Best Cheerfulness Poems
Nobody owns anything but everyone is rich - for what greater wealth can there be than cheerfulness, peace of mind, and freedom from anxiety? ~Thomas More
She won't let caretakers cut down wildflowers
living under the hedge at the boundary edge
of her very small plot in its very small slot
in the unending rows of homes in repose,
in which sameness is virtue and uniqueness is vitriol.
Rebellion is not trivial, in fact it is evil;
how dare you suppose, or try to expose
the snugly fit knots designed by despots;
the ones who make pledge, and use every sharp wedge
to split off the capers of the few troublemakers!
Epilogue: The woman who loved wildflowers has disappeared
and no one remembers her, or if she even existed at all.
A rose just picked from heaven's garden;
a gift that keeps on giving, that's you.
Passions that you invoke within me, ardent.
This i know deep in my heart to be true...
you shall remain my lovely, celestial flower;
thriving on my dear, far longer than spring.
You reduce me to rubble with your power;
your seductiveness, quite a wondrous thing!
O, crimson rose, how colorfully you bloom!
Beauty personified; a sight for my sore eyes.
Glorious! You illuminate faces full of gloom;
swaying to and fro as a gentle zephyr sighs
Smelling so fresh, your sweet fragrance.
As I breathe you in with joy and gladness,
my dancing heart glows with such radiance
Bloom on, bloom forever with your cheerfulness
Submitted for...
2022 Poetry Marathon Mile 8 Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Mark Toney
Date written: 01/22/2021
Date submitted: 07/18/2022
Bright, yellow, fun balloons rise in the air,
bring optimistic and good-humored flair.
With cheerfulness, enthusiasm, share-
a brilliant, yellow, sunshine-like affair.
March 4, 2016
~2nd Place~
Contest: United Colors: Yellow
Sponsor: Silent One
Judged: 03/04/2016
Positive keywords for yellow: optimism,
cheerfulness, enthusiasm, fun, good-humored
I see that Bubba’s so forlorn.
He’s too depressed to talk today.
Two months in a full-body cast
can keep one’s cheerfulness at bay.
He donned his super hero suit
and took a header off the roof
(two-story!) Nothing broke his fall.
He lies now, silent and aloof.
He’d failed to read the tiny print:
“This suit can’t really make you fly.”
If he weren’t forty-five years old,
I’d feel compassion—even cry.
Date Written: January 29, 2018
Contest Title: Shoulda Read the Fine Print-2
Sponsor: John Lawless
A Pretty Sound-Hit Me With Your Best Shot
By: Aidan Gilbert
At the park swinging
I heard my phone ringing
Picked it up and heard my Mom crying
The cancer spread, I was told I am dying
It sucks to know you only have two weeks
And to live them in a hospital bedridden too weak
Staring at the ceiling colorless eyed
Hiding the question that burns my jumbled mind
Why did God choose me to die
My parents sitting at my dying side
So quiet I can practically hear my brother two stories down trying not to cry
Taking the elevator with my grandparents to see if his only sister is alright
In my dreams I scream at God
Why did you do this?!
Was there some pretty picture on my way here I missed?!
Well you hit me with your best shot
My remaining cheerfulness you get to watch rot
All of this broke me down
For the first time calm lying still in my hospital gown…
I just wanted to have heard a pretty sound
I was taken by something out of my sight
But I wasn’t truly hurt that I wouldn’t be able to put up a fight
It was me as a fifteen year old girl and being robbed that right.
A disease intrinsic and quiet
infesting a soul which submissively accepts
presenting self inflicting suffering
to the body which covers it.
The record keeper of happiness
loses his work from gross idleness.
The fuel of laughter
even with words and lines so sophisticated
making the inanimate change state
cannot drag a drop of smile
from this soul so wary and pressed.
Company is replaced with tears
and all feelings, compressed into one.
Cracking an egg shell from its edges
is simpler than distinguishing its moods.
What a soul!
Why were you created when nature was sad?
Why were you formed when the gods were asleep?
Why were you blessed when the daughters of cheerfulness were drunk?
The cloth of loneliness
and the perfume of silence,
you need to unwear no matter how hard.
This will put on the light of proper existence
for you to bathe in the spring
of Life's beautiful varieties!
Miss your barks, miss your presence
Miss your enthusiastic greetings, miss your adorable face
Miss the innocence of your brown eyes, miss your liveliness
Miss the vibes that you spread, of your infectious cheerfulness
Miss the walks we took together and the hikes we did to hills and lakes
Miss your tenacity and stamina and your amazing athletic strength
Miss your adept swimming for a stick you wanted to fetch
Miss your feisty eagerness when you ran and played your favorite ball-chase
Miss those conversations we had of unspoken language
Miss feeling your calming aura around while doing yoga on the carpet
Miss your alert growling at the sound of the doorbell
Miss your sweet friendliness to connect with all the arriving guests
Though we no longer see you coming to our calls,
Or see you retrieving no more of your favorite sticks and balls
You live in our thoughts, you live in our hearts
I ponder and pause, feel you near, not far
Your incredible patience, your enormous faith,
Your immense confidence and your selflessness
Reva, you were an ideal example of God’s grace…
Having you in our lives, we truly feel blessed!!
in her words
i burn.
i get doused.
i feel the sun of the morning.
i know the cheerfulness of the evening wind.
in her letters
i see a magic garden
strewn with fragrance of desire.
i pause.
i whiten.
i blush,
.....too soon for love.
I hope you smile, when you remember me.
Once a fleeting while, a thought of what could be.
I don’t mind the pain, a dulling sense of being.
Omnipotence to gain, yet a constant thought of fleeing.
Staring down the side, an end to the world.
Animosity has died, leaving a story unfurled.
Mass graves of meaning, an era destroyed unsurely.
A solemn act of weaning, a malicious act purely.
Mountains give way, oceans part in calamity.
Though a faith cannot say, there’s the feeling of amity.
An endless fire dies, left by the sick and twisted.
A prediction of lies, herding the weak to the wicked.
I remain once involved, longing for her last look.
A naive puzzle solved, scribbled hastily in a dusty book.
With nothing living behind,the sun shines tempestuously.
Longing to find, an angels breath held boundlessly.
Searching inward to reveal,I’m but just another lost soul.
Time moves forward forgetting to heal, a heart that is no longer whole.
Hearing an existential voice, a shouting that echoes emptiness.
A devastating choice, paving a way to cheerfulness.
I hear an ungodly choir, singing only to me.
A now extinct fire, laying at her effigy.
The girl I remember, promised no one could hurt us.
A subtle December, exposing a melting frozen truss.
A harrowing escape, not deserving of trust.
A grasp of the nape, turning all to dust.
at times the soul gets clenched
in an unspeakable grief
in a demoniac grip, it chokes and wriggles
the pain of being stung by a dozen scorpions
or hacked piece by piece by an axe
tremulous grows the heart, over love that is spent
seeks in vain to revive the joy that is gone
strains to lift the veil that shrouds the soul
wrestles to come out from the desolate cave of black solitude
the more it struggles to wade through the mess
the deeper it plunges into the morass of despair
clung on talons of excruciating pain,
wailing a long wail of never being understood
the mind goes berserk
whirling and churning.
anytime the volcano might erupt,
emitting pyroclastic cloud
with the asphalt lava spilling out,
blowing life with its violent breath.
yet, have succeeded in putting on
a merry visage during day
laughs with the laughing crowd
but retires at night to the solitary cell
to release, in agonized sighs, the stifling anguish
and soak the pillow in a flood of tears
how long can one seek to hide oneself
in the cover of vapid cheerfulness…..?
why try to save the face when there is no face to lose?
sure the fig leaf will one day fall off
to stand in stark nakedness before the world aghast
April.2.2022
This or That, Vol.11.Poetry Contest
Topic-Fig Leaf
Sponsor- Edward Ibeh
"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28 of the Bible's King James Version
“All things work together for good” indeed
Thus declares the Scriptures of divine creed
Illumining minds midst spiritual feed
For perspective, breeding cheerfulness’ seed.
Toward a better end along faith’s might
“All things work together for good” sheds light
Serving as wisdom’s inspiring insight
Toward blest jubilant heavenly flight.
Despite a seemingly wrong and flawed start
That can put despair to a hopeful heart
“All things work together for good” shields dart
Against staying futile, not doing best part.
Along God’s compassion, mercy and grace
Triumph is assured in running life’s race
Conquering guilt with His forgiveness-brace
“All things work together for good” always.
March 26, 2025
3rd place, "This or That, Vol 31 on Felix Culpa" Poetry Writing Contest
Sponsored by Edward Ibeh; judged on 4/7/2025
Vanity
A poem about vanity in life inspired by Ancient Greek Wisdom
As I wake up abruptly every single dawn
With my body still asleep on futility’s lawn
My spirit needs a fiery, enervating quick jolt
To nail down my awareness with God’s divine bolt
And as the day’s continuity progresses slowly
My frail mind transforms my soul silently
To seek our Father’s love and compassion
And His heavenly treasure and full passion
Oh! supreme vanity, goddess of futility
You mark our short life most eloquently
As you guide us with your values and premises
To consider all matters without the goal of destiny
For without God’s divine purpose and infinity
All life ends up in the turbulent waterways of vanity
Waiting, with no end, for the pleasure of happiness
Disregarding all elements of ethics and human wellness
Oh! Greatest vanity of glorious vanities
How weak you make the old and the wise
How you bond us all well with divine fate
How silly you make men who think they are great
Dearest God, bless us to be, in our life, mighty
So that we express our goodness to all needy
For without Your words we are all bereft totally
Waiting our final turn in the valley of dire mortality
Taking into deep consideration the following ancient Greek sayings:
1. By Aristotle: ‘Suffering becomes beautiful when anyone bears great calamities with cheerfulness, not through insensibility but through greatness of mind’.
2. By Plato: ‘Eternal time is the only truth while what happens in our world are icons of vanity of our emotions’.
3. By Empedocles: ‘You must plunge beneath your crowded thoughts and calmly contemplate the higher realities with pure, focused attention. If you do this, a state of inspired serenity will remain with you throughout your life, shaping your character and benefiting you in so many ways. But if you direct your attention instead to the trivial things most people obsess about, the silly nonsense that dulls their minds, you’ll just acquire more objects which you’ll only lose anyway’.
I found myself in darkened days
The forecast then was looking bleak
No matter how I tried it seemed
that I was on a losing streak
Well, losing may not be the word
but life had simply gotten dull
No light could ever penetrate
the gray clouds whirling in my skull
On one especially gloomy night
it was my turn to volunteer
serving meals inside a shelter
twice a month throughout the year
Then afterwards, while cleaning up
and nearly ready to go home
behind me spoke a tiny voice
the inspiration for this poem
This young black child standing there
of six years old, maybe seven
said to me "Thank you for coming"
which was spoken straight from heaven
He gave me such a loving smile
and then returned from whence he came
Choked up, I said "You're very welcome"
never asking for his name
While thinking of this little boy
as I drove home I shed some tears
as much for him as for myself
and all my empty wasted years
This precious one without a home
with no possessions to his name
had managed such a cheerfulness
which brought to me a sense of shame
This child opened up my eyes
and gave to me a needed dose
of cold perspective in the face
so now I hold my blessings close
All of which were right around me
all along, but I was blind
The things I thought that I had lost
that little boy had helped me find
Was that child heaven sent?
Perhaps an angel in disguise?
Whichever way I think of him
it brings a teardrop to my eyes
I pray for him from time to time
and never shall forget him, no
And when I'm very old and gray
my mind will find him smiling so
If I could speak to him once more
there's just one thing I'd like to say
"Thank YOU for coming, little friend,
you saved my life one darkened day"
Mike Wise
11-9-19
Slowly falling away...losing life's game
Say you love me, but it's not the same
I miss you so much and you know so well
I miss your touch and you can clearly tell
Under your spell in this darksome cell
I fell into your rabbithole and going pell-mell
Is this a heaven, disguised as living hell?
These hardships got a hold of me and I hide in my solitary shell
Slowly falling away...my vibrant voice fails me again
Say you care about me as I dwell in my moonlit den
I miss you tremendously and God knows and you know
I've tried to win your heart of serenity - my efforts will show
The pros and cons of life will make me stronger
I must fight back with might and not be a forlorner
Conjure confidence and cheerfulness in my joyous and woeful lifetime a little longer
Dance to the music of my mesmerizing, meandering mindset and it will be your cure
Remarkable how time flies these eccentrically reckless, dark days
Say you'll be staying with me forevermore, the one I simply adore
Kiss me soft and slow, but sure in many make-believe ways
Turn me on and pretend to fulfill me with satisfaction galore
I feel swell without your doubting spirit of scorching, kindling uncertainty
I fell into the blackhole of your soul of serene sincerity and fearless honesty
You are seven times a seven in my heart's beautiful, compassionate tune
These tribulations have given me difficult tests to conquer, so embrace me real soon
Overcome the waves of emotion and collide with me, outlandish ocean, creating erosion
Numb the grief-stricken and be my darling devotion of elegant, empathetic efflorescence
Drastic dreariness damages my cranium of rainbow emotion and creative commotion
Some individuals dream dreams of burning bridges, brewing brazen benevolence
You can truly tell that I miss you so, but you got to reap what you sow
I love the way you make me feel though...let the plants of peace grow
Say you adore who I'm becoming right now - a man of beloved bravery
Fly me to successful heights, for I want to rise above my negativity
“Of all flowers, methinks a rose is best.” – William Shakespeare, The Two Noble Kinsmen
Sweet Rose, for ages you have blessed the human race
with your beauty, elegance and grace.
You show yourself to us in so many ways . . .
as miniature, teacup, floribunda, rambler,,climber, and
as so many other species of loveliness - a true wonder of God's creations!
Whether on the ground, in the wild, in gardens, or on bushes,
you bring me such pleasure to see your many shapes and sizes.
Unlike pansies and other annual flowers,
which glimmer for a time, then die – never to regrow,
you come and you go, sweet Rose, continuously
from spring, through summer, and until the chill of fall.
Oh, sweet Rose, with your names so charming,
I love you all.
With female names like “Princess Diana,” “Lolita” or “Bathsheba,”
you intrigue me.
With names that reflect the splendor of your many hues
such as “Toffee,” the pale yellow “Sahara,” the bold “Gold Medal,”
“Beyond Blue,” and “Black Magic,”
you enchant me.
With cute precious names like “Adorable,” “or “Angel Face,”
you delight me!
My muse reawakens each spring as your glorious scent
perfumes the air, and you offer yourself to the worshiping bees.
In those rare moments when I see a hummingbird
partaking of your nectar, I nearly gasp with excitement.
Oh, sweet Rose,
whether posing steadfastly in the summer sun,
dancing with breezes, or dreaming beneath the moon,
there is no flower so popular as you.
And no other flower bears so many different meanings
as those found in the paleness or in the vibrancy of your many colors.
Innocence is your white; your friendship, yellow; your modesty, peach;
In burgundy and dark pink, you show forth admiration;
in coral, good fortune; and in light pink, the cheerfulness of youth.
In the tint of amaranth is your passion; in rare green, your freshness;
in purple, your whimsy; however, your ruby red
transcends them all with the purity of love.
The deeper your hue, the deeper is your meaning.
You are the symbol for so many things of which the poet dreams!
Oh, sweet Rose, I adore you. How you inspire me
with each bloom of your dewy petals that I chance to view.
Never do you cease to amaze me, sweet Rose.
May you blossom ever sweetly into eternity!