I came to be free
Poems on grief, love, and renewal · PJ Starling
Finding a passage…
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The poems
All nine, in full. Tap any stanza to make a card of it.
Read the poem
God of choice
As I watch in horror
As I watch as you
Are killing your people
I don’t know what to do
I’ve watched as you make
The gravest mistake
As eons of rage
March in throngs to your gates
And when you are questioned
You always insist
Your right to choose death
To slaughter like this
To slaughter like this
To slaughter like this
You choose now to slaughter
On this choice you insist
And if there is somewhere
A god of free choice
Who grants you the freedom
To silence their voice
To slaughter the children
On your patch of land
For being born there
And for what god they stand
But how can you though?
For surely you know
You’re forever connected
To the seeds that you sow
Each mother that’s slaughtered
Each child with no father
Each family cut down
Martyred sons, martyred daughters
And yet all the while
You seem to insist
It’s your right to kill them
To slaughter like this
To slaughter like this
To slaughter like this
You insist on your right
To put gun against fist
And if there is somewhere
A god of free choice
Who gives us our options
And hears every voice
The god of all choices
Must love you so much
To stand by as you kidnap
Our children from us
To watch as you slaughter
his sons and his daughters
his sisters and brothers
his mothers and fathers
And surely our love
For our little ones
Is to God’s but a candle
Held up to the sun
As we light a candle
For each child you cut down
They won’t be forgotten
Even deep underground
They won’t be forgotten
Because we can’t forget
Each candle of life
And a sun’s worth of death
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The book
Using original metaphor and lyrical language, PJ Starling examines the deepest sorrows and the greatest triumphs of the human experience — the struggle to forgive oneself for past wrongs, the search for hope amidst the chaos of the modern world, and the desire for true intimacy.
Nine poems. 42 pages. These heartfelt verses invite readers into a space where they are seen and free to feel without judgment.
Buying direct from FriesenPress supports a Canadian author most. ISBN 978-1-03-837224-6 (paperback) · 978-1-03-837225-3 (hardcover) · 978-1-03-837226-0 (eBook)
About PJ Starling
PJ Starling lives in Vancouver, BC, with his nine-year-old son. I came to be free is his second book of poetry. His poem “Where light never goes” was featured by The Art of Autism, an organization that showcases the creative abilities of neurodivergent individuals.
For him, writing poetry is a form of therapy that has helped him through periods of change in his life. He hopes his poems will do the same for his readers.
Contact PJ Starling: readings@starlingpoetry.xyz
Author photograph by Marshal Chupa
Invite me to read
Libraries, bookstores, reading series, classes, book clubs. I'd like to come.
- Vancouver and the Lower Mainland — in person, gladly.
- Anywhere at all — online, by video. Book clubs and classes welcome.
- Elsewhere in BC or Canada — if travel is covered.
There's no fee to have me. An honorarium is welcome if you have one, and entirely optional if you don't.
I don't pay to appear. Any “invitation” that asks me for a placement, promotion, or booking fee is a scam — there's a lot of it about, impersonating real festivals. Genuine hosts never charge the poet.
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