Inside Out Of My Mind

About Me

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Born and raised in Metro Detroit. I have a deep love for the city and all that it has to offer. Always seeking growth, absorbing all that I can and cherishing the treasures that I collect along the way. I am fortunate in my life to experience many true connections with others where I am gifted with energy, light, passion and grace.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Over Consumption

Over consumption is
The poison in our veins
Slowing us down in many ways
Stealing away valuable space
In our minds
In our hearts
It is undefined
It is broken apart
In our souls
Keeping us halfway
From being whole
We have, we hold
The anecdote
That goes against
All that we have known
It contradicts
What is comfortable
It's lush and green
Spacious and clean
Home to no material things

Hall Of Wonder

Energy strung
So high above
The bricks that built
A world so small.

Life that left
Before it was done.
A soul so hollow
It was bound to all.

The mind collapsed
In it's shell
So shaken
By the ground once moved.

When the eyes
Came into view,
The girl had to ask
What had been proved.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

INTO

Here is a poem I completed on September 14, 1989.

INTO
Grasping tight
Into this
Moment of confusion
Stripped of power
I speak,
Time follows,
I repeat.

All is lost into darkness.
Shadows faded,
I found
A strength within
Unknown,
So deep,
Shallow to the cause.
A spark captured
Light of day.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Mountain Home: Whistle Stop Road

Almost twenty years ago, I set out on an endeavor that I had been thinking about for quite some time.  When I first began writing, I had the desire to turn my poetry into song lyrics as I was very passionate about and deeply moved by music.  It was not until my early 20's that I actually set out on this journey.  I started this project with a couple of very influential people in my life who were also talented musicians.  We did work on the lyrics and melodies for some time and nailed down some pretty good material but, unfortunately, it ended there.  I am now at a point in my life where I am going to revisit these songs and hopefully follow through with it this time.  I want to share one of the songs with you today.
This one is called is about a place I call Whistle Stop Road, see what you think.


Mountain Home: Whistle Stop Road


Boarded the 8 am
Headed for the mountains again
Behind me the city fades
As I make my escape
Into as deep inside of me
As I could ever be
Searched far and wide
City to city to mountainside

1st chorus
From the crowded time
Where I was lost
Into this heart of mine
To feel the cause

2nd chorus
This time I'm here to stay
Found my home
I've found my way

Now this Whistle Stop Road
Is a place to call my own

Now I live and love the night
And drink the light of day

Feel as though I might
Shine along the way

(Repeat 1st and 2nd chorus)

Now this Whistle Stop Road
Has Become my mountain home

(Repeat 2nd chorus)

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

The Gaze

Part One

There it was amidst your gaze
like a starry night
in the country
every twinkle shining
brighter than the one before.
Every time my eyes met yours,
I was carried to some distant shore,
letting go,
seemingly abandoned,
lying in the rising tide.
Shall I be captured
by this tide
only to be cast away
into the cold and dark
alone, searching for your gaze
once again.

Part two


No, the treasure lies
in my ability and desire
to cherish the gaze,
invite the tide to caress me,
welcome the travel to distant shores,
keep my eyes on the tide,
embrace the cold and dark of it
for they too offer warmth and light.

The treasures are not in the gaze alone
and therefor, I should not be searching for it.
Instead, uncovering all the jewels
now buried deep within,
my rewards aplenty.
The work ahead appears
both painstaking and fruitful.
The focus must be on the truth,
the facts, the spoken,
overpowering the unknown,
the speculation, and
the unspoken.

Part Three


How easily the unknown,
the unspoken could draw me
into a variety of arenas,
questioning all the possibilities.
Could it have meant?
Could it mean?
Could it someday be?
Could it become
something more to me
just by focusing on the unknown,
the unspoken?

It is possible to be drawn into
a world of disillusionment,
betrayal of self,
completely out of touch with reality
if the focus is shifted.

Part Four

It is then, that I ask the question.
Why had I allowed the focus to stray at all?
Was it out of desperation?
Loneliness? Emptiness?
Drawn to the life streaming from your gaze.
Drawn to it by power, time and place.
The answers are many.
The questions, too, are many.
The confusion remains in the shadows.
Still, I must embrace, even that which
I cannot fully comprehend
as part of the joy and wonder of it all.

The Dust

I had lost my focus for too long.
A thick layer of dust gathered,
it seemed as a wool blanket
covering my hopes and dreams.
Why had I allowed myself to slip away so?
How had one experience and one person
helped me to uncover and discover?
The dust buried my soul,
my true self, for so long.

Was I so afraid to be?
That I had allowed myself to . . .
not be, feel, think or create
from the inside as I know I can.

How much different the world looks to me now.
How I feel with so much more intensity.
Still, in doing so,
I am aware of the possibilities
that the strength of what I feel will increase,
be enlightened with every turn, with every glance
and with each introduction that follows.

The colors are so bold and bright.
The variables in between are so rich and plentiful.
So full of wonder and excitement
is the path ahead.
Still, I feel fear tugging at my back.
Struggling, the fear tries to keep my steps forward
to a tiptoe, a mere shuffle.
I must push ahead,
fear at my back, possibility in my sights,
follow the path until . . .
I meet another path, until . . .

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Standing Still . . . Awakened!

A follow up to my last post, this is another composition of mine from that same period in November of 2002 when I was experiencing some serious changes in myself, in my perspective from the inside out.

Standing Still . . . Awakened!

Time passed and I stood still,
waiting for the world to offer itself,
waiting for the fruits of my labor to be offered up
as reward for hardships,
as payment overdue
for pain and suffering,
for years, for tears, for heartache
as if it was owed to me,
as if it was written in some contract
of life, of parent to child,
of friend to friend, of sibling to sibling . . .
a contract, written by me for myself.

No other is responsible
for bringing the fruits to the table,
for bringing the fruits to me,
for bringing me to the fruits
that are offered by the world,
waiting to be selected and tasted,
devoured, enjoyed, savored
for each and every bite offers
a sample of sweet, sour, bitter,
rough in texture,
filling me whole and leaving behind
a taste of sweet, a bit of sour,
bitterness on the tongue
that lingers awhile
offering gifts
for my senses
to be awakened,
awakened day after day.

Clearing Away The Clutter

Here is a piece that I completed in November of 2002. After some life changing experiences during a trip to California that month, I did a lot of writing. I will certainly share more of this writing in the future as it reflects the evolution that took place in me during that time.

Clearing Away The Clutter

Clearing away the clutter
who imagined it could have such an effect?
To be able to think more clearly,
feel more deeply,
be reunited with your senses, as if,
having met them for the first time.
Breathing much more easily,
seeing much further than before,
observing so many little details
of which I had not even been aware.
The details shine brightly.
It amazes me
that I could have lived without
the depth of feeling.
The details seem to be as necessary as
the air in my lungs
in allowing the blood
to continue to flow.

The world is grand,
the variables are many.
It is an ocean great and fierce,
so beautiful and scary,
so deep and wide,
so full and so lonely,
so blue with many shades of grey,
so vast and yet boxed in.
Turning each way to face yet another wall
to break through.
Oh, what splendor, to break through.
For something new, fresh and awesome awaits
to bring life to something inside
waiting to awaken
with splendor, with awe, full of wonder.

No matter the timing,
there is no preparation to be made.
For, these wonders come and surprise
even the most skilled seekers of life.
It is not in breath that we live,
not in a day or a moment that we live.
It is in wonder that we dance, that we live
full, whole and in awe of the dance, the life, the gift.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

AGE

Today, I share with you a piece that I composed in 1998. I was in my mid twenties and preparing for a lot of big life changes; marriage, newly built home, life-threatening heart surgery for my Father and new challenges at work. It was a year full and rich in many ways but deep with emotional struggles as well. It was definitely a year filled with many life lessons. See what you think. Can you relate to feeling this way at some points in your life?


AGE

Sophistication, Wisdom, Power, Strength . . .
Fear, Reality, Helplessness, Loneliness . . .

We look forward to it until we reach it.
We enjoy it until we see the reality of it.

It comes so quickly to meet us.
It steps in the door before it knocks.

What happened? Not so fast! Where did it go?
The time, the youth . . . yesterday.

We wanted to be big. We wanted to drive.
We wanted to go out on our own. We wanted to get married.
We wanted to have a family. We wanted. We wanted . . .
But not anymore.

Now we want it all back.
To cherish, to treasure, to have it all over again.

If you are not here yet.
You get a second chance.
Make it your miracle.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

This Thing Called Fear

I often write about this thing called fear. Fear can control our lives if we allow it. Fear can destroy our plans if we let it. Fear can run away with our dreams if we don't stop it. Fear can obstruct us on our path and we must find another route or climb over it. What I want to stop for this moment to talk about is what happens when we conquer our fear. Yes, we can conquer our fear because we created it! When we finally refuse to let fear stand in our way, amazing things happen. Fear is manufactured inside our heads and we shall overcome it! Fear is not the natural way for our lives to be guided. Our natural guide is the shining light within us that directs us out from the shadows and onto the stage where we are meant to shine. I have seen people overcome fear and the most amazing things happen! Look inside yourself and discover why fear has bound you to unhappiness. All of the things you "wanted to do in life" can be accomplished. Overcoming fear can be one of the most rewarding things in life. The possibilities are endless once you are freed from the locks and chains of fear. Break out of that prison, break free for all the world to see and let that light shine!

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Stage Fright

From time to time, I will share things that I have written at different points in my life. The following poem was written many years ago, a few weeks after my sixteenth birthday. At times, I struggle with whether or not I really like my earlier compositions. This is one that I can find value in because it has good elements and I think the reader can easily relate to it. I enjoy looking at my earlier works in comparison to more recent ones as it shows growth as a person and as a writer. See what you think.

Stage Fright

A scene is created
To amuse and entertain
The atmosphere seems
Something more than plain.

Changing surfaces
In order to deceive
Trading places
So the viewers will believe.

Cast into a family
Where reality has no name
All of it's members attempt
To be the master of the game.

Pretenders falling closer
Time and space collide
Must we read between the lines
To discover what is inside?

Monday, February 14, 2011

Lovers

I notice them there.
Although, they are unaware,
Locked, one to the other,
Energy drawing them together.
Is there anything else?
Is there anyone else?
They have all that they need,
As solid as can be,
Their cups are filled and overflowing.
Well, I really should be going.
Still, I cannot resist the urge to stare.
Since they do not realize I am there,
The beauty is too much to resist.
Why can't I find something like this?
Such a gift is reserved,
For those who truly deserve.
If I could just have a taste,
I would treasure it until the end of my days.
My eyes are fixated on their intensity,
My heart realizes it is not my destiny.
My soul's desire fuels the fire inside of me.
I find myself in an empty room with only my reflection,
Searching for a reason why my heart deserves a true companion.

Rise Up For Our Sisters and Brothers

Wouldn't you expect
That it would reflect
In their expression, in their gait?
Still, it isn't obvious in their face
that nearly half a million lives
have been essentially erased.
Only a few survive
the evil of genocide.
Only a few are alive
and even they are forced to hide.
We have the wealth, we have the power,
many are dying by the hour.
They are the children of the world,
they are the innocent whose screams cannot be heard,
they are husbands and fathers, sisters and brothers,
they are sons, they are daughters,
they are victims without a voice,
they were never given a choice.
Evil that was born from ignorance and fear
takes more and more lives with each passing year.
When will we rise up and say,
"No more, not on our watch!"?
Rise up, let your soul guide the way,
even if you think you cannot do much.
Unopposed, the evil will continue to gain ground.
Listen closely, do you hear the sound?
They are crying out for our help, begging for mercy.
An incomprehensible number of our brothers and sisters
are suffering and hoping against hope that we will begin to see
their safety and their future is within our reach.
Let us not sit on our hands or try to meet any demands,
let us take to the shore of that not so distant land
and take our brothers and sisters by the hand.
Wouldn't you expect
the world to rise up and protect
the children and the innocent
from the evil, the inhumanity?
It starts, right here, with you and me.
Just think of the possibilities.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

From The Inside Out


I completed this painting titled, "From The Inside Out" back in 1994. Of course, this is where I derived the name for my blog. I began painting a few years before this one but it was the first painting that I attempted on a canvas of that size. It began a new phase for me in how I would express myself through art. At this point, I began to allow the paint to flow through me onto the canvas. I have no formal ideas when I set up to paint. I truly feel that the paintings develop me instead of the other way around. I will share more of my creations in the future.

Wandering Aimlessly

I found myself wandering aimlessly unsure of how I got here. I looked around and noticed something familiar that was disguised by the mask of time. The sensation let me know that time had not altered its ability to draw my insides out. Time had not diminished its ability to fill me with peace and the sense of home that comforts my soul. A genuine strength that exists regardless of time or distance yet when I reach out to embrace it, it slips away. If I had imagined the possibility of embracing something so real, whether as a child or in my dreams, I could never have imagined something so full of beauty, warmth and depth. Still, I never imagined that all of this could be within reach and yet beyond my grasp. I may have been wandering the halls of my mind without a map or strolling through the hollowed walls of my dreams believing it to be real. In either case, it has a grip on me. Still, I cannot fully embrace it.

Take the Baby Home, Hold Her Heart in Yours

I would not be who I am without suffering through
the terrors and the pain.
Still, I sometimes imagine what a more simplistic past could do
to reinvent my soul today.


Take the baby home and keep her under lock and key,
save her from the evil that hovers and look what she'll turn out to be.
Take your daughter home and protect her innocence,
keep her just beneath your wings and offer evil no forgiveness.
Take your child home and hold her heart in yours,
protect her soul, give her wings and she will certainly soar.
Take your little one into the garden where birds sing and butterflies dance,
don't let the sun go down on her hopes and her dreams, give her a chance.
Take the baby home again and keep her under lock and key,
save her life, save her soul, save her grace and dignity.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Falling in, Falling Away

falling in, falling away
never thought it would happen this way
the water's so deep but the hill is steep
falling in falling away
there's a high price to pay
lose a lover while losing sleep
falling away, falling in
don't even know where to begin
where to fall at the end of the day to process this
falling away, falling into
lost in silence, found in pieces
without a place to fit in
falling away or falling in
are you either?
have you already
fallen away and fallen back in?
there was a rush of everything all at once
that seemed so real, so vivid, so full of life
pause
paused still
falling away
falling in
no more?

The Reality

The Reality,
It is harsh and cold
It is blameless and full of fear
It feels new and somehow old
Even when it's foggy, it is still clear

It is filled with passion and desire
It is serenaded by heart strings
It sets our souls on fire
Accompanied by the pain it brings
Reality is our friend, our enemy and everything
in between.

It is the wars between what we know, what we don't and what we believe to be.
It is the fear of what we have done, where we have been and what we have seen.

Reality trips us up along the way, brings us back from fantasy and reminds us that pleasure is not free.

Desire, confusion, passion, illusion, mystery, pain, strength, loss, loneliness, comfort, insecurity, responsibility, ignorance, sadness, fear and disappointment are all part of reality.

We are all alone with our own reality.

Another poem . . .

Marching in the Fool’s Parade

You draw me in
Without even a thought
You reeled me in and threw me back
As soon I was caught

The tangled web inside my head
Was woven with your hands
Now each time I go to bed
I’m dreaming up impossible plans

I’m marching in the fool’s parade
On tiptoes like the autumn clouds
My heart danced to the songs you played
Feeling certain that the mate of my soul was found

Now, I see you’re not with me
You’ve made your distance known
Still, inside my mind, I see
The truth and reality of what you have shown

The songs play on each and every day
They bring gifts of love and light
Pouring passion into my heart along the way
Into my soul to broaden my sight

I’m marching in the fool’s parade
On tiptoes like the autumn clouds
My heart danced to the songs you played
Both on the air and on the ground

I’m marching in the fool’s parade
Carrying the load of mistakes I’ve made

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Journeys of the Heart

The heart can journey endlessly
Leading the mind out from the ruins
The heart is innately free
Even as the mind is trapped in confusion

Let the heart travel
Let it be your guide
It reminds you not to dwell
In spaces that allow you to hide

The heart cannot thrive in a state of fear
The mind draws this in and hides behind it
Finding a comfortable discomfort here
Stuck, no room for change in this state of mind

Fear tries to take over, heart and soul
While your mind remains paralyzed
Making it impossible to reach your goals
As you lose sight of the soul your heart designed

All is lost to this power called fear
If you let your guard down and let it in
The challenge is very clear
The strength is within you to win

Fear or your heart can be your guide
The choice is in your mind's eye
Do not go to that place and hide
Be alive, bust through the fear inside

Life is not ahead of you
It is full and present in the here and now
You may have some fighting to do
To show your mind the why and how

The rewards are endless
It is evident from the start
As soon as you clean up the mess
That fear has created in your heart

The clarity will bring light
To the visions of your soul
Your heart will guide your sight
The path will be lit toward becoming whole

Monday, February 7, 2011

The Colors of Love

Time for sharing poetry again. I have been writing poetry since about the age of 10. Writing was always an outlet, a saving grace for me in the early years. I was not sure that I loved it or that I was even good at it but it gave me a sense of freedom and helped me through my childhood. It helped me to save myself from getting lost in those very dark places that look inviting to a child that is suffering and suffering, I was. So, after some time, writing became more than just an outlet for me. I fell in love with writing and began really learning a lot about my struggles, the lessons within them and my triumphs from reading what I had written. Also, I began to grow as a writer and this made me love it even more deeply. As my passion for writing grew, I experienced a lot of growth and that cycle has continued throughout the years. My writing from the early years seems much different to me than the compositions that I create today.
Here is a poem I wrote on 7/25/90:

The Colors of Love

It's love and personality
Stemming from positive minds
Hearts come together
Bringing forth more and more
Of the colors of the world

Here, there, and in between
As time turns
The light breaks out
Across the land each day

The colors of the world
Though often tucked away
And sometimes lost
In the chaos of everyday life
Are vivid and constant
If not gradually brighter
In the middle of

LOVE

Running high
Forward into the night

By Kyra Faith

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Perspective

All we need is a change in perspective . . .

Life is filled with questions, answers, trials, lessons, beauty, wonder, pain, joy, darkness, light, inspiration, sadness and so much more. All of these can be found in everyday experiences, it is just a matter of perspective. Pain and fear can keep us stuck in a place, even paralyzed. Perspective can free us from even the darkest depths where once we may have drowned. Taking a step back and looking at any particular piece of our lives offers us the chance to be more attentive to the gifts within the pain. Renewed perspective can fill us with renewed hope and peace instead of trapping us under the giant thumb of fear.

Fear is powerful because we feed it, absorb it, become one with it and it directs our lives away from our natural, desired path. We can take back the power by turning the fear into joy, possibility, love and light. Whatever it is that is holding us down, we must embrace it!
If fear is keeping us from trying because there is a possibility of failure, look to the lesson it is holding for us. What is the worst that can happen in failure? We can learn from our mistakes, grow from the point of failure and move forward into success the next time. If fear has us stuck in a place because we are concentrating on the failure itself and continually telling ourselves how faulted and bad we are for failing, fear has the upper hand. Take back the power and tell yourself that you needed that experience of failure to grow and better your life. Show yourself that growth is necessary and embracing failure is the best way to move forward into who you are meant to be.

We are totally in charge of our thoughts and how we allow them to make us feel about ourselves. So, tell yourself about the goodness in you. Remind yourself daily to have the willingness to change your perspective and see the gifts in everything. Yes, I did say everything! Gifts come to us in ways, we are not always able to see, especially when we are drowning in suffering, loss, grief, pain. Make the choice to experience the pain, swimming around in the deep blue of it and soak up all that it has to offer. Do not let pain consume you, swallowing you whole as it can easily do. There is beauty in pain. Some of the most beautiful gifts of my life have come from the most painful experiences. Suffering can gift us with great strength if we allow it to. Loneliness can remind us to treasure the beauty in shared moments. Death can teach us to treasure loved ones and the many gems they stuff into our pockets of life. Physical pain is a great reminder to us not to take our health and all that it affords us for granted. Suffering through abuse can build up walls in the heart to protect and strengthen. It can also create a compassionate, far-reaching soul that has a deep understanding for the capacity that the heart has for healing and reviving life from within.

The gifts in pain and suffering are endless and are there to be discovered and bring you renewed perspective. The perspective is yours and that makes it easily adjustable. The ability to do this will bring immediate results. Changing your life is truly as easy as changing your point of view! We all have sad stories to tell but they are just that, stories. These stories do not define us unless we let them. By repeating these stories, we are telling ourselves and others that they define us, when they do not. Our stories are tools that we can learn from.

Here is an idea, thinking of a very personally painful time in your life and on a piece of paper, write down 5 lessons that you took away from it. If you repeat this lesson with other difficult times of life, the lessons will become more and more evident. You may even notice that you have been trying to learn the same lessons over and over again in life. When we learn the lessons that we are meant to, we can share them with others and truly help each other. Pain should not be the most powerful emotion that we experience. Beauty and wonder are meant to fill our days, our hearts, our minds and our souls. It is attainable. Life as beauty is attainable. Fullness of days and love that permeates our life is not a fairy tale, it is within us and we are the masters of our universe.

Find your peace, find the beauty, discover the light within the darkness until you escape from the shadows and soak up the fullness of each and every moment!