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Archives: Poetry Submissions

I have M.E but will not let it define me…

By Collette Wallace

I have M.E…

I aim for it not to define me
and be all people see

I love socialising
Find traveling mesmerising
I loved working with multiple brands
And seeing live bands

I am now mainly bedbound on my own
But my love for my interests has only grown
They will always be part of me
And I will not solely be defined with M.E

Despite being constantly ill
Always wishing for a magic pill
I strive to work through the pain
And learn to dance in the rain

Be kind to yourself each day
Push the frustration away
Make a positive mantra & repeat it
To help strong mental health & keep it

Fight feeling down
Reverse that frown
Don’t shed a tear
Smile ear to ear

Keep your head up high
Look at the beautiful sky
Not today, go away,
tomorrow is new start to the day

Ignore friends that dropped you fast 
Hold close kind friends that tightened their clasp
It feels like there is no end in sight
But please like me never give up the fight

Read More »

(the fog)

By Kat Code

It seems to me
life has become one big effort.
With every step I push,
I fight against this smothering fog.
The feeling of the sun upon my face,
warm and caressing,
has long since become a vague memory,
faded with time.
To feel a few weak rays
filter through a thin patch of fog
has become an acceptable substitute.

One day I awoke
to find the fog vanquished,
the full power of the sun’s rays
a heady reminder that I had been
living in the clouds.
“Rejoice!” I sang, “I am alive!”
As the light kissed my face
and the heat sent fire through my veins.

But all to soon
did this suffocating fog return,
blocking out the golden sun.
In this sudden absence,
the dark is ever darker,
the cold is ever colder,
and this fog — ever more stifling than before. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
I had forgotten:
this life l know,
heavy and oppressive, a struggle
simply to pass from day to day,
this is not normal!

Would that the clouds had never lifted
only to return
leaving a memory of the sun
like a newly pressed scar.

Read More »

Life Jacket

By Karen Napier

Sometimes in the river of difficult circumstance,
I forget that I am already wearing a life jacket.
Lying face down in the water, I fear I will drown.
Then Jesus whispers in my ear “Turn to me.”
As I roll over to look up,
my face comes out of the water that is overwhelming me.
I take in a deep breath of hope.
I am safe; I was safe,
I just forgot to make use of the life jacket I was wearing.
Keeping my eyes on Jesus;
keeps my face out of the water of discouragement.

Read More »

hope in chains

By Anonymous

i keep my hope in chains
bound in darkness in the corner of my soul
tucked away out of sight
behind a shelf
beneath a cloth gathering dust
out of sight, and sometimes forgotten
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
i keep my hope in chains
stopping it from soaring
till it comes crashing down
for all the things i’ve found and thought might help
i was too young too old too sane too rich too poor too sick too healthy
too sensitive too mobile too eloquent
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
i keep my hope in chains
because i found a new thing that might give aid
if only they don’t bar my way
the effort hurts, i hurt and cry
but less than if my hope was dashed
so i keep my hope in chains

Read More »

The Flame & the Workhorse

THE FLAME AND THE WORKHORSE
by Roger Chin

The pain from within,
The flames in our brain.
Fatigue without end,
How workhorses strain.

May light shine on M.E.,
For the world to see.
It may be too late,
Please remember me.

Read More »

Mercy of Pain

By Karen Napier

It comes to me as an unwelcome intruder
and yet knows me intimately.
Its steel fingers lazily trace tendrils across my head,
securing their vice grip of unhindered pain.

Time becomes endless and the world
shrinks down to the whispering
cries of my mind. “No, no, no, please stop.”
“Jesus.”

Who can tame this ravenous beast that
devours it’s prey without end?
Shall I let go and slip into madness?
If I surrender to the silent scream, can I stop?

How can an invisible foe wreak such savagery?
I have no defense against its cold, sharp talons.
I cry out again, desperate for relief.

“Jesus, save me from this all consuming pain.
But if that is not Your will,
rescue me from the poisons: despair and bitterness,
left in the wake of suffering.”

Surrendered, I submit to Christ, knowing,
because He holds me in His hand;
I will be transformed, not crushed,
bruised, but not broken.

What beautiful scars the mercy of pain rewards its bearer with
when filtered through the hands of Him; who bore the cross for me.

Read More »
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME / CFS) Post Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome (PTLDS), Fibromyalgia Leading Research. Delivering Hope.Open Medicine Foundation®

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