Marc-Joelitza Montgomery is a writer and Year-2 student at BHSEC Cleveland. She is the recipient of the Literature of the Americas Award in the Spring of 2018. As well as the recipient of the World Literature Award in both the Fall and Spring semester of 2018-2019.

Like an artist paints a canvas,
words paint my soul.

Painting with a brush,
that is both warm and cold.

They dip into blue,
green and purple too.
Next into red,
orange and yellow bled.

I’m soaking in all the words they said.
The fragile surface of my soul,
ranging from blue to red.

Hurting and healing,
hiding yet revealing.

They have no clue about the impacts of their expression.
Unaware that their words– paint lessons.

Some painters are rough,
and some can be gentle,
Some painters mark the canvas with meaning,
and others are unintentional.

But art is art,
despite the mess.
Despite the scribbles,
the bleeding canvas
the falling a part,
and feeling less.

Give the canvas a rest before you paint from your chest.