Poetry Submission: Natalia Rivas "El Más Allá"

El Más Allá

I pity the person who looked me in my eyes and deemed me not enough

Pity to the person who touched god herself and missed the opportunity to familiarize themselves with my divine

People who had the pleasure of tasting my aura, wearing the sweet milk of my energy, and still wasted my time

To those who imagined they would feel the silk of my valleys with filthy hands

I gave them leaves of the oleander instead

Unfortunate, the soul who laid in my bed resting their selfish head

in the lap of Venus looking for nourishment and enchantment to enrich the fetus state of mind

Thinking extraordinary companionship was beneath us but still had the bravado to treat us like we were no more than just

birds of paradise growing in lust

Hapless the creature who scorned my trust

Boundless and seamless but through me, they have tried to thrust

And still, I stand phenomenally, every part of my spirit radiant

Unreachable like stars past our galaxies explored

Unreachable like a sustainable planet living in the beyond, they have tried to claim me with insatiable thirsts, swallowing, wanting more

Blessed were those who have touched me and then left with samples of me, believing in their hands and eventually pockets would forever be whole pieces of me

A glimpse of ethereal femininity

Is all that you had and I’m glad I never gave more of me than I could part with

I’m glad knowing every compartment within me is a gift

I am holy

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Get to know the Poet:

"I like to think of myself as a warm and eccentric latinx, hailing from the south side of Milwaukee. I was born and raised in MKE but I’ve done my fair share of traveling; living abroad as well. Reading, painting, spirituality, writing, and nature, have been my most consuming passions in life. I create poems for sad girls of color in need of empowerment and love.

I remember watching an HBO Family special on outlets for children handling tough times. They happened to showcase a boy whose parents were going through a divorce. Mine also were at the time. To help cope with what he couldn’t understand, he began to write about it. Seeing his happiness was the beginning of my love affair with creative writing. At ten years old, I began to use poetry as a release for my emotions and thoughts, which can become heavy and weigh me down. Taking a pen to paper is my therapy. In my darkest moments, my love and need to pull poems from within has saved me from drowning in life’s sorrows. Poetry is my greatest strength and simultaneously my healthiest comfort. I want to share my love with the world through words laced in romanticism."

Check out Natalia on Instagram: @nati_ninetythree