I am no one’s
Damsel in distress
I don’t need a prince
To save me,
I have always saved myself;
And I have found dragons are
often kinder than
people—
I am my own hero
always saving myself
because no one notices when
I am drowning,
strong people always have
to be there for themselves
because sometimes this is all we have;
and sometimes I get tired
wish someone would just ask me
if I were okay—
but even on my worst day
I push through the darkness to find the
light of another day
because i refuse to lose hope,
and I refuse to lose myself;
my dreams and ambitions will come true
I will work hard to achieve my goals.
-linda m. crate
even mermaids drown
sometimes the weight
of the world is too much,
and you can’t just keep
swimming;
exhaustion overtakes every part
of you as darkness looms
heavy and hard
all over your soul—
sometimes it is hard to find the light,
but I am fortunate that i always do;
I am one of the lucky mermaids
that hasn’t drowned no matter how dark the days
I have always faced them head on
because i know you cannot run from your
problems or escape your fate—
some days are hard to find the light,
but I remind myself that a life without hope
isn’t one that i want to live;
and there is always something to be grateful for
so I will appreciate goodness and kindness
no matter how small because we all need something
to hold onto when the monsters come
asking for their pound of flesh.
-linda m. crate
we all deserve light
you killed me once
I won’t let it happen again
lost my voice,
and I laid in aching
so long i became
numb;
I thought in not feeling
that it would be better
just turns out it hurts more—
I will not lose my voice
or give up my magic and my power,
daughter of the most ancient
moon I will always find new ways
to shine;
I refuse to give up on me
even if I am standing alone
I will walk the right path for me
because there are many ways to get to the
same destination
my journey is not yours and yours is not mine—
but I hope that we all achieve and fully
recognize our dreams
because I believe we all deserve light.
Linda M. Crate’s (she/her) works have been published in numerous magazines and anthologies both online and in print. She is the author of six poetry chapbooks, the latest of which is: More Than Bone Music (Clare Songbirds Publishing House, March 2019). She’s also the author of the novel Phoenix Tears (Czykmate Books, June 2018). Recently she has published two full-length poetry collections Vampire Daughter (Dark Gatekeeper Gaming, February 2020) and The Sweetest Blood (Cyberwit, February 2020).
