Lately, my mind has felt like a whirlwind. Loud, restless, and constantly craving something calm and comforting. In times like this, I feel like I might lose my reading rhythm altogether. But I don’t want that to happen.

So I turn to poetry.

Poetry helps me slow down. It lets me keep reading, but in a gentler way that doesn’t overwhelm my thoughts. It feels like a soft pause in the middle of a noisy day. While browsing through a book platform, I came across Good Grief by Brianna M. Pastor, and something about it just clicked.

The book is a collection of poems and short stories that touch on grief, self-love, and the beauty of living in the moment. As I read through it, I found pieces that spoke directly to my soul. They felt like tiny reminders that I wasn’t alone in how I was feeling.

I wanted to share a few of those pieces here, hoping they bring you the same kind of comfort they brought me.

My Favorite Bits

i am going backwards

a dark spiral into the opposite direction

and so different from everyone around me

there are no branches for you to hang on to

just a simple me, an emotion tree

not growing for you to

grow off of or to destroy

leave me be, so i may grow strong

on my own,

and i will be my own damn home

Brianna M. Pastor, Good Grief

i came out of the womb crying,

like most people do—

except i just never stopped

Brianna M. Pastor, Good Grief

i want to love the universe the way it has not loved me

Brianna M. Pastor, Good Grief

please do not rush my recover

i am in a whirlpool of

“should be,” “could be,””would be,”

when all i need is to

“be”

Brianna M. Pastor, Good Grief

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Author: Brianna M. Pastor

Publication date: 16 April 2024

Number of pages: 128 pages

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