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We asked University of Arkansas students to interpret the theme of the 2018 edition, “No Longer Unspoken,” through poetry. Hill staff selected and published one winning poem in the magazine, but the following poems were so gripping – we couldn’t keep them to ourselves.  

 

“Idolatry”

By Clare Upchurch

 

Aisle after aisle

Pew after pew

All paths lead to the altar

Rows of followers

Shuffling, one after the other,

Endlessly

Only here is it favorable to be a sheep

Yet you cannot see the shepherd.

 

White-washed statues

Though he commanded no idols

Whispers of the wrath of hell

Yells of the so-called love are louder

Holiness in their hands

The devil in their back pocket

They live their lives in fear

Of the next life

Without living the one they have now.

 

How many thoughts

How may prayers

How many wishes,

Unnoticed

Longing with false satisfaction

Questions without answers

Just keep the faith, it’s all you need.

 

The afflicted shall eat,

And be satisfied

Those who seek him

Shall praise him

Your hearts will live forever

Your soul will be filled

But I am still hungry

I sought and did not find

I praised and filled my heart

But my mind is not satisfied

…

 

“Depression”

By Deanna Mantooth

 

The tsunami wave of darkness;

A slow, deadly calamity that cannot be stopped.

The crushing weight of worthlessness;

An insidious cancer that gnaws at your soul.

The pendulous storm clouds of doubt;

A Southern rain that increases the humidity.

The solitary, windowless cell in hell;

A room with your name scrawled on the door,

And your fears scratched on every surface within.

The demons of anxiety and deprecation;

Hissing every minute in your ear,

Sneering every second across your synapses,

A gaggle of gargoyles lashed to you.

You’d beat your head against the walls

If it didn’t require so much strength and energy.

The waters are higher now.

It’s all you can do to hold your head above the swell.

How long can you keep fighting it?

Battered, bruised, broken, bloodied.

No one can see your scars.

No one but you.

But that doesn’t mean that they’re not real.

…

“CASCADING STARS”

by Chase Laird

 

Cascading stars of places unseen

Traveling through space, what could they mean?

Each carrying with it the essence of life,

Light in its purest form so bright.

 

Darkness may try to engulf the light,

To leave in its wake no brightness in sight.

But try as it may, it will be for nigh,

As the light still shows high up in the sky.

 

Darkness and light,

Evil and good.

The duality of life,

Often misunderstood.

 

There must be heartache

For there to be love.

There must be hell

For the heaven above.

 

There will always exist

Suffering and pain.

But we must face these

To appreciate the change.

 

So, the next time you’re burdened,

Take a look at the sky.

Always remember that,

While darkness may try,

The light of God will always shine through

To brighten the world for me and for you.

 

 

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