Poems You Should Read Based On Your Zodiac Sign

Aries

(March 21st to April 19th)

This star sign is known for being fiercely proud, bold, and a little selfish. So it will not come as a surprise that the poem here is written by me because I am an Aries and mine will be the only poems you can read in its entirety because I am a narcissistic son of a bitch (but, really, copyright reasons).

Half-jokes aside, the children of the red planet are also passionate yet independent, so here’s a piece that sings to the world on how we need no man (or woman) – Sade Andria Zabala’s For All The Girls With Messy Hearts And To The Men Whose Skin Have Tasted Mine:

“Let’s be honest here –
I am not the girl men fall in love with.
I am the girl that men want to fuck.

I am a conquest. A prize. A show.

I could count on five hundred fingers
the number of people who have professed,
“I like you. You’re different. You’re an interesting girl.”
Apparently I’m not fascinating enough for you
to want to hold for more than a one-night stand.

Once
as I finished swimming a sea of blankets,

left stranded on the shore,
I asked myself:

What’s wrong with me?
What am I doing?
Am I not good enough for anybody?

And right before I could drown again,
the sun woke up and said,

You are.
You are enough.
Forget the men whose hands have groped your hips
in search for answers to questions
you’ve never even heard of.
Do not settle for people who do not appreciate you,
who do not know how lucky they are.
Remember it is a luxury to be loved by you,
or even just
to be touched by you, and
the warmth of another body does not define your worth.

These men –
they think they can own you
with their drunken stares and roughened arms, but
I have circled the earth
a thousand times
to feed the light flowing inside your skin.
Do not waste it by illuminating those who
cannot even be bothered to learn your last name.

So that night when
the moon tried once more to pin me down,
I told him:

I am made of sunlight, crashing waves, and fireworks.
You think you can tame me
and cool my flesh?
I am the girl who plays with matches
and, trust me, I play it well.
Lord knows I’ve walked through villages leaving
a pile of destruction in my wake.

My heart is a bushfire
and the next time you try to control me,
darling, make no mistake –

I will burst out and ravage you in flames.

I’ll
burn
you
to
the
ground.

(This isn’t a test.)”

Taurus

(April 20th to May 21st)

Under the light of Venus they can be slow and sensual, yet Taurus are still go-getters who know what they want. Though they can be a little stubborn, the fact Taurus is under the element Earth makes them grounded and someone you can depend on.

It’s only fitting that they be represented by Clementine Von Radics’ Mouthful of Forevers from her book with the same name – a soft yet steadfast love poem showcasing the luxury of a most elegant romance, often used as a wedding vow:

“I am not the first person you loved.
You are not the first person I looked at
with a mouthful of forevers…

This is how we heal.
I will kiss you like forgiveness. You
will hold me like I’m hope…

And I will not be afraid
of your scars…”

Gemini

(May 22nd to June 21st)

Ah, yes, Gemini. The sign many label as the “villain,” the “heartbreaker,” the “worst.” For all the crap the twins receive, though, you are intelligent to the extreme. Perhaps the other signs are just jealous of you? It doesn’t matter because you don’t care.

Geminis can give an air of non-commitment, which may be intimidating to most. But if anyone dares call you an air-head they might need a lot of alcohol to soothe the burns your quick-wit is sure to make.

Sappy love poems are a no no for you. Here’s a quote from Maya Angelou’s Still I Rise for all them haters:

“You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may tread me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I’ll rise…

Does my haughtiness offend you?
Don’t you take it awful hard
‘Cause I laugh like I’ve got gold mines
Diggin’ in my own back yard.

You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I’ll rise…”

Cancer

(June 22nd to July 22nd)

Family – this is of utmost importance to those born under the Cancer sign. They may be something of an introvert, preferring the sanctuary of a home rather than being seen hitting the best spots in town. They are said to be moody, with their symbol’s crab-shell serving as a metaphorical recluse for them to withdraw under when things get too intense.

In Lights, Cameras, Break, Orooj-e-Zafar heartbreakingly shows us parents don’t need to be divorced for a home to be called broken. Even this excerpt is a punch in the gut:

“not all broken homes are loud. they must be flipped over
and felt up when your wives no longer sleep with you,
they must be told of times before,
how your glass-cuts are not holy
how your wrists are the canvas of a doomed marriage

how your hurt is secondary
how your moving on is gotten over.

broken homes still have their stairs, no matter how many
hip dislocations take for you to reach the night.
the sky is never far…”

Leo

(July 23rd to August 22nd)

Like lions, Leos are empowered and dignified which helps them accomplish a great deal of tasks, so as long as their put their sights to it. This makes them natural leaders who still know how to relish in pleasure when it’s playtime.

Buddy Wakefield’s We Were Emergencies sounds like a President’s pep speech turned poem in the best way possible. The defiant tone towards self-surrender and tragedy is perfect for a Leo’s battle-cry against the frivolities of life:

“We are not funeral homes
with propane tanks in our windows
lookin’ like cemeteries.
Cemeteries are just the Earth’s way of not letting go.
Let go…

Go slow.
I’m new to this,
but I have seen nearly every city from a rooftop
without jumping.
I have realized that the moon
did not have to be full for us to love it,
that we are not tragedies
stranded here beneath it…”

Virgo

(August 23rd to September 22nd)

Virgos have a knack for paying close attention to detail so trendy direct-to-the-point poems may pose to be a tad dull. Though Virgos can be perfectionists, they are also actually one of the most helpful and modest signs out there – kind of reminds you of the existential dilemma experienced by Sylvia Plath.

The poignant Metaphors by this classic poet might speak to some Virgos. Want more detail? Read an analysis by GradeSaver . Better yet, maybe even treat us with your own intricate interpretation of the many metaphors in this piece:

“I’m a riddle in nine syllables,
An elephant, a ponderous house,
A melon strolling on two tendrils….

Libra

(September 23rd to October 22nd)

The symbol for this zodiac is a scale representing peace and justice. If you’re a Libra chances are you vehemently dislike conflict and prefer to be at peace and in love. Profiles on this star sign will declare Libras hate to be alone.

Maybe you need a little boost to remind you of the magic of being by yourself? Try a dose of Someday I’ll Love by the immensely talented Ocean Vuong. Allow him to tell you with this passage not to fear your self:

“don’t be afraid.
The end of the road is so far ahead
it is already behind us.
Don’t worry. Your father is only your father
until one of you forgets. Like how the spine
won’t remember its wings
no matter how many times our knees
kiss the pavement…

get up. The most beautiful part of your body
is where it’s headed. & remember,
loneliness is still time spent
with the world…”

Scorpio

(October 23rd to November 22nd)

There’s no gray area when it comes to a curious Scorpio. Your intense sense of perception allows you to pick up on hidden meanings, body language, or virtually anything unspoken. You are a deep and emotionally intimate individual who has no interest in the zigs-and-zags of the social world.

You would probably enjoy dissecting every symbolism under Meggie Royer’s Metaphors My Mother Never Taught Me such as from the excerpt below:

“Never trust a man who howls at you like a wolf

without treating you like the moon.

The only fingerprints someone should dust on your body

should be the fingerprints you want.

But your body is never a crime scene. And you are never the criminal…”

Sagittarius

(November 23rd to December 21st)

What is a Sagittarius but the wanderer of the zodiacs? You uphold truth and have a thirst for adventure, for seeking out the meaning of life, and you like to do so while discovering new things.

So how about not only discovering a new poet, but also stretching your vocabulary with a slew of medical words you never thought could be used so beautiful? Unearth the siren voice of Orooj-e-Zafar as she schools you on How Your Body Smiles:

“when your body smiles,
your back doesn’t need lifting from its monoamine-deprived
slouch; your nose carries its pride higher to meet the head
you’re always leaving in the clouds –
your daydreams are creamier,
waterfall-fresh out of peace…

when your body smiles, your shoulders
straighten to let your wishbones kiss
before they pressure-drop your lungs
and breathe
with more chestfuls that they can take
like your first
teary-eyed respiratory
effort; the ache to remember
what it is to be alive,
is just as beautiful today…”

Capricorn

(December 22nd to January 20th)

Work, work, work, work, work! It’s a shame Rihanna’s hit single isn’t a poem because that would’ve been perfect for you. You are ambitious and determined, aptly so! Your labor-lovingness might make you more practical and realistic than others, so you may not be into flowery poetics than most.

But if you’re ever having a bad day at the office, hopefully Complainers by Rudy Francisco can get you back on track:

“Tell me, how blessed are we to have tragedies so small
it can fit on the tips of our tongues?…

Muscle is created by repeatedly lifting things that have
been designed to weigh us down. So when your
shoulders feel heavy, stand up straight and lift your chin –
call it exercise. When the world crumbles around you,
you have to look at the wreckage and then build a new
one out of the pieces that are still here.

Remember, you are still here…”

Aquarius

(January 21st to February 18th)

Aquarians just want to make the world a better place, dude. These air-element humanitarians are also visionaries with an eye for innovation. In case you’re looking to innovate and better yourself after being slut-shamed by your beloved society, try Scratches On The Back by Sade Andria Zabala from the book WAR SONGS:

“I have the skin of two different boys
under my fingernails.

My mother tells me to clean them out when
I realize my thighs still ache from
all the ways he made me fold
underneath him and maybe
I like myself being
just a little bit
dirty.

Is it wrong of me to want, darling?
Is it wrong of me to leave?
To live?

Today in the shower I washed you out of my hair,

but I leave my nails undone.

I sharpen my tongue.
I file my teeth.”

Pisces

(February 19th to March 20th)

The final sign of the zodiac encompasses all the characteristics of the other signs before it. Mostly, though, Pisces babies are sweet, selfless, and spiritual beings who love to dream.

The Envy Of Mr. Cogito by Zbigniew Herbert has alluring vivid imagery for those with an untamed imagination, and teaches the humble Pisces it’s okay to express anger, but that one must never give in to pride:

“be courageous when the mind deceives you be courageous
in the final account only this is important

and let your helpless Anger be like the sea…

and do not forgive truly it is not in your power
to forgive in the name of those betrayed at dawn

beware however of unnecessary pride
keep looking at your clown’s face in the mirror
repeat: I was called – weren’t there better ones than I…”