Harambee Students Share Original Poetry: BE YOU

Members of the Harambee organization composed the original poems below for the 2013 Harambee show, “BElieve in YOUrself.”

FLY FREE               
Krystian Jones

Who am I?
You tell me.
What to wear.
How to style my hair.
Who to be. 

I’ll follow you blind,
Till that fateful day when
the fog lifts away and I gain
my own mind

You say the grass is greener
where you stand but, it looks so
crowded. Out there in no mans land.

I realize my wrongs. I should have put me
first when I was on top, on bottom, at my
best and at my worst.

I should’ve let myself be me.
Because every one knows a caged
bird was meant to fly free.

I’M ME
Ka’Lynn Price

I’m not the prettiest
I’m not the smartest
I’m not the perfect dancer
I’m not the perfect singer
I don’t always get accepted
I get hurt and fall
And so you ask who am I?
I am me
I’m not pretty, but I am beautiful
I’m not the smartest, but I am wise
I dance to my own beat
And sing to my own tune
I’m no longer afraid of rejection
I will be okay and make it
You can’t knock me down
I’ll always get up and stand tall, after a fall
I shine bright like a diamond
I’m simply me
Because I believe in myself

BELIEVING IN YOURSELF
Khandice Lofton 

Believing in yourself is the least you can do
Have a dream like Dr. Martin Luther King
Rise through the clouds like Maya Angelou
Reach for the stars like Oprah
Despite what other people say
The world really is ours
Yes We Can!
Rise from the bottom
Dream for a better life
And  reach for the top
To be all we were meant to be
Like President Barack Obama
Any of these historic people will tell you to believe in yourself
Because no matter what you do
You can’t be anyone better than just being you

PEOPLE ALWAYS TELL ME TO BE MYSELF
J’Ambre Chalmers

Who are you?
People always tell me to be myself.
Be yourself, what does that mean?
To be like everyone else?
Just add a little twist?
Be like him?
Be like her?
With just a little bit of a kick?
What does that mean be yourself?
Who am I?
How am I defined?
Is it by the color of my eyes?
By the shape of my body ?
By my curves or by my lines?
But wait why should that matter?
The only thing that counts is the size of my heart.
Who am I you ask?
I am strong.
I am independent.
I am confident.
I am courageous.
I am confident.
And a little mischievous.
And best of all I am African American.
I am me, who are you?

SELF-BELIEVING
Jayla Owen

Everybody goes thought that stage of doubt.
Like not thinking you can fish the race.
Don’t doubt yourself.  If anything, challenge the odds.
Finish the race to the best of your ability.
Go through with it and make it happen.
Believe, just believe, and if you do that you will accomplish so much more.

UNIQUE
Marquez Scoggin

Unique, a word that describes everyone:
no two people the same
But what makes you different &
What makes you stand out from the rest?
What makes you deserve to be described as unique
Believing in yourself
If you don’t believe, then who will
you direct the path of your own destiny
You make the sun shine, as bright as you want it to
By believing
Believing in yourself because you are unique

Thanks to Ms. Carnetta Chalmers, Harambee sponsor, and to Ms. Megan Hoelscher, who worked with the Harambee poets.