Mel BrakE Press is very pleased to publish its first and one of many poetry chapbooks from both noted and emerging writers from across the globe.
We hope that you enjoy reading, "The Obama Poetry Project".
The Obama Poetry Project
Written by Mel Brake
FIRST STAGE
The Awakening
Rise Up Young Black Boy
New Morning
Hope
SECOND STAGE
The Tribulation
Speck of Brown
Vote for me
America
Milky White
Time for change
Terrance Becoming
THIRD STAGE
The Second Coming
Obama Obama
Dreaming
Black is
First Lady Black American Style
FOURTH STAGE
Revelation
Sun Brother
Dark Child
Black Love
I am Obama
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DEDICATIONS
For my mother who we affectionately call Dot and Dot Dot by her grandchildren
She has supported me through the years when I was afraid to just be me.
For my sisters Hazel and Betty with whom I shared almost all of my secrets.
For my big brothers Joe, William and Harold who fought for me because
I am a lover and not a fighter.
And for my father who helped bring me into this world.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENT
I would like to thank the editors who previously published
poetry works of mine which appear in the following publications.
Fox Chase Review 2008, “First Lady Black American Style”
Adoration of the Sol CD/Chapbook, “Rise Up Young Black Boy”
Adoration of the Sol: Deuce, The Musical, “Hope”
I would also like to send a special thanks to Saniyyah Tyler for her
supportive friendship and editing acumen of this book and previous works.
As well as, thanking my family ancestors who have offered wisdom and guidance.
And last but not least, Terrance Jones who I hope for all the best in life and may this book be an inspiration to his life’s journey.
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INTRODUCTION
My reason for writing The Obama Poetry Project is my attempt as an American poet
to capture through poetry what I was thinking and feeling in the aftermath of Barack Obama’s election as the first Black President of the United States of America on
November 04, 2008.
I was at a recent poetry reading when a black woman remarked that she was hoping that someone would read poetry about Obama’s election. I just happen to have been that poet.
In addition, I wanted to share a black perspective of what his election could mean for the future of people from all walks of life. In the selection process of which poems would be the best indicator of capturing this viewpoint, I selected some poems that were written prior to his election, but they make a bold enough statement and made enough sense to be included in this collection.
Obama’s election is a major and dramatic watershed event and will have reverberations that will be felt around the world for the present and future generations to come. I pray that this body of work act as a unifying and healing agent for all Americans and all people who should lay their eyes upon it.
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The First Stage
The Awakening
RISE UP YOUNG BLACK BOY
Rise up
Young black boy
I’ll give you
The strength
That you need
Rise up
Young black boy
I‘ll give you
The strength
That you need
Just call my name
You can depend
On me
I will be there
In your need
I will be
Your strength
Just believe
Rise up
Young black boy
I’ll give you
The fight
For you to be
Rise up
Young black boy
I’ll give you
The fight
Yes indeed
Just call my name
You can depend
On me
You are the one
We need to lead
Open your heart
And let go
All that you grieve
Rise up
Young black boy
Rise up
Rise up
Rise up
Young
Black
Boy
NEW MORNING
It’s a new morning
The sun rise up
Again
To say
Hello
Like
A good
Friend
It’s a new dawning
So raise your
Head up on high
The blue sky
Limitless
And very neigh
It’s a new morning
The chill
That was in
Air
Has
Scattered
Like cats
Here and there
It’s a new dawning
People come out
Because you
Are free
Break off
Your shackles
And worries
And be happy
Cause it’s a new morning
The sun rise up
Again
To say hello
Like a good friend
It’s a new dawning
So raise your
Head up on high
The blue sky
Limitless
And very neigh
It’s a new morning
Blue children
Do understand
That there
Be peace
Throughout
The land
It’s a new dawning
White light
Is here again
For hope and
Love for every
Woman child and man
It’s a new morning
HOPE
Dedicate to Jamar Brake
Hope
Lives within
Me
And it will
Show
Like a
Flower
With
Sunlight
She will
Grow
Hope
Lives within
Me
This much
I know
Like
River
She rampant
And will flow
But I am
The one
Whose caught
In despair
I need to
Climb
The mountain top
To breathe
Fresh air
I need to
Climb
The mountain top
To breathe
Fresh air
Hope
Lives in
Within
Me
I want to
Believe
Like
The new
Child
Clings
To her mother
Knees
But I am
The one
Stuck in
A wheel
Chair
I need to climb
The mountain top
To breathe
Fresh air
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Second Stage
The Tribulation
SPECK OF BROWN
Specks
Of brown
In a sea
Of white
Cotton
Since
The early
20th century
My people
Have serviced
Your people
As indenture
Servants
We have cleaned
Your homes
We have cared
For little Johnnie
We have fought
Off your husbands
But
Have gone
Unnoticed
Like the borrowers
We don’t ask for
Much
And need
Much less
To make
Our way
In your
Convoluted world
We have lived in
The richest of neighborhoods
But are counted among the poorest
We are specks of brown
In a sea of white cotton
Since the election
Of Obama
We have been spotted
For a change
Words of Victory
Headlines our local newspapers
But what has changed for
Specks of brown
VOTE FOR ME
Is a vote
For Obama
A vote for me
Time for a change
Is a vote
For Obama
A vote for my
Black son
Time for a revolution
Is a vote
For Obama
A repudiation
Of racist policies
Time for reparation
The day after
The election
Brown and Black
People
Shared
A sense of disbelief
And a smile that
Was sent to us by
Our ancestors
400 light years
Away
Time for a celebration
Is a vote
For Obama
A vote
For symbolism
Is a vote
For Obama
A vote for real change for me
AMERICA
I am dying
And I have
A Child
I am giving
Up my last
Breath
But
I am not giving
Up my last
Hope
I may not
Live to see
Her
Grow
And mature
Into a woman
I may not
Walk her
Down
The aisle
At her wedding
I may not
Wipe her
Tears away
As she experiences
Life without a father
I may not
Do a lot
Of things
With her
But
I will see
That she is
Left with everything
That she needs
Who shall
I leave my
Precious child
With
Who shall
Be her
Voice
On a cold
Winter that
Lays ahead for her
Who shall
Care for my
Child
America
MILKY WHITE
I am taking
My maiden’s
Name
Obama
As a man
Who has
Never been
Married
Into the Obama
Family
I can still
Appreciate
The benefits
Of the Obama
Brand
He spent
Millions
On a marketing
Campaign
To sell Americans
On such a funny name
He took some
Lessons from
The “O” Lady
In Chicago
Saturated the
Market until
Your product
Becomes a household
Word
Like Oreos
Cookies
That goes
Good with
Carnation Evaporated Milk
Time FOR A CHANGE
Inspired by “A Change Is Gonna Come”
Written by singer songwriter Sam Cooke
“But I know A change
Is gonna come
Oh yes it will”
Change
Like the
Chains
That bind
Our ankles
And feet
Change
Like the
Ships
That carried
Us away
From our
Homelands
Change
Like the
Hard times
That we
Suffered
Generation
After
Generation
After
Generation
After
Generation
Change
That was
Promised
That was made
To us
And nothing
Changed
“But I know
A change
Is gonna come
Oh yes it will”
Change
Like a
Descendant
Of an African father
Running for
The White House
Change
Like the
The American
People
Saying
No
To unconstitutional
Laws passed
By Congress
Change
Like the
First contact
From
Lightships
Change
What
Do we
Want
Change
When
Do we want
It
Change
Now
Change
Forever
All we need
Is Change
“But I know
A change
Is gonna
Come
Oh yes it will”
TERRANCE BECOMING
Terrance
Sits
On the sofa
With a blank
Stare
For a young
Man of 14
He has adult
Problems
Is he concerned
About his court
Hearing
A new girl friend or
How to get a
New leather jacket
I want to ask
Him what is the
Matter
What is his
Problem
Why is he so
Quiet
For a child
Who always
Has a lot to say
When he is on
His cell
I brought
Him over
To clean my home
And make
A little bit
Of cash
For himself
After he
Cleans out
The dirt and grime
He asks to
Take a shower
And takes
The phone
In for a bath too
I sit him
Down and
Try to explain
Why Obama’s
Election
Is so important
To black people
Who were told
During the modern
Era that their
Children can
Be anything
They want to believe
But our parents and grandparents
Who told us
Did not believe
It
Terrance sits
On my sofa
And I tell him
To look at me
While I speak
To him
That he can
Really be anything
That he wants to be
Really
I want to take
Him to the inauguration
But I wonder
What type of
Choices will he
Make for himself
To better his life
Or not
What’s to become
Of him
What will become
Of him
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stage Three
The Second Coming
OBAMA OBAMA
This man
Is like no
Other man
Obama
Obama
This man
Has a name
Like
No other man’s
Name
Obama
Obama
Except
For his father
He is like
The brother
Who has
Come
Very
Far
Twinkle
Twinkle
Little star
Come and
Light the
World on fire
Things were
Pretty
Dim
Before
Obama came
In
1961
He lived
And traveled
Many parts
Of the world
Like
The Christ child
This man
Is like no
Other man
It’s been
A long time
Coming
But I know
A change
Is going
To come
Obama
Obama
This man
Is like no
Other man
He has an
Unusual plan
To set the
World right
For those
Who placed
Him on a pedestal
To do their bidding
Beware
This man
Is like no
Other man
It’s been
A long time
Coming
But I know
A change
Is going
To come
Obama
Obama
Dreaming
In August
In the 6o’s
Dr Martin Luther King
Stood up to racial
Injustice
In Washington DC
At
The US
Mall
And
Said
To a divided nation
“I have
A dream”
In August
40 years
Later
Another
Soon to be
Famous
Black man
Spoke to
The world
From a soon
To be united
Nation
And said
I am hope
I am the promise
I am the dream
BLACK IS
Black
Is in
And its
Not a trend
Like a circle
As it was
In the beginning
To times
When God
Said
Let there be light
Black
Is back
Unlike
The baby Jesus
Who could not find
Room in the inn
Black
Is accepted
Black
Is in
And its
Fashionable
Like the
Dresses wore
By Michelle Obama
To the two little
Blacks girls
Playhouse in the White House
To their black daddy
Ruler of the free world
Black is definitely
IN
FIRST LADY BLACK AMERICAN STYLE
She is
Black and
Beautiful
She is hip
To what’s
In style
And has
A style
Of her own
She is
Breadwinner and
Head of
Household
She raises
Her children and
Her husband
If she chooses
To have one
She is out
Spoken
Out in front
And
In the middle
Of every situation
That matters to her
She is strong and
Powerful
She carries
The burden of
The world
Within her legs
And birth
To maturity
Boy-man from
Her belly
She is reserve and
Demure
She prefers to spend
Her time
Alone
When she
Is in pain
Because
She has
The power to
Heal herself
She is
Michelle Obama
Dorothy
Hazel
Betty
And Saniyyah
She charts her
Own course
And
Writes her
Own chart
Like many
Heroic
Black women
Before her
She stands
On their shoulders
Like the French
Statue of Liberty
She sets
Her aim
High
From
The poor
House
To
The White House
With
Black American
Style
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fourth Stage
Revelation
SUN BROTHER
He comes
From the east
Not the dark side
Of the moon
He comes
From the east
Not Eden
He comes
From the east
From the stars
Not Bethlehem
When the sun
Shines
Itself
White
Bright
Light
Not our
Sun
But the sun
From
Whence
He comes
Our time is now
He is not
The first
Or the last
That shall
Come
To our
World
He comes
From the
East
Sirian
Brother of
Light
DARK CHILD
We are
The dark
Children
We are
The children
Of the black moon
We are
Dirty like
Mud from
The bottom
Of world
We are black
Like inner space
We are
The dark
Children
We are
Children
Of The Black Madonna
We are
In the shadows
Of the Fire Star
But we are
Light
And the absence
Of
We are
The children
Of African
We are
The dark seeds of
Man and woman
We are
Multiple and
Originators
Of the Cosmos
When our father
Said let there be
Light
We the
Children of
The Night
Scattered
Ourselves
Across
The Invisible
Universe
BLACK LOVE
Black love
Is back
Like a romantic
Renaissance movie
Romeo
And Juliet
Barack
And Michelle
A black man
Professes to love
A black woman
For the whole
World to witness
The way
He looks at her
Could melt
All the ice in
Antarctica
The way
He looks at her
Could build a
Foot bridge
From Africa to
America
Black love
Has reemerged
From the days
When it was taboo
Like the
Faith and beliefs
That a black man and
Black woman
Practiced
In days
When if a black
Man loved a black
Women
Both of them
Were beaten
Punished
And shunned
When in black
Communities
They are married
In secret
When in black
Communities
Their black babies
Were taken away
And never seen again
But it was
Not always
That way
Because before
These dark ages
Black love
Was the love
That mighty
African
Nations
Rested its
Feet upon
And build
Powerful
Civilizations
That was
When a
Black man
Loved a
Black women
Black love
Is back
Like a romantic scene
On a Sunday Lifetime
Movie
But this
Time
It’s real
and poppin'
I AM OBAMA
I am Obama
And I have come
I have come
To bring you
Enough bread to eat
Ample clothing to wear
Plenty of sheltering from the elements
I have come
To foster peace among nations
And to end all strife among men
I am Obama
And I have come
I have come
To bring you
The love of the Mother Goddess
The love between man and women
The love of Peace and The Earth
I am Obama
And I have come
I have come
From the wildness
Of 40 days and 40 nights
I have to come
To tell you
That I am He
Who was prophesied
By Enoch
Like King Arthur
The Second
I have come
To regain
What was lost
I have come
To reclaim
What was truth
I have come
To reaffirm
Heaven on Earth
That the end of
Times is near
That the war
Of Armageddon
Has been fought
That the times
Of milk and honey
Is neigh
I am Obama
And I have come
I am the revelation
I am the truth
I am the Light
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About the Author
Mel Brake is a Philadelphia based poet who was born with a gift for writing. He has been writing poetry for a number of years, but in the past few years decided to showcase his work publicly. His first readings were at funerals when he was asked to write a piece for family members and friends.
After receiving requests for copies of his works at funerals, he signed up for a poetry writing work shop and showed up at open mic’s where he learned how to be come an effective writer from such Philadelphia poets and luminaries as Kristin Glow, Rosemary Cappello and many others.
He prefers to write free verse and it has been said that although his writing style is simple and complex because he uses few choice words, he takes up plenty of space in poetry journals because his form of writing is long handed. He writes about different subject matters from the mystical/spiritual to the social/political and whatever is in between.
His work has appeared on TV, radio, print and the internet outlets and his work can be found at www.blogtalkradio.com/Mel-Brake or www.melbrakEpress.webs.com
For comments about this publication, please write to:
Mbrake1@msn.com
