{"id":5541,"date":"2026-04-29T14:42:57","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T14:42:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/?p=5541"},"modified":"2026-04-29T14:43:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T14:43:02","slug":"giving-up-is-not-a-powerful-option","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/giving-up-is-not-a-powerful-option\/","title":{"rendered":"Giving up is not a powerful option"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are days<br>nothing makes sense.<br>You wake up\u2026 but you\u2019re not really awake.<br>You move\u2026 but you feel stuck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And life?<br>Life feels quiet in the worst way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like prayers are hitting the ceiling<br>and falling right back down on you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But listen,<br>some of the biggest turns in life<br>don\u2019t send a warning text.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They don\u2019t knock loudly.<br>They don\u2019t ask, \u201cAre you ready?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They just\u2026 happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A door opens<br>when you had already decided<br>to stop knocking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A call comes through<br>when you had already accepted silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And suddenly,<br>hope,<br>that small thing you buried,<br>starts breathing again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">See, not every blessing comes<br>when you\u2019re strong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some come when you\u2019re tired,<br>when you\u2019ve cried too much,<br>when you\u2019ve said, \u201cI don\u2019t even know anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s when something shifts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And people?<br>People will surprise you too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some will never say sorry.<br>Some will act like they didn\u2019t see you struggle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And yes,<br>you could pay them back.<br>You could return the same cold energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But deep down, you know,<br>that\u2019s not who you are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because life\u2026<br>life is bigger than keeping score.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s bigger than feelings<br>that change like the weather.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s bigger than people<br>who didn\u2019t show up for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Life is still here.<br>You are still here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that means something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even now,<br>with everything you\u2019ve faced,<br>everything you\u2019ve questioned,<br>everything you\u2019ve carried quietly,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">there is still something beautiful<br>waiting to meet you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At the right time,<br>things will make sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not all at once.<br>Not perfectly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But enough<br>for you to say,<br>\u201cI\u2019m glad I didn\u2019t quit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So don\u2019t rush the story.<br>Don\u2019t close the book halfway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You\u2019ve come too far<br>to stop now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even if today feels heavy\u2026<br>even if tomorrow looks uncertain\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">stay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because sometimes<br>the miracle shows up<br>right after you almost walked away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/\">Walking Shadow Poetry &#8211; Grow from what\u2019s meant to kill you.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/r\/18ki7Xzsj3\">https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/r\/18ki7Xzsj3<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Dear young person I understand spoken word by Walking shadow poetry| Poetry\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/pBFduBMYxGg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There are daysnothing makes sense.You wake up\u2026 but you\u2019re not really awake.You move\u2026 but you feel stuck. And life?Life feels quiet in the worst way. Like prayers are hitting the ceilingand falling right back down on you. But listen,some of the biggest turns in lifedon\u2019t send a warning text. They don\u2019t knock loudly.They don\u2019t ask, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5542,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[136,133,121,97,98,1],"tags":[35,49,34,67,50,61,55,53,22,48],"class_list":["post-5541","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-art","category-entertainment","category-poem","category-poetry","category-storytime","category-uncategorized","tag-poems","tag-poetess","tag-poetry","tag-preciousowoko","tag-spokenword","tag-spokenwords","tag-stories","tag-story","tag-walkingshadowpoetry","tag-walkingshadowpoetrykenya"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_7009-scaled.jpg?fit=1707%2C2560&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2780,"url":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/before-the-vows-by-walking-shadow-poetry\/","url_meta":{"origin":5541,"position":0},"title":"Before the Vows by walking shadow poetry","author":"walking shadow poetry kenya","date":"October 24, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Here we stand, moments away,From words that will bind us, come what may.Before we speak the vows that seal,Let\u2019s pause, take in how real this feels. We\u2019ve walked a journey, step by step,Through love\u2019s quiet whispers and promises kept.Now, on this day, with hearts full of grace,We stand together, in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;POETRY&quot;","block_context":{"text":"POETRY","link":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/SPOKENWORDSandMODERNDAYPOETRY\/poetry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"hands of newlyweds together","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/pexels-photo-23940968.jpeg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/pexels-photo-23940968.jpeg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/pexels-photo-23940968.jpeg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/pexels-photo-23940968.jpeg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5548,"url":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/the-powerful-parable-of-talents\/","url_meta":{"origin":5541,"position":1},"title":"The powerful parable of talents.","author":"walking shadow poetry kenya","date":"May 5, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"There was a timewe thought success was noise,followers, numbers, applause,a life that looks good on a screen. But life has a wayof logging you outand asking you questionsno one else can answer for you. Like,what did you do with what you had? See, this story isn\u2019t old.It\u2019s happening right now.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/SPOKENWORDSandMODERNDAYPOETRY\/art\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Z7A3259-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Z7A3259-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Z7A3259-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Z7A3259-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2745,"url":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/leave-me-alone-by-walking-shadow-poetry\/","url_meta":{"origin":5541,"position":2},"title":"Leave Me Alone by walking shadow poetry.","author":"walking shadow poetry kenya","date":"September 28, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Please, if you don\u2019t have good intentions for me,Just let me go, just let me be.Don\u2019t string me along, don\u2019t play with my heart,I\u2019m already fragile, already falling apart. I\u2019m tired, so tired, of trying to stay strong,Of pretending I\u2019m fine when everything\u2019s wrong.I don\u2019t have the strength to endure\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;POETRY&quot;","block_context":{"text":"POETRY","link":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/SPOKENWORDSandMODERNDAYPOETRY\/poetry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"person standing near lake","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-670720.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-670720.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-670720.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-670720.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-670720.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3267,"url":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/i-love-you-so-much\/","url_meta":{"origin":5541,"position":3},"title":"I Love you so much.","author":"walking shadow poetry kenya","date":"April 28, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"I love you...More than words could ever fully explain.At first, I didn\u2019t believe I could love again,because life, over time, had taught me how to build walls,not bridges. You see, I had been broken not once,but too many times to still count.And honestly, I had lost hope,lost pieces of myself\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;poem&quot;","block_context":{"text":"poem","link":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/SPOKENWORDSandMODERNDAYPOETRY\/poem\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/DSC_0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/DSC_0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/DSC_0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/DSC_0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/DSC_0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C802&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3206,"url":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/to-be-chosen-first-by-walking-shadow-poetry\/","url_meta":{"origin":5541,"position":4},"title":"To Be Chosen First by walking shadow poetry","author":"walking shadow poetry kenya","date":"April 9, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The pain became unbearable...and honestly, I didn\u2019t see it coming.I thought I was strong.I thought I had it all together.But that day\u2026 something just broke. I went to pray, hoping to find peace.However, instead, I found tears I couldn't hold back.I tried to distract myself,editing a video, pretending I was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;poem&quot;","block_context":{"text":"poem","link":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/SPOKENWORDSandMODERNDAYPOETRY\/poem\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/MG_0273-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/MG_0273-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/MG_0273-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/MG_0273-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2631,"url":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/the-silence-between-us-by-walking-shadow-poetry\/","url_meta":{"origin":5541,"position":5},"title":"The Silence Between Us by walking shadow poetry","author":"walking shadow poetry kenya","date":"September 9, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"I called you last night,But the phone stayed quiet,Not a single ring back,Not a \u201csorry I missed your call.\u201dI waited, hoping, staring,Like maybe today, you\u2019d remember me again.But you didn\u2019t.You never do anymore. I sent you a text this morning,Just a simple \u201chow are you?\u201dBut your reply\u2026 it never came.Maybe\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;POETRY&quot;","block_context":{"text":"POETRY","link":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/SPOKENWORDSandMODERNDAYPOETRY\/poetry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"calm woman behind tree bark in park","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-3727149.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-3727149.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-3727149.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-3727149.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pexels-photo-3727149.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5541","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5541"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5541\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5543,"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5541\/revisions\/5543"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5542"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5541"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5541"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/walkingshadowpoetry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5541"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}