A Poem for my Black Baby (For Yaheli)
My baby dances like no one is watching.
Throws her head back,
and puts her hands up in front of her.
Kicks her legs up,
stomps her feet,
and lets go of
all her inhibitions.
To the wind,
she throws them.
When my baby moves,
time bends to her will.
It follows her twirl
and gathers itself
In the wind she creates,
when her hips swirl.
Black baby dance,
black baby smile,
seeing black baby
joy forces you to realize,
how blessed you are,
beyond measure.
My Beautiful brown baby,
you are a treasure.
My lil’ mama
hugs my neck
and says I'm amazing.
and calms me with her laughter.
Her giggles gallop around my mind,
steadying my pulse,
when my heart starts racing.
She be breathtaking.
Black babies are a blessing.
In this world that tells them
they are lesser than,
I remind her to never let
Their projections seep in.
If they could they would
climb into your skin.
Claim your effortlessness.
They would Frolic in the energy
your ancestry adorned you with.
In a world that would dare say,
She is not amazing,
I tell my Queen to just keep
Dancing.
Prance on these white nationalists,
dog whistle racism,
and the politics.
Jook all over this administration!
Through your gyratin,
let them know, the revolution is coming,
Just be patient.
Shake the pale hands of your locs,
that sweep over your back.
Show them why a black baby,
that loves themselves,
is the biggest threat.
Show them why you love being black.
My caramel mocha child,
the Orishas move through you,
they tell the story of our origins,
how we got over,
and made it through.
My girl you make your forefathers proud.
There is no higher honor,
than raising you.
I knew I was a God
when I delivered you from my womb.
You are the truth,
and the proof,
that I can do all things,
through black that strengthens me.
Now dance you brilliant bright black star!
Dance for me!
About Arsimmer
I am a poet/Spoken Word artist who has been practicing for over a decade. I’ve worked diligently on my craft and style and would like to accomplish having my work published in community driven initiatives.
My work is centered around my experiences growing up as a girl child in Miami, Florida. My city, like any other, has a unique culture that is so potent it influences how people approach life, violence, race relations, love, and ambitions. The Dialect, locations, & histories of my world are the tools I’ve found to help me streamline the stories I tell in my work. Music is the base of my being and song writers were the first poets I was introduced to. My music gumbo ranges from Angel Bat Dawid, to Cat Stevens, to Da Baby. But my drug of choice is funk & 70’s soul R&B. I incorporate the glide, meter, & cadences, of the music in my poetry. It makes the work feel like a story that has existed long before it reached me. I make it a point to speak in my voice. I do this so that the youth that I educate, and the community I serve, understand the authenticity in their voices and the beauty of their own stories.
I am currently working on a collection of poems paired with visuals, which will illustrate my own story of undergoing a divorce, becoming a single parent, and becoming a survivor of mental and sexual abuse, all amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, the continuous murders of black bodies, and the traumatizing unsettling shift in our nations political & social climate.
I have recently been commissioned to submit a piece to the Kitchen Table Literary Arts Center. The Center’s new exhibition will feature original pieces which are to be created via the exchange of works by visual artists with writers. The work of the writer will serve as a muse to the work of the painter, sculptor, photographer, etc. and vice versa. My poem “In Us”, which is my personal account of dealing with depression and generational trauma, was published in Venice Magazine’s Summer 2020 issue, both online and physical (https://venicemagftl.com/in-us/).