Famous Quoted Line Poetry Contest

[Calidore]

Just for fun, from the previous one:

Margaret, are you leaving 'cause the Golden Gloves are bleeding?
It's boxing, silly girl; were you expecting something nice?
Margaret, if you're going 'cause the fighters' blood is flowing
You should be aware they won't refund the ticket price.

[Pendragon]

Since no one seems to want to enter, DarkMuse, you are the winner. Your poem captured some of the otherworldliness of the original.

[Pendragon]

um, DarkMuse, you are up!

[Dark Muse]

Oh sorry I had no idea, I did not get the notifacation telling me that there were new posts to this thread, and hadn't got around to checking to see what was going on with this thread.

Ok, I will get a new quote posted soon.

[Dark Muse]

In honor of one of my favorite books, here is a line frome the poem of its namesake:

Gin a body meet a body
Comin thro' the rye,

From Comin' Thro the Rye by Burns

Tentative Deadline April 10

[YesNo]

Lovebirds

Gin a body meet a body
Coming thro' the rye
Leave the pain that haunts a body.
Make no bodies cry.

Should a body like a body
Let the lovebirds fly.
With nice words enchant a body
Before those bodies die.

[cacian]

gin a body meet a body
coming thro' the rye
string a party through a bounty
seeing to a pry
sling a chatterly to a courtely
charms are up for grabs

simple deity clever socraty
life is a passage ply
write a river dance
make it sound a trance
and everyone is on bounce
through symphonies of rhymes.

[Pendragon]

gin a body meet a body
coming thro' the rye
someone must dislike the graveyard
so they are coming home to spy
gin a body meet a body
coming thro' the wheat
they might be a ghoul
who hasn't anything to eat
gin a body meet a body
coming thro' the oats
don't tell anybody
but you just met a ghost
gin a body meet a body
coming thro' the corn
someone's been a-haunting
til the c@ck crows in the morn
gin a body meet a body
coming thro' the hops
they may never come back home
and this is where our story stops

Pendragon
(c) 2012

[MarkBastable]

Why is everyone using 'going'? It's 'coming'. Comin' thro the rye... It's right there in the set-up that Dark Muse posted, and it's the name of the *&£*ing poem, for God's sake.

[YesNo]

Good point. I changed mine from "going" to "coming".

[Pendragon]

Good point. I changed mine from "going" to "coming".

ditto! :nono::nono:

[Dark Muse]

5 more days left and only 3 entries so far. Lets see if we can make it a little more exciting. Don't by shy.

[Dark Muse]

Thank you those that took the time to enter. They were all great entries, and it was a tough choice.

YesNo: I thought you did one of the best jobs in keeping the poem in the tone of the selected quote, and of the original poem. You made it all flow naturally together. I loved the tone of the poem, and particularly enjoyed the lines "Leave the pain that haunts a body" and "With nice words enchant a body." Your poem really caught the essence of the original.


cacian: I really like the play on words you used within the poem. I thought it was a clever way in keeping with the original tone and language of the line. Though at first I was not quite certain I understood your poem, after a couple of readings I think I had began to get a sense of it. It was a fun and playful poem to read.

Pendragon: A most enjoyable poem to read. I really liked your rather original approach to the lines and loved the content of the poem. Naturally I rather appreciated the macabre humor of it. I also really enjoyed the way in which you used various alterations of the original line.


And the winner is......

YesNo

[cacian]

Dark Muse thank you very much for the feedback I enjoyed this one very much!
Congratulations to the winner YesNo :hurray:!!

[YesNo]

Thanks, Dark Muse! And thanks, cacian!

The line for the next contest is


All that glitters is not gold.

Here is a reference for the line which I recently read in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_that_glitters_is_not_gold

Deadline: May 1st. Two weeks from now.

[MarkBastable]

Thanks, Dark Muse! And thanks, cacian!

The line for the next contest is


All that glitters is not gold.

Here is a reference for the line which I recently read in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_that_glitters_is_not_gold

Deadline: May 1st. Two weeks from now.

I think it's 'glisters', if you're using the Famous Quoted Line.

[YesNo]

Yes, you're right. Either "glisters" or "glitters" is fine for this contest.

[MarkBastable]

Mary Jane's Glistering Night Out


So

When my central heating broke, I went to Yellow Pages
To find an engineer to make it right

And

When mum and I went drinking , she looked in the directory
For carers for my infant for the night.

But

The printer of that book seems to have taken hints from Shakespeare
Who said that all that glisters is not gold

So

I wound up with a boiler-fister and a babysister.

These spelling choices matter, truth be told.

[Pendragon]

Always write your poetry
From the depths of your soul
Giving voice to your visions
Things unseen and unknown
Some will see the stars you see
Some will hear the voice you here
Some will choose to remain blind
Some turn a cold, deaf ear
But beware of building monuments
To make your poetry bold
It may shine brightly in the night, yet
All that glitters is not gold...

Pendragon (C)2012

[cacian]

all that glitter is not gold
and
all that silver is not rolled
only bold is more cold
when trivial is on sold
to sentiments on fold
all gold is not shun
and
all silver is not coined
when quantity's undone
as a matter of call
and quality's on tone
with merities of roles

[miyako73]

Why?

We set the date and engraved the ring.
He was not destined for the aisle.

The smith fired,
Melted and combined
My old penny
And his dime.

I got mine
From my grandma’s purse.
He found his
While sitting on a well.

We wore them
Before the end of Spring
When we kissed
And the stars glistened.

For what reason
Did you slay him?
Was it his finger,
Was it his ring?

How did it blind you?
All that glitters is not gold.

[Dark Muse]

Fools Gold

Her eyes shone like stardust
and even than I should have known,
for what are star lights but the remainders
of the dead.

But when she smiled I felt my heart
come to a halt and could beat no
more.

How than I should have let go,
but she cast me beneath her spell,
her laughter like chiming bells,
but oh the fatal hour when for me
it would toll no more.

I never saw the cracks, as chips of paint
beginning to flake from the veneer
for I was too dazzled by the vibrancy
of her plumage.

She seemed to radiate and never did I see
that it was all stage lighting for too late
I have learned that all that glisters is not gold,
and a fool I was for her glitz.

[YesNo]

Thank you for all the contributions to this contest!

MarkBastable: It looks like Mary Jane is going to have to watch out for her mum. Next time she may get a baby brother. I liked the formatting of the poem.

Pendragon: I think that is good advice on writing poetry. It should come from the soul and not the intellect building glittering monuments.

cacian: I liked the sound of the first 3 lines and their parallel in lines 7-9. I also liked the two beats per line excluding the two lines containing just the word "and". Although I don't think I understood all of it, I enjoyed the sound of the words.

miyako73: That is a strange story of a boyfriend's murder perhaps because of their ring made from inexpensive metals. Very interesting.

Dark Muse: This is a nice description of a person losing his illusions about a lover. I liked the setting in a theater where the illusions are expected and deliberate. This emphasizes his foolishness for believing the illusions.

These choices are always hard to make and I am no expert. All deserve to win, but for this round I have picked

cacian

for the sound of the words.

Congratulations!

[cacian]

Hi YesNo I am flattered I can't believe I won.
Thank you very much indeed!!:wave:


OK the next line is the famous:

''to be or not to be''

good luck and look forward to reading your poems.:biggrin5:

[YesNo]

Previous Poor Choice

Some say I really had no choice.
I died. I'm back again.
A fresher body's inner voice
Holds something old within
That wonders this time will I choose
to be -- or not to be and lose.

[Dark Muse]

Skywalker

Balanced on the edge of the world
within the grip of youths first immorality,
when all things seem possible,
and what greater power than the control
of one's own destiny?

To be or not to be, that is the question asked,
with the rush of adrenaline in every breath
how easy to fly free now, completely
in one fleeting moment, and die at the height
of everything in swift glory.

Or to retreat back into life
and slowly diminish into nothing
but a memory and that too becomes fading,
loosing confidence in the ability to defy gravity,
and becoming more grounded by the hour.

What would it mean to die at the very moment
in which you know you will never again
feel as vibrantly, exquisitely, invincibly
alive?

[BookBeauty]

Nothing Inbetween

Existing, but twisting
To know, even though
We suffer, get tougher
We grow, or stay low

To choose is to lose
No matter what you're after
To sin, and drink gin
To be pure, with no allure.

Is it black, mack?
Towards the light, the white?
I lay in dismay
Peer in the fray, with no shade of grey

Never free,
We will always see
Either to be,
Or not to be.

[cacian]

some real good pieces here, keep them comin guys!!:smile5:

[cacian]

Ok it has been more then two weeks and so here are the results
I think all three deserve to win but if I had to grade them I would put

YesNo is in third positon for simplicity and the catching last two lines - very nice-
Dark Muse in second position for its philosophical style and richeness of language- excellent read
and so in first position and therefore winner of this competition is BookBeauty for its
intriguing and well thought out words and meanings - very well done-

over to you BookBeauty

[Dark Muse]

Congrats Book Beauty

[Pendragon]

Good show Book Beauty

[BookBeauty]

Hey, thanks everybody. I really didn't expect to win this one. :)

After thinking about this for 5 minutes, I have a splendid idea, since I've been thinking of this concept quite often lately.

Next up is a phrase/poem from Tao Te Ching, illustrating the concepts of Taoism's 'Wu Wei', which I encourage contestants to familiarize themselves with.



Related translation from the Tao Tê Ching by Priya Hemenway, Chapter II:

2
The Sage is occupied with the unspoken
and acts without effort.

Teaching without verbosity,
producing without possessing,
creating without regard to result,
claiming nothing,
the Sage has nothing to lose.


Your assignment is due on June 1st, 2012. Good luck to all who are participating!

[MarkBastable]

I need more explicit instructions, designed for the Tao-challenged.

What do we have to write and what bit of the thing you quote do we have to include in what we write?



Hey, thanks everybody. I really didn't expect to win this one. :)

After thinking about this for 5 minutes, I have a splendid idea, since I've been thinking of this concept quite often lately.

Next up is a phrase/poem from Tao Te Ching, illustrating the concepts of Taoism's 'Wu Wei', which I encourage contestants to familiarize themselves with.



Your assignment is due on June 1st, 2012. Good luck to all who are participating!

[BookBeauty]

I need more explicit instructions, designed for the Tao-challenged.

What do we have to write and what bit of the thing you quote do we have to include in what we write?

It's very open-ended. Sky's the limit.

I expect you to take the idea, or concept, and make it your own, or you can use any part of the phrase/poem that takes your interest and make it your own. You won't be getting in trouble for thinking outside the box with this one, as that's the point. :D

Have lots of fun with this one. :)

If it helps to understand, here's a wikipedia link about 'Wu Wei', where I also extracted the poem from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wu_wei

[YesNo]

Claiming Nothing

Claiming nothing, I still lose,
Although I have no heart to win.
I have no heart to even choose
To win or lose. The pains begin
To torment while those taunting smile:
I have been losing all the while.

It doesn't matter I admit.
It's all illusion. Yes, God knows,
But offers few ways out of it:
My execution comes and goes.
I was no sage, I would admit.
Like many I lost all of it.

[Pendragon]

"Without vision, people perish"
To not have law, is to court anarchy
Without reason, no understanding
With out hope even the strong shall fall
To not have love is loneliness incarnate
Without passion love is dead
To not have death is eternal torture
Without life, purpose ends
To not have faith is to doubt everything
Without darkness light has no value
Without light darkness rules
Without eternity the universe grows dim
Claiming nothing,
the Sage has nothing to lose....

Pendragon
(C) 5/21/2012

[prendrelemick]

The Sage is Occupied,
Over-run by philosophy,
Pouring in through breaches,
Sacking the citadel,
Piling the spoils in the market place,
There's treasure in those heaps.

His wife happens by,
And gently Kisses the top of his ear,
Teaching without verbosity,
The worth of his philosophy.

[Dark Muse]

The Sage is an uncommon one
unspoken truths glint
within his unassuming eye,
through the ages he has
been called by many names
but never has been possessed.

A traveler between worlds,
effortlessly he has flown
between life and death,
he has been a creator,
and a destroyer of worlds
seen and unseen.

But even in this
he always teaches
a lesson, yet what knowledge
he imparts, is not for him to decide,
it is for the supplicant to
determine the results.

The sage lays no claims
existing outside of time,
he is, will be, has always been,
and there is nothing to lose.

[BookBeauty]

Just a few days left until the deadline! :)

[MarkBastable]

All In


It’s Baltimore Pete and the Jezzer –
The chips are sliding his way –
Blackhat, and me and the Rube to my right,
When Sage comes over to play.

The Sage is a stranger who lives with a story
That only a soldier could know.
He stacks up his chips, lays an earring on top.
He plays a few low hands real slow.

The beers are cold-fresh and we’re all talking trash
But the Sage ain’t saying too much.
Queens with a King come down for my trips.
I push up the price just a touch.

Blackhat re-raises, and a King hits the street.
Blackhat raises again.
The Sage just goes with - so I tag along
Though I figure the Hat’s got three Men.

The river’s an Ace. Blackhat considers,
Then matches the pot, with a sigh.
I’m out in a rush. Sage smiles like a wound
And he looks the Hat right in the eye.

A rainbow is thrown through the diamond cut
Of the earring that lies on the chips,
And blood-red is lit on the face of the Queen.
Sage touches the ring to his lips.

“The lot,” says the Sage. “A million and change.”
He pushes it into the pile.
Blackhat goes white. “You holding aces?”
The Sage gives his razor-slash smile.

Blackhat is sweating. He’s thinking it through.
That million is sure smelling sweet.
But bullets’d kill him. He chews on a nail.
And then he gets up on his feet.

“Okay – let’s see ‘em,” the Blackhat demands.
The Sage shrugs, shaking his head.
“Junk,” he says. “Nuthin.” He picks up the earring,
And walks out the door like the dead.

“Man’s crazy,” says Jezzer, while Blackhat rakes up.
I gather the cards as they laugh.
But I’m thinking each earring is one of a pair.
I’m thinking a single’s a half.

And I know ‘bout the Sage, coz I knew him back when
And I once saw the twin of that earring.
And I reckon a fella has nothing to lose
When there’s nothing he cares about winning.

“Guy just can't bluff it, I guess,” says the Hat.
“I dug it just scoping his face.”
I check the two cards at the base of the pack.
One’s an Ace. And the other’s an Ace.

[Jack of Hearts]

Nice Mark!





J

[BookBeauty]

Ah, wow. There were so many amazing entries for this particular contest, that I almost wish I wasn't the judge.

But I am!

So, here I was, thinking, ''Wow. I just love YesNo's clever use of rhyme and rhythm. They're always able to come up with good material.''

And then I was thinking, ''Pendragon, they just never cease to disappoint when they're called to challenge, and really had a grasp of ideas that lent so well to the poem.''

And, ''prendrelemick, such creativity and divergent thoughts and images!''

... ''Oh Dark Muse! Always a story in the verse, such passion and spirit!''

And then a last minute entry flipped the kayak upside down. And it's not easy to flip a kayak, I don't care what anyone says.

MarkBastable, a well deserved poetry victory unto you, for a clever interpretation of the verse, really pushing outside the box, and even managing to make the reader consider the concepts behind the assignment.

And, so, without further ado... You win a chance at judging!

Hooray!

I'd give you a ribbon, or trophy, but you'll have to settle for a virtual one.

[MarkBastable]

Thank you. In fact I don't think the poem's quite there yet. The metre's clunky in a couple of places, and the narrative isn't as satisfyingly resolved as I'd like. But I'm flattered that it was chosen.

Okay - the next one....


I think we've used a line from Prufrock before, but I'd like to suggest this one:

....talking of Michelangelo...


Deadline: June 24th

[Pendragon]

talking of Michelangelo
don't you think David needs a few more clothes?
under a fig leaf everything shows
talking of Michelangelo...

talking of Michelangelo
why does Moses have those horns, bro?
does a demon inside him grow?
talking of Michelangelo...

talking of Michelangelo
the Sistine Chapel's ceiling glows
did you get cramps in your back or vertigo?
talking of Michelangelo...

talking of Michelangelo
your Pietà makes the tears flow
think how He died for us you know
talking of Michelangelo...

talking of Michelangelo
you worked on St Peter's Basilica in Rome
we have you to thank for one awesome dome
talking of Michelangelo...

talking of Michelangelo
most magnificent of artists everyone knows
wonder what he would think of art nouveau?
talking of Michelangelo...
talking of Michelangelo...

Pendragon
(c) 6/2/2012

[YesNo]

Focusing on David

We were talking of Michelangelo.
Janice loved his David so
I bought a T-shirt where the part
She loved the best flashed on my heart.

[Pendragon]

Only two entries? What gives, poets?

[MarkBastable]

Well bumped.

Because I'm so busy, I won't be looking at this for a coupla days, so I'm going to extend the deadline to Friday, as long as the two entrants so far don't feel cheated by that.

[Dark Muse]

The Gallery

I contemplate over Mona Lisa's smile
and wonder what secret thoughts
she holds within her head,
feeling a since of comradery
I can imagine that she winked at me.
I wonder what my buddy Steve is doing
right now, and where should I have lunch,
there is this new Italian place that just opened
".....talking of Michelangelo.."
the voice suddenly interrupts my thoughts
slamming me back into reality.
I offer her a sheepish smile attempting
to look interested, nodding my head.
"Have you been paying any attention to what I said?"
"So Michelangelo, he is the guy that sculpted David"
I replay and know instantaneously that it was
the wrong answer to give and feel the dread
fall upon me, my smile remains plastered upon me face.
"Really, I do not know why I take you anywhere,
it is completely hopeless, do you ever think of anyone
but yourself......."
a Dali caught my eye and I become lost in the
dream like scape and wander over the swirls of paint,
and suddenly the song "A Horse With No Name"
begins to play in my head,
yeah I know later I am really going to be dead.

[cacian]

talking to michael angelo
I felt there was nothing to blow
the smoke the air was even low
the words made up covered the flow
and sentences went up to rows
filling the silence with a throw

talking to michale angelo
was never meant to be a show
about the mundane tasks of growth
far from it it was a pro
about the emptiness of simple foes
that made a noise and went out broke

talking to michael angelo
was much ado about a co
to plot against the rich and so
but deminised itself as though
it compromsied those in the know
and ended tarnished out of dough

talking to michael angelo
was in the end a symbol round
to those who tried to wrig a bound
but got themselves caught in a frown
this is reminder from acts and crown
to not climb hither those heights again

[MarkBastable]

I've been nudged by cacian's entry to get back to this. I shall consider and return with a verdict today.

[MarkBastable]

I really like YesNo's, for its simplicity and wryness. But, as a fan of the understated moment captured, I'm going to plump for DarkMuse's contribution.

[Dark Muse]

Thank you! It was fun writing. At first I had no idea what I was going to do with the line, but then I just began to spin this idea.

[Pendragon]

Congrats once more, DarkMuse! :crazy:

[Dark Muse]

Thank you!

[Dark Muse]

Ok your next line is:

Between the dark and the daylight

From The Children's Hour ~ Henry Wadworth Longfellow

[Pendragon]

Between the dark and the daylight
Beneath clouds swiftly moving east
Before the full moon rises in her splendor
Beware the fearsome beast!
Between sleep and waking solitude
Believe the shadows whispering, beckoning
Behave lest the shambling ones awake
Bespeaking the day of dreadful reckoning
Being sure to check the depths of closet
Beneath the bed, look left, look right!
Behind the bookshelf lurks what comes
Between the dark and the daylight...

Pendragon
(C) 7/23/2012

[YesNo]

Strange Dreams Dawning

Between the darkness and the daylight
They suffered and they grew.
From April into May's light
Half-conscious dreams came true.

[cacian]

between the dark and the daylight
awoke a light out of the sunrise
it looked abrupt but slightely edgewayed
it sensed a breeze from outer somewhere
which made it smile thousands of highwaves
between the dark and the daylight
reached out a star from upper moonlight
it looked as if brittled but upright
it danced around the skies of midgnight
and flew right out to space and skilight

[Dark Muse]

All very excelent poems.

YesNo: I am not sure I entirely understand this poem, but I did enjoy reading it. A lot is conveyed in just a few lines and I like the somewhat haunting feeling about it. I loved the last line.

cacian: Some wonderful imagery within your poem. I enjoyed you use of rhyme. I loved this line "awoke a light out of the sunrise" and thought it was a very good pairing with the chosen quote for this challenge. It makes it fit so naturally into the poem. I always really enjoyed "it looked abrupt but slightely edgewayed"

and the winner is

Pendragon: I loved this. Great imagery, and I liked the cleverness of starting which line with a word which begins with "be" also very much enjoyed the dark atmosphere of the poem. Bringing the last line back to the first gave the poem a nice rounded feeling and I like the way in which it gives the feeling that the poem could just keep repeating itself.

[cacian]

Dark Muse thank you again very much for the feedback and congratulations Pendragon:hurray:

[Pendragon]

Thank you! Let's see: hummmmm...

From Emily Dickinson:

"Because I could not stop for death, he kindly stopped for me"

Good luck! :leaving:

[cacian]

Haha I misread that as
''Because I could not stop for death, he kindly stopped me":aureola:

[Dark Muse]

Death at the Cafe

I found myself before
the frozen coffee shop
where everything
held still, and even time
had come to a meaningless end,
the clock gave way not even one
lonely tock amid the silence,
where halted conversation
hovered thick in the air,
expressions poised and ready
upon faces now fixed,
it was a world within a world.

I saw him sitting there
a wayward grin upon his lips,
ironically now he appeared
the most living thing in the room,
while he gestured for me to take
a seat, because I could not stop for Death
he kindly stopped for me,
and so we sipped our frappe,
playing checkers and catching up
on days long begone.

He is my oldest friend
and yet so often neglected,
but ever he takes it in stride
for in the end he always gets his due,
and so when life begins to move too fast
he needs but a twitch and a wink
to bring the clocks to a stand still
and watch time fall upon its knees,
he never forgets a face
nor for that matter a name,
and he always foots the bill.

Soon enough he will push play
and the world will spin back
into axis, and again I will be upon my way,
but I can still hear him laughing,
jovially while he bids me good day,
for it is inevitably so that will
meet again.

[YesNo]

Because I Could Not Stop For Death

Because I could not stop for death
He kindly stopped for me.
He took the reins held by my hands
And set my spirit free.

It's then I knew the wonder of
The part I had to play,
And felt the welcome, home again,
To an eternal day.

[zoolane]

As I dream of time gone by.
The scarlet dawn which I see in the distance but yet before my eyes.
The mist that worm it way over me, within this shallow heaven.
The damp that reach out to comfort in me.

As I dream of time gone by.
The silence is nightmare to me.
With serene lush of ruby sea before me.

As I dream of time gone by.
''Because I Could Not Stop For Death,he kindly stopped for me"

[zoolane]

Pendragon? anyone home?

[Pendragon]

Home? No. Still on vacation!

[Pendragon]

As I repeat, ad infinitum, my laptop was stolen. Sorry for the delays

Dark Muse: Dark subjects are definitely you forte!

YesNo: Death as a friend! Nice!

Zoolane: Sleep is often called "The Brother of Death" I liked the dream sequences

And ZOOLANE is the winnah!

[zoolane]

Thank you Pen, I am sorry to hear about your laptop, I am sorry if I seem impatience.

hmm let see?

[zoolane]

The Dark Hills by Edwin Arlington Robinson
Dark hills at evening in the west,
Where sunset hovers like a sound
Of golden horns that sang to rest
Old bones of warriors under ground,
Far now from all the bannered ways
Where flash the legions of the sun,
You fade--as if the last of days
Were fading, and all wars were done.

Quote is: Old bones of warriors under ground,

I will see if how many entries we get in week,

[YesNo]

Bones

Old bones of warriors under ground
Are quiet when the day in done.
When morning comes they make no sound.
They're quiet as we linger on
And wonder when the other side
Will welcome us to pause and stay
Where from the living we, too, hide
And smile while they pass by and pray.

[Pendragon]

Blood soaked land and sounds of battle
Old bones of warriors under ground
My brother's voice has a death rattle
My heart freezes at the sound

He was cut down long before his time
Like my fathers of days gone by
I have to force my fear-haunted mind
Continue the fight with tear dimmed eyes

Is that reinforcements finally coming?
Will I live to fight another day?
I hear the trumpets and the drumming
It seems to echo from the grave

I see them coming with astonishment unbound:
We go to join old bones of warriors under ground...

Pendragon
(C) 10/16/2012

[Dark Muse]

The Forgotten Dead

The scorched land's thirst
had long been slaked
by the blood which once soaked the earth
leaving the sands still rust stained.

Now parched as if cursed
by battles long fought, lost or won,
neither victories nor defeats hold meaning,
only bitter memories remain
and forgotten heroes.

A murder of ravens,
those carriers of the dead gather
upon the unmarked graveyard,
the old bones of warriors underground
long forsaken.

Can they have any peace
for the nightmares which haunt
their eternal sleep?

Only those scavenger birds
that bore their souls away
still remember where they lie
and the secrets buried with them.

[prendrelemick]

I turn the soil with my Grandad's fork,
Fat handled, ash shafted,
Polished, stained, ingrained,
With the sweat from his hand.
I turn the soil He turned.

Potatoes lie deep
Like old bones of warriors underground,
I dig them out with my Grandad's fork
I dig out my Grandad,
Memories and taties together.
I collect them up in a bucket,
And bring them inside.

[zoolane]

Yes, your poem is wonderful because it fragile but it undercurrent of death. Also had me wondered if you were watching 'Time team'.

Favourite lines are:Are quiet when the day in done.
When morning comes they make no sound.



Pen, your poem is greatly admire of the soldier point of view and war.

Favourite lines are:I have to force my fear-haunted mind
Continue the fight with tear dimmed eyes

Dark Muse, your poem was tale of earth being torture by war, the after ward animals take the after over so speak.

Favourite lines are:A murder of ravens,
those carriers of the dead gather
upon the unmarked graveyard,
the old bones of warriors underground
long forsaken.




Prendrel, your poem was of your Granddad, lovely touch of the potatoes and quite unique way of development of a poem from quote.

Favourite lines are: Memories and taties together.
I collect them up in a bucket,
And bring them inside.


winner is : Prendrel because of different way of writing poem. It also remind of my late Granddad.

[prendrelemick]

Thank you Zoolane, The other two poems are amazing, which is why I tried something alternative.
Next up is some Ted Hughes.

The Horses.

I climbed through woods in the hour-before-dawn dark.
Evil air, a frost-making stillness,


Not a leaf, not a bird -
A world cast in frost. I came out above the wood


Where my breath left tortuous statues in the iron light.
But the valleys were draining the darkness


Till the moorline - blackening dregs of the brightening grey -
Halved the sky ahead. And I saw the horses:

I like the first line, but I think I'll go with -

"And I saw the Horses."

[cacian]

and I saw the horses
they looked like
flying torches
racing towards
the heights,
illuminating skies
horizons and the fars

they ran as fast
as light
towards the height of heights
their demena
was serene
their grace was something
seen
a beauty in pristine

and then I saw the horses
and I knew it was sensation
calling for their
return

[Pendragon]

And the Bloody Morning After...

The last trumpet sounded, a very haunting cry
There was smoke and fire, the Earth shivered and shook
And I saw the horses: white, red, black, pale
The horses are sheer terror to see
But the riders are the true horrors
The white face of Pestilence, gone forth to conquer
The scarlet face of War, blood was its Avatar and its seal
The dark face of Famine, bones showing through translucent skin
Then the pale skull of death, scythe clutched in hand
Flame and sulfur burn in their wake, for Hell follows after
The End is nigh and I hear the horses...

Pendragon(c) 10/22/2012

[YesNo]

All Those Horses

A car gets used more than a horse
That doesn't go as fast of course
As when my foot demands more speed
Than I or any horse should need.
A car behaves more sensibly
With no pretentions to be free.
It doesn't throw you, ram your thigh
Against a tree to make you cry,
Embarrass you, insisting it's
The master when it has such fits.
I see those horses: obsolete.
They're glad I'd rather use my feet.

[Dark Muse]

Wild Horses

I lie dreaming in fields of wheat
as I listen to the heart beat of the earth,
steady, it grows louder
pounding against my ear
through the sun dried warmth of the ground,
vibrating in my bones,
it begins to thunder, my eyes open
and I saw the horses come
out of the tall wispy grasses,
with the sun ablaze behind them,
all the world seems to be afire
and they run, as Valkyries,
leaving trails of dust,
they come to sweep me away,
dream-like I smile while they fly
above, one by one,
like feathers, my fingers can reach out
and touch their descending manes,
spirited away I ride into worlds never seen.

[prendrelemick]

Anybody else? Three days to go.

Cacian: "Illuminating skies horizons and the fars" good stuff.

Pendragon: Good theme, came a very close second.

YesNo: Seems the couplets took over a bit.

Dark Muse: Liked it alot, especially the mood it engendered


The winner is ............................Dark muse.

[Dark Muse]

Thank you very much, I will get working on thinking up the next quote

Ok next quote

"And its shadows shall appear,"

~The Bridge by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

[YesNo]

There is joy in the hearts of the hopeless.
There is fear in the minds of the proud
Who worry that life will drop them
And the crash of their fall be loud.

There's much pain, it is true, for the fallen
Whose faith in their good life has gone,
But when shadows appear, the forsaken
Shine trust and get joy and go on.

[cacian]

and its shadows shall appear
from behind the curtains
weir
and it shall speak of fear
to ask the real dear
where it shall steer
the tears
now that all is austere?

[Pendragon]

And Darkness and Death Reined Over All...

I walk the night, a living darkness
I haven't seen a sunrise in years,
And Mother Night has become a witch
So I walk alone, ever going forward
Fear is like a watchdog, Pain an intimate friend
And its shadow shall appear
I drink to its shade and mock at Fear

Pendragon
(c) 11/8/2012

[prendrelemick]

The parting is a bad one,
There's no doubt about that,
And its shadows shall appear,
somewhere down the line,
Revisiting the generations,
The sons of their sons.
“Don't be like that,” said Jacob,
The trickster to his mark,
“It was written, what can I say?”
And he shrugged his Hebrew shrug,
And he smiled that winning smile,
(That had melted his mother's heart,)
And offered his hand to Esau
And Esau knew they must part.

[Dark Muse]

I am busy with NaNoWrMo right now so I probably will not be doing any judging until December, until then keep the entrees coming.

Ok, thank you everyone for the great entires

YesNo: I really liked this, I particularly enjoyed how it started off. It caught my attention and I thought the concept was an interesting one. There were some really good lines here.

cacian: As usual you have such a clever and unique way with words. I really liked the way in which you used rhyme. This was quite interesting to read.

prendrelemick: I cannot say I entirely understand this one, but I did enjoy it and find it entraining. It was quite originally, and I rather liked the touch of humor about it. A well crafted poem.

And the winner is..........

Pendragon: I loved it. Wonderfully imagery, and particularly I loved this line "And Mother Night has become a witch" This poem created such a great and haunting atmosphere.

[cacian]

Dark Muse thank you Pendragon congratulations!

[Pendragon]

Thank you! Next line comes from Walt Whitman: "my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead." Good luck! Deadline is my wedding anniversary, December 21. Write, poets, write!

[prendrelemick]

What Good is a Pencil ?


So here we are up close in the bed,

But!

My captain lies fallen. Cold and dead,

Embarrassing.!

What good is a pencil without any lead?

Pointless!.

“Its not you, it's me - hard day,” I said,

Excuses!.

She - “Once more my signals you have misread,”

Not again!

“So gerroff I'll read a good book instead,”

50 Shades!

She rolled and took with her all the bedspread

Magnificent!

I admired her rump like a fine Thoroughbred.

Horsewhip?

Ironic are the paths that relationships tread,

Mazey.

For no sooner denied than lust raised its head,

Too late?

[Dark Muse]

Ship of the Damned

He was beyond mad as we sailed into the pale,
the spirits howled amid the fog,
their screams set our nerves on edge
but we were cast adrift, the forever lost,
my captain lies, fallen cold and dead,
but still his ship sails through the dark seas,
unforgiving like an apparition, and we are left in
his quest to seek after the sublime,
his body stiff, with that mad, mad grin
frozen in rigor upon his face, and his eyes,
we can only wonder, do they stare into the depths
of some hellish abyss?

[YesNo]

My captain lies, fallen cold and dead.
His successor's fallen, too,
And we must wait while our fates are read.
We don't know what to do.

[Pendragon]

Today marks 34 years of marriage for us, three wonderful kids, one son-in-law, one daughter-in-law, and my precious new Grandson, Michael Logan Korhari.

That said, Dark Muse has done it again! I declare Dark Muse the winner of this round!

[YesNo]

Congratulations, Dark Muse, and congratulations on your new grandson, Pendragon!

[Dark Muse]

Why thank you!

Ok for your next one, I return to an old favorite of my own.

Is but a dream within a dream

From Poe's A Dream Within A Dream

[Pendragon]

The Nightmare rears his horse,
Chasing me through the Dreamworld
Strange, yet familiar faces gibber
Mouthing blasphemies that freeze my soul
A shadow lurks ahead, turning Green Wood to Mirk Wood
The eye burns into my mind
Names from the past whisper around me
"Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?"
"In the flame of human suffering, man may become more than man"
"Call me Ishmael."
"Ask yourself a question. Do I feel lucky? Well, do you, punk?"
The minds a mess of cluttered schemes
And but a dream within a dream...

Pendragon

[YesNo]

Wake me up! It has been fun,
But dreams like this are never done.
It must have started years ago.
Some other dream began it so
In a dream within a dream
The ground stays soft and pleasures scream
Though pain feels real. I like the way
Pain looks like one more pleasant play
To wake me up. I'm up already.
That dreaming ground is what's not steady.

[Dark Muse]

Things have been a bit hectic around here but starting to get back to normal, so I haven't had much time on my hands. I will give to the end of the week, and try and judge on Monday.

[Dark Muse]

I thank you both for taking the time to enter and both your works are great. This one was quite a difficult choice as there were things I really liked about both pieces but I am going to have to go with Pendragon, for I loved the imagery his poem captured.

[cacian]

Pendragon congratulations!!

[Pendragon]

Thanks Muse and cacian

How about this famous line by Gelett Burgess:

I never saw a purple cow, I never hope to see one

Good luck!

[YesNo]

I never saw a purple cow.
I never want to see one.
A pink one's better anyhow.
Bright green would do, or yellow, too.
Don't walk if you must flee one.

[cacian]

I never saw a purple cow
I never hope to see one
but what I saw is
purple time
a pinkish rhyme
a blueish mime
I wish to carry each and one
to the end of my memoire
and so there it is
it's all a laugh
the one that makes awe vivified

[Melanie]

I never saw
a purple cow
I never hope
to see one.

I'd shake me head
And think me dead
They're only seen
In heaven.

Divinely kissed
In purple bliss
they hula dance
in moo-moos.

Purple milkshakes
Purple cupcakes
I'll join you when
I get there!

[Pendragon]

cacian you're up! Congrats! Thanks to the others, well done.

[cacian]

Pendragon thank you !!! :)

ok here is the next famous line:

''let me not to the marriage of true minds. admit impediments. ''

Shakespeare Sonnet 116


due date: 31st May

good luck :)

[prendrelemick]

Anne and Will.


Let nothing come between us.

The balding bard threw down his quill
His wife was chattering still.

Let our true minds be wedded forever despite...

He shouted at his Anne “hush now! ... err... my treasure”
And kicked the dog, for good measure.

Impediments I admit may come between us.

"No I haven't fed the bloody chickens yet!
It was never like this in London, ...err... my pet."

Let not impediments come between true minds.

"Yes, it's about “that woman” if you must know,
No! We were just good friends ... err...my doe"

Let me not admit.. de dum..de dum..di dum..di dum.

"I told you! At a party, I was shmoozing for money,
I hardly know her...err...my honey."

Let me not to marriage... something something... admit impediments.

"She is not my whore for heavens sake!
You're being ridiculous...err... my cupcake."

A marriage of two minds admits not impediments.

"OK OK, I'll change her breasts to dun,
And give her wirey hair if you like ... err... my hun."

Let not to the marriage of true minds, impediments admit.

"And I'm sorry too,
Never forget, I'll always love you."

Let me not to the marriage of true minds, admit impediments.

[Melanie]

go out with me?
cha-ching
marry me?
cha-ching
accept this ring?
cha-ching
have my children?
cha-ching
get a divorce?
cha-ching, cha-ching

let me not
to the marriage
of true minds
admit impediments.
just ask
shakespeare

[Pendragon]

''Let me not to the marriage of true minds, admit impediments.''
Love does not lie in looks, in status, in wealth so fleeting
Love lies in hearts entwined, in shared experience, in synchronized thinking
To admit that things still creep in is to admit defeat
Soul mates traveling on the one way street that is life
The direction and destination is a foregone conclusion
Do we reach our final rest alone or side by side?
I do not choose to entertain the idea of roadblocks or detours
Your mind to my mind, your heart to my heart, forever together
No impediments need apply...

[YesNo]

They're married now, already, even though
The ritual they should have gone through first
Was not performed and those who had a claim
Might say they've been abused by all of this.
Who'd want to take a bride who much preferred
A different groom to give her that first kiss?

[cacian]

Ok this is I believe due. I have enjoyed every single entry.

Prendrelemick: ''Anne and Will'' is a scream i enjoyed it a lot now where is that guitar? haha.

Melanie: cha-ching indeed. Is that supposed to imitate the sound of Kerching?! this piece is clever and says a lot about modern time marriages.

Pendragon:
''Love does not lie in looks, in status, in wealth so fleeting
Love lies in hearts entwined, in shared experience, in synchronized thinking''
Great lines and a very enjoyable poem.

YesNo: I like this piece especially the last stanza. every line reads perfectly.

and so the choice is difficult but since there can only be one winner i think i will have to go for YesNo!!! because the last line just did it for me.
Congratutaions YesNo.

[YesNo]

Thanks, cacian!

The next quote is from Wordsworth:


Nature never did betray the heart that loved her

This is from lines 122-123 of his Tintern Abbey poem: http://www.bartleby.com/145/ww138.html

Deadline: June 22

[Melanie]

Melanie: cha-ching indeed. Is that supposed to imitate the sound of Kerching?
Congratulations YesNo!

I never heard of kerching so I looked it up out of curiosity and read a bit of trivia saying that was the original word used but then a popular children's TV show used it repeatedly as a response to sarcasm.

Since cha-ching is a slang word, dictionaries like Urban Dictionary and Wiktionary posted definitions:
"Onomatopoeia, imitative of the sound of a mechanical cash register when an amount is rung up. Popularized by the 1992 movie Wayne's World..." ~wiktionary

[prendrelemick]

well done YesNo, that was well deserved.

[Dark Muse]

Nature's Lovers

I caught the golden gleam in the sky
and for a moment the shadow passed
across my face, and I knew my heart
soared up there caught within the
raptors claws, and thus I had no choice
but to follow.

I became lost within the prevailing mist,
but I heard a song that called to me,
and I trusted myself to the music,
guided blindly through the strange
dreamlike haze which descends
as soft dew around me.

I emerged upon the precipice
as the water rushed beneath my feet
to tumble down below, roaring in my ears,
I heard the subtle undertones, the language
as old as time, and I knew the truth
that Nature never did betray the heart
that loved her, so I spread my arms
and flew.

The wind rose up to meet me
and it was only too soon that I was
rejoined with a flash of golden feathers
of a raptor which held still unscathed
my heart between his kingly talons.

Down together we tumbled,
we fell among sweet meadow grasses
and the bird was no longer a bird
but a man who played beautiful music
upon a willow reed pipe, he sung Bardic
songs which made even the stars weep
and Nature held us there within her arms.

[Pendragon]

Congratutaions YesNo!

Natural Feelings

Love is something that defies all odds
Goes beyond every limit, point of no return
Sometimes it shapes us, a new lesson learned
The stars are not right, we have angered the Gods

Love can be fickle, love can be strong
Fleeting at best, or unshakable magic
Leading to bliss, or tearfully tragic
Portents of heartache, love gone horribly wrong

We all are just human, with feelings that blur
Love turns sour, our eyes turn away
Human emotions are bricks made of clay
But Nature never did betray the heart that loved her

Cling to Mother Nature to avoid being hurt...

Pendragon
(C) 6/5/2013

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

Jack’s Magical Fruit - A Poem in Three Parts

PART I (You are what you eat)

Weaned on that lofty beanstalk that sprung
out of the earth from which magic beans were hung,
our boy Jack thrived on fruit of the vine
that transformed his GI to something far from divine.
5.. Whether kidney, charro or baked by Heinz,
potential suitors only closed their blinds.
There was Beatrice, Sally, Delilah -all disappointments
each departing, feigning false appointments.
Enter Fairy Godmother, a stereotypical caricature,
10.. who proclaimed; “Only true love can silence thy nature.”

PART II (There are many fish in the sea…one is destined for you)

Let us head south to gastronomic Lyon,
where proud parents coo at their new scion.
Her Christian name is given as Abbey Le Pew
Odors most foul, she would tersely eschew.
15.. Her stepsister’s chores held her in thrall
dashing Abbey’s dream to attend the ball.
Saturday morn while trimming the shrubbery
she espied a young prince on Rue de la Nunnery.


PART III (where true love conquers)

Jack cleared the streets with his invisible specter.
20.. It was over a Boxwood when he finally met her.
Jack’s bowels suddenly seemed out of sorts.
This pretty French Lima quelled his reports.
Out of his mouth spewed a fusillade of flatter,
the bum end was mum it would no longer chatter.
25.. Abbey was heaven scent, by the Godmother it seemed.
They attended the ball - with true love all is redeemed.
My work here is done, mused the Fairy Godmother;
“Nature never did betray the heart that loved her”

When the Abbey’s a rock’n
30.. Don’t bother knock’n

[Adolescent09]

Great stuff, YesNo!

The pacing of this poem is off, I know, but I'm unsure of how to fix it.


Crossed
Adol09

The woman at the wheel of her stuffy car
crossed at the priest who touched her boy
sped by a homeless man.
One will for justice was all but spent
One will to live was at an end,

Days later a priest chuckled
as someone announced "Not..."

Some time thence,
a street-dweller met a long-lost kin,
the day joy’s undertaker made his grave
Maybe, just maybe someone found happiness,
or maybe a few states away
a woman had crossed her chest.

[prendrelemick]

“Nature never did betray a heart that loved her.”

She said, as she went to hug her tree,
And so she chose a natural therepy.
Forgeting her cancer was nature too.

“The spirit must be cured first” her Guru said,
“The pathway to health is within your head.”
But so was the tumour.

“Modern medicine has forgotten so much.”
She chose instead the faith-healer's touch,
But cancer is its own deity.

It was the pain that made her relent,
But by then she was wasted and spent,
And the cancer was thriving.

I spread her ashes under the tree,
And as grief passed I began to see.
Her death was a natural one.

[cacian]

nature never did betray the heart that loved her
but it did stand still for the world that caught her
balance her porter
steel her mortar
nothing else would oppose her

[Melanie]

The Miracle
(true story of Kristen)

"mama", "dada", "twee"!
she pointed at
our tall backyard tree
she loved trees.

the trunk held our hammock
she reached up to
rock with her daddy
in his arms.

the weight uprooted
the tree as the
trunk fell over her
tiny head.

but nature never
did betray the
heart that loved her so.
and wondrously...

a perfect straight trunk
had just one crook
right where her head was
and never touched.

how did the tree know
to grow a crook
for what was going
to save her?

[cafolini]

Beautiful little story, Melanie. Mystery and miracles go hand in hand because coincidence cannot be proven.

[YesNo]

Thank you for all the entries!

Dark Muse: This was an enjoyable fantasy with a happy ending.

Pendragon: I liked the "unshakeable magic/tearfully tragic" lines.

Gilliatt Gurgle: Nice line about "heaven scent" and the "rock'n/kock'n" last two lines. I suspect the whole village was glad Jack found his true love.

Adolescent09: There is an interesting parallel in two uses of "crossed". The second short stanza puzzled me.

prendrelemick: One should probably take the guru's advice only when the cancer can't be cured in any other way. It is all natural.

cacian: Nature also seems to stand by and wait as I think you are pointing out in the second line.

Melanie: I agree with cafoliini that this was a very nice story.

I enjoyed them all.

The winner: Dark Muse

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

Well done Dark Muse!

[Dark Muse]

Thank you, I will have the next line up soon.

[Melanie]

Congratulations Dark Muse! Beautiful and skillfully penned

[Dark Muse]

Thank you!

Ok the next line is:

Of a demon in my view

-From Alone by Poe

Deadline July 15th

[Pendragon]

Night of the Demon

Trying to fall asleep but the reality
There is a nightmare crouched on my chest
Now he could be delusion, a night time illusion
All that I know is that he keeps me from my rest

I put on a CD, of sounds of serenity
Didn't block the eyes of the demon in my view
He digs in his back claws, torments me without cause
I need my sleep but what the hell can I do?

Tossing and turning, my eyes red and burning
There's still the weight of a demon in my view
I'm getting frantic, headed for major panic
Wonder if he'd move on if he swallowed a bullet or two?

Pendragon
(C) 6/25/2013

[Dark Muse]

It is almost July, and so far only one entry. Is there anyone else?

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

I'll take a crack at it, but it may be another week or so.
Very busy at work right now.

[YesNo]

Were those two angels standing there
In human flesh and middle-age?
They fought like children, didn't care,
And used their children as a dare
To punish, satisfy their rage.

Was that an angel standing there
Or just a demon in my view?
I'll say an "angel". I don't care.
Let's celebrate this birthday where
Just one turned sixty-two.

[prendrelemick]

He was only a demon who tried to be good,
You might even say he was misunderstood.

At his trial he confessed to helping the damned,
Cooling the fires and holding their hand.

The devil summed up, assessing his crime
(The devil, like all of us, loves to make rhyme.)

"For behavior unbecoming of a demon in my view,
I've no choice but to throw the book at you."

You're banished from all of my infernal realm,
So hand back your spear and diabolical helm.

You won't be needing them where you're going, m' lad,
And you wont get them back till you learn to be bad."

Then he sipped some brimstone from a skull bone cup.
And nodded to the constable and said "Take him up."

The demon hung his head and shed a hot tear,
Behind him The Heavenly stairs did appear.

And on his way up he turns and he says,
"I'll miss the old place to the end of all days."

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

A Meeting With the Marriage Counselor

Relax, take a sip of Amontillado.
Much obliged, forgive my angry vibrato.
Nevermore will I return to that raven,
now it’s the usher that she’s craven.

I feel as though I were a man used up,
trapped in a pit, my soul sways to and fro.

Doc, In my view she is of a demon.
Of a demon?...please continue.
Yes, and I aim to be repeat’n -
she’s of a demon in my view.

[Melanie]

Aedes albopictus

pending doom
all too soon
demons will attack

every summer
come the gunners
well armed maniacs

here's one now!
on the prowl
a demon in my view!

Tiger mosquito;
flying torpedo,
dive bomber demoniac!



Tiger Mosquito: Known for
it's black & white stripes
and relentless aggression.
http://i1312.photobucket.com/albums/t540/melaniespoetry/2dfc6365-76d1-42a3-8ad7-c42a3827075c_zpse2c1bf0a.jpg (http://s1312.photobucket.com/user/melaniespoetry/media/2dfc6365-76d1-42a3-8ad7-c42a3827075c_zpse2c1bf0a.jpg.html)

[Dark Muse]

This was really tough becasue they were all quite good. I was rather torn on who to choose this time around.


Pendragon: I enjoyed the eeriness of this one, it did create a very dark atmosphere, and yet there was also something almost comic about it which I enjoyed. Also loved the fact that it put me in the mind of one of my favorite paintings. The Nightmare by John Henry Fuseli. Don't know if it was intentional or not, but I enjoyed the allusion to that work.

YesNo: Quite an amusing poem. I am not sure if I fully understand it, but was entertaining to read, and I enjoyed the originality of it and rather liked the humor.

prendrelemick: This was great. I really loved the altered perspective on this one. The demon being sent to Heaven as punishment for being too merciful. A comical and entertaining poem. Also I really liked your clever use of rhyme.

Melanie: Really liked the original direction you took with this one. I also enjoyed the way in which it seemed to offer multiple possible meanings. The mimimilstic style created a great deal of impact using but few words.

And the winner is....

Gilliatt Gurgle: Loved the opening line, the reference to Amontillado was great, and I enjoyed the allusion to Poe throughout the poem. I thought this one was quite clever and enjoyable. I really enjoyed the ending, and liked the way you incorporated the line within your poem.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

Hey, thanks.
It's been a while since I read it, but The Cask of Amontillado still gives me the chills kind of like Pendragon's line "There is a nightmare crouched on my chest".
Nice work all around.

The next line comes from Coleridge quoting that "gray beard loon" from the Ancient Mariner...For all averred, I had killed the bird

[Pendragon]

Dark Muse: Yeah, that was the inspiration for my poem! Congrats, Gillatt Gurgle!

Tony Rocco Was an Odd Bird...

My pleas unheard, I was interned
Buried while I yet drew breath
For all averred, I had killed the bird
With malice aforethought--sentence: Death

That's how it goes down on this end of town
Vengeance is swift and saccharine sweet
The bird I slew was someone who
Was considered quite elite

And all averred I had killed the bird
Due process was just a joke
He owned the courts and my trial of course
Was held by his kinfolk

So they buried me down underneath
In the pitch dark catacombs
Though I shrieked with fear they brought me here
And now I find I'm not alone

For it seems absurd but that bloody bird
Haunts me from dusk til dawn
I killed him indeed but now he's killing me
And I don't think I will last very long

Down with the dead, voices in my head
The Reaper stalks the endless halls
For what all averred that I killed the bird
Is the naked truth after all...

(C) July 16, 2013
Pendragon

[Melanie]

Congrats Gilliatt! Well, deserved.

[Dark Muse]

The Final Hour

Once again I spend
another sleepless night,
for every time I feel slumbers
embrace near, it comes awake,
and insists that I too must
waken to its harsh screeching cries.

However many times I have tired,
civilly to make it hush,
it is determined to intrude
into my dreams, and rob me
of such sweet delights.

Perhaps I am loosing my mind,
but I begin to detect
something sinister in its squawking,
I imagine when I pass down the hall
it watches me malevolently
already plotting its next torment.

No more can I take of this,
something must be done,
half out of my mind, with blood shot eyes,
hammer held in trembling hand,
I venture my way into the shadow
draped hall where ghostly the curtains
seem to dance.

I steel my nerves for there can be
no turning back, it must be done,
all too soon I find myself standing
before my nemesis, and at the midnight hour
as it prepares once more to devastate me,
I bring the hammer down.

For all averred, I had killed the bird,
the cuckoo has chimed its last,
wretched the clock now pulverized,
briefly I wonder what the family would think
to see their heirloom smashed to smithereens,
but alas what care I?

For at long last
solace is mine.

[prendrelemick]

The Surfin' Mariner

He said,
You are the third,
He said,
Let me tell you about the bird,
He said,
Have you heard,
The word,
About the bird?
The bird is dead
He said
For all averred,
I'd killed the bird,
But Have you heard,
The word,
About the bird?
He said.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

promotional bump and set deadline - end of day Saturday August 10th

[YesNo]

You haven't heard? I killed the bird!
I shot it good and dead.
Now comes the curse, but what is worse
They've hung it from my head.
They think that this will help them miss
The consequences. Well,
We all must die. I can't deny
With this I look like hell.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

Looking good...

[Melanie]

A parody from the Sound of Music's "My Favorite Things"
and The Ancient Mariner's "For all averred I had killed the bird"

Bird drops on noses, plucked feathers on chickens
Bright yellow yolks that are poached to perfection
Thanksgiving turkeys all trussed up with strings
These AREN'T a few of my favorite things.

Cream colored egg whites baked into a Streudel
The Colonel's fried chicken is sold by the oodles
Super Bowl Sunday serves barbecue wings
These AREN'T a few of my favorite things.

When the deficit bites
When spending cuts sting
When we're feeling had
I'll simply remember, as for all averred
That I had once killed Big Bird.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

It is difficult for me to judge others poems, since I am not well acquainted with the "nuts and bolts" of the form coupled with the fact that the past few weeks have been extremely daunting at work, so my muse has been suppressed. On the other hand, I think it's safe to say that this particular category is not to be taken too seriously, so having said that I'll apologize in advance for completely missing a key point or other underlying message you were hoping to convey.
All right enough with the disclaimers!

Pendragon

Tony Rocco along with Camshaft, China Charlie, Sally, et al., did I get the connection right? Either way, I was reminded of the private eye saga you and Sancho had going that was quite entertaining. Messin with the mob is not a good idea, especially when it involves the kingpin. Killing the “bird” in life, only sealed your eternal fate to fear him in death. Prometheus perhaps.

Funny thing; at first read I wasn’t clear on the significance of or who is Tony Rocco, so I did a search and found this…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7d63llHoKPA

Dark Muse

Haha, you had me proceeding with trepidation as I entered another of your dark realms, carefully taking in each word so as not to face embarrassment at overlooking a deeper sincere message you were trying to express.
A coo coo clock! masterful.

Prendrelemick

Forget the fact that I killed the bird, that’s beside the point.
I’m asking you, have you heard the word?

btw- Putting the original Trashmen aside, this is my second choice:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjpHUXqHfCI

YesNo

Simple, clean and well metered, though I couldn’t tell what meter/form, all I know is it rolls off the tongue as smooth as a peeled boiled egg.

Melanie

Initially, I was struggling with the connection of the first two stanzas with the last one, but now I believe I got it; the “killing” of birds for gluttony or those that devour the budget. Hehe
You nailed the meter to the tune, the last stanza I was having trouble with until I recalled that part of the song; again it is on the money. A humorous piece.

---------------
It was nearly a coin toss between Pendragon and Dark Muse. I couldn't locate a suitable coin and besides that would be taking the easy way out.

Pendragon, welcome to the winner's circle.

Well done all.

[Dark Muse]

Thank you Gilliatt and congrats to Pendragon

[Melanie]

Thank you for those thoughtful critiques Gilliatt. I liked your interpretation and it was humor, however, my poem was more literal and in reference to when Mitt Romney was campaigning for President and stated that he was going to cut the budget by cutting all funding to PBS. Big Bird is the star of PBS's popular "Sesame Street". PBS fans accused Romney of wanting to kill Big Bird. Fans were irate so SNL and other comedians picked up on it. So the poem is a lament by Romney as he back-peddled his statement and tried to say he was on Big Bird's side (romney being opposed to poultry processing in the poem). Romney never recovered from that nor other campaign missteps. In retrospect, I can see where I didn't give enough info about the PBS incident in my poem. That's why feedback is helpful. Thank you.

Congratulations, Pendragon!! Good poem!

[Pendragon]

Ah, thank you, thank you. Aside, Tony Rocca just sounded like a mob name that's all. As Freud said, "Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar!"

The new quoted line is from Lewis Carroll. It is in the poem of The White Knight from Through the Looking Glass.


"I'll tell thee everything I can, there's little to relate."

Winner posted last day of August!

God Bless!

Pen

[YesNo]

"I'll tell thee anything I can.
The rest will have to fade.
Before the universe began
The cosmic egg was laid.
Its nest was that fresh field of green
Eternally aware
And when it hatched though yet unseen
It rushed out without care."

That's when he paused. I had to know
Who laid that wondrous egg.
Did silence mean his mind was slow
Or that I'd have to beg:
But why would someone do such things
So marvelous to see?
"You wonder why the singer sings?"
The white knight smiled at me.

I want to know the truth for once
And not some fairy tale.
I dared that knight. I'm not a dunce.
"No harm done when you fail.
And then it all became so bright,
Like light was just turned on,
The universe was set for sight.
The cosmic egg was gone."

Where did it go? You're so unclear.
Your evidence is slim.
I felt the knight move slowly near.
My eyes stayed fixed on him.
"Who wants to know?" He softly said
And then came this surprise:
"Who needs to know? The field's a bed.
The universe now flies."

The black knight suffered his disgrace
One that I might have made
While I was busy with that face
With cosmic eggs around the place
With wonders I would soon erase
As from my mind they fade.

[prendrelemick]

A Tragic Tale of Lies, Deceit and Death.

I'll tell you everything I can,
There's little to relate,
I first set eyes on Billy Brown,
Coming in the garden gate.

He had a tiger on a string,
And a monkey on his arm,
A parakeet was on his head,
but he kept a sense of calm.

About his coat some field mice ran,
Pursued by a tabby cat,
And from his waist coat pocket,
Emerged a fat brown rat.

Around each leg there coiled a snake,
One red, the other blue,
And in the air above his head,
A flock of ravens flew.

He crossed the lawn to where I stood,
And raised his parrot hat,
In educated tones he asked,
If I had seen his gnat.

"I had him half a mo ago,
I swear I heard his buzz,
But now he's gone and wandered off,
It's the kind of thing he does."

"He's in with a bad crowd you see,
Of mosquitos lowly bred,
He's out all hours sucking blood,
He thinks it gives street cred."

I'd seen a cloud of midges,
Dancing in the sun,
but that was half an hour ago,
And certainly more than one.

There were greenfly on the peonies,
But their colour was all wrong,
So I couldn't tell Billy Brown,
Where his gnat had gone.

"If you see him send him home,"
Adding "Eric is his name,"
Then he whistled to the tiger,
And left the way he came.

When He'd gone I hung my head,
Filled with guilty shames,
For well I knew that on my arm,
Were Eric's squashed remains.

[Melanie]

I'll tell thee everything I can,
It twas me.
There's little to relate.

[cacian]

I'll tell thee everything I can, there's little to relate
and when enough is laid
to say almost all that is made
too much would not aid
and hardly would not faith
even when it's late
life aims it rate judging it won't fade.

[Pendragon]

YesNo Great imagery, but you left out the second part of the quote: You had "I'll tell thee everything I can" but left out "There's little to relate."

Prendrelmick: Not only used the lines well, but I'm thinking you know the original poem.

Melanie: Very minimalist poetry!

Cacian: Nice little poem.

Enjoyed all the entries, but the nod goes to prendrelmick, who must surely have read the original poem!

You're up!

[prendrelemick]

i hadn't read that particular one , but I know Carroll's style and tried to copy it - where you start a little oddly, then go completely surreal, while maintaining a perfectly reasonable tone.

Next. From the opening paragraph of Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier


"Time could not wreck the perfect symmetry of those walls,"

have fun.

[Dark Muse]

Stonehenge

I remember it like a dream
those many years ago
(more than mere years ago)
standing on mystic nights
beneath Mother Moon
within the sacred circle of stones.

They alone know the secrets
of their creation, and they remain
silent, watching guardians
of the world.

But there are those who ever since
come to pass through,
to kneel at their feet,
to pray to the cosmic skies,
to feel the trembling of power
that even then was ancient.

Now when there are fewer
who listen to the old gods
(though I assure you they are not dead, they are not lost)
as the world has reshaped itself
and long lay the bones of the ones
who hold the key to the mystery of the past.

I stand here once more,
though only briefly, as the ravens
come to my dreams and bring me,
and I am transported through time and space,
time could not wreck the perfect symmetry of those walls,
they remain untouched, ever daunting,
in all their stoic majesty,
just as they did once upon a time ago,
when I came to answer my calling.

[Pendragon]

A Prison Doesn't Always Have Iron Bars...

He weeps as he stares at the walls of his prison
Doing life in solitary is so freaking hard
Walls built out of fear and rejection
His own hands built the cell that imprisons him now

Some say that time is the antidote for everything
That if you wait things out, sunshine follows the rain
Yet time could not wreck the perfect symmetry of those walls
No window, no doorway, no way of escape

People can see through the walls he cannot pass
They see openings that are hidden from his eyes
No one takes his hand and leads him out of his prison
So he sits and weeps behind timeless brick walls...

Pendragon
(C) 9/2/2013

[YesNo]

Time would never wreck that wall
Symmetrical or not.
There's others who might help it fall
If they think they have got
The urge to change things. After all,
Why should a person care
If something short meets something tall
To block something out there?

That ancient wall is not yet gone.
Huge hints of it remain.
It's blocking our fresh seeded lawn,
But lets through sun and rain.
Someone piled each stone upon
Another perfectly
Symmetrical then time moved on
To us so we might see.

[prendrelemick]

The winner is Pendragon. - well written and profound.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

Nice work.
My Muse has been stymied for the time being.

[Pendragon]

Thank you, very much

OK back to my pulp fiction/OTR roots for this quote:

"In the roaring heart of the crucible, steel is made."

Good Luck!

[Dark Muse]

Forged in Fire

It was a land of fire,
barren and arid,
unforgiving,
depraved of nourishment
and sheltering comfort,
within this waste
the child was forsaken,
defenseless,
with only blood,
as often his own, than not
to quench his thirst.

Within the roaring heart
of the crucible
steel is made,
and against the odds
the child became
a man who learned
to watch the world
with weary, cold eyes,
yet, within his hands
he held the power to heal,
though death was no stranger
of his, but a constant shadow.

His heart burned,
not with hatred,
but with a passion for love,
his strength carried him through,
and hardened him in places,
sharpened his mind,
attuned his senses,
but did not leave him brittle,
and merciless.

The land of the lost
did not leave him broken,
or twisted, did not rob him
of beauty and tenderness,
he learned to forge his own path,
and began the quest to find
the home he had never known.

[cacian]

In the roaring heart of the crucible, steel is made
it is to sake
wood from cutting its fame.
steel has a wheel
it turns heat and then it keeps.
wood
has a mood.
it turns dust when it heats.
but then it heaps
and it grows.
and it leaps.
all around nature is
its reap.
beauty has its seek
but wood has it deep
steel would not seep.

[Pendragon]

Total lack of interest, except for the faithful two; Dark Muse just barely edges out cacian! Congrats,Muse!

The quote was from the cover blurb for The Avenger Warner Paperbacks

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HVibMIpqF-c/Uazz95QEXTI/AAAAAAABegY/rPEwgNCfQmg/s1600/148+Kenneth+Robeson+The+Purple+Zombie+Warner.JPG

[Dark Muse]

Thank you, I will have a new quote up soon.

[Dark Muse]

Ok here is the next line:

Some are born to Endless Night
Auguries of Innocence ~ William Blake

Deadline - Nov. 5

[Pendragon]

We hide from the sun
All pale as death
Eyes too sensitive for daylight
We walk in the shadows
We hide in concealing dark
The Night is our Mother
Some are born to Endless Night
To embrace the shadows
To thrive in the darkness
Knowing the secrets men hide in the shadows
Knowing what people conceal in the darkness
Deeds that they bury beneath our Mother's starry skirt
But they think us fools...

Pendragon
10/24/2013

[YesNo]

Some are born to endless night
Though I'd like mine an endless day.
Some like both, the dark, the light.
Some don't care, let come what may.

[Dark Muse]

Ok the Deadline is coming up in a few days and so far we have only two entries. Any other takers?

[cacian]

some are born to endless nights
awake
supercharged
idealistic pasts
to their mast
they least
seem to ask
unknowing
of their cast
wishing they could
too
one day rest at last.

[cacian]

bump :)

[Dark Muse]

I haven't forgotten, I am just not feeling very well at the moment. Hopefully I will be able to get to it tomorrow.

[Melanie]

It's okay. Take your time and take care of yourself. This can wait.
(Btw, I tried to participate and the quote was great but it made me think of sad things and I just didn't feel like writing a sad poem at this time. Sad things makes for good poetry though and I really liked William Blake's Auguries of Innocence)

[Dark Muse]

It's okay. Take your time and take care of yourself. This can wait.
(Btw, I tried to participate and the quote was great but it made me think of sad things and I just didn't feel like writing a sad poem at this time. Sad things makes for good poetry though and I really liked William Blake's Auguries of Innocence)

Thank you, and yes I can understand that. I do love Blake, he is one of my favorites.

[prendrelemick]

Some are born to endless night,
Try to avoid those folks on sight,
If you don't 'twould serve you right,
When they give your neck a nasty bite.

[Dark Muse]

Thank you everyone who entered, you all did great, and this was a tough one to decide.

YesNo: I think this was an amusing play on the old rhyme Some like it hot, some like it cold. I enjoyed this poem, and particularly liked the last line.

cacian: I really enjoyed this one, even if as always I remain somewhat baffled by its meaning. You have such a great use of words, and your poems always beg for a second or third reading. I particularly enjoyed the first few lines. It kind of made me think of the Beats or the lost generation. Idealistic artists perhaps having their delusions shattered.

prendrelemick: This one made me laugh out loud. I enjoyed the bit of dark humor it. I am glad you were able to contribute before the judging commenced.

and the winner is.....

Pendragon: Of course I love this one. I very much enjoyed the dark atmosphere of this poem, and I think it was quite appropriate for Halloween. There was some great imagery. Very delightfully Gothic.

[cacian]

Dark Muse I hope you are feeling better and thank you for the feedback,
Pendragon congratulations !!!:)

[Dark Muse]

Dark Muse I hope you are feeling better and thank you for the feedback,
Pendragon congratulations !!!:)

Yes, I am thank you.

[Pendragon]

Sorry about the delay, I have a lot of personal issues at the moment

Let's see:

"Whose woods these are I think I know" is the new line, quoted from Robert Frost--"Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening"

Let's set the deadline for my birthday, November 24th. Good luck, all! :thumbsup:

[YesNo]

Whose woods are these I think I know.
I used to walk here long ago
And watch the trees turn sun to shade.
A tiny brook rushed on below.

The debts from those years have been paid.
They seem like trifles as they fade
To memories that won't move on
But tease me with the dreams I made.

Those dreams were nothing in the dawn.
When light exposed them they were gone.
When love moved on I meant to say,
"To whom, my dear, are you now drawn?"

But I said nothing that cold day
Just walked these woods in the same way
I've walked these woods let come what may
And walked these woods let come what may.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

Calling this a Frankly Wild and Frosty Tail


We were heading southwest,
moon on my back,
riding shotgun with my master
on a swayback gelding.
Master’s name is Currier Ives.
I am Buck the IV,
descended from that Great Yukon tail
out of London, as in Jack.
We chanced upon a grove of Dogwoods,
that lost their bark,
after winter’s first frost nipped their blooms.
Great Horned owl bellowed,
across a landscape bathed in moon’s daguerreotype.
Trigger paused,
his breath split by the bit.
Master Ives pondered and thirsty.
A primordial notion
led me forward into the wood
whereupon I met
two paths diverged northwest and southeast.
Yes, yes, I’m recalling
whose woods these are I think I know.
stories from my past,
conveyed through barks, pawed symbols in the snow.
It was here,
where Captain Thornton so many years ago
scooped to slack
his thirst with forbidden crystals.
A shiver shake,
brought me back to the present, turning round,
I was terrified,
seeing Master Ives reach down on the northwest path
to quench his thirst.
My hind quarters lunged, I made a burst
to stop the hand;
barking out “that’s where the huskies go,
don’t you eat that yellow snow!”

I led Master Ives and Trigger down the southeast path.
It was less travelled.

-----------------------

My apologies to Robert Frost, Jack London, Frank Zappa, Currier and Ives and Roy Rogers.

A Dogwood tree:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Bgbo_cornus_kousa_var_chinensis_ies.jpg/274px-Bgbo_cornus_kousa_var_chinensis_ies.jpg

Parting song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLIppgE45wM

[Dark Muse]

The Girl and the Wolf

The girl in red walked these paths
uncharted and unknown
with such an innocent guile
but inwardly she smiled
"Whose woods these are I think I know"
she spoke with a flutter of breath
upon the crisp morning air.
"Than more the fool are you"
the voice from unknown shadows spoke,
while the wolf grinned his toothy smile,
she twirled around, her face flush,
her eyes aglitter,
but it was not fear which stirred
within her young robin's breast
as her eyes befell upon the beast
who slinked from the shadows
in silent stealth contemplating
this delicious morsel, who stood
atremble, and yet so daring before him,
"I have lost my way"
she said but there seemed a coy
curl of her lips and flick of her lash
while unabashed she fixed her gaze upon him,
"And I will be happy but to lead you farther astray"
said he, and his voice had the allure
of the darkest depths, and deepest mysteries,
she was more than lost,
and there was no turning back,
with shocking determination she laid her hand
upon his back, her fingers sifting through
the coarse silk of his fur,
and so she followed where he led,
like a lamb lead to slaughter,
and yet, it was triumph
not defeat she felt offering a last
wistful smile to the world
she once knew.

[prendrelemick]

Whose woods these are I think I know.

After the fall,
Winter.
Silence sits like snow on branches,
We are bent down by it's heaviness,
Our stares pointed as needles,
Hearts hard set like amber resin,
Thoughts harsh like pine bark,
As unrelenting as tree root,
We wander back over frozen ground,
Past fallen boughs
Down hopeless paths,
These are our woods,
We are lost .

[cacian]

whose woods these are I think I know
they seem to blend and grow
to the sun and bow
every day
the scene is a simple glow
rivers from the sea
pebbled combed and sown
ride down to a moat
castle styled and homed
and
pathways made of trees
ebonies and teaks
wind out to a foam
fairy land of tones
to the skies above
it's mardi gras of shows.

[Pendragon]

Sorry, I'm going through very hard times (mentally ill). Bipolar flare-up. Winner is Dark Muse. seemed to be a retelling of Red Riding Hood.

[cacian]

Pendragon I hope you are feeling better soon:seeya:. Dark Muse congratulations!!

[Dark Muse]

Sorry, I'm going through very hard times (mentally ill). Bipolar flare-up. Winner is Dark Muse. seemed to be a retelling of Red Riding Hood.

Thank you and yes you are correct. Hope you feel better soon, I will have the new quote up soon.

[Dark Muse]

Ok next quote:

The vast immortal suns, and the long-enduring pensive moons

From On the Beach At Night by Walt Whitman

Deadline Dec. 5

[Pendragon]

All gathered here we read the sacred runes,
Neath the vast immortal suns, and the long-enduring pensive moons
Time for feasting, the event comes soon
To revel, and drink, to carve a fowl under the harvest moon
The vast immortal suns first saw our race
The long-enduring pensive moons our hearts embraced
The annual ritual of contrite thanks
As the feast is served on the preserved oak planks
Of the ship that brought us to this fair shore
So we devour our share and long for more...

(C) 2013 Pendragon

[YesNo]

"Above us are the vast immortal suns,
And all those long-enduring pensive moons
And most of them we cannot even see."
And so he rambled on methodically.
Immortal this, and more immortal that
While I began to weary with his words
Rejecting them with righteous, rich despair,
Until I yelled, "There's nothing Godly there!"
That silenced him for longer than I thought.
I figured he was strong while I was weak.
He never spoke to me again of what
He saw through inner visions of the sky,
While I, consumed with sparkling mortal things,
Delighted in the conquest I had made,
Delaying daily with reality
Deep in my cave, a lush, well-furnished grave.

[EvoWarrior5]

Hey what's up. Don't mind me joining in!
I wanted to try out a game other than the Picture Poetry one so I ended up here. It seemed really interesting to me so I'm giving it a try ^^

Here's my poem:


The vast, immortal sun and moon

The vast, immortal sun and moon, floating in the sky.
Forever turning, switching places. How do they get by?
Man fights for freedom, and we strive for immortality.
While sun and moon are stuck up high there, in captivity.

And all that they can do is gaze, and yearn for company.
But all that they can see ahead’s the Earth, happy and free.
They want to get together, so they start their endless chase.
To meet, ever so rarely, in that blessed, short embrace.

To us, it’s an event that seems like night during the day.
To them, it’s an occurrence that feels so blissful and gay.

They never asked to do this job, but no one hears their voice.
We never asked them anything, they never had a choice.
But dutifully these vast eternal bodies keep their shine.
They still provide us with the light, and ever so divine.

It’s funny when you realise we are taking them for granted.
Their endless grace with which we have become so disenchanted.
Sometimes I wish that we could help them, bring them down to Earth.
Where they can live a mortal life together, full of mirth.


I must say that I am pretty happy with how it turned out. It was a lot of fun to make, too! So fun that it made me stay up 'till extremely late.

- Evo

[EvoWarrior5]

Bump :)

[Dark Muse]

I haven't forgotten, I have just had stuff going on. I will try to get to it tonight.

[Dark Muse]

Great job everyone. This was a touch one to judge.

YesNo: Nicely done, I quite enjoyed reading this one. It was both humorous and philosophical, and I thought cleverly done. I really liked the contrast between the two individuals in the poem. I could picture the scene within my mind.

EvoWarrior5: I thought this was a very interesting perspective of the Sun and Moon and I quite enjoyed it. It brought to mind some of the various different mythological stories about them. The idea of the sun and moon being captives in the sky and watching the freedom of people on earth with envy was interesting.

And the winner is.....

Pendragon: Really like this, there is some wonderful imagery here, and I really like the atmosphere this poem sets. I love the allusion to some long ago ancient rites. This time of year it brings me to mind of the first Winter Solstice celebrations. There were some beautiful and well crafted lines.

[Pendragon]

Thank you. The lines lead easily to ritual.

Let's see here: OK. the line is from Emily Dickinson: "Because I could not stop for Death, he kindly stopped for me."

[YesNo]

Because I could not stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me
To make me pause upon the path
I traveled anxiously.

And as we paused the world went by
Consumed along its way.
Could someone be that kind to me?
Wait for me every day?

[EvoWarrior5]

Death, oh Death

The time has come to leave this life
that once belonged to me.
But I do not have time to stop
so Death, please stop for me.

My life has been a life that is
as good as life can be.
But Death, oh Death, thou cryptic shade,
I cannot stop for thee.

How pristine is this carriage that
rides ever through debris.
Now Death, oh Death, thou wondrous shade
please hear my cry, my plea:

I’ve packed my bags, said my goodbyes,
I’m ready to be free.
But I do not have time to stop
so Death, please stop for me.

[jajdude]

Death is known for his kindness and as such he stops here and there,
Takes care of passengers who have lost their way.
He checks into old folk homes, so I've heard.
He looks after the atrophied.

I met him once, in the park, he was sad.
He said, this business of mine is not always easy.
How do I go on, he asked.
With the weight of life and this damn heavy cape.

I assured him, and Death I said, no one wants your job.
It's uncool, and plus I bet the pay stinks.
I offered him a ride back to his motel.
He was good enough to say, well I'll help pay for gas.

I couldn't wait too long, seeing I had life to do.
But he kindly waited for me.

I suppose he might even give me a few extra years out of that.
A few lousy years, perhaps.
Not sure he had much of a sense of humor.

[EvoWarrior5]

Happy new year and bump!

[Pendragon]

Only YesNo used the exact quoted line, which is the purpose of this contest. Congrats, YesNo!

[EvoWarrior5]

Oh I thought that you could change up the line and still conform to the rules provided your poem fits the theme. Shame.

[jajdude]

Congrats YesNo.

(I thought a close approximation that stuck to the theme might work.)

[YesNo]

Thanks, Pendragon! Sorry for the late response.

The next quote is from E. E. Cummings: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/E._E._Cummings


I'd rather learn from one bird how to sing
than teach ten thousand stars how not to dance.

Deadline: January 26th

On this page is the text of the poem "you shall above all things be glad and young" containing the quoted lines: http://www.abuddhistlibrary.com/Buddhism/H%20-%20World%20Religions%20and%20Poetry/Poetry/Other%20Writers/ee%20cummings/Poetry%20by%20ee%20cummings.htm

[windblown]

i'd rather - feather the skies and
learn - sing with birdsong spring
from one bird - one feather has all the song
how to sing - in one egg lies all birdsong feathering the skies

than - dark night frightnight
teach - teachers see nolight
ten thousand stars - deep frightskies blightsight
how not to - never never-ending nightblight
dance

- little star with birdsong filling nightskies

[Pendragon]

I'd rather see the midnight sky than lights of cities in the dark
I'd rather learn from one bird how to sing than teach ten thousand stars how not to dance
I'd rather hear a loved one's last faint whisper than a million voices spewing hate
I'd rather know I touched a single life than feel ten thousand slip away
I'd rather know a little of everything than be fool enough to think I know it all
I'd rather taste one sweet victory than savor a million defeats
I'd rather smell one tiny flower than inhale the essence of war and blood
I'd rather write a single poem than pen manifestos to rock the world
I'd rather live a single life and face my problems than live forever and live a lie...

Pendragon
(C) January 7, 2014

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

How Marilyn Got Her Coo

Stepping onto Apollo's parquet plain,
Marilyn hosts her troupe in solid gold.
Spandex fleece for a shimmering cotillion,
her choreographed dream was about to unfold.

But gods doth tease and sway our hopes
Marilyn's train crashed; a desultory dance.
In solitude she peered through Coleridge "fleecy veil",
to the zodiac gods for a second chance.

Helen abides in Aquarius' forest;
the goddess Lark whose trills do please.
Her soft refrain, the quest of mortals
(during the '40's, she was Artie's squeeze.)

Marilyn gazed into the firmament.
Helen's visage perched on Aquarius' hand.
Pondering a thought she snapped a Hemlock
and quoted the following in Psamathe sand:

"I'd rather learn from one bird how to sing
than teach ten thousand stars how not to dance."
At this melancholic plea, Helen tipped the urn
pouring dulcet nectar on her cords to enhance.

Dawns warming rays lifted Marilyn's voice
beyond Olympus to the fifth dimension.
No longer burdened with parachute pants,
her coordinate reached at right ascension.


Inspirations:

Marilyn McCoo and Solid Gold
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IKNrTxP9U-8

Helen Forrest and Artie Shaw
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PkFexfgZ3CA

5th Dimension
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kjxSCAalsBE&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DkjxSCAalsBE

[miyako73]

A Song To My Mother, A Dance With My Father



I'd rather learn from one bird how to sing
Than gather all the hymns of the morning
Or all the notes and rhythms of May spring.

It is my curse to sing lullabies as firstborn
And as a son to a mother beaten and torn
It is my destiny to offer a song then mourn.

My raging feet know the mad lyrics of the tango
But my mouth only whistles the bass and its flow
As my hands’ revenge goes deep and very slow.

Inside this world of iron bars and concrete walls
Where I wait for rare letters and quick phone calls
I sing to the ceiling and dance until the curtain falls.

I’d rather slide on a blade, hop and step on a lance
And tumble to the orchestra of my fate and chance
Than teach ten thousand stars how not to dance.

[jajdude]

miyako, that is beautiful.

[prendrelemick]

Crikey! I think I'll pass, the standard's too high for me.

[cacian]

I'd rather learn from one bird how to sing
than teach ten thousand stars how not to dance.
that is because a bird is a music heard
all over the fern
its twitter earns
symphony sterns compare to its learn
a star bothers not it is too high up
to cult
who cares if it dances as long as it lances
giving the view a moving prance
that is better then a dance
anytime of the salse.
sky is lured.

[cacian]

YesNo I think this one is time's up ;)

[YesNo]

Right, cacian. I'll get a response tomorrow morning.

[YesNo]

Here are the results. Thanks to all who participated!

windblown: This poem represented an interesting technique. If I just read the part after the hyphen, there is a nice series of rhyme on the "light" sound with hope in the first stanza and fright in the second.

Pendragon: The first line about the midnight sky and city lights seemed to go well with the last where one lived a life well facing one's problems as compared to living an eternal lie.

Gilliatt Gurgle: The line where the Gods "tease" and "sway our hopes" keeps coming back to me. I usually think of them as more blunt. Nice homage to Marilyn.

miyako73: I liked the last two lines. They flowed with the meter. It seems as if this is from the perspective of the father in prison or a son who is imprisoned and who remembers a beaten mother.

cacian: You make a good point in this poem. The bird and its song are more significant to us than those stars.

I have no clue who really should win this and I was thinking of procrastinating further because I can't decide.

But I have delayed too long.

The winner: miyako73

[miyako73]

Okay... here it is:

Let's use this by Neruda:

“It was at that age
that poetry came
in search of me.”

Deadline: On the last second of February

[Dark Muse]

The Age of Poetry

From the first moments breath,
it seemed a flutter,
something caught just in the eye-corner,
yet tantalizing out of reach,
and completely beyond comprehension.
it remained, something taunting,
a laughter in the wind,
a stalker in the shadows,
a seducer of dreams.
then there came the long winter-like hush,
and I shall not know
if it was I who caused offense,
or if it cruelly discovered
fairer game to engage in
catch-me-if-you-can,
forget-me-not,
masquerades.

There descended
the long era of darkness,
and even if at times I wanted to strangle it,
now I am the one to become suffocated,
left voiceless,
the precarious time
of angst rages
unchecked rebellion
a need for destruction,
both internal and external,
It was at that age that poetry came
in search of me once more,
now clearly defined,
no longer a phantom
but a raging force
not to be denied
but ready to be harnessed,
to create worlds,
bring ruin to civilizations,
to speak of that which
has no words.

[Pendragon]

Singing a New Song

Looking back on my life and how it has been
Do I really want to walk down those roads again?
Youth and inexperience were ruining my life
Feeling like I should be pleasing people all of the time
About the day I woke up and realized I could see:
It was at that age that poetry came in search of me...

So I follow my heart, walk my own path
I no longer fear the icy certainty of death
If people don't understand and they get in the way
I just smile and whisper, "Have a nice day!"
The music of nature and the sounds of the sea:
It was at that age that poetry came in search of me...

I won't say it isn't lonely or the road doesn't grow dark
But beneath the cloak of midnight you can see the faintest spark
People that I tried to please, still shake their heads and turn way
So tell how is that any different, they never chose to stay
Eyes now filled with brightness, a better life I see:
It was at that age that poetry came in search of me...

Pendragon
(C) February 6, 2014

[prendrelemick]

Life poetry.


It was in that age
that poetry came
In search of me.

But I was watching my mother's hands,
Thumping out the rhythm of the dough,
Pushing back a loose strand of hair,
Leaving a streak of floured sable,
The first touch of grey,
Recalling times yet to come.

And later.

But I was away gathering sheep,
Striding across the high moor,
In the company of skylarks,
Watching the sleek black dogs,
Lift and plunge like porpoises,
Through purple heather billows.

And again.

But I was holding my grand daughter,
And feeling the light of her existence
Suffuse each atom of myself and of every other thing,
With a warmth like a poem of spring,
Melting away an old man's rime,

So it never found me,
But did not need to look,
I was never lost,
Nor held by any book.

[miyako73]

I'm sorry for the late verdict. I just could not easily decide. All three are good. Maybe the winner wins only by .1 in my imaginary pointing system.

I like Dark Muse's use of words.

I like Pendragon's narrative.

Prendrelemick has both. He wins, and this is the .1 that makes him win:

"But I was away gathering sheep,
Striding across the high moor,
In the company of skylarks,
Watching the sleek black dogs(,)
Lift and plunge like porpoises(,)
Through purple heather billows."

Thanks,

Miyako

[prendrelemick]

Thanks .

Next up some Christina Rossetti

My heart is like a singing bird.

[YesNo]

My heart is like a singing bird
Responding to what it has heard,
A lonely lover in the spring,
Responding to a tease, something
That's waiting out there, like a friend,
Who gives my fear a fearless end.

[Dark Muse]

Heartbeat

His heart beat
was like an eagle's wings,
thunderous, strong,
beating freely, wild
at times seeming untamable
ungraspable,
yet there were moments
it could soar silently,
barely perceptible
and within these
moments of serenity
I knew its warmth,
it's life, were for me
and only me,
and then my heart
is like a singing bird.

[Pendragon]

My heart is like a singing bird
Enclosed within a golden cage
I sing to keep from weeping
I laugh to still the rage
I weep sometimes and tremble
Often I cannot find the words
But engaged or free, sorrow or sunshine
My heart sings like a tiny bird...

Pendragon
(C) 3/10/2014

[prendrelemick]

Bump.

One week to go.

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

Presence of Evidence

My heart is like a singing bird
The Lark within is gently purred
My master is none too pleased
Feathers flew out when I sneezed

[prendrelemick]

GG. Beautiful allegory of the dangers of trying to swallow Morpheus Sandman's arguments on that other thread. Explosive plucking is the best result one could hope for.

Yesno. Simple and straight forwards as usual

A tie between Dark Muse and Pendragon. Pen as usual has a story I can relate to, while the Muse has poetry perfection. Hmm...

On re-reading I shall give it to Dark Muse. such a well crafted poem, it grows on you at each reading. Lovely imagery.

[Majesty]

Time will say nothing but i told you so,
eat that pill so you will imagine no more;
remember the metaphors poets used
are common language and ancient tools
discarded in time and recycled again.
what is new? you asked,while carrying
a gene of your father's dad.

what is there to say or make?
we spent all life hallucinating
about existential eternity
when nothing gold can stay.
all things will die!
all things will crumble,
shall i compare life to a gameshark'ed pokemon game?
there is no fun anymore,
the day you know
is when you choose to lie or go.

tonight i can write a list of dead people,
the march hare spoke to me
in multiple voices; nautilus's hermit
reminded me the simplicity
of writing something imagined
and not experienced,
we are never passing facts,
given that we never were facts.

let me have my decided end,hemingway
with red eyes spawned from a corner;
a large figure essentially begging.
a choir of patients rambled:
the world is too much with us..
i know,when
they have fears that they may never cease to be,
that misery shouts: back out of all this now too much for us.

we are all judges of each other's show,
the stage is disfigured from our disapprovals;
together we make the caged bird
lose its voice.
what then? Asked a common life.
maybe we should all believe
perhaps the roses really want to grow.

[prendrelemick]

^Nice work your Majesty.

[2X2E5]

Entering a supermarket with
my glossy new red sunglasses.
The shelves, crates, fridges
are all filled with bear, pumping,
breathing, spitting blood hearts.
On the shelves in neat rows,
with students cleaning up
the bloodied floors.
Long and tall corridors of shelves
and a frosty wall of bloodied refrigerators.
Walking through you hear one big thump every 3 seconds,
you're eyes report that all heart's beats are apart.
Its easy to lose your sense of this rooms capacity
and air, and get absorbed in the inconsistency of
your eyes and ears, its clear your heart closed itself
and is humbing only that melody your mom sang you
before going to bed, before the monsters reached your head.
The selves have different prices and different tags
all the products differ by their fat coatings and shining valves.
Walking through, and losing my
appetite, I'm not sure if I should take a heart and
spend my comfortable luxury at home
by bringing this messy product home.
I don't want to lean on any counters
I don't want to clean the trail I'll
leave after.
I'll put them in my basket and they'll drip
from the market, to the street, to my
home, and then in my stomach.
I miss the days I could see the grocery store
without a heartbeat.

[prendrelemick]

Two nice poems posted above, but alas too late. Judgement has already been pronounced, and Dark Muse has been declared the victor of this particular round.

[Dark Muse]

Thank you, I will have the next line up soon.

[Dark Muse]

Ok your next line is:

Gaze no more in the bitter glass

From The Two Trees by Yeats

Dealing April 10

[YesNo]

"Gaze no more in the bitter glass."
His jealousy still stalks my mind.
I let his marriage offer pass.
He's worried. Are there things I'll find?
But I will gaze where I feel best,
On any shallow pool or face.
Whatever truth I find I'll test.
Whatever's false I will replace.

[Dark Muse]

Today was the intended deadline but being there is only one entry so far, I will extend the deadline to April 20th

[Pendragon]

Withdrawn

[Dark Muse]

Sorry for the delay but I had been out sick, well it seems I only have one entry so you are up next YesNo, but I did really enjoy your poem and I think that it is worthy of the win.

[YesNo]

Thanks, Dark Muse!

The next quote is by James Russell Lowell:


Endurance is the crowning quality, and patience all the passion, of great hearts.

Deadline May 15th.

Here is something about the quote and the author: http://izquotes.com/quote/248257

I don't know what poem this comes from, if any, but it reads like two lines of blank verse.

[Dark Muse]

Endurance of the Heart

Gradually I watched myself
become transformed
into the lady of the tower,
but for you I wear it like a
badge of honor, though
there are moments I wish
we could grasp at more control
over our lives, instead of being
made to languish upon the end
of fate's string.

Endurance is the crowning
quality and patience
all the passion of great hearts,
so it is for our loves sake,
that I suffer to be bowed under
the shackles of life, for nothing
will break nor weaken
the strength which we grant each other.

Ever while the world
may try and keep us forced apart,
the moon is our constant
from which never we can be depraved,
and even while oceans may lie between us,
we watch the same night sky,
and in our dreams our souls
take flight where we dance
among the stars.

[YesNo]

Thanks, Dark Muse, for the entry!

The contest will close on May 31st.

[cacian]

Endurance is the crowning quality
and patience all the passion
of great hearts
love is to drive
the force that strive
and humility is the kindness
that derives the task
of multiplying the fact
that life
without any acts
such as these to asks
is barely
a last
harmony casts.

[Pendragon]

Love Song

Days grow dark, the shadows lengthen
On my cheek the tears drops glisten
Must we pass now like sand through the glass?
Is there no hope for our tomorrow
Must we earn our bread in sorrow
Or shall this wretched inconvenience also pass?

Endurance is the crowning quality,
and patience all the passion, of great hearts.
We shall rise again robed like royalty
When the fire begins to smoulder it restarts!

Once again, the sun is blazing
A million stars are there for gazing
Take my hand and we'll make I swear!
Turn from dusk and face the dawning
No goodbye, our hearts are calling
I am certain now that our pathway is so clear!

Endurance is the crowning quality,
Not just what we are but what we wannabe
Moment lived by moment through our years!
Patience all the passion, of great hearts
Love and warmth covers the hurt
Take my hand, we'll make it somehow, my dear...

Pendragon
(C) 5/31/2014

[YesNo]

Thank you for the entries!

Dark Muse: A love poem of separation. It reminded me of Sita's separation from Rama, but that may not have been your intent.

cacian: I liked the phrase "humility is the kindness".

Pendragon: I enjoyed the couplet: "Once again, the sun is blazing/A million stars are there for gazing"



And the winner is Dark Muse!

Congratulations!

[Dark Muse]

Thank you, I think it is always interesting to see what others draw from my poems. It was inspired by personal experience, and I had something of a cross between the Lady of Shallot and the Legend of Brunhilde in mind.

I will have a new quote up soon.

[Dark Muse]

Ok next line

She was a phantom of delight

from the poem of the same name by Wordsworth

Deadline June 10th

[YesNo]

She was a phantom of delight,
But heavy storms brought restless rain.
The clouds stayed dense and dark till night.
My mind felt trapped inside my brain.
I wanted only to embrace
The goddess who was smiling there
Where tears are strangers to her face
And here's as good as anywhere.

[Pendragon]

Kate Morgan: Hotel Coronado

Her restless spirit roamed the hallway
Her touch was felt upon the stairs
The scent of her perfume was in the parlor
Her footsteps echoed in the hall
You could almost taste the nectar of her lips
Her form was transparent yet round and firm
That is why I endured the haunting
She was a phantom of delight...

Pendragon
(C) 6/6/2014

[Dark Muse]

The deadline has passed but with only two entires I will extend the deadline to June 15th

[Dark Muse]

Wow this is a tough one, both these poems where great, and had a wonderful haunting atmosphere, and the quoted line fit seamlessly into each of them. I cannot truly say that I think one is better than the other, I might just have to flip a coin to decide this.

As I can only pick one winner I am going to give this one to Pendragon.

[Pendragon]

Thank you, Dark Muse.

Here's a line from a very short famous poem:

"As I was coming down the stair I met a man who wasn't there."

Good luck.

I will judge this contest July 4th.

[Dark Muse]

The Man Who Wasn't There

I knew at once I was not alone,
I felt it like an invisible touch,
was that not a creaking upon the step
I hear?

Yet do my mine eyes deceive me?
For no matter which way I look
I can see no one there,
a chill slid across my flesh.

A shadow I am certain I could detect,
a sound like laughter, and the tingle
of a breath stirring against my neck,
I am frozen in place wishing
this where some nightmare
from which I could awaken.

Let others say what they might,
for do this day I will still declare,
as I was coming down the stair
I met a man who wasn't there.

[YesNo]

As I was coming down the stair
I met a man who wasn't there.
Like other friends I like a lot
Sometimes they're real. Sometimes they're not.

[windblown]

As I was coming down the stair
I met a man who wasn't there
I really saw him, this I swear
I saw him and I felt his glare
But, unafraid, did not despair.

Who was this man who wasn't there?
What was his name? Jack, Tom or Pierre?
Maybe the ghost of Fred Astaire?
The ghost was sure a millionaire
and I? Was I perhaps his heir?