Ayla Westbrook

I stay alive for poetry and poetry only. Although sometimes for stories on the kitchen counters and stars as well. Okay, maybe oceans and a few tolerable people too, sometimes.

[aylawestbrook]

Does anyone ever have the sudden urge to join an online Dead Poets society randomly, in the middle of the day, every day? Imagine people sending voice notes of their poems, or debating or talking about poetry, literature, art or sending clips of their favourite dialogues, why isn't this a thing? Tbh message me if you're interested.

[aylawestbrook]

CALLING ALL POETS, WRITERS, READERS, DEBATERS, FILM CRITIQUES AND ARTISTS, Hello everyone, so I started something similar (it also includes channels with features way beyond simply sharing poetry--like debates, discussions, societal reflections, films) on a site called Slack which is pretty similar to Discord and quite easy to use. Hit me up if you'd like to join, I'll send you the link. Hope to see you there :)

[frogayyyy]

tagged by @madscientist2739 :]

(starting a new chain bc it was quite long but here's the original post if u want to scroll through the polls)

Put your music library on shuffle, then list the first five songs that come up in a poll to let people vote for which one they like the most!

🎵?

Being Boring - Pet Shop Boys

Us And Them - Pink Floyd

What's Going On - Marvin Gaye

She's Electric - Oasis

King's Cross - Pet Shop Boys

Voting ended onJul 13, 2024

tagging: @crystal-mouse @s-h-a-s-e @orangexmachina @andietries and anyone else who wants to! no pressure as always feel free to ignore :3

[toddandersonsblog]

thank you for the tag, @thebenediktmontagov !!

I'm shuffling my 30 hour "best songs ever" playlist because I've liked so many songs the liked songs playlist lags and won't play anything 😭

which one do you like the most?

don't stand so close to me - the police

l'autre valse d'amélie - quatuor à cordes et piano - yann tiersen

living on my own - no more brothers radio mix - freddie mercury

maybe I'm amazed - paul mccartney

I'll make love to you anytime - j.j. cale

Voting ended onJul 8, 2024

I had forgotten about that freddie mercury song!! this playlist is OLD

tagging (no pressure) @let-the-wind-sing @neilperryismine @no-1-rosalind-lang-apologist @cherryjuicegf @depressedcornflakegirl @sensationalstardust7 @anonymousromanticpoet @pixelsticky @somerubberband @chloeseyeliner @perksofbeingpoet @i-love-steven-meeks @poetsinnyc @ghostboyhood @funfetticakeslice @cimacally @neil-kinnie @fandom-geek123 @rivenantiqnerd @this-is-happening-kinda @lizzyloosstuff @rhysdoesstuff @noctilucaa and anyone else who wants to do it!!

[lizzyloosstuff]

Thank you @toddandersonsblog for the tag!

🎵?

Here, there, and everywhere- The Beatles

High and dry- Radiohead

Romantic lover- Eyedress

Femme fatale- The velvet underground

Pink pony club- Chappell Roan

Voting ended onJul 8, 2024

Tagss: @pingunaa @poetsinnyc @all-about-that-fandoms @ace-misplaced @dpsthinker @elle-oh-ell3 @harvey-and-the-fandoms @ghostboyhood + anyone else who wants to joinn :D

[ace-misplaced]

thanks for the tag!!

🎧✨🎶⭐

between the bars - elliot smith

the gold - phoebe bridgers

dog days are over - florence + the machine

army dreamers - kate bush

deceptacon - le tigre

Voting ended onJul 9, 2024

tags... @poetsinnyc @wordssricochet @beetheyapper @lesbicosmos @lv3buzzz @noctilucaa @yourfavvgal and anyone else! <3

[poetsinnyc]

🎧✨🎶⭐

The Adults Are Talking- The Strokes

Best Friend- Rex Orange County

Odoriko- Vaundy

Cake By The Ocean- DNCE

Radio Silent- jomm, readyaimfire27

Voting ended onJul 15, 2024

don't judge my music taste too harshly

open tags and @manilovedinosaurs @forrestpoet @randomweirdqueen @aylawestbrook

[aylawestbrook]

thanks for the tag!

these were so random but alright, which one do you like most?

🎵?

Olivia - The Backseat Lovers

Somewhere only we know - Keane

fuck all the perfect people - Chip Taylor

Lemon Boy - cavetown

Ophelia - the lumineers

Voting ended onJul 9, 2024

@aridiculouslylongreceipt @noctilucaa @thingsiwishidlearnt @nowhereindiana @thesmithsstan4eva

[aylawestbrook]

We’re dreaming of tomorrow, and tomorrow isn’t coming We’re dreaming of the glory we don’t really want We’re dreaming of a new day when the new day is there already We’re running from the battle when it’s the one that must be fought And still we sleep We’re listing for the calling, but never really heeding it Hoping for the future, when the future’s only plans Dreaming of the wisdom that we’re dodging daily Praying for a savior, when salvation’s in our hands And still we sleep And still we dream, and still we fear, and still we pray, And still we sleep —Dead Poets Scoiety

[aylawestbrook]

My mother loves me and there is nothing more to say. I love my mother and there is nothing more to say. I pray and pray that I don't become her someday, and there is nothing more to say. -Ritika Jyala, excerpt from The Flesh I Burned

[aylawestbrook]

thank you for all the kind wordss <3 heres my insta: who.is.lutek andd we can text theree

and i just wanted to say that im sorry if im a burden or whatever but i just really have noone tot alk to because my friends are supportive but not really understanding and idk i just dont feel comfortable telling them a lot of things

hii, of course, you're welcome. Okayy, I have texted you from my actual account :) Hey don't worry about it, seriously you're not a burden and so what if you are, people would be glad they get to carry your burden. Its alright, you can talk to me <3

[aylawestbrook]

soo answering ur yesterday question imm doing pretty pad lately. i got back to sh and i just feel very sorry for being alive becuase others have to deal with me. im constantly streassed and get mad easile and im always overstimulated and overwhelmed with my emotions. but others have it worse so im trying to convince myself that nothing bad is going on with me

They say, doesn't matter if you're drowning in 5ft of water or 15ft, you're still drowning. Similarly, doesn't matter how much trauma or heartache you're dealing with, you cannot compare it because regardless of the amount, you're still going through it. So please, don't convince yourself that nothing bad is going on, because that's wrong on so many levels. First of all, the fact that you feel the need to minimize your emotions reflects the trauma you've been through. Secondly, if it is bad enough to sh, bad enough to make you feel this way, it is bad enough. Thirdly, if you don't believe it is bad enough, you'll never get the help you need and deserve. You will never recognize your feelings. Lastly, even if it is not bad enough, even if it is simply just one small incident that is causing you so much distress, you still deserve care and understanding and time to deal with it. That being said, I cannot promise you that I will understand you completely, that I will know the pain you're going through but I can promise I'll try my best to understand and listen to you. I know you're tired and probably nothing seems worth it but please talk to someone through it, it maybe me or maybe anyone else you're comfortable with--your choice. I am sorry for the long message by the way

[aylawestbrook]

and sorry that im writing here but smhs wrong with my email and tumblr wont let me use normal messages

hey, dont worry about it, I don't mind. For some reason, even my Tumblr messages aren't working. If you want, I can give you my email and we could talk there, or perhaps my insta id.

[aylawestbrook]

“Don't you feel lonely living in your own little world?” he asked “Don't you feel powerless living in other people's worlds?” she responded.

[aylawestbrook]

“What he knew, he knew from books, and books lied, they made things prettier.” ― Hanya Yanagihara, A Little Life

[aylawestbrook]

Everyone longs for a father figure. even those with fathers. Even fathers; that’s why we invented god. - Richard Siken

[aylawestbrook]

I’ve gotten so good about not flinching at the sound of your name that people don’t know I’d still throw myself mouth-open into the ocean for the chance to drown somewhere you might see it. — “This Is What Baggage Looks Like” Trista Mateer

[aylawestbrook]

“When nobody wakes you up in the morning, and when nobody waits for you at night, and when you can do whatever you want. What do you call it, freedom or loneliness?”

“I don't pay attention to the world ending. It has ended for me many times and began again in the morning.”

"And below the stage, the seats are empty. The theatre is dark. Why do you keep acting?” ― Charles Bukowski

[aylawestbrook]

"this weed tastes like the lake I nearly drowned in as a kid." I can't find who said this but fuck.

[aylawestbrook]

“I cannot make you understand. I cannot make anyone understand what is happening inside me. I cannot even explain it to myself.” ― Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis

[aylawestbrook]

I met your mother for the first time today, and i felt your pain through her eyes. i saw your self-esteem in her body language. i heard your insecurities in her laugh. she gave you life, and in turn, you’ve given life to the things she dislikes about herself. she experienced life, and in turn, you’ve adopted her experiences and made them your own. your whole life, you’ve lived up to skewed ideologies of how a woman should be and how a woman should conduct herself. your whole life, you’ve looked up to faux versions of what a woman should be and what a woman must consist of to be worthy. your whole life, you’ve been drinking water from a source dripping in your mother’s trauma and heartache, and it’s poisoned the perception you have of yourself and the perception you have of the world. you’ve dived deep to find answers to your mother’s pain only to find yourself at her feet every time you come up for air. you’ve been swimming in your mother’s tears for too long, drowning in a battle that was never yours to begin with. there is much she taught you that you must unlearn so you may become your own woman. there is much she taught you that you must unlearn so your daughters may become their own women. there is much she taught you that you must forgive her for so you may finally begin your own healing. i met your mother for the first time today, and i feel like i finally met you.

Billy Chapata, Flowers on the Moon

[aylawestbrook]

“A man's heart is a wretched, wretched thing, Mariam. It isn't like a mother's womb. It won't bleed. It won't stretch to make room for you.”.

- Khaled Hossieni, A Thousand Splendid Suns.

[aylawestbrook]

For reasons I don't understand myself, one of my favourite things about dead poets society is that John Keatings was voted "man most likely to do anything."