Zachary Phillips 7/12/26 Zachary Phillips 7/12/26

black pearl

black pearl
with a core of blue
return to me
and release what you’ve been through…

… sadness and shame
anger and blame
this is my life
a feeding of the flame

This poem is inspired by the book How To Write Evocative Poetry

Zachary Phillips 6/30/26 Zachary Phillips 6/30/26

beauty of the sea

i closed my eyes to the beauty of the sea
shielding the fragile part of my soul
that still believed
in the childish notion of an untainted moment

as i walked away
i couldn’t help but hear the crash of the waves
nor could i ignore the subtle fragrance
of echoed memories telling stories
of countless days lost and found
of floating
of sun-drenched smiles
of laughter
and of the salty tears of rebellion against a world that was forcing me to leave

i am crying those same tears now
their slow descent down my cheeks
mirroring a life spent running away from itself
too afraid to taste the saltiness of the water
too afraid to feel the sun or hear the waves
and too afraid to cry tears of departure
that i never allow myself to see
the beauty of the sea that is in front of me

This poem is inspired by the book How To Write Evocative Poetry

Zachary Phillips 4/7/26 Zachary Phillips 4/7/26

the body keeps the score

i’m frozen
reading the words scratched upon my soul
long before i knew how to read

but now that i’m baked
i’ve got a new take
a new way to remake
and rewrite the wake

so many tears
for so few words

it is on me
to see
and send love
inwardly

my shadow bleeds ink
yet i hold the pen
with these words
i begin again

for my story will be long
with chapters anew
and these words
are so few

the body keeps the score
but the pen holds the key
the paper is the door
so love what you see

begin again

This poem is inspired by my book, How To Write Evocative Poetry

Zachary Phillips 8/10/25 Zachary Phillips 8/10/25

i find myself

i find myself
standing in a river
hands outstretched
struggling
in a futile attempt
to hold back the flow

fretting
over all the water
slipping through my fingers
and the erosion underfoot
threatening to dislodge
my fragile defiance

then

a bird call
a gust of wind
a glimpse of sunshine

a moment of surrender

i let go
and just float
trusting the river
to take me
wherever
i need to be

This poem is from the book Poetry from a Dark Night of the Soul

Zachary Phillips 8/10/25 Zachary Phillips 8/10/25

Suffering Without Hope

One day I will wake
To find you hanging
Above a letter

I won’t need to read it
I already know why

You tell me daily

Different words
Same truth

Suffering without hope

I find myself
Silently mourning
A death
That’s yet to happen

Unable to stop
The inevitability
Of your choice
Despite knowing
You are making it

I should do more
But there’s nothing more I can do

Other than wait

This poem is from the book A Requiem For What Could Have Been: Poetry For The Broken

Zachary Phillips 8/10/25 Zachary Phillips 8/10/25

I’ve Sold You My Soul

With this book
I’ve sold you my soul
Put myself on display
Showing you my whole

Here
Do you see the hole?
What was left
After my father’s toll
A prostitution of pain
A sympathy payroll

Here
Do you see the hole?
What was left
After her thoughtless console
A pitiful attempt
To reclaim what he stole

I wrote this for me
There’s no other goal
Love it or hate it
Fuck you all

No
Not you dear reader
Just those close to me
Those who chose to troll
Those who attempted to control
Those who don’t know me at all

No
For you I extol
The healing granted
By planting the flag pole
Open your mind to gaze upon your soul
Write
Take back control
Step through the keyhole
Put it on the page
And remake yourself
Into a stronger whole

This poem is from the book A Requiem For What Could Have Been: Poetry For The Broken