Best Flood Tide Poems
Critics
Wrote a poem in the sand,
Wonder how it fares if left alone,
Will it bear on its own merits
Or juxtapose by meddling hands,
Meantime, sun-dries it again,
Wind shifts it broad and thin,
Indelible puddles left by rain,
Sand critters pop out and in,
A boy and his ball rolls along,
With a long sigh, looks on down,
Builds a sandcastle then leaves,
Ebbtide gone, flood tide flows cleanly,
I returned, stood and discern,
Comme ci, comme ca, c'est la vie.
14th line English translated from French, "Like this, like that, that is life."
05/09/2019
*POTD*
~~Team PoetrySoup
*6th Place*
old poems, FREE VERSE (003)
~~Poet Destroyer A
Without fuss the sand
castle greets the flood tide his
reality changed;
the trade of ebb for the flow
as he lets go of the beach
Susan Ashley
November 2, 2021
A storm blew in when I peered into those dark eyes
Fearing lightning would strike in bolts of midnight fire
Wanting his touch, though it might lead to my demise
Then full lips swept over mine, igniting desire
Thunder roared in my head with each deepening kiss
I heard it drumming in warm breaths against my ear
Fingertips danced lightly over naked skin. This
serenade sings in my heart each time he draws near
Desperate urges and needs filled my torrid mind
I murmured in soft sighs against his stubbled cheek
whispers of hunger I'd never before defined
He sated desires I'd never thought I should seek
Love was a passionate storm at my husband's side
Where we floated on waves higher than at flood tide
Love songs softly flow on a Summer's breeze,
Lyrics trilled by doves in sweet melodies.
My vagabond heart meanders no more
for you've given yours to me, mon amour.*
Your kisses assuage my hunger and thirst.
Deluged by emotions, my heart shall burst.
A treasure, no longer beyond my reach.
A prayer answered when I did beseech.
You are the brightest star in midnight's sky
Keeper of my heart when I've need to sigh.
In celestial dreams; ever at my side,
where love abounds in incessant flood tide.
Come with me, my love, across tranquil seas
Sails swept by the mild rush of Summer's breeze
*mon amour: my love
May 7, 2021
Summer Love Sonnet Contest
Sponsor: John Hamilton
Journey starts
Kunming portraits;
Highway song
Here old and new
Merge yet apart;
Vignettes juxtapose
China welcomes
Both ancient and modern;
Sign of the times
Tour group confronts
Unfamiliar grounds;
Rough edges grind
Quaint ways of old
Ancient tales displaced;
Modern day norms intervene
Spectacular vistas
Natural wonders;
Man seems insignificant
Flood tide drowns
Flushing away;
False assumptions destroyed
Gust of wind
Reveals new passages;
Knowing does not know
Mountain peaks
Valleys well-clustered;
Fertile grounds well-used
Everywhere we go
People of all tribes;
A Chinese pageant
Human nature speaks
Polite tones sway;
Touch of humble quiet
These Chinese people:
Kind, warm, hospitable --
A touch of home
Himalayan backdrop
Mountains for company;
Melodrama purged
Methinks that I
Could hideaway here;
Unknown, undisturbed
One sure currency:
The Chinese language;
Pervasive, ubiquitous
Vast is the land
Far as our eye span;
Beyond imagery
Trades of all sorts
Risk is a sure thing;
Living is risky business
Ancient towns
Showpieces that speak;
In steady silence
Rivers and streams
Winding into quaint towns;
Ancient as old time
Pulse of the moment
Camera shutter snapshots;
Still life captured
Picture posture
By this arched bridge;
Keepsake souvenir
Sensory pursuits
Old Town bazaars;
Hasty trinkets acquired
Silver artisans
Hammer away;
Creations of white metal
Bric-bracs scattered
Awaiting curious eyes;
That impulse buy in tow
Round this village
Tourist show piece;
Modern commerce prevails
Bargains await
Hungry customers;
Weathered Oriental wares
In this roundabout square
Locals and tourists stride;
Seek new-found distractions
Spring time weather
Hot and dry and windy;
Like home without humidity
Our tour guide --
Cautions that silver jewellery
Best bought from reputable shops
Cheap price often
Compromises quality;
Authentic stuff cost much more
Lessons unlearnt
On-the-road trade routes;
Return odd regrets
A silver bangle
Heavy with 99 percent;
Quality speaks tons
Scattered eateries
Street vendors offer;
Glimpses that never die
So much to see,
Words fail description;
Feelings explore facts
Only ten days here
We see yet do not see;
Only vague interpretations
All too soon
Sojourn over;
Yunnan in mind mists
Leon Enriquez
31 May 2014
Singapore
I heard the drub of rain pelting the roof
Unaware that a storm had been brewing
Roar of thunder, flash of lightning gave proof
that I had no idea, no inkling of what I was doing.
Spirit numbed and body drenched
I ventured into the maelstrom, unaware
or perhaps I didn't care. My eyes were clenched
preventing tears from falling. Loneliness is hard to bear
Sorrow bit at my heels where puddles formed
I swallowed a cry so no one would hear my sobbing
On I trudged while within me the maelstrom stormed
Confusion inside my head, heartbeat throbbing.
Charybdis' whirlpool swirled, trying to drag me in
Crested waves carried me toward its center
The tightrope I walked was a tenuous line
and lost forever I would be if I decided to enter.
On the edge of giving in, I swam for what seemed hours
The surge of flood tide would not claim me tonight
On sanity's shore I sat once more, allowing the showers
to sting my upturned face and have their moment of respite.
March 20, 2023
Writing Challenge - 'M' Words
Sponsor: Constance La France
I was not in a wrong place
Neither was it a wrong time when I met my fate
I was unarmed with my sweat’s worth
Another day’s dime in my pocket
I was confronted by a flood tide of an angry crowd
Their faces were unrecognizable, the voices too loud
I looked over my shoulder, there was no one in sight
Pointed accusing fingers rose, I started to take flight
It was too late to escape, the tide caught my feet
My whole body was stampeded and I failed to breathe
I tried to hang on to life but my arms where weak
I could not swim to safety, the shore was bleak
My defenseless body succumbed to the violence
In the attacking mob’s fuming eyes I saw hell’s darkness
As I gasped for breathe
My soul was unshackled from the earth
I ascended into the heavens in God’s hands
As my blood was dripping from my attackers palms
The vengeance became senseless, guilt swallowed their hearts
They left the scene heads down, could not look God in the eye
But I was now free like a bird
Rising above clouds the feeling transcends flying
I thought I would be dead
But on God’s right, I have just become undying
I cry for you now, you who are ladened with hate
I cry for you because the blood of the innocent is never drying
SAY NO TO MOB INJUSTICE
It is an injustice to an innocent soul, to your own soul and to all
Pathway blocked
Detour around;
Seek alternative route
Look beyond zest
Let message fling;
Align your quest
No customers
Drowsy sales person;
Somnolent afternoon
Bazaar atmosphere
Crowded pathway;
Curious seekers
Mini speakers
Loud digital music;
Screaming upbeat sounds
Popcorn vendor
Long queue waiting;
Small people and parents
Durian season
Pungent suffocation;
Sensory perfection!
Sales season
Great Singapore Sale;
Temptations galore
Diamonds and stones
Sapphires and garnet;
Precious metal settings
Food court delights
Staple dietary fare;
Oriental flavours greet
Looking at something
Finder's keepers;
Standing queue now claims
Time and space
Strange allotments;
Flood tide of moments
Leon Enriquez
11 July 2014
Singapore
Dawn paints lush landscapes and woodland scenes
shades of lavender and rose, blended with gold.
Nature reaps the credit for the things we behold ~
flowers in Spring and the wonders that life gleans,
but it's not her hand through which beauty unfolds.
There is only One capable to deliver such splendors,
those wonderful gifts bestowed by the Divine giver.
The morning sun and moonlight, He lovingly delivers
to fill the Earth with magnificent marvels, He renders ~
Mountains high, meadows green, and rambling rivers
He made me in His image so I gladly repay in kind
to help those in need of care. To them I will provide
a warm hand to hold while I sit at a sick one's bedside.
I offer empathy to those who have been maligned,
and carry a friend to safety when flows a flood tide.
The Bible says what we give will be returned tenfold,
but it's not for blessings that I continue to do His will.
God expects nothing in return from a blooming daffodil,
so to mirror His benevolence, I vow to never withhold
aiding others. Being a cheerful giver is a promise to fulfill.
September 26, 2020
Givers Poetry Contest
Sponsor: Regina McIntosh
Love is an untamed force. When we try to control it, it destroys us. When we try to imprison it, it enslaves us. When we try to understand it, it leaves us feeling lost and confused. — Paulo Coelho
When first I'd peered into his dark brooding eyes
there was an undercurrent, fathoms deep pulling me in.
It was sensual tension, the kind a woman never forgets.
A storm brewed inside of me and each time we met
I feared lightning had struck— a bolt to my heart.
His touch seared my thoughts with a burning flame
but I cared not that it might lead to my demise—
I submitted to my desires and he to his, without regret.
To have denied it would have destroyed us.
He was never mine for the taking
but it mattered not when he drew near.
It was only for him that my heart ached.
We shared a passion, unrestrained— untamed.
We loved with wild abandon,
and in his arms, there was nothing I need fear.
I denied the shame I should have felt
but I was not going to be berated by anyone
or anything. A passion like ours had to be satisfied.
A bond from which we never wanted to be freed.
There was always lightning between us.
Thunder roared in my head with each deepened kiss.
I heard it in his breathless sighs against my ear—
felt it when his fingertips danced across my skin.
I murmured against his stubbled cheek
of a hunger I'd never had sated—
a thirst I'd never thought to slake.
It was a serenade of lovers that we sang together
as if each time was a renewal, an awakening of Spring.
Love was always like a torrid storm at his side,
We floated on waves higher than at flood tide,
crashed in its ebb when desire was fulfilled.
Uninhibited, he sought my lips, and we feasted
without need or want for anything more.
Time rushed through our months together,
years as if they were grains spilled in an hourglass.
The feast is still as sweet, the passion as strong.
If we're wrong to feel the tethering we share—
neither of us care, for we will not be deprived
the love we savor with wild abandon
nor the silent whispers to each other's hearts.
"Blue Rivers"
Blue rivers
run through a
pale valley
branches merge
to an estuary
where life
Bleeds
All in vain
Dreams are washed away
Dissolved.
The Monster satisfied
is fed.
Open mouthed
“It” sits
where it all ends
and waits
patiently
for the next
flood tide
to begin
to drown
it’s next
Blue River
dream
Rain will wash
crimson sands away
Blue Rivers
Held in pale valleys
Life bleeds
from different tributaries
watching each other
from distant levees
stand the shadows
ghosts of once were there
golden Summers
a lost child
and memories
fall within the cracks
of a broken road
to a home
blind now with
broken windows and
burnt stairs
Two silent swimmers
Blue rivers
run through a
pale valley
branches merge
to an estuary
where life
Bleeds
Two Swimmers
a small life
in between
All in vain
Dreams are washed away
Dissolved.
The Monster satisfied
is fed.
(LadyLabyrinth/2019)
"When beggars die, there are no comets seen; The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes."
"Cowards die many times before their deaths; The valiant never taste of death but once."
https://youtu.be/thL9QpwS6g0
Hole in the River/Crowded House
https://youtu.be/IgVbYnPodIQ
Four Seasons in One Day/Crowded House
https://youtu.be/jkdQxEm1tR4
A Life Between Us/Finn Brothers
the saving grace -
http://www.shakespeares-sonnets.com/sonnet/3
Proudly, she carried white carnations and delicate pink roses,
their sweet aroma emanated from her romantic bridal bouquet.
Entwined in the blooms were crystals that would sparkle in poses
of photographs soon to be taken on this, her wedding day.
They'd met when teens, and he was smitten upon first glance
by the twinkle in her eyes and the smile she sent his way.
He gave her white carnations at their first high school dance,
pink roses he presented when she starred in the Senior play.
The crystals were a necklace, worn by her mother, as a bride
It was a way of honoring her loving memory on this occasion
A gift that morning from her father, brought tears in a flood tide
He thought she'd want to carry them; she needed no persuasion
The aisle was lined with petals; pink roses and white carnations,
swept along as she walked, by the train of her alencon lace gown.
They stood, exchanging wedding bands and love's declarations.
On her head she wore carnations and roses, fashioned in a crown.
@10~4~2017@
Roses and Carnations
Sponsor: Julie Rodeheaver
A storm blew in when I peered into his dark eyes
Fearing lightning would strike in bolts of midnight fire
Wanting his touch, though it might lead to my demise
Then full lips swept over mine, igniting desire
Thunder roared in my head with each deepening kiss
I heard it drumming in warm breaths against my ear
Fingertips danced lightly over naked skin. This
symphony sings in my heart each time he draws near
Desperate urges and needs filled my torrid mind
I murmured in soft sighs against his stubbled cheek
whispers of hunger, I'd never before defined
He sated my desires when they reached fever peak
Storms are strong passionate tempests at this man's side
We ride on crashing waves higher than at flood tide
The aged poet lies abed
Listening to the falling rain
Tap dancing on some metal roof.
Ever since he could remember
Rain has been a fascination
For him, writing sundry poems
About this heavenly liquid.
He doesn’t know exactly why
But rain always precipitates
A flood tide of inspiration.
Once again the propensity
Immerses him entirely;
This time in an unlit bedroom
With a single theme in mind: rain.
Fallow my space
Along shores of sand
Emptied lines trace
The waiting edge
Of those who fly
Hidden the silence
That holds my blind space
Knowledge leaves holes
In the better part
Of those who wait
Silvered the seam
That binds the sharp sea
Fallen wings deem folly
The broken parts
Of those who know
Rolling of waves
The flood tide enters
Who could ever tell
The fullness it fills
For those who have waited