I often wondered what it is I liked if someone stayed long enough to notice and wanted to surprise me with a gift what would they choose what would they think belongs in my world what would they get I think people know me in pieces She laughs “most times she laughs” She’s quiet “mostContinue reading “People who love us sometimes understand us before we understand ourselves”
Author Archives: Piecesbyruthakinyi
Understanding is the birth of love
I told my wish into the dark teach me how to listen to hear the voice that is truth the voice that speaks between the spaces of my words Teach me grace not to beg for love’s return but to be granted the grace to give it Teach me how to walk barefoot through myContinue reading “Understanding is the birth of love”
My child… I love her so deeply that she will not exist.
The warrior who knows her weakness walks barefoot through fire just to prove she’s still alive Not to be born would have been mercy The kindest mercy But I was chosen Condemned To pain To dream against my will This flesh A cage Of borrowed time This mind A mirror painfully aware of its endContinue reading “My child… I love her so deeply that she will not exist.”
Silence is safe. Silence is easy.
“You’re so shy… you’re so quiet… shy girl. Why are you sitting in the corner all by yourself? So you’re still shy.” Words I’ve heard countless times, from strangers, from relatives, from people I know. Shy, quiet, reserved. The girl in the room who smiles, who watches, who never says too much. But I wonder,Continue reading “Silence is safe. Silence is easy.”
I am
This is me Because I am I was the one exiled from the classroom My knees pressed to the concrete My head bowed Ashamed that I am Because I am I was the one handed shame disguised as discipline Handed fear Told it was help Shrank me into pain Carved insults into my growing mindContinue reading “I am”
Alignment
I thought finding alignment especially in work It had to be difficult A prize buried in thorn and stone It had to come with struggle It had to come with endless looking So I tried Every desperate reach to feel at home I tried I’ve tried it all But nothing fits Maybe this is justContinue reading “Alignment”
I Got Tired
I don’t know why we keep placing our faith in human beings. Human beings are not good people. I don’t know when we’ll learn. Look around. Look at Benue State (Nigeria). Look at your own country. Look at history. Look at the world. From the beginning, we’ve proven, again and again, that cruelty comes moreContinue reading “I Got Tired”
To confess your darkness is to believe someone out there might understand it.
“The warrior who knows his weakness is stronger than the one who considers himself invincible.” I’ve always known my mind to be both the curse and the gift. I’ve always understood my mind to be my greatest weakness. Reading Emil Cioran’s work… I knew I was not alone. Time may separate us but the madness,Continue reading “To confess your darkness is to believe someone out there might understand it.”
Day by day
I’m slowly learning to accept whatever life places in my hands little or a lot broken or whole it’s still something And there’s always space to learn Always space to improve Day by day step by step Whatever you have keep building And over time you’ll find your way to what you love
Her grief had colour. Mine? A blank page.
It was the last Sunday of the month. It had been four years but still grief did not knock. It burst in uninvited. We had just finished a long walk at the Nairobi Arboretum. We sat down to catch our breath and talk a little more. And then it happened. The tears came, reluctant andContinue reading “Her grief had colour. Mine? A blank page.”
PIECESBYRUTH 