In this lyrical monologue, the speaker delivers a raw, poetic declaration of resilience and defiance. Using vivid, violent imagery—serrated mouth, rust, broken glass, blood, ash—the narrator recounts personal hardship, heartbreak, and external doubt. Repeated refrains (“I rise from ash, I rise again”) serve as a mantra of rebirth, emphasizing an unbreakable will despite pain, fear, and attempts to suppress them. The piece builds momentum through escalating intensity, culminating in a rallying cry to confront and overcome oppression, positioning the self as an unstoppable storm that will not be buried or silenced.
Chapters
I've been serrated my mouth! Rust on my side, dead calm. Your name burned through the hallway like a blade in unsharpened sheath. Broke the glass in my fist. I tapped the bassist's cap, score! Every foul went black and crooked. Every dream hit the floor. Now I'm staring at the red cage. Heartbreak. You can hear the crack in me. It's getting louder as I rise from ash. I rise again. You can't bury what won't end. I rise from ash. I rise again. Blood in the dirt, still I won't bend. Weather slept in my skin, cold bones, loud grief. I wore the bruise like a I had to war it on dirt knees. You said I'd fold like paper. You said I'd fade to dust. But every wound kept singing and every scar, scar said trust. Now the walls are shattered, night by night. Every fear you left me with turns into flight. I rise from ash. I rise again. I'm carrying what won't end. I rise from ash, I rise again. Blood and the dirt, still I won't bend. I'm carrying what won't end. I rise from ash, I rise again. Blood and the dirt, still I won't bend. Pull me down, I'll claw back up. Break my frame, I'm not enough. Still I stand in the flood. Still I stand. Still I stand. Still I stand. Hit me! I'm still here! Hit me! No fear! Tear it apart! I become the storm! Tear it apart! I was built for more! I rise from ash! I rise again! You can't bury what won't die! I rise from ash. I rise again. Blood in the dark. Still I will burn. Still I will burn. Still I will burn. I rise from ash.
