Best Dangling(A) Poems
He goes by the name of Lacrimosa
He is the plain picture of a man
Those who don’t know him see him as a monster
But you and I know better that he is a broken friend
His smile drips of sorrow
His walk is that of a footless ghost
And should you accept his outstretched hand
And succumb to the adoring nature of his gaze
He will lead you away to a dreary place
That he calls home
And the monster will sing sweet nothings to you
And hold you safely in his arms
And though the smile on his orchid face may weep for you
Do not be ungrateful, as it is for you
You can shudder and shake and claw to get away
But you need him as much as he needs you
This puppet man who hangs from a single string
Neck crooked and marbled and hanging to the side
Will frighten and disturb those who can’t see his face
But he will protect you from the ones who claim to love you dear
He’ll hold you close and wherever you go
He’ll be there by your side, his cold hand grasping your own
He’ll be everything you need so you’ll never be alone
He’ll share with you his tears and guilt and blame
And for these gifts he asks nothing in return
But your companionship and smile for only a small time
He knows you cannot stay forever by his side
So when you’re ready to say goodbye
He’ll let you go
And he’ll insist that you keep his gifts
But in time you may throw them away
And turn your back on the weeping thing
Who gave all he had in your time of need
And let his crying fade away
But don’t look back or you’ll see him there
Extending his hand, begging to hold you in his arms once more
And should you choose to return to him
He will always welcome you
And make a place for you by his side
And one day you may decide
To snuff out the man on a string
To throw the gifts he gave back in his blotched, orchid face
And run far far away
So that never again will you see his smile so grayed
Or feel the icy sting of his clammy embrace
Never again will you sigh in the arms of a love once held dearer
Now burdened whenever they look in the mirror
With the image of what they at one time feared
Of a sad smile painted on the picture of a man
Neck crooked and marbled and hung by a string
Dangling a smile loose to the side
Tears scarring his cheeks
His arms open wide
A monster posing as a broken friend
Who goes by the name of Lacrimosa
Categories:
dangling(a), dark, depression, grief, metaphor,
Form:
Written: April 17, 2025, for contest Sponsored by: Constance La France
Quote: "Lovely days don't come to you, you should walk to them." by Rumi
***********************
Life will not coach you until it happens,
Serendipitously, it flows, upsetting our souls.
When you glance, you feel no longer whole,
Leave dreams behind until the frost blackens.
Love doesn't always reach out to stay,
It often teaches you how deeply you feel.
It seems like it's just dangling a kneel,
as if it were writing you a swiping essay.
Being whole does not teach you resilience,
You discover it when you're crushed by life.
You proceed with wobbly hands and strife,
Grace is born by shaking, not just experience.
Categories:
dangling(a), appreciation, life,
Form:
Rhyme
I walk dangling, a puppet in a shadow-play,
Dragging along old strings I can't unravel.
Tied to the scars and promises I've made,
Along the way to get here as, I am.
The strings on limbs, twitch my intentions,
Wrenching my will to veer their way — not mine.
My heart aches, knowing who's pulling the strings,
But there is too much at stake to sever them.
How can I choose, when I’m snared this way,
Bridled, and bound to strings I can't reject.
I'm a puppet twofold - I can't cut the strings.
Some knots held tight through joy and pain,
Others snapped, then retied themselves again.
I am swayed by the grief required to end this thing
Locked and bound underneath the weight of strings.
Categories:
dangling(a), angst, anxiety, conflict,
Form:
Free verse
So, now it has come to this.
Raging fires,
layered against razor-tipped tongue,
ready to land upon eagle’s nest.
Ready for Solace’s oceanic visions...
Visions that never cared to change me,
only loves me enough to embrace.
She didn’t care to see right through me,
only cherishing me enough to see within.
She never caressed my love
while picking past-time scabs,
guilt sway dangling; a presumptuous noose.
She never hung me to out to dry,
a dangling blanket bloodied from ambivalent missionary positions.
No jealousy grasp against my closet dusted skeleton.
She never cut me with diamond ring uncertainties.
She never told me she loved me,
while running towards horizons’ indifference.
She simply wants to be memories’ wind upon my hand,
knowing I shut my palms from judgments’ scythe
and nightmares of distance filling my miles,
wallowing in my sin.
As I,
smell the winds of change.
This scent
lingers,
a wisp crying for release.
A rose petal
no longer willing to come to terms.
A dream
no longer wishing to exist
with minds’ eye shut.
A heart ready
to be
continued...
© Drake J. Eszes
Categories:
dangling(a), devotion, hope, introspection, life,
Form:
Free verse
Mornings are beautiful at the screen door!
Trees swaying with the gentle breeze
Birds are chirping their hello
Noise of a busy street - steady zoom of cars
Apartment life across the way - yard sales just beginning
Balloons bouncing on a sign proclaiming move-in special of the week
Nearby stores abuzz with their business
A man on his daily walk - lost in thought, but still waves
Mother walks with her daughter-backpack dangling a Dora keychain
Two ladies stride by, discussing evening plans, or last night's secrets
Ladybug lands on a budding flower
Motorcycle roars by, startling a passing dog
Garbage truck noisily approaches
School buses go by, faces pressed to the windows
Familiar cars parked in driveways
A waiting bench in the yard calls my name
Standing at my screen door, a daily life unfolds
The corner house with a perfect view of stories daily told
Looking up at the blue sky, poignant memories of others at this door
A past generation of observation, by those who stood here before
Categories:
dangling(a), emotions, feelings, happiness, remember,
Form:
Narrative
A quilt of snowfall
Interrupts my peaceful sleep
Rest comes into Spring
Blackened clouds looming
Determination of sun
A battle of wills
Rebellious bird
Early spreading of its wings
Mother close behind
Lone apple remains
Dangling a fragile branch
Protesting Winter
Categories:
dangling(a), bird, nature, snow, sun,
Form:
Haiku
Spring is in full bloom
And the festival of colours
Is letting loose the wild side
Of the young and old in India
Drowning old hatreds to start anew
With coloured water guns and balloons
Sprays and powdered colours are splashed
On all and on those who try to escape
People attire in new pristine clothes
For its palette to be more colourful
Spring is in full bloom
And the festival of bullets
Is letting loose the wild side
Setting afire newer hatreds
By the hard liners in Brussels
Explosions and gun shots at the airport
Blasting's and blowing off the smoky roofs
There are screams with wounded and dead
Lying splattered in streams of vermillion
A clear invitation to open war
Spring is in full bloom
For the festival of bullets and colours
Befooling ego's versus fooling with others
In one world there is joy and a carefree holiday
In another world god through the devils
Pins down those he wishes to carry
The wounded themselves are half dead with shock
The tussle between the good and the bad remind us of
His scales that keep dangling a change between
Planned joys and unplanned gory deaths
Balveen Cheema
March 23, 2016
Categories:
dangling(a), celebration, clothes, color, death,
Form:
Free verse
I burst through my kitchen door knocking down my mother in the process and said "outta the way loser".
I went down to my gamer cave to reign my epicness on these poor little noobs at my feet begging for mercy, but it's them I shall beat.
But my noob powning session came to a swift end, because I heard a pound above my head.
When my daddy gets home smelling like big boy juice, he always plays a game of tag where mommy is the runner and his fist is it.
I realized this wasn't a boss I couldnt beat at my current level, so I got an upgrade.
I grabbed my trusty fork and shoved it into the nearest socket at full force, the exp was to much so my brain went numb and I blacked out.
After I regened some health I woke up with red Mana dripping from my nose. I knew I was ready to take on the final boss now.
I limped up the stairs but that was only because my body was readjusting to the powers.
when I got up the stairs I said to my dad "game over" but before I could even finish speaking my dad uppertagged me so hard my head hit the ceiling.
As my jaw hung loosely from my face my dad looked down to me and said playfully "your it"
I gave my dad a light little tag on the shoulder, and in response he tagged my arm so hard I could hear a silly little crack that made my arm go numb.
My dad then climbbed onto the couch and started throwing pillows at me, all the while singing "you can't catch me" "you can't catch me"
My dad jumped off the couch and tagged me so hard I went flying out the window, then my silly little fence tagged me right through the chest
My dad walked up to where I was lying on the ground in a pool of manna and said to me "you and your mom are noobs" "bet you wish you had a health potion".
As I was fading in and out of consciousness my dad was dangling a health kit right above my head, and all I could say was "nice one dad".
Categories:
dangling(a), allegory, analogy, boy, dad,
Form:
Jueju
A minor typo found this fanatic spell binding hound to resend a poem posse sub bully dashed off in a huff (past the hour) if nothing else than fur his spurt full of peace, bot tee, and mind.
Thus this Norwegian bachelor wannabe (most closely aligned with said status closely attained unmarried state by pledging my Unitarian troth) tilled, sown, and furrowed spirit nsync with the missus sleeping in close proximity.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
dog tired this day - march 29th, 2018
no matter this dawg gone pup
took numerous one after another cat nap
his utterly fatigued
body electric still ragged
as if he went without sleep for a lifetime,
ensnared within a time warp,
espied that aggravating "aw SNAP"
(error code instead of a webpage
indicating Chrome happens to be
experiencing problems loading)
or, simultaneously
caught in a narcoleptic parent trap
thus, while a burst of energy
temporarily doth prevail
(a priori which extreme fatigue
of body, mind and spirit -
more troublesome, and worse than -
getting crucified
with a rusty nine inch nail
alleviated with deep sleep finds
much more tiredness
than usual quotidian sleepiness
bruiting this male)
being imprisoned (for high
gram matt tick crimes
and misdemeanors) such as: comma, splices,
dangling a modifier, splitting an infinitive,
unnecessary parenthesis (), et cetera
which landed me punctually,
proverbially, and squarely
in the slaammed shut jail
fed thin gruel with grubs that didst flail
nauseating pluperfect revulsion
each time hide exhale
which, many hours long rests did restore
for a bit of time only for totally tubular
exhaustion to come roar
ring back leaving me tour
charred as if...i fought in every major war.
Categories:
dangling(a), 11th grade, 12th grade,
Form:
Light Verse
Fly with me
This poem depicts a beautiful picture of how God often set us up for success.
An Eaglet is hungry in his nest
His body steadied in a cold rest
Mom comes flying in an undulating breeze
In each flight, she came with empty feet
Mom pushes her little one out of the nest
The young Eaglet fell on his chest
Hitting his face against the cliff of the hill
He picked up a beetle and ate it; his first kill.
He stayed by itself, no longer brooded at night
As time passed he was airborne for his first flight
Mother pushes her little one in and out again
As he screamed for food over and over again
“Mom, what are you doing?”?
“Hey! Mom, what are you doing?”?
Mom flew by, dangling a marmot in his feet
The eaglet lost balance in eagerness to eat
The parent swung by, daring him to fly
Lifted up high, he gave it a first try
He sailed across the valley, almost tumbling
In an undulating flight, almost scrambling
He tried to get his bearing, still trying
And for the first time in his life, he was flying.
Categories:
dangling(a), adventure, faith, inspirational, leadership,
Form:
Quatrain
Looking up at the sky so blue
Gentle breeze carries the scent of you
Nose fills with your sweet smell
Look around but to no avail
Just a cruel memory that i can't forget
Broken pieces that haven't been swept out
yet
Teases the heart like dangling a rodent I'm
front of a snake
Why were those choices at the time so
easy to make
So brash and unplanned our fate was
chosen
Moments in my head so still seem to be
frozen
Our separate ways we went but we are
forever bound together in this life
The three lives we created are still here
even through the strife
The beauty of our love that was once so
great
I love them and cherish them for they
share with you what feels like every trait
Categories:
dangling(a), lost lovelove,
Form:
Couplet
I lost my one shot at unconditional love, because my mother deserted me.
Too young to know the reasons, which may, undoubtedly, have been valid,
I was left with an eternal feeling of abandonment, which seeped into my being.
I see a small child staring ahead, alone, dangling a tattered teddy by its arm.
Dried tears on her cheeks, and then suddenly sobbing again - lost.
No worried parent comes to find her, but she is eventually scooped up by a stranger.
The stranger tries to love her: she has new clothes, a home and a ‘good education.’
There is a cost though, and the love she seems to receive has a price - conditions:
She must be perfect, pretty, clever, a dancer, a university graduate, a success.
Never enough, or that was her impression, an ill-founded fear of abandonment
and imperfection, awaiting surrection at the slightest tectonic shift, cast adrift
If expectations were not met, goals left unaccomplished, deadlines missed.
And now, as I reflect in older age, I see the race I’ve run and the battle it became:
An eternal game I could never win…… or perhaps it is won, as I take the hand of the lonely child holding the tattered teddy, and love her - unconditionally.
Categories:
dangling(a), child, innocence,
Form:
Free verse
Snowflakes are falling from nature’s frozen water,
the icicles dangling; a kaleidoscope contrived-
Angels in the snow are made from my daughter,
because good fun and joy I’ve always taught her.
It’s that time of year again…Winter has arrived.
November 30, 2017
Categories:
dangling(a), winter,
Form:
Rhyme
Look deep into my eyes seduce me with your stare.
come close and tease me if you dare
As if to almost have you and then you pull away.
like an unspoken promise for a later day.
You are so close now that you feel my heart beat
As i lay awake just holding you beneath the sheets
You feel me rigid and ready for you
But a little teasing is all you will do
Like dangling a meal in front of a starving beast
Who is tired of waiting and is ready for a feast
And you have teased me enough i cant take anymore
So i lean over and shut your door
I kiss you a little as if to tease you back
As i slide my fingers up your six pack
You moan and scream and whisper my name
Wow your enough to drive me insane
Your back arches as you grab the sheets
I see your toes curl as I glance at your feet
Your legs shake as your juices flow
like lava coming from a volcano
You lay back motionless as if you were dead
You smile so big as your face turns red
You look at me and speak ever so slow
You tell me ( I love you, I don't want you to go)
Categories:
dangling(a), love, passion, me, me,
Form:
Couplet
It's a quiet place, beneath a grassy hill,
Where the moonlight spills on whippoorwill.
And flowers of apricot, maroon and mauve,
Crowd the blues and yellows, at sunlit cove.
On a large flat rock, at the watery edge,
I'm at golden hour, feet dangling a ledge,
Scents of sea and summer blended with sun,
Permeate the moments, like sunset visions.
This is my sanctuary, my cove by the sea,
A place of green butterflies and honeybee.
I go there to meditate in the sunlit bliss,
And at times to encounter firefly reminisce!
Often I will sketch the gorgeous scenery,
Lost to this world in an ocean of greenery.
Written on August 17, 2020
For: Sanctuary Poetry contest
Sponsored by: Silent One
Categories:
dangling(a), beautiful, flower, green, joy,
Form:
Couplet