. Remember your roots. Remember your power. And you will do this through knowledge. Educate yourself. Enrich your life with experience. And depend on no one to save you. Lonely? Teach yourself. When it hurts, listen to the lessons. When it feels good, bask in your essence. When your ego deeply yearns for something please remember that you are not your ego and the things that matter in the grand scheme of life transcend your ego’s instincts and one day in a timeless realm you will feel this deeper than you ever imagined possible. You have learned all of this before you were born, your flesh suit has simply forgotten. All the answers are prevalent to your Divine essence. Activate the soul inside. The answers glow inside your self. Look to yourself, and nobody else. You are Divine.”

– Valerie Parente (7-18-2019)