Deeply Rooted: A Collection of Poetry Which Tells a Story from Within

By Germaine Jacqueline Edwards

Deeply Rooted is a collection of my works which tell the inside story.
Stories told through the voice of poetry. These works were inspired by tales of happiness and sorrow; love, deceit, strength, courage, friendship and second chances. It pays tribute to those gone but not forgotten and most importantly it is a reflection of the power of faith and love.

Deeply Rooted takes us on a journey that reminds us to live each day as if it were our last. A journey that takes us back to our roots and brings us full circle as we experience todays struggles and our hopes and dreams for a brighter tomorrow. All shared throughout the pages of this collection which is sure to evoke one emotion or another Deeply Rooted within.

My God has blessed me with this awesome gift of story- telling through poetry. He has given me the courage to open up and share this gift, these experiences. I hope at some point along this journey you too can see yourself. Perhaps youve walked that very same road, although your destination may have been vastly different. If so, then the one thing that always got me through those tough times was true; the belief that you never walk alone. Someone has walked this very road ahead of you or in your footsteps left behind.

As you turn each page, may you find the strength to endure and the faith to venture onto the next chapter of your life while holding your head up remembering that despite all else, God loves you and so do I.

Deeply Rooted is a gift I want to share with you and may you continue to be inspired long after you turn the last page.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Feb 6, 2014
• ISBN: 9781491837221

Book preview

Contents

Dedication

Preface

CHAPTER ONE

Deep Roots

Deeply Rooted

Generations

The Journey

CHAPTER TWO

Be Encouraged Brothers & Sisters

Lemon Chocolate Cake

Things Will Work Out

Never Give Up

A New Day

Hero

Legal U-Turn

Million Dollar Brother

Sister Girl

Brother Man

One Love

Woman to Woman

CHAPTER THREE

Gone But Never Forgotten

Touched By An Angel

Grandma Lucille

Still Walking

The Time Is Now

What If Tomorrow Never Comes

CHAPTER FOUR

Love, Heartache & Heartbreak

Love Felon:

Therefore Guilty As Charged

Don’t Be Afraid of Me

Or The Way It Feels

All I Want Is Forever

I Love You Because

Rain

On This Day I Will Marry

You’ll Never Stand Alone

Motorcycle Love

CHAPTER FIVE

Fight For Life

Dead Flowers

Death

A High Price To Pay For Drugs

Steel Rose

Stop The Killing: Senseless Slaughter

The Gift of Life

Sticks and Stones

CHAPTER SIX

I Am Who I Am Because Of You

Impressions

My Friend

Fathers… God’s Treasure

Simply Me

You Complete Me

Mother May I

It Takes More Than A Village

I Appreciate You

Still A Man

Dedication

Deeply Rooted is dedicated to my parents.

Mommy and Daddy thank you for being a source of love, encouragement and strength. I am who I am because of you.

To my late grandmother Lucille, who received her wings but provided me with a reason to put pen to paper and discover my God given gift for the very first time.

To my First Charity church family… who always welcomed my message and inspired me to take this journey and share my works with others.

To my family, friends, those near and dear to my heart as well as those who taught me tough lessons about life, love, faith and trust… thank you for inspiring me to purge my heart and expose my soul from which this collection evolved.

And to my Lord and Savior who loves me despite my imperfections, thank you for blessing me with such an awesome gift… the gift of story-telling through poetry.

Preface

Deeply Rooted is a collection of my works which tell the inside story. Stories told through the voice of poetry. These works were inspired by tales of happiness and sorrow; love, deceit, strength, courage, friendship and second chances. It pays tribute to those gone but not forgotten and most importantly it is a reflection of the power of faith and love.

Deeply Rooted takes us on a journey that reminds us to live each day as if it were our last. A journey that takes us back to our roots and brings us full circle as we experience today’s struggles and our hopes and dreams for a brighter tomorrow. All shared throughout the pages of this collection which is sure to evoke one emotion or another Deeply Rooted within.

My God has blessed me with this awesome gift of story-telling through poetry. He has given me the courage to open up and share this gift, these experiences. I hope at some point along this journey you too can see yourself. Perhaps you’ve walked that very same road, although your destination may have been vastly different. If so, then the one thing that always got me through those tough times was true; the belief that you never walk alone. Someone has walked this very road ahead of you or in your footsteps left behind.

As you turn each page, may you find the strength to endure and the faith to venture onto the next chapter of your life while holding your head up remembering that despite all else, God loves you and so do I.

Deeply Rooted is a gift I want to share with you.

May you continue to be inspired long after you turn the last page.

CHAPTER ONE

Deep Roots

Deeply Rooted

Born in a season where summer still lingers

but fall is fiercely playing tug of war.

Young parents, during an era when opportunity

was not knocking upon your door.

Brown, bald, bundle of joy, Germaine be the name.

No J leading the way, little girl not little boy.

Happiness, love, unselfish pride,

days of hard work to provide and survive.

I had arrived, my gifts and blessings buried within my soul.

My path determined, days numbered, future known

only to my creator. But my purpose never told.

Who am I? What will I become?

My destiny already determined.

My parents’ values being instilled.

Born, sworn, priceless creation with

God’s greatness Deeply Rooted.

Growing by leaps and bounds unable to sleep

in my make-shift bassinet made from a dresser drawer.

While sharing a backroom with my likeness

on the second floor.

Sprouting like a weed in a garden with room for many more.

Welcoming the arrival of a smaller likeness of me

for my parents and others to adore.

First responsibility, God’s first task assigned.

The role of a big sister, protector, leader learned in

a child’s heart defined state of mind.

Little did I know this would prepare me for the battle

I would have to endure before I was even a decade old.

Fighter, survivor, already Deeply Rooted

within my tiny little soul.

Barely introduced, our time together short and sweet.

Difficult to recall the sound of her voice,

warmth of her touch, smell of her perfume on our

lumpy mattress dressed in a thin lint-balled fitted sheet.

The one with whom I was joined for nine months

then for too few years,

Had successfully completed her mission here

as cruel as it may seem.

A daughter, a sister, a mother, a friend and

wife among other things.

She laid the foundation for her two,

accepted her wings ready for a new start.

And still her memory, her independence and

accomplishments remain deeply rooted within

my spirit and evident in my giving heart.

At five plus one, a half decade;

too young to realize the impact of such.

Too young to shed tears cause I’d miss her so much.

Too young to know the pain of those she left behind.

Too loved to feel alone, too loved by God’s design.

Never really knowing her husband, our father,

his family nor being too much a part of his plan.

Enter a sweet, soft, mild tempered honey colored

angel named Lucille.

Ready and willing to fulfill a promise

she made at her daughter’s bed side.

Grandma became our mom and with her we would reside.

Still younger than a decade, a big sister

and grandma Lucille raising us,

life once again seemed bright.

But failing health had taken hold and

grandma had her own battle to fight.

Little girl grow up.

Little girl grow up fast.

No time for cartoons, and things little girls do.

Not realizing the danger, our living arrangements

would expose us to.

So why tell my story?

Although I don’t point the finger

and it took me years to forgive and not place blame.