Our Unkept Promises: Both Small and Great

Each human being is endowed with a communal responsibility of civility and enrichment; however, some abdicate their obligations. The poisons of selfishness, fear, and ambition sometimes manifest into anger, threats, coercion, and violence. These toxic waves continuously crash against our souls' shores: the blunt blows of aggressors who resist change and the veiled weight of others' inaction who elude answers they already know.

Words have the uplifting power to make us consider our actions, to contemplate another viewpoint, and to transform the world. Our acts are small in nature, yet large in impact when they accumulate. Thus people and their actions have the promise to be great.

The purpose of these poems is to pause for a moment, encourage awareness, consider alternatives, and entice a change of behaviors. Our Unkept Promises pertains to our obligations and innate potential, and whether we are willing to fulfill and reach them.

The thirty-seven poems are categorized into the four seasons of life: self, effort and love, family and friends, and community and beyond. The exquisitely crafted poems range in type from Shakespeare, hip-hop, and haiku.