poetry

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Every Now and Then

Every Now and Then

Every now and then I look ahead

and smile with joy at the hopes I see

where everyone in the land is living free

and hate is so faint that its power

has all but been erased

and I look at the present

and know that we are setting the pace

for equality to be reality

and for love to win

and I look back and see the faces

of those who cleared the path

for our today

where progress is real

and hope is embraced

and courage is clearly carrying us,

and I pause and say thank you

to Harvey Milk for the courage

to run and to serve and

to speak louder than those

wanting his voice to fade

and I see the steps of

Marsha Johnson and Sylvia Rivera

leading to the STAR house

and the hope that lived there

and I hear the voice of Barbara Gittings

who didn’t back down from the fight

to declare the worthiness of herself

and all whom she walked with

on the journey to demand

visibility and respect

and I read the words of Audre Lorde

who confronted injustices and disrespect

and was targeted for her race, her gender,

her class, and her sexuality

yet she persisted and wrote

to leave us all a legacy of

knowing better and doing better

and naming the wrong and claiming the hope

and I think of the teachings of Sue Sanders

and the strength of Lady Phyll

and know that we can

embrace their courage

and amplify their voices

and pick up the torch passed to us

so that what they began

will continue and

the path of love and hope

will change our tomorrows

and bring about the dreams

those before us could envision…

for the courage

for the hope

for the love

we honor the past

we stand strong today

and we hope for tomorrow

—Chris Pepple © 2023

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Darkness and Light

I am reminded by multiple friends this week that we are in a season of reflection on our move from light to darkness, fear to hope, grief to renewal.

Several acquaintances celebrated Purim this weekend, reminding me of the story of people moving from fear of annihilation to a moment of salvation. The story of Esther reminds us that an entire group of people were targeted for bullying and death, yet courage and faith brought another outcome.

My Christian friends are walking through Holy Week this week. They will face the story of the death of Jesus, the darkness of the tomb, and the hope of light and resurrection on the other side.

My friends who walk closely with nature are seeing the natural world awaken from the darkness and the cold of winter, finding a renewal through the light of spring and the warmth it will bring.

A young student studying Taoism reminded me that spring helps us to find a balance in life…a balance between light and darkness, cold and heat, stagnancy and movement so that we can find our own place of renewal and strength.

My friends and loved ones in the LGBTQ+ community are searching to find the light in these dark times…looking for hope against all of the laws that are trying to erase their identity. My transgender friends and loved ones face bullying and hate and uncertainty daily on so many levels, often coming from people they thought they could trust…their church friends, their neighbors, their teachers, their elected leaders.

Sometimes we find ourselves in darkness…in times of grief…in times of pain…in times of having a broken heart. We find ourselves torn away from the known and walking through uncertainty. We often can’t return to what we originally saw as light. We can’t go back to the same journey we were on. We are different. The times are different. But hope means there’s a new path waiting for us, a path where we will find love and peace and be able to shine that love and peace for others still searching.

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by

The Dance of the Young Spirits

The Dance of the Young Spirits

I sat outside and pondered

all the lives lost and the grief

of all who are left behind

and I listened to the songs of the birds

floating from tree limbs nearby—

Mother Earth inhales my worries and fears

and carries them on dandelion seeds

that will become the hope for new life 

tomorrow—but for today

She exhales the very winds that

touch my soul on these grief-filled days

when sorrow lays heavy in my heart,

but as daybreak nears, I glimpse

a teacher’s smile and outstretched hand

calling to students who are rising

from the wounds they should never

have had to experience, but now

I see their spirits rise among us

and dance before us with a beauty

that only the forever healed can show

and they encircle us and call us forth

to be the ones to join them in

this dance of the spirits

and to sing their names as we move

free from their dance and as we

face the sunrise without them

and decide how we will walk

into the future with the promise

we whispered to them that

no more would have to join their dance

before their time and no more

names would be written into the heart

of Mother Earth who grieves all who fall

into her arms by the hands of another…

Can you see them rising into the morning

and saying their own names as they

move into their forever without

finishing out their todays…

I hear their names and promise

I heard their pleas…

—Chris Pepple ©2022

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Losing our country one child at a time..

Losing Our Nation One Child at a Time

America, our wounded land,

where children’s blood runs free

when shooters take their lives away

hiding behind guns so cowardly

America, our wounded land, 

where store clerks and teachers bravely

walk in each day as front-line warriors

while others declare guns make them free

America, our wounded land, 

God shed God’s tears for thee

and weeps for the good 

that is becoming harder to see

America, our wounded land, 

where voices are raised for change immediately

and wise ones know more tears will come

because America is losing her dignity

America, our wounded land, 

where whiners declare their rights selfishly

but the Black and the gay and the “other than me”

are targets for hate and can no longer be free

America, our wounded land, 

I truly grieve for thee…

—Chris Pepple ©2022

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To the Women

To the Women

To all the women

in every region of the world,

in every country,

in every city and small town,

I hold you in my thoughts today

and celebrate your identity

and stand with you

in a sisterhood

that knows no bounds…

To the Ukrainian women

holding children and pets

in underground bunkers

and to your women

fighting on the frontlines of war,

I honor you…

To the Russian women

protesting and begging

for an unjust war to end

and who long to see

your sons back home,

I honor you…

To the Polish women

offering homes and hope

and who leave supplies

within reach

and who rock babies

that are not yours

so that another mother

can rest and breathe,

I honor you…

To women who are transgender

and who long to be recognized

and must fight for your rights

and who lose those close to you

because they choose to walk away,

but who build chosen families anyway,

I honor you…

To women who have survived

violence in your homes

and fled from abuse from those

who were supposed to love you,

and to the women still

trapped in unsafe homes,

I honor you…

To the Black women fighting racism

and raising sons and daughters

in this broken world

where people judge you

by the color of your skin,

I honor you…

To the women around the world

in poverty who struggle every day

to find food and shelter,

clean water and clean clothes

and who carry worry with you,

I honor you…

To refugees seeking hope

and who crave safety

and who walk through the unknown

to recreate what is known,

I honor you…

To the Mama Bears

creating safe spaces for your children,

who know that love is love

and who know that all people

regardless of gender or sexual identity

are worthy, 

who build communities for nonbinary, transgender, 

lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning family members

and who extend your love to others, 

I honor you… 

To all women who take a stand

for what is right and just,

who offer love and hope,

who mentor and guide,

who reach out and who teach,

to the women who climb ladders

and help others climb with you,

who give back

and bring change

and offer hope

and hugs and love,

who hold hands

and touch hearts,

I honor you…

I celebrate our

diverse faiths

and races

and faces,

I celebrate

our dreams

and our successes,

I see our struggles,

I honor our journeys,

I honor you.

–Chris Pepple ©2022

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A Poem: Anyway

Anyway

When I felt broken

and invisible and was dismayed, 

you reached out anyway. 

I have no words to ever repay, 

but I will say thank you

to the one who loved me anyway…

the one who saw me through,

and believed in me

and believed me

and saw me

and reached out your hand

and held on

and embodied grace and love

and spoke louder than the pain

and refused to fear my scars

and refused to chatter away

with the gossipers erasing truth

and constructing tales that fit

their life’s narrative rather than mine

Thank you…

to the one who loved me anyway.

When we feel broken,

love anyway.

–Chris Pepple ©2022

by

It Was Me

It Was Me

I am the one that 

was raised to be

part of the problem…

who was raised to stay 

on the white side of the street

and who was raised to label 

everyone in conversations…

“the black family on the street”

“the Muslims one street over”

“the Jews who live in the cove”

“that Indian man who owns the store.”

I learned all the assumed adjectives…

lazy, cheater, thug, thief, 

will steal you blind…

and I learned that people 

hired you for cheap labor

but never appreciated your work…

Then I met you…it was a new world…

you were smarter than me in trig class…

you tutored me, you taught me about life…

you were the coach of my team…

you doctored me back to health…

you befriended me…

you were there when I cried…

you taught me to get back up…

I learned your history and saw

everything wonderful and strong about you…

and I had to live with the fact that I 

never spoke up before now…

I was raised to be part of the problem…

my silence allowed your beatings and death…

the labels stripped you of your seat at the table…

the lies about you took away your hopes and dreams…

And my silence never brought change…

But I promise you now

I will roar for you

and film the wrongdoing

and call out the racism

and name it

and pray for change

and work for change

and be the change

though it will never

bring lost ones back to life

or heal the wounds from beatings

or restore all that you have lost…

but I will lose the labels

offer respect

fight for justice

and never be silent again.

–Chris Pepple ©2020