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Ashes

The cafe burnt alive as soon as you Set your patent leather boot inside And walked right into this unknown, Mysterious yet familiar world Of witty writers and pious poets With their poetic pens. My tantalizing timid eyes Met your musically amused eyes, And I heard a symphony unsung, Strange, how can you be just a stranger, When your eyes can speak so much danger, Then how much your heart would want to say, stranger. Strangers don't sing symphonies, Nor do they linger nostalgically Like a locket on an ashen neck. They don't even say hello, And there I sat with my cold heart, Wondering like a bashful bard, What were the chances, Those burning glances, And you left aloofly With your latte Leaving the ashes behind. Soot everywhere, Here and there, On my lips where Your eyes lingered, On my fingertips, Wanting to write The desires of the Waltzing, woozy heart.

Copyright © | Year Posted 2025




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Date: 6/20/2025 6:53:00 AM
I had that same experience with a spider web once....beautifully written in the silky spider web way...smooth, yet tinged with danger and passion. congrats on POTW...WELL DESERVED.
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/20/2025 10:18:00 PM
Dear John, thank you so much for your lovely note. I appreciate you, dear friend. Best, Anne
Date: 6/18/2025 4:14:00 AM
Superb portrayal of a magical vibrational connect. Warmest congratulations on POTW, Anne
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/18/2025 6:48:00 PM
Thank you so much, dear friend. I appreciate your lovely note :)
Date: 6/17/2025 5:55:00 PM
Dear Anne, your words hold depth and meaning. So deserving to be in the spotlight all week. Congratulations my sweet friend. Many wonderful blessings to you. :) Hugs, Brandy
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/18/2025 6:45:00 PM
Dear Brandy, what a joy it is to read your lovely notes, I appreciate you. Thank you so much :)
Date: 6/17/2025 12:48:00 PM
Congratulations on Poem of the Week, Anne Winter! Chills of desires flowing into a staccato cadence which makes my heart throb and fingers snap. A "Rogers and Heart" composition of melancholy aspects of love. Charming~
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/18/2025 6:43:00 PM
Ahh!! Your comment is so wonderful! Thank you so much, dear friend, I'm so grateful :)
Date: 6/17/2025 7:53:00 AM
- A wonderful poem with emotion, Anne ... congratulations on your p.o.t.w. ... enjoy your week :) - hugs
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/18/2025 6:42:00 PM
Dear Anne-Lise, thank you so much! I'm so grateful :)
Date: 6/16/2025 12:33:00 PM
Great alliteration, especially the ending 'Waltzing, woozy heart." Congrats on your POTD and thanks for sharing.
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/17/2025 5:21:00 AM
Dear Benjamin, thank you so much! I appreciate you :)
Date: 6/16/2025 7:41:00 AM
Dearest Anne, Look at you, my dear poet friend and getting POTW! I am so proud of you and I stand and applaud. Congratulations! Spring Blessings, and Hugs, My Dearest Anne, Daniel
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/16/2025 7:53:00 AM
Dearest Daniel, your kind words and encouragement mean the world to me. Thank you so much for always cheering for me, I truly appreciate you! Thank you for being my Mrs Dagenhart, my dearest friend. With love and respect always, Anne
Date: 6/16/2025 1:02:00 AM
Engaging poetry Anne, congratulations on receiving the honour of poem of the week… Beryl
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/16/2025 7:53:00 AM
Thank you so much, dear poet :)
Date: 6/15/2025 9:19:00 AM
I enjoyed this a lot Anne. Smouldering elegance. Congratulations! :)
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/16/2025 7:54:00 AM
Dear Linda, I'm glad you enjoyed my poem, thank you so much! :)
Date: 6/15/2025 8:53:00 AM
Congratulations on your POTW win. I enjoyed reading your write. Great Ending... Have a blessed day with your wonderful win............
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/16/2025 7:54:00 AM
Dear Paula, I'm glad you liked my poem, thank you so much!
Date: 6/15/2025 6:12:00 AM
congrats on your POTW designation. Love your poetic voice and style exemplified in this moving poem. Yellow Rose
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/16/2025 7:55:00 AM
Thank you so much, dear poet! I appreciate you! :)
Date: 6/15/2025 5:40:00 AM
Hey Anne enjoy your special week in the spotlight
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/16/2025 7:55:00 AM
Thank you so much Tom, I appreciate you :)
Date: 6/15/2025 3:49:00 AM
What a lovely unique style you have! Congratulations on potw!
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/16/2025 7:56:00 AM
Dear Karen, thank you so much for your lovely note! :)
Date: 6/14/2025 5:56:00 AM
A curious beginning… the musicality, symphony… Leaving the ashes behind. Soot everywhere, Here and there, On my lips… Enjoyed this write! Fave
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/15/2025 3:03:00 AM
Dear Kim, I love reading your lovely notes, I truly appreciate you! Best, Anne
Date: 6/14/2025 1:05:00 AM
Hi Anne,what a smoldering, evocative poem — it reads like a memory set aflame. The imagery is rich with romantic tension and poetic melancholy. I especially love how the poem plays with contrasts: fire and ash, mystery and familiarity, silence and symphony. There's a haunting beauty in the way the stranger's presence lingers long after they're gone, like soot in the soul. Truly atmospheric and emotionally stirring — it captures that fleeting moment of connection that feels eternal...Hugs
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/15/2025 3:02:00 AM
Dear Maria, I'm so glad how you deeply understood my poem. I appreciate your lovely words. I'm very grateful that you stopped by and read my poem. Best, Anne
Date: 6/13/2025 6:38:00 PM
What a breath of fresh poem this is. Your free verse style reminds me somewhat of my own. You deliver, Annie Deliver Winner, really enjoyed. Be blessed ... CayCay
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/15/2025 2:59:00 AM
Dear CayCay, I'm so glad you enjoyed my poem, I'm glad my free verse style resonates with your style. I appreciate you. Sending you love, Anne
Date: 6/13/2025 5:22:00 PM
in the intimacy of the cafe, this is brilliant and moving, so impressive poem have a nice week end
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/15/2025 2:58:00 AM
Dear Yann, your kind words mean a lot, I appreciate you :)
Date: 6/13/2025 2:44:00 PM
Hello Anne, this is a brilliant piece, beautifully executed and an excellent read. Wishing you a wonderful weekend my poet friend.
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/15/2025 2:57:00 AM
Dear Zyrool, thank you so much! I appreciate your comments! Have a wonderful day :)
Date: 6/13/2025 4:39:00 AM
Amazing isn't it, Anne, what a look can do sometimes, but we definitely don't know exactly what the person is thinking. Thanks for sharing this amazingly creative work with us. Sara K
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/13/2025 7:08:00 AM
Thank you, Sara! I love how a single look can spark so much imagination and connection. While most of the time we cannot know what a person is thinking, sometimes the eyes can reveal what words can't. I'm glad you enjoyed the poem, and I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts.
Date: 6/12/2025 11:27:00 PM
Your poetry is aflame with emotion and your brilliant alliterations sent up that café alight whilst the coffee latte spreads its delicious aroma. Your desire to write is embedded in your heart where even poetry can be written with soot. Your metaphors engage our hearts and makes your poem shine. Blessings.
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/13/2025 7:02:00 AM
Dear Victor, thank you so much for your beautiful and imaginative response! Your words mean a lot and I'm grateful for your kind encouragement. Your description of my poetry is a gift in itself :)
Date: 6/12/2025 6:12:00 PM
' Strangers don't sing symphonies. ' Seems that way, yet hearts connect instantly. So many emotions tangle through your words Anne. You're truly a gifted writer. Many wonderful blessings to you, my dear friend. Hugs, Brandy
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/13/2025 7:00:00 AM
Dear Brandy, your sweet words have warmed my heart. Thank you for being such a kind and supportive friend. I'm grateful for our connection and the joy of sharing words with you. Hugs back at you, my sweet friend :)
Date: 6/12/2025 6:15:00 AM
Haha! This fantasy came and went like a summer storm. No memories to be shared, just dust and ashes. Still, she had a moment. Nice write anne
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/13/2025 6:58:00 AM
Dear Tom, she indeed had a moment haha! No memories but only dust and ashes. Thank you for reading my poem :)
Date: 6/12/2025 4:01:00 AM
Dearest Anne, haunting and gorgeous and somehow both delicate and devastating at once. I read it and felt like I was sitting in that cafe, breathing in the smoke and the longing, watching and just the presence of someone can set a whole room (a whole life?) on fire. I could see the patent leather boots, the secret world of writers and poets. Isn’t it wild how a stranger can feel like a song you’ve always known? “Soot everywhere, here and there, on my lips where your eyes lingered”—Anne, that’s heartbreak and hope and hunger all at once. I felt it in my bones. Your fingertips wanting to write the desires of a “waltzing, woozy heart”it’s so vulnerable and honest. Every time I’ve ever sat in a room full of strangers and wondered what would happen if I let myself feel, or speak, or reach out. You my poet friend Anne, are becoming. Blessings and Hugs, Daniel
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Anne Winter
Date: 6/13/2025 6:55:00 AM
My Dearest Daniel, your words have touched my heart and left me breathless! Thank you for understanding and capturing the essence of my poem so beautifully. Your kind and perceptive reading means the world to me. I'm grateful for our poetic connection and look forward to sharing more words with you, my dearest friend. With love and respect always, Anne

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