Mind Boggling...HerStory

As the new year approaches I must say, 2015 has really came and gone. There was some ups and downs, but here is 2016 knocking at the door. I have turned to writing much more in the last quarter of the year, and I like it. In 2016 I will continue this trend, however I do have a few goals in mind that I would like to accomplish in 2016. Join a Writers Group: Joining a writers group not only improves your writing, but also allows you to network with other writers in the area. Networking is great for getting feedback, information on gigs, and simple camaraderie from like people that enjoy the same art.  Publish My First Poetry Collection: It is time everyone; it is time for the revealing of my first poetry collection. Long awaited, as I have been writing for some time now I have a plethora of poems to choose from. It is just a matter of organizing and editing.  Enter at least 3 writing contest: There are many writing contests that are offered, and over the years I have enter...

No excuses make commitments, No regrets, no resentments, No time to gripe over misfortunes, Or wallow in sorrow from life’s inevitable adversaries, It is now time I accept responsibility, I have learned from the past, I’m implementing my findings to the present, While bracing for what the future holds, I am what I expect and that is much more than your expectations of me, Success is incremental, while setbacks are temporal, No set road ahead, nothing is written in stone, Daily change comes as we trod along, Failure is not the end, just a stepping stone, A learning curve through life’s journey, Pick your head up and don’t you fret, There are much of life’s lessons to learn just yet. No Excuses Kristyna Cochran 

A scorned ancestor of a former slave, I breathe the same air that was breathe during wrongful beatings, Scars and whelps marked on bodies, Yes, this is my doings masa say, So proud and bold he walks – Though his reign has came and gone, The child of his child and his child and his rises, And the abuse continues, This is for children of all ages, discrimination included, Since the beginning of time we’ve feuded, But you want to get darker, and we want to be lighter, So you tan your bodies and we keep the sun away from ours, Europeans tampered with the thinking of American society, What is wrong with the variety? From white to light skin to the darkest of the clan, Why is being light the age old trend? Here’s my plea, here’s my only chance, How do you erase the brainwash thinking? That has been planted in people’s mind over 200 years and growing, Our skin color is different, but our shadow is the same color. Confused Kristyna Cochran...

Kwanzaa  December 26- January 1 Celebrating Family, Community, and Culture Kwanzaa is a non religious pan African holiday celebrated by many African Americans. Kwanzaa's origin is in the first harvest celebrations of Africa, which is also where it takes its name. Kwanzaa was found in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Karenga during the Black Freedom movement. "First, Kwanzaa was created to reaffirm and restore our rootedness in African culture. It is, therefore, an expression of recovery and reconstruction of African culture which was being conducted in the general context of the Black Liberation Movement of the '60's and in the specific context of The Organization Us, the founding organization of Kwanzaa and the authoritative keeper of its tradition. Secondly, Kwanzaa was created to serve as a regular communal celebration to reaffirm and reinforce the bonds between us as a people. It was designed to be an ingathering to strengthen community and reaffirm common...

Who else but you knows you, like you? Your strengths, your weaknesses— They may think they know, Yet you have shown more than what their mind could fathom, Surpassing minuscule thoughts of failure and defeat, Emerged from misconceptions, Conquering trials and tribulations, With minimum dependence on anyone other than I , Because I know that I can do IT ; IT meaning anything, Anything despite roadblocks that might slow down progress, Progression to success, it’s a process, A process that many does not understand, And forcing understanding is conversing with a scarecrow— So, no need to take a leap of faith and ask for a helping hand, Though collaborative strategies could be beneficial, Its evidential, one that bask in your struggle does not look forward to your success, The necessity of broadcasting downfalls is merely to grudge up sympathetic acts, And wordy cliché’s that belittle your adversity, Therefore, internalizing becomes the an...

  Driving down a four way street, Pull up to a stop sign, which way to go, which way to turn, Flames, hell, my heart burn, Left, Right, which way is right, which way is wrong, Same day, same ol’ song, The inevitable tug-of-war with reality, A life of mishaps and unforeseen misfortunes, Complicating an already intricate world, Full of things that alternate your mentality, Causing multiple mental abrasions, Trying to make the right decision, But I missed the caution sign and slipped, Take a left and I’m faced with tragedy, Take a right; a catastrophe, So it leaves me with the only plausible possibility, Keeping straight down the narrow road of life, Who knows if it’s wrong, who knows if it’s right? The road ahead is an unsolved mystery, Some has braced but none has solved, Choosing the road is part of the unknown, And how you handle the affects of your choice, Is what determines the outcome of the mystery.  Slipping...

Frequently we let life's adversity get in the way of our dreams or we become complacent in our relationships or situations. We must not allow life to stifle our dreams, nonetheless, we must push forward through life's tribulations.  Lost in life, Amidst trials and setbacks that cause an abyss of disappointment, In the back of my mind, the thought of success is still crawling, A teacher, lawyer, doctor, minister, Loads of possibilities, but the consequences and choices of life, Has caused deep regret, And now, I am left financially, emotionally, and mentally In debt of my pass, Dreaming of it become more than just a fantasy, But life and it’s twists and turns has made it almost unattainable, I crave to be there, there, you know there where my dream is, Where my dream is attainable and my inner self is defeated, Where patience has more value, and wanting it now, Does not put me in risk of failure, I don’t want to be here, here with a lost dre...