The aging
of our memories
Each year
a thought turns grey
Till all that’s left
is time bereft
And darkness
— leads the way
(Dreamsleep: September, 2026)
As you watch
He leaves you softly
Can you hear
Lost echoes
He walks away in darkness
Never meant to stay
here came the sheriff
with would bring a big tariff
having been bereft
If you go to my neighborhood thrift shop,
You just might come across
Five ice cream sundae dishes
And two mugs; if not, your loss.
See, I’m very slowly sweeping
Things that I don’t use away,
Though I often must remind myself
Why items needn’t stay.
In L.A.’s recent fires,
People found out in a flash
That they had to leave; their homes
And all their stuff reduced to ash.
I think of them as I decide
What I should keep or ditch,
Knowing that so many there
Were left without a stitch.
And as I agonize about
The trove I still have left,
I’m sure that those who’ve lost it all
Must be beyond bereft.
Like squeezing and gripping
a handful of sand
Your love dropped through
the crevices unrhymed
Defining our feelings
with each orphaned word
Lost in the random
—abandon of time
(Dreamsleep: December, 2024)
God hears the broken
Sees the tears
Hearts broken pieces
Across the years
His Arms open
To hold the cries
Of those bereft
Of lullabies
Lead the lambs
To meadows green
To safety, joy
And peace serene
Lead them Father
Please light their way
Bless them Lord
In Thy Name
I pray
Amen
To some, it’s a lifetime ago,
To some, it still feels like yesterday,
To some, it was before their time,
But it will be remembered come what may.
Regardless of the time that passes,
The memory of that day remains,
The heinous act, the devastation,
The tragedy, the pain.
On this day, twenty three years ago,
Innocent lives were cruelly lost,
Hearts broken, lives ruined,
Dreams were scattered and tossed.
A city was broken that day,
But it wasn’t to be beat,
It rose again like a phoenix,
It did not bow down in defeat.
Although bereft,
Forged together in grief,
They were one for all, all for one,
In their own belief.
Those affected are remembered,
With sympathy and love,
Those lost souls are never forgotten,
As they look down from the skies above.
Today we stand in union,
Side by side, together,
In respect, in remembrance,
Come whatever the weather.
Subdued and alone
nose to the lightness of air
becoming a part of the source
of this tranquil splendor
inhaling the breezes of long rolling tides
nibbling at a golden shore
I have sheltered my sorrow in the layers of myself
leaving my earthly connection
escaping in stoic stares at an empty distance
that loses its definition transformed
into a beautiful nothingness
The weight and heaviness of grief
pulls on my physical self
pinning it to the core of the earth
where all souls are born then taken
Centering on an island of a simpler place
I change into a windbreak
deeply rooted in stillness
in the belly of essential calm
that lies within me
contemplating time, distance……
This peace, this harmony
dwells deeply in a mask
of death and war, hate with little justice
My body bereft on the shores of submission
waves passing, lifting and gently fall
shifting with each crest of hope
venturing further and further away
from the horizon of despair
In a roaring ocean of grief, she plunged in.
A widow, she's a hodgepodge of emotions;
Caged all alone in melancholy's dungeon.
Day in, day out she's going through the motions.
Bereft, her composure is barely intact.
In mourning; a shell fragmenting on impact.
The loss of her spouse has left her in tatters.
Quite feeble, a fragile glass that could shatter.
Please help me in my confusion
Come to my rescue
Do not leave me sitting all alone
On this lonely beach of abandonment
Help me my brothers
Help me my compatriots
Help me you all men of good will
To make a modicum of sense
From all disconcerting confusion around me
My country has become an enigma
Difficult to fathom and rescue
From self inflicted contradictions
We were in the abyss of despondency
We were in dire need
To wriggle out from Economic strangulation
Kidnapping and banditry
General insecurity and insurgency
Glaring leadership failure
And like furious flash flood
We trooped out with hope in our hearts
With one goal in mind
To cast our votes and make a change
Particularly the youth eager
To put their trust once more
In a system bereft of any trust
And like a Gale of disappointment
Our hope came cascading down
To the abyss of disillusionment
And cacophony of claims and denials
And waiting for the unseen hands of destiny
To steer her from annihilation
To the habitual and perpetual state of inertia
Like the wind on my cheek,
Life passes me by,
Unlike my pain,
That wants me to die.
Grey skies turn blue,
The winds pick up,
It's life again,
Waiting to be nuged.
My candle flickers,
In the dark I sit still,
I see the soft light,
On my windowsill.
The morning is near,
There's winds blowing in,
I think I'll let them,
Caress my cheek again.
AN ODE TO SLEEP.
Bereft asleep,baby born lights dim
The skies in space;twinkling bright a beam
Firmaments afar settling wide a gleam
Take care to sleep heav'nly realms as mile
Take guard thee guardians. Till the dawn arise
For I'll wake and shine in morn inclined.
Love bereft, cold heart and clenched fist
Yes, they walk among us
Oblivious to the bliss mist
Their ghoulish ways nonplus
Give them love and move on
They’ll again be reborn
Hopefully, ego shorn
Nothing left
Love bereft
04-May-2022
Quietus
The moon, huge ball above that shines a golden hue,
seems a sign auspicious - but oh, that is not true!
Trenchant words you spilled; my heart is cleft.
I’ve wept (beyond bereft)
now you’ve left.
Dear, can’t you recall
how we’d thought our love would grow?
Your touch would enthrall
me through long days; moon’s warm glow -
Where did summer’s solstice go?
How will I ever find the wherewithal
to hold on through each coming lonely night?
My heart is hollow now, but holds no light,
and autumn’s sky too soon will cast its pall.
Abounding love and sun are gone. How small
will be the days to come. How much less bright!
How will I ever find the wherewithal
to hold on through each coming lonely night?
In fragrant blush of June, to garden wall
I’d run, your sunflower smile in my sight.
How can I stop my mind from taking flight -
so lost in thought of when we had it all;
how will I ever find the wherewithal?
Submitted Feb. 24, 2022 for
Faraz Ajmal's Some Broken Hearts Never Mend Poetry Contest
In loving memory the saga goes,
or so they say when feint reminder culls a piercing interlude.
Remnant of an unfinished sentence,
broken shadow haunt awash with grief,
snapshot at the edge of a well.
Parachute of blinding insight on queue or on song,
paper mache angel deep within.
Verses, scrolls, smudges from that pink enamel claw,
whose back fold clip appearance left one reeling,
like some
tree house dweller rattled by a swooping hawk.
Gimlet sipping voyageur
adrift on ice pack yacht,
in need of solace,
yet wishing it to the bottom of his rusty bucket list.
Fragile human being torn apart,
funeral bound,
that once upon a time surreal biker skirting mountains.
A priori stunt man metaphysically divine on rocky ledge,
dare devil prayer when it suits.
Feat performance activist a sleight of hand jester,
yet despite this vapid mask of dumb amnesia,
he wanders blindfold down
an alpine peak while chasing after dim and distant keepsake
Date posted :31st January 2022
Sub Categories
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.