“You may write me down in history… but still like air I’ll rise…” Maya Angelou (activist and poetess).

‘The pen is more powerful
than the blade.’
I challenge those who wrote
these twisted lies.
Yes, the pen has masked
genocides,
lamented tyranny or
written
‘oppressed’.
Alone, it does not rise.

The potential to power:
it cannot breathe–
but impels to rise. Yes, it
demonises
the demon, unmasks the
hidden blade,
releases a paper dragon.

But I can breathe.
I can have piercing
words in my eyes,
sharp pens with my pace
fire sparks in my speech,
and real blazing

dragons at my call.

And I can rise.

Maya, I will rise.

Laleh Marvasti

Laleh Marvasti a relatively new published poet, mother of two. She has had her poem, ‘And God Created Oxygen’, published in Journal of Post-Colonial Writing (2020). She has also had poetry published in The Edge, an anthology published in Melbourne, Australia. She is an active member of Williamstown writers group
who have given her much support through her poetic journey. She has lived in the UK, Middle East, USA and Australia, experiencing different cultures across the globe. She currently works as a healthcare provider.

© 2021