Tag: Black Poet

“The Bean Eaters” by Gwendolyn Brooks

Post author By TDarris
Post date February 1, 2017
No Comments on “The Bean Eaters” by Gwendolyn Brooks

Listen to “The Bean Eaters” below:

“The Bean Eaters” by GWENDOLYN BROOKS

Read by Teyuna T. Darris

They eat beans mostly, this old yellow pair.

Dinner is a casual affair.

Plain chipware on a plain and creaking wood,

Tin flatware.

Two who are Mostly Good.

Two who have lived their day,

But keep on putting on their clothes

And putting things away.

And remembering …

Remembering, with twinklings and twinges,

As they lean over the beans in their rented back room that is full of beads and receipts and dolls and cloths, tobacco crumbs, vases and fringes.

19th century African-American America American American Poetry Black History Celebration Harlem Renaissance Hope James Weldon Johnson Poetry Reflect Uncategorized United States

“The Gift to Sing” by James Weldon Johnson (1871 – 1938)

Post author By TDarris
Post date June 29, 2016
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Sometimes the mist overhangs my path,
And blackening clouds about me cling;
But, oh, I have a magic way
To turn the gloom to cheerful day—
I softly sing.

And if the way grows darker still,
Shadowed by Sorrow’s somber wing,
With glad defiance in my throat,
I pierce the darkness with a note,
And sing, and sing.

I brood not over the broken past,
Nor dread whatever time may bring;
No nights are dark, no days are long,
While in my heart there swells a song,
And I can sing.

Tags #read, #reading, 19th century, 20th century, african, african american history, African American poet, african american slavery, African-American, African-American Literature, African-American Poetry, african-cuban, africana, America, american, american history, American Literature, american poet, American poetry, american slave, americana, anthology, art, Arts, Black, Black History, black history month, black literature, black music, Black Poet, Black Poetry, Black Poety, civil right, civil rights, countee cullen, cullen, Freedom, harlem, Harlem Renaissance, harvard, History, history & politics, hughes, hymn, iamb, jim crow, Langston Hughes, lift ev'ry voice and sing, literary, Literature, man, Memory, men, music, nature, negro, negro spiritual, negroes, negros, pentameter, poem, poet, poetic, poetics, Poetry, poetry book, poetry books, poetry community, poetry reading, poetry society, Poets, poettrisnotdead, readers, reconstruction, refelct, reflection, reflections, reflects, renaissance, Rhyme, rhymed stanza, rhythm, sing, slave, song, songs, spiritual, thought, thoughts, time, United States, west, western, Write, Writer, writers, writing

American Cuba Cuban Poetry Uncategorized

“Puente” by Nicolás Guillén (1920 – 1989)

Post author By TDarris
Post date April 19, 2016
No Comments on “Puente” by Nicolás Guillén (1920 – 1989)

PUENTE

¿Lejos?

Hay un arco tendido
que hace viajar la flecha
de tu voz.

African-American America American American Poetry Claude McKay Uncategorized United States

“After the Winter” by Claude McKay (1889–1948)

Post author By TDarris
Post date April 13, 2016
No Comments on “After the Winter” by Claude McKay (1889–1948)

Some day, when trees have shed their leaves

And against the morning’s white

The shivering birds beneath the eaves

Have sheltered for the night,

We’ll turn our faces southward, love,

Celebration Poetry Religion and Spirituality Uncategorized

God Looked Down

God Looked Down by Teyuna T. Darris

Tags #2016, #amwriting, #book, #books, #pmwriting, #poetrychallenge2016, #publish, #publisher, #publishing, #read, #reading, 20th century, African American poet, African-American Poetry, american poet, American poetry, amwriter, art, Arts, author, baby, beautiful, Beauty, Bible, Black Poet, blog, blogger, bloggers, blogging, challenge, chapbook, child, Children, darris, ebook, emerging, faith, Free, Freedom, global, goodpoetry, happy, humpday, liberty, literary, Literature, Love, lover, musing, natinoal poetry month, natinoalpoetrymonthchallenge, National Poetry Month 2016, nationalpoetrymonthchallenge 2016, new poet, Peace, pious, pmwriter, poem, poem a day challenge, poem a day challenge 2016, poem-a-day, poemaday, poemadaychallenge, poemadaychallenge2016, poet, Poetry, poetry challenge, poetrychallenge, Poets, reader, religion, religious, sing, singing, Soul, spirit, spiritual, spirituality, tdarris, teyuna, Teyuna T. Darris, teyunatdarris, trynea, tuesday, United States, world, world news, worldview, Write, Writer, year, year in review, yearinreview, Zephaniah, Zephaniah 3:17

Poetry Uncategorized

This Life is a Good Life

This Life is a Good Life by Teyuna T. Darris

African-American American Black History British Poetry Paul Laurence Dunbar

“Ships That Pass In The Night” by Paul Laurence Dunbar

Post author By TDarris
Post date August 9, 2015
No Comments on “Ships That Pass In The Night” by Paul Laurence Dunbar

Out in the sky the great dark clouds are massing;

I look far out into the pregnant night,

Where I can hear a solemn booming gun

And catch the gleaming of a random light,

That tells me that the ship I seek is passing, passing.

My tearful eyes my soul’s deep hurt are glassing;

For I would hail and check that ship of ships.

I stretch my hands imploring, cry aloud,

My voice falls dead a foot from mine own lips,

And but its ghost doth reach that vessel, passing, passing.

O Earth, O Sky, O Ocean, both surpassing,

O heart of mine, O soul that dreads the dark!

Is there no hope for me? Is there no way

That I may sight and check that speeding bark

Which out of sight and sound is passing, passing?

African-American American American Poetry Belief Christian Christianity Faith Frances E. W. Harper Religion and Spirituality United Kingodm

“A Grain of Sand” by Frances E. W. Harper

Post author By TDarris
Post date August 4, 2015
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Do you see this grain of sand
Lying loosely in my hand?
Do you know to me it brought
Just a simple loving thought?
When one gazes night by night
On the glorious stars of light,
Oh how little seems the span
Measured round the life of man.

Oh! how fleeting are his years
With their smiles and their tears;
Can it be that God does care
For such atoms as we are?
Then outspake this grain of sand
‘I was fashioned by His hand
In the star lit realms of space
I was made to have a place.

‘Should the ocean flood the world,
Were its mountains ‘gainst me hurled
All the force they could employ
Wouldn’t a single grain destroy;
And if I, a thing so light,
Have a place within His sight;
You are linked unto his throne
Cannot live nor die alone.

In the everlasting arms
Mid life’s dangers and alarms
Let calm trust your spirit fill;
Know He’s God, and then be still.’
Trustingly I raised my head
Hearing what the atom said;
Knowing man is greater far
Than the brightest sun or star.

African-American American American Poetry Black History

“Church Building” by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper

Post author By TDarris
Post date August 3, 2015
No Comments on “Church Building” by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper

Uncle Jacob often told us,
Since freedom blessed our race
We ought all to come together
And build a meeting place.

So we pinched, and scraped, and spared,
A little here and there:
Though our wages was but scanty,
The church did get a share.

And, when the house was finished,
Uncle Jacob came to pray;
He was looking mighty feeble,
And his head was awful gray.

But his voice rang like a trumpet;
His eyes looked bright and young;
And it seemed a mighty power
Was resting on his tongue.

And he gave us all his blessing –
‘Twas parting words he said,
For soon we got the message
The dear old man was dead.

But I believe he’s in the kingdom,
For when we shook his hand
He said, ‘Children, you must meet me
Right in the promised land;

‘For when I done a moiling
And toiling here below,
Through the gate into the city
Straightway I hope to go.’

Tags 19th century, 20th century, african american history, African American poet, african-american, African-American Poetry, America, american, american poet, American poetry, american slavery, art, Arts, Black, Black History, Black Poet, Black Poetry

Uncategorized

“Night of Love” by Paul Laurence Dunbar

Post author By TDarris
Post date August 2, 2015
No Comments on “Night of Love” by Paul Laurence Dunbar

The moon has left the sky, love,

The stars are hiding now,

And frowning on the world, love,

Night bares her sable brow.

The snow is on the ground, love,

And cold and keen the air is.

I’m singing here to you, love;

You’re dreaming there in Paris.

But this is Nature’s law, love,

Though just it may not seem,

That men should wake to sing, love;

While maidens sleep and dream.

Them care may not molest, love,

Nor stir them from their slumbers,

Though midnight find the swain, love.

Still halting o’er his numbers.

I watch the rosy dawn, love,

Come stealing up the east,

While all things round rejoice, love,

That Night her reign has ceased.

The lark will soon be heard, love,

And on his way be winging;

When Nature’s poets, wake, love,

Why should a man be singing?

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