Clash of Power

*

I am the light and dark shade of myself
I wonder if they are compatible sisters
I hear the murmur of their toiling voices
I see the clashing power between them
I am the light and dark shade of myself

I pretend to kiss the infinite horizon
I feel the endless plight of my journey
I touch the glow of happiness in the light
I worry at the ill presence of the dark
I cry over the moonless night in my life

I understand the existence of both
I say they are essential to my growth
I dream of having magic to bind them
I hope they cordially blend within me
I am the light and dark shade of myself
*
*

''A native of Peru, Dalila Lama came to the U.S. in 2016. She participates in student advocacy projects with the Literacy Assistance Center, and the Queens Public Library’s Elmhurst Adult Learning Center, where her teacher is Jovito de la Paz, and the site adviser is Michelle Johnston. Dalila Lama was also published in LR18. She writes, “You should persist in doing everything you can to take advantage of the adult education programs at New York’s public libraries.”