Not mine anymore by Avalon | One Poem Only
One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.
Not mine anymore
Avalon
If my words are my own
They are all that I have
Except... that’s not quite right
If my words are my own
They abandon me when I most need it
And, that never feels right
My words are my own
And they blink in and out
A lighthouse on the shore
While I’m drowning
My words are my own
And others desperately pry them out of me
A clam with a pearl
A person blinded by the reward
My words are my own
They yearn to hear it
My words are my own
My words are my-
My words are-
My words-
My words are my own
I cannot repeat them
Utterance loses meaning
If my words are my own
Why must I give them away?
More from Avalon ↓
- @avalonspoems on Instagram
- Her book, Sorry, I didn’t mean to make it weird, is available now
Support + Stay Connected to OPO
If you’d like to support the show, Substack and Patreon members receive a copy of my book, For My Daughter, along with episodes from the audiobook.
Poetry slows us down. Thank you for listening.
Mentioned in this episode:
Write After: National Poetry Month with One Poem Only
Write After is a way to encourage poets to listen and write, and use National Poetry Month to highlight how listening to poetry makes us better poets. I know I write the best when I’m surrounded by beautiful poetry–it’s part of the reason I created this podcast, and I want to encourage others to share this practice. We'll get started in April. You can share to #WriteAfterOPO.
