Poetry Spotlight: “I’m Not Waiting” by Derek Thiem

DEREK THIEM is a former English teacher and a street poet based in Portland, Oregon. His poetry and lyrics explore recovery, street life, and Portland’s ever-changing pulse. He occasionally dabbles in themes of astrophysics, metaphysics, and erotica, revealing the unexpected breadth of his creative mind. You can find him on Facebook and YouTube under his name, and hear his work set to music on Suno.com under the monikers VioletKeyboard944 and ExasperatingVocoder2004.

I Am Not Waiting
after Ferlinghetti

I am not waiting
for the world to unfuck itself
because it’s spiderweb cracked 
like the screen of the
fifth cellphone I’ve owned 
this year

I am not waiting for politicians
to find a conscience
beneath their flag pins
and red ties
hanging just a touch 
too long
What are they 
overcompensating for?

I am not waiting for
the war to end
because I see it every day—
not just in foreign lands but
in overdoses and evictions
in ICE raids and food stamps
in Narcan ads
and the silence
we show to the suffering

I am not waiting
for Jesus to come back
I saw Him—
barefoot outside Helen’s Market
asking for spare change 
and cigarettes

I am not waiting
for poetry to be safe
or pretty
or inoffensive
I am not here for the polite applause
of the ivory tower
or the halls of academia

I am waiting
for the next person 
to pick up a notebook 
and fill it with writing scrawled 
like their life depended on it

I am waiting for the sister
in sobriety 
to write her story
in permanent marker
on the bathroom wall
of a Walgreens 
so no one forgets
she was there

I am not waiting
for capitalism to collapse—
I am carving graffiti
into its walls
one metaphor at a time

I am not waiting
for Elon to go to Mars
or for Trump to find shame
or for billionaires to trickle down
anything but urine

I am not waiting
to be perfect
I am living
like a jazz solo
sometimes going
off key
intentionally 

I am not waiting
for the revolution—
which will not be televised
which will not be fed into
your YouTube stream—
it is happening
every time someone chooses
to write instead of relapse
to feed instead of fight
to hug instead of judge
to love instead of hate

I am not waiting
I am working
I am walking
I am writing
I am lighting candles
in alleys and classrooms 
and poetry mics
and recovery rooms

I am not waiting—
I am becoming
transforming
praying 
dancing 
singing
booming
the voice
beneath the noise
that says
we’re still here
we’re still fighting
we’re not giving up
we are not waiting