A Student's {Beautiful} Spoken Word- A Satire

Earlier in the year my students watched, studied, and then created their own spoken word poetry [some of you may recall my post about the poetry slam we did back in October]. The next month, we studied satire and the variety of ways it is implemented, as well as how it always has social commentary attached to it (unlike humor in general). My students were asked to create a satirical piece over any matter of their choosing and through any medium they wished. Emily decided to demonstrate satire through spoken word (and explanation), which had a very unique aspect, as most of her classmates went the political cartoon or short story route. I'm very proud of all this girl has accomplished this year-- writing is just one of her gifts. Enjoy her piece :)

Emily Helm Nov./Dec. 2014

“Diseased”

The doctor assesses

my limbs as the

lump in my throat

grows ever larger

the second hand

paces a beat

too slow as

the pain inside

of me waits for

a name

when he mutters the

words “you have cancer”

the room goes

silent the layer

of stillness only shattered

by the gasps of disapproval

the shards of truth

leaving no inch of humanity

in the room uncut

they say that

I should’ve “just tried harder”

to “just get better”

that I’ve brought shame

to my family

unworthy of forgiveness

the tears pool around

my eyes as
the blame for

my diagnosis weighs

heavily upon my

brittle bones

the tumor inside

me thrives off

this surge of

disappointment

as I try, I try

to stop it with

pure determination

for they say this

disease is

my fault that somewhere

somehow my mistakes

took shelter as

a dark mass inside me

filled with malice

and regret

its sorrow radiates into

my bloodstream

but when I try

to inject

happiness into

my veins through

plastered on smiles

and forged laughs

the cancer

only smirks

at my feeble

attempts to

subdue the

authority it holds

over my everyday life

because cancer

isn’t just a disease

it’s wall

a boundary that

boxes you away

from everyone else

and leaves you

alone to decay

without interruption

when my family sits

at the dinner table

and I just can’t

bite back my

sickness I find

myself alone

in this battle

with empty chairs

and plates still full

as my only companions

to march with into this

all out warfare

I’m expected

to hide this

embarrassment

for “normal people

don’t get cancer”

and the mark

this leaves

isn’t one of

honor so I live

day to day

as my family

tries to cover

up what they

see as their own

“personal failure”

a demonstration

of weakness and flaw

worthy of shame

they expect

me to slap

on a band-aid

that the

scars swollen

inside my hollowed

out body could

be fixed with

the words

“its get better”

that just being

“more positive”

would free me

from the shadows

passing through

my soul

but cancer doesn’t

take a vacation

it doesn’t part ways

with a sheer hope and

a changed mindset

cancer weaves through

your body as a

vine overgrown

with thorns strangling

any signs of vitality

from the inside out

the few flowers

that bloom under

this darkness sew petals beneath

layers of skin only

to be reached with

the blade of knife

its sharpness unveiling

the spring of

my youth

these memories

hidden by an

unbearable numbness

few flowers

endured

but when I

descended

into a terminal

winter the few petals

shriveled into dust

and as the snow

piles into my cracks

filling in the space

between my lungs

I lose myself into

walls of white noise

as my breathing subdues

into unsettled gasps   

the cold seeps into

my bones and the

cancer that supposedly

grew of out

my own faults

cracks my already

frozen heart

my family observes

an audience to

my decay

my last breaths break

their silence as I

whisper
I tried to get better

I did.


Explanation:
American society shuns mental disorders away from the public eye; they are often considered unacceptable to confess a diagnosis even with friends. Cancer, however, is treated with respect and eagerness to donate time and resources for the person’s affected needs. If an individual falls to cancer’s grasp, the community does not question the severity of the matter or undermine the effects both health-wise and the effects within the family dynamic. This poem does not exhibit much satirical humor; it is more a mixture of anger, bitterness, and sadness rolled into one, but if I was to categorize it I would put it under sarcasm (with use of invective language). I just wanted to provide commentary on this major social issue that affects many Americans and drives them to silence and isolation.