@shilairis | Earth & Ether

Day 2- KWANZAA AFTER DARK: Gil Scott-Heron & My koo-jee-cha-goo-LEE-ah

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KUJICHAGULIA (koo-jee-cha-goo-LEE-ah) means SeLF-DeTerMiNation
________________________
So, what are you determined to do?
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poeTry by Shila Iris (a choppy freestyle poem)

I am determined to free myself, and my people
Think for myself, and pass it on to the children
Name myself, disconnect from the Barnes,
you can call me Shila, Iris, OSiRis RiSinG
after my pilgrimage, I came back with an X
never liked working for a “boss,”
job title, a Creator,
I speak to us, I speak to them
a griot storyteller, I don’t preach to Us
You can see my face on the walls in Kemet
a sleep shaker, waking up the complacent
the grand reaper, like a thief in the night stole his brain
Now he walking dead, insane to the membrane
I promote self, the return of the Messiah,
the god in You, return to the throne cause you’re worthy
but we don’t rule from up high, that’s a lie
created by an informant and a spy, a spook
would you like me to measure you in a hook?

-COMMERCIAL-
You getting weaker Mr. Man, with all the female friends,
leave the weapon in your pants, and take her on a mind dance
she don’t need you impregnating her with the Omen
and masquerading her around in surround sound, reality Tv,
could it be any faker?

… AND NOW LET”S RETURN TO MY REGULARLY SCHEDULED KWANZAA FREESTYLE FLOW…

I am determined to follow the signs that lead me away from drama and chaos.
The hurdles in the road bring colossal disappointments,
but, smooth seas don’t make good sailors.
I am a mariner,
like the car I drive,
I strive, for excellence
defined by no Other.
Surely, I am not judging myself based on your speculations
surely, you are not feeding me your translation
I am focused on my emancipation
from the distractions in my lap, Like,
cell phones with IG notifications, FB stimulation and
tweet hydration, but they don’t really drink the sweet tea outside of
history textbook philosophy
I’m not a dreamer, I’ve transcended,
I’m not a peacekeeper,
I have no limits,
I have to stop listening to you modify the truth so that i can get the real answers.
if facts can be fiction. then let’s change the facts,
my shield, my koo-jee-cha-goo-LEE-ah, my
magic, did you see the fire come from my finger tips?
did you hear the SPE LL whispered from my lips?
twist in a hip, start a war,
but, I’m armored,
with a mind like weapons
of mass construction
simple deductions bring hardcore answers,
i stick close to the One that can
stomp like an elephant, sting like a bee, carry a load like an ant,
yep, I plant seeds… with self-determination, you won’t catch me!

Happy Kwanzaa! I hope you enjoyed your day. I just loved mine! -i am Shila Iris

Karibu (Welcome) to Day 2– Instructions for Kwanzaa:

You should greet your friends and family by asking: Habari gani? (Translation: What’s the news?); and today, they can respond: Kujichagulia! (Translation: Self-Determination) Learn more about Kwanzaa here.

Let’s talk about the 2nd Principle of Kwanzaa: Kujichagulia.

KNOWLEDGE OF SELF by Black Starr

My gift to you today, on day 2, is Gil Scott-Heron, because I want to remind you that you don’t have to live in a bottle. Be determined to GET FREE and LIVE trying. Gil inspires my freestyle flows. He had so much soul. Check it out, will you?

Asante sana. Thank you for visiting African Essence by Shila Iris

Balancing the Sun & the Moon

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i hear nothing in my ear but your voice.
heart has plundered mind of its eloquence.

Love writes a transparent calligraphy, so on
the empty page my soul can read and recollect

Which is worth more, a crowd of thousands,
or your own genuine solitude?
Freedom, or power over an entire nation?

A little while alone in your room
will prove more valuable than anything else
that could ever be given you.

-Rumi

balance the Sun and the Moon …

I sit on the floor,
leaning against my bed,
for hours.
Needing to hear my own voice,
silence envelopes me.
The stillness of me is liberating.
I’d rather not drown in the melody of another.
knowing myself,
I can get to know you
better,
but in silence,
i sit,
until I’m ready.
Harmony awaits me.

peace and blessings manifest with every lesson learned.

i am OsiRis RiSinG

Today, it's just me

I know better.
So, I want better.

Homo Sapien Gods – My Life Began Inside of an Aries

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY DEAR MOTHER!!! This poem is dedicated to my parents, who are both Aries, who I watched love each other for many years, with little interference, but their seasons had to end, because sometimes, we make the wrong decisions. but the right choices. their souls mated. mated long enough to create 6 lives. from 1980 until 1987. a tribe. my parents were best of friends, facing their reflections in the eyes of the other, i’m like my mother, my dad, my brother, my sisters and I are one. it’s hard to allow each other to be human sometimes, right? “you’re really out of my control, but I’m not trying to rope you.” be free. i love the energy that created me. thank you for birthing iris, i’m with you til the end! peace and blessings, i send.

Dopamine racing
the feeling is surreal
love is fleeting,
but his intentions are real
i am not his default
he didn’t steal me
he didn’t keep me on the side
he came to me, free as love can be
the wind blew around us,
creating a vortex
he rolled me up in a blunt and smoked my cerebral cortex
he speaks
i stop.
i listen
cerebellum bale- lance
there is nothing like me,
to him
he is high in between my sighs
he, lays there
looking into my eyes
he came inside, what a pleasant surprise
breathing.
that’s what we do together
he carried my baggage to the trash
canned it, but didn’t chastise me nor reprimand it
I am not falling for him,
i rise, I rise, i rise, I rise!!!
i can see myself in the skies!
i am loving this
homo sapien god
My LIFE began inside of an Aries.
my lover, my friend
breathing.
he gave me a heart beat
teething, over his shoulder
biting,
screaming
as he takes over,
i am in your arms
burning in your fire,
higher, higher!
lifting the smoke screen
you see me,
resonating in my mind
my King
i am so in love with you

My siblings and I were all born under the conditions illustrated in this poem. ♥

Sitting here thinkin’ bout ya’ll

Recently, I have met some of the dopest and illest human beings alive. When I say dope and ill, I mean intelligent, wisdom-filled homo sapien gods!

It all started last year, when I attended the Afro Punk Festival in Brooklyn, New York. The people, these “like-bodies” were so attractive, out-going, and confident. It was an amazing flow of energy in the air. It felt like we were walking between pyramids in Egypt. Such beauty reminded me that I was god. I began TRANSFORMING…

I felt elevated. And when I came down from this high, I went to you…

LET ME LOVE YOU. IT’S NOT COMPLICATED. My intentions are to plant seeds inside of you and to keep an open heart, and an open mind with You and YOU, and yoU, and YoU too. I got mad love for the Free people of the world! And I ain’t talking bout people with money and control, I’m talking about those real One’s, who live outside of the Matrix; who are bold lovers of themselves, and they love you too. GODS. They make you feel so good; not by stroking your ego in your weak moments, and not by pretending to choose you when it’s really default; but by telling you the truth, I’M MARRIED 2U. I’m married to me. I give you what you need, if you worthy. Brothas, sistahs! WE ARE meant 2B doing this together. Bring your LIKE-Minds into my atmosphere. Ya’ll inspire me to be god. Ya’ll remind me of my ancestral grace, in a world that tells me to hide it. I’m not hiding. I’m not lying. Reciprocity. I’m not afraid of you. I’ll look you in your eyes and say, “I’m god!”

But so are you. My darling Aries kindred sprits – Happy birthday

March 28 – Kyla, my oldest niece, and my youngest soul mate, i love your smile
March 28 – Zoië, my youngest niece, this wild one bites, I need this crazy baby
April 2 – My daddy, i love your poetic hustlin’
April 8 – Andre, my coolest cousin
April 8 – Imhotep Frank TheeTalented 10th, my sounding board, 13 years passed fast!
April 10 – My mother, mom, hmmmm. i am u.
April 10 – My Brandi Gregg! I love your Barbie doll collection and your warm hugs!
April 14 – Mr. Bobby Williams, who i can say anything under the Sun to, turns out, i need u

I am so glad to be able to connect with the Aries, rising with the Sun and resting with the Moon. Let the peace and blessings manifest within you, together, we are One.P.S. I do not want you to go, but I don’t know how to stop you. Live in my music.
i am OSIRIS and I’m RiSinG!!

Pulling From the Universe Inside of ME – Nurturing My Cipher

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I was trying to go it alone, but he said, “I want to assist you through this process.” Before I knew it, I was crying. That is the impact a true friend has. It’s not just rhetoric, it’s responsibility. He wanted to hold my hand. He was pure.

***** The seasons will forever change. We all know it. The leaves have fallen off my trees. The ground beneath my feet is hard and cold. My flowers are hiding until the spring, but I can still feel the green, the roots. My foundation is being set. I’ve never felt this powerful in my life! It feels good. My season has changed and I’ve had to spend a lot of time alone. Spending time with myself, with my own thoughts, not being dependent on another has been empowering! Not jumping from affair to affair has been elevating. Having friends and family around who see the greatness in me, has been nourishing. I am not afraid to be alone anymore or to commit to myself anymore. I’m thinking, if you can’t be alone with you, why would other people want to? I don’t want to attract the same type of energy again and again, so I guess it is time to cleanse!

I record my experiences using poetry. When I talk to people about how great it feels to go through things, no matter how painful, when I tell people my story, they are interested! I’ve been encouraged to always be a griot, a storyteller, and to use the magic of my words to nurse my strength. When I write, I can feel the magic. It’s healing. I am a writer who’s finds the most comfort in telling my own story. My journey through the seasons has been tumultuous. I had been holding on to things that were damaging me. I had read many self-help books that I thought would assist in my healing, only to realize that the healing didn’t start until I let go of the thing that was hurting me most. I had to take time out to learn myself and although I have been alone, many people have come to me, and given me hugs, smiles, kisses, and so much love.

This is my thank you LETTER to the wonderful people in my CIPHER. Some of you are miles away, but when I needed you, somehow you sensed it, and you were right here with me. I am forever grateful. May we journey onward through the seasons. Everything is good until it is not! It’s been a long time coming… read (click on the image below to enlarge)

“his excitement in hearing my voice was attractive. it always had been. it felt real. not rehearsed. it felt right.”

the THANK YOU LETTER… you have to adjust your screens to read.

and although, i don’t need to run to people to save me, i’ve realized that there are people who genuinely want to help. No matter how much I refuse, they feel like they have to. It’s quite amazing. I am grateful. this poem was originally published here, on January 29, with other things in mind. It is still relevant in my journey. it is not a love poem. it is a poem to show my regards for those who really CARE about me. and they have proven this time and time again. i can’t believe how wonderful you are. i deserve u. i miss u.

THANK YOU SO MUCH! Thank you friends, lovers, family, companions, artists- everyone who has experienced me! Everyone who rose to my occasion, everyone who was interested in the truth.

You are so true.

i can see the sun shining on me, through you.

i can see it in the words that you write.

the pictures that you take.

the stories that you create.

your style,

your flow.

i needed honesty.

i needed someone to remind me.

and you were that person.

i want to be like you!

Osiris, I am you.

Horus, I am you.

Isis, I am you.

Maat, I am you.

Zarina Asha, I am you.

Imhotep Famj, I am you.

SunRe, I am you.

Kitara, i am you.

Ike Ejiogu, I am you.

You all are the Papyrus of Ani,

and i am reading you thoroughly.

thank you for the warm kisses.

thank you for SHOWING up.

thank you for not giving up on ME,

and not allowing me to give up on myself.

thank you for not humiliating me or lying.

I thank you for never running away,

and for respecting me enough to let me live through the consequences of my bad decisions. i kept a strong face, but I was crying inside. you all never passed judgment… i am running towards you at a fast pace, I need you most.

My opposing viewpoints earned me lifetime lovers. thank you for taking my heart carefully in your hands and stroking it.

through my experiences, I am wiser.

My feet are touching solid ground because of you.

I am most grateful for those who did not wait for the smoke to clear.

they helped me get to safety.

they gave me the tools, the support I needed to save myself.

No looking back. The new is on the horizon.

i am filling myself up again with REAL things!

thank you so much!

to those who did not compare my journey to their own or anyone’s.

they did not look for opportunities to vent,

they listened.