David Flores is a poet, hip hop lyricist, educator, and mindfulness trainer. He is the current Poet Laureate for Richmond. His present position is Lead Trainer for the Mindful Life Project. David is a former elementary school teacher of eleven years at Grant Elementary. He was born and raised in Richmond, where he currently lives with his wife Juanita and college aged children, Maya and Francisco.

This Armor/Pt. 2
By David Flores

Surface c r a c k e d open
Let out fear
Let in love
What is it
That you are truly afraid of?
Losing what is familiar?
Even that which hurts you?
I see the resistance
                               Moving away
from healing, feeling
is foreign

And painful

Let out fear
Let in love
Like water
Seeping in
through c r a c k s on concrete
Expanding
Growing
In awareness
And self worth

Let out fear
Let in love
Warm like sun bathed skin and hugs
You hold on to a past already done
And from this you run
Like marathons to the moon
From love you run
From emotion you run
From truth you run
And run ex haust ed

And what gets lost is
Any
sense
of
self

Let out fear
It’s ok to------------ let go
Yes you may Fall
Endure a harsh Winter
But Spring is always around the corner
With warmth and rebirth
awaiting you

Let In love
It’s ok to feel
Yes it is sometimes fleeting
But it’s what we are all made of
And made for

No more waging war

With self

WE ARE RICHMOND
By David Flores

WE ARE RICHMOND
Laying the GROUNDWORK for a future we can all live in
Providing the STEPPING STONES and the BUILDING BLOCKS for RICH CITY KIDS
Beginning with the FIRST 5 years as a foundation to dig
An URBAN TILTH planting the seeds for RICHMOND YOUTH, the next EARTH TEAM
Saying YES to NATURE and NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSEs lined on the green
Way is spreading love and compassion like a WATERSHED
The true PEACEKEEPERS of the BAY AREA honoring life and the dead
Defying that RUBICON existing before them resilient and strong
Bringing true INITIATIVE to MAIN ST. and beyond
On an MISSION to RESCUE RICHMOND’S SOL
Housing it’s inhabitants in habitats that hold
White, Asian, Black, and LATINA at the CENTER of our diversity and strength
Like that image of ROSIE putting TRUST in our faith
An ongoing PROJECT to RETURN to the SAFE
No criminals all LEGAL provided with AID
And not gonna stop until we REACH that FELLOWSHIP
RPA and RPD, as a partnership of PALs who don’t trip
And when the grown ups can’t get together in synch
We watch as boys and GIRLS lead the way with action and INC
Not only in writing but through READ ALOUDS and PERFORMING ARTS at its CENTER
True expression of each individual growing like MILO in the winter
Watch as we RYSE and RECYCLE worn out ideas FOR CHANGE
In a way that is MINDFUL of LIFE as we turn the page
A new chapter renewed like love and life at POGO PARK
We approach the end of that ARC
Richmond is wondrous like ART

Contact info: [email protected]; 510 965-8143