I overwhelm myself
I feel my power so much
 I feel as if I’m dying.

   Despite how tempered it is
the human spirit is the greatest weight
for the human body to bear.

Break the earth with the weight of
   my step.

Burden the dirt with the weight of
my heart.

I’m gonna walk.
      Is it ok if I take a little longer?
I’ll catch up, but I’ll
sit in the serenity
of defeat;
for now.

This time the pressure of strength
can’t burden me.

This time I’ll take a second to reflect
on the ground
how to destroy
or how to conquer
everything that burdens me

About the Author:

Jeff Charles is a working-class Brooklyn-based poet of Haitian descent. As a Black Marxist and sociologist, his work deals with the agony brought about by racist capitalist society and the prospects of a brighter future. Inspired by the likes of Kafka and Proust, his poetry aims to capture both the dimensions of the burdens we carry and the universe of bliss and connection life brings us.