Written by Halim Madi
Exhibit 1
Listen to your heart it is whispering
the stories you’ve forgotten
to tell the child inside
Exhibit 2
Bury us
while you’re at it
Peel our nails
The skin that’s under
is a weapon a rocket a knife
pointed poignant painting your privilege
as oppression
Exhibit 3
1:15pm Santa Barbara’s lower riviera, I buy
10120.13764808 OCEAN TOKENS
This cryptocurrency my new visa
Replace my Lebanese passport with a portal
To salvation
You can be rich too
Just keep trying
Exhibit 4
Stay
strong believe
in your dreams, you are the captain
of this ship
don’t settle stay
Focused — out of many one
You you you you you
This one
too shall pass until it doesn’t
Exhibit 5
Mother,
When did you become a man
Married into a lineage of testosterone
As you grieved your husband
Grew Adam’s apple
Bit, grinned, spit sideways
Pointed at my little hands, said
Man up
Exhibit 6
I was walking up this hill and decided to sit.
I’ve been here for 3 years.
This poem about consciousness
will last a lifetime
Exhibit 7
12 13 14 Reminders:
Buy shorts, squash and a black hair tie
Write a letter to Rachel
Also, quinoa
Schedule time with Andrea
Don't self medicate
Build an altar for your father
Something is singing, maybe waiting. Are you late?
Don’t mistake silence for depth, especially in men older than you
Ask a doctor first then self medicate
Avoid carnivore flamingos, standalone devices, two-way mirrors
Don’t jaw-xercise, it hurts your ears
Forgiveness the red circus where we juggle blades
The lizard brain is my favorite
This whole age thing turns out to be real