in another state
or another country
anywhere but here
i want to travel
not just pictures on the net
i want adventure
I look up to the sky, waiting
as the swirling clouds crash
they have an endless movement
and today they are full of tears . . .
I hear the rumbling thunder
see the lightning flashing
and then, the rain is falling in torrents
the clouds spill a thousand secrets
those raindrops hold all my secret pain
and all my grief
all my forever longing
and a thousand tears
that I keep within me ~
I wear mask to hide my weeping and it is only when it rains
that I can cry . . .
I dance with the raindrops and feel them touching me
oh, like a fairy princess, I twirl and swirl and dance
just let go they whisper . . . . and then,
the sun comes out and everything is sparkling and there is a hush
of beauty . . .
A winding, desolate road stands before me,
Covered in white ashy soot.
As nuclear winter stagnates,
Grey corpse clouds spill a thousand secrets,
While asphyxiating dust cakes a boarded-up shack in the faint distance.
Loneliness settles into obsolete bones.
I've been searching for what feels like eons now,
For any semblance of humanity.
Scarcity of food looms with each passing second,
For even the few remaining animals have become paper-thin,
Their skeletons protruding through stretched flesh.
A bitter cold silently encompasses the atmosphere.
Summer evaporated that fateful day,
Never to come again.
Continuing my treacherous trek,
I come upon the frost-tipped shack.
Peering through the gaps of a door half blown away by the aftershocks,
Hope dies, as once again, emptiness is all I find.
My eyes well with tears, only to be interrupted by an uncontrollable cough.
Spitting blood into my hand, the symptoms are getting worse.
Residual radiation is taking its toll.
Death's warm embrace will be welcomed.
But until that fateful day, I continue this journey alone,
Perpetually seeking any voice to ring out in a macabre, self-fulfilling apocalypse.
Let the rain kiss you
Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops
Let the rain sing you a lullaby
~Langston Hughes
The clouds spill a thousand secrets
but keep ten thousand regrets
ensconced within the billowy frames
of a life lived with all its shames.
The shame of greed,
the shame of need,
the shame of selfishness,
the shame that leads to wretchedness.
I’ve been told that clouds are wise
and provide the waters to baptize,
drown the sins that keep us bound
And set our feet on higher ground.
Multiple wings
Created just for me
Now I can fly
Into the friendly skies that can become unfriendly at times
Really high
Being among the clouds and soar
Get to know the birds and even out the flying score
Discovering having a destiny bound
Flying heart that can be found
Exploring a universe my very own
Totally full blown
Straight through the atmosphere
Showing no fear
Flying to places always dreamed about
Pausing for rest at times
Up close and personal
Seeing only pictures in the past, but flying and seeing what I dreamed about coming to life
Personal eyes on the scene
Horizons far
Destinations having no limit
Possibilities in the know
Believing and receiving
No more thinking if I had wings
Created and accounted for
Flying the distance being a blessing.
I’ve been walking in a thousand parks
Sat on a thousand benches or more
Dreamed away hearing blackbirds and larks
Each time I rested like never before
Always forced myself to go out
Being timed up by reasons I deemed
Quite exclusive, although now I doubt
If they were as important, as seemed
In the alleys with flowers and squirrels
I had casual thoughts to unfold
What I meant to divulge disappears
Much too fast to be honestly told
If I could, I would tell you about
Why I needed a thousand parks
Maybe more, I didn’t bother to count
All the moments I listened to larks
Could’ve been something else than tranquility
Of idyllic blue skies, rows of trees
Even though parks were my home facility
I’ve no way to convince you of this.
i speak a thousand words
a day
but they’re all thoughts forming
in my head
saying them
out loud
seems so insignificant
it’s my own thinking
why should anyone care?
to me
expressing myself
is the equivalent of
being naked
in front of millions
can’t bear the thought
of bring perceived
over analyzing every little thing
i feel them all
scrutinizing me
how can one live so freely?
it’s all i hope to achieve.
A Thousand-Watt Smile
A thousand-watt smile isn't born to hide the pain;
It blooms when someone knows they're not alone.
It rises from a heart that's danced with rain,
Yet still finds hope in places once unknown.
It reaches softly to the waiting eyes,
Where tears and laughter leave their gentle trace.
No mask, no pretense, nothing to disguise—
Just quiet courage shining through the face.
It warms the silence, brightens every room,
And lifts the weight that weary hearts have known.
A simple smile can chase away the gloom,
Reminding us that love is always shown.
Through shifting sands and
ticking gears,
I traced your shadow down
the years.
Past falling stars and velvet skies,
To seek the welcome of your
eyes.
I vaulted centuries of stone,
A restless traveler, worlds
alone,
Guided by a timeless spark,
A burning compass in the
dark.
For what are epochs, swift or
slow,
When all my paths are
mapped to you?
A thousand lifetimes carved
in sand,
Just for the chance to hold
your hand.
Dried land with the shallow mud cracks
Barns remained with the empty sacks
Rolling tyres in the soft soil dust
Stained the leaves with brown coated rust
Scotching waves blowing all over
Unsown plants turned into stover
A curse of God! A few grumbled
Global warming! The learned mumbled
The farmer looked up at the sky
In dejection, he made a sigh
On the eyelid, a pearl drop splashed
At once, a thousand watt smile flashed
the joy of seeing my son's smile and hearing his laughter when I take his picture
Written: June 20, 2026, for a contest sponsored by Miranda Hawley
********************
He carries a thousand-watt smile to chronic pain—
A sun susurrous through storm and strain.
His quiet, weak speech goes unheard, and bound
But his wispy humor is well-defined and sound.
Through surgeries and illness, he stands tall,
His drive radiates forth even when he must crawl.
With spine, and stomach both feeble and torn—
Inside him, it aches; his body is lethargic and worn.
Being alive is a battle that his spirit must fight
To bear the success, and embrace the light,
His life is an endeavor, vibrant and bright—
God bless his soul with a thousand-watt smile tonight,
Into my silent world, stepped in a little girl
I chanced to meet her in my usual haunt.
As I sat away from the crowd on a park bench,
Saw her feeding some pigeons right in front.
It must be her usual habit, I guessed.
From her awkward movements, I knew,
She was blind and had difficulty in moving around.
But the birds circled round, as some grains she threw.
Though she couldn’t see the wonders of life,
A radiant smile lingered on her sentient face.
As a bird flew down and landed on her right hand,
She smiled a 1000 Watts smile with an innocent grace.
You watch yourself walk a thousand miles in the span of a day,
All the while, the mind in motion, tearing through.
You feel the urgency—the endless paths,
The voices never cease; the noise is deafening.
But never within earshot—a fading love.
For you to hear it would hollow your soul.
I would dissolve if I could. Scatter across a thousand miles.
I would unravel if I could. One clean, last note.
Fear alone keeps me on Earth.
And the earth keeps me in oblivion.
How do men draw their last breaths?
A thousand men - a thousand deaths.
Yet, this Dodger fan, one man am I,
knows a thousand ways to die.
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