Best Highlighting Poems


Since First I Saw You

Since first I saw you, it was your eyes,
mesmerizing, your gaze transporting
me to a realm, not of fantasy, real,
where young men go when cupid’s
arrow takes root.

Since first I saw you, it was your lips,
captivating, holding me frozen 
in anticipation of our lips brushing
for the first time.

Since first I saw you, it was your voice,
a crescendo, light, invigorating, 
each word you speak intensifies 
my hearing, enveloping each
note, time ceases as I hang motionless
savoring, memorizing.

Since first I saw you, it was your hair,
long, flowing, gently rising above
your shoulders as a slight breeze
passes through sending waves
of your essence my way. 
The sun magnifying each strand, 
highlighting the minute
variances of invigorating color, 
creating a halo effect, a portrait of
your beauty forever imprinted.

Since first I saw you, It was you,
my love forever more for you,
only you.

Premium Member Honoring a Poet-Collaboration

Tania Kitchin deserves to be honored for her courage. If you would like to honor her, send me your thoughts in couplet form. Thanks.

I have some recognition that I'd like to bring forth to all.
Thanks to Tania for having our backs and standing tall.
 
I’m proud of your character and standing up for what you believe.
I just want to say you’re awesome, and I hope you never leave.
                                     Mark Koplin


Tania Kitchin, cheers to you for writing with lucidity
Your poem of the day carried its weight with validity

For the courage to write the truth, you were chided
But you should've been praised and not derided

Tania, you're being honored for taking a stand
You didn't merit the need for a harsh reprimand
                                Jenna Logan



I thought that I’d better pitch in
adding support for Tania Kitchin

She wrote her lines straight from the heart
though the POTD honour was soon to depart

I feel there was no need to apologize
Cos nasty soup trolls we all despise
Jan Allison



Why reprimand Tania? this really isn’t right
She was only highlighting not starting up a fight

My support I bring to this wee collab
Your back...so stand tall, we have it, we have!
Angela Tune


When confronted by trolls and bullies, Tania will speak her mind
A lady of integrity and steel, I think that you will find.

She like many of us here wants a quiet life without any fuss
And if what she wrote that day was wrong then I'm Sparticus.
Tom Cunningham

Just Come Closer

Come closer, just a little closer
break down the barriers and rise 
over the blindness where one can see
your bits of beauty silently eluding me

Shade the penciled lines highlighting hues
of black and white with rainbow eyes
a kaleidoscope decorating nature's view 
savoring every ounce of innocence true

Let your petals float in an essence of trust
leave lasting wafts of honey upon my lips
linger awhile letting our wanton ways exist
just come closer and I'll take the hurt away
© Tim Smith  Create an image from this poem.


The Mane Event - On The Catwalk


The Mane Event - On The Catwalk

And now for something completely different! I invite you to experience this unique blend of music, where this dynamic video brings to life the essence of anthropomorphism, in an entertaining portrayal, highlighting creatures with human-like traits - a total figment of my fertile imagination.

Meet a lion 'With Attitude' so regal and fierce, as he prowls and sets the 'Catwalk' ablaze with his mighty roar, leaving a trail of awe, admiration and respect of the other jungle animals, and capturing the hearts of the lionesses. It's an auditory and visual feast, playing with themes of royalty, bravado, and humour. 

Step into the vibrant spectacle of a jungle runway, 'The Mane Event'- On The Catwalk, a Blues Rock anthem bursting with charisma and wit, entertained by an elegantly dressed animal band and set to the gritty and soulful sounds and combines electric guitar riffs with stomping beats and deep, smoky vocals, inspired by iconic figures like the MGM lion. It combines realism with playful, cartoon-like elements set in a fantastical realm.

How does this bold and cheeky lion 'With Attitude' resonate with you? Could you see him becoming a legend on the animal runway?

Follow the lyrics on YouTube CC (closed Captions)

Premium Member His Paintbrush

Sunlight breaks through the trees
Shining against the limbs and leaves
Highlighting the soft hues of emerald
Blended into the golden orange of autumn
Colors that put me at ease with relief
That this perfect image will be with me
Always enlightening me to believe
God’s paintbrush carries no imperfection
It paints with enthusiasm and expression
Of all that He has shared from His hand
As it caressed the earth from heavenly realms
~
Words could never do justice to His plan
When He graced the world with His presence
Art like no one could ever imagine or bestow
Lovingly prepared for His people’s perfect joy
~
If this world knows such a wonderous beauty
Imaginations can’t possibly guess of heaven
It must be the answer to pure amazing grace
Fulfilling hearts with its purity and brilliance
~
Glory to the One who created the universe
He deserves all praise and benevolence
His plan brought us hope for joy in heaven
Where we will realize His reason for all that is

Premium Member The Tall Ships Burn

Burnished gold, aged bronze patinaed by the firelight
singed by sullen Sol, not stayed by Poseidon's hand;
aflame, aflame, tall ships burn, see their masts ignite.

Impenitent, sky rains ash blackening the night.
Fire sends a smoky pall upon the sea and land,
burnished gold, aged bronze patinaed by the firelight.

Fire eats: the air, snuffs man's breath; highlighting their plight,
all hands on deck, the Captain calls, out his command.
Aflame, aflame, tall ship burns, see their masts ignite.

Hell's inferno comes calling on this sun lit night,
foul winds blow, fire roars, and so the flames are fanned;
burnished gold, aged bronze patinaed by the firelight.

Without their ship, crews are lost to a debtors blight.
Up the went like scarecrows shriven by the brand,
aflame, aflame, tall ships burn, see their masts ignite.

Cinder shower catch the dock; workers run in fright.
Pain and heartache fill the wharf; still, they must disband.
Burnished gold, aged bronze patinaed by the firelight
aflame, aflame, tall ships burn, see their masts ignite.

Keelmen Heaving in Coals by Night' by Turner

Published by Dual Coast 2014


Peak District United Kingdom

Fingers of light pierced the clouds caressing the moors
with life giving warmth, purples, browns and greens of
heathers mingled, blended, in a union of beauty. Yellow
of gorse splashed in the sultry, hazy spectre of natures
superb canvas. The dry stone walling lay sporadic, lost,
decaying in time and memory, the hardy moorland sheep
stumbled from blade to blade, in the breeze they used the
walls as shade. Golden plovers dipped and dived the call
of pee weet pee weet echoed in the stillness, the Peregrine
hovered with silent wings and sunlit eye. Those fingers of
light walked the hillside highlighting the chalk outcrops
on craggy reaches as if new laden snow. Black pools of
peaty water dot themselves borne of winters starkness,
it is a beauty that holds both eye and heart, a picture
painted for the soul. A place where all blends and the
crofter wears no watch only the sun and moon to follow
and the footsteps of the rambler sleeps in the fragrance 
of the heather.

Ulan At Sinag Ng Araw: Pagmumuni Ng Isang Tulirong Isip

my head touches the pillow
as gentle rain lulls me 
and i just want to   s
                             i
                             n
                              k

into the sheets,
fold into myself,
….be forgotten,

immerse myself with the raindrops
and blend in—
    washed out,
washed away,
 
be a mere globule
in those floodwaters

and once it recedes,

let me be

--bleached
by 
sunlight

scrub     a w a y 
my darkness,

let that vast spectrum of light
assault it

let those rays
shine
No.
make that, glare--
into my outer and inner beings,
highlighting each of my flaws—


(--can’t you see?—
--tell me,
is it not amidst sunlight
that you see
all those dust particles
floating about?

air may seem invisible, 
  but it's not invincible

think. Again.

--those countless, innumerable
nano flaws)

let those rays
burn through me,
forcing melanocytes
to aggregate
into multiple nevi

--flaws manifested—

then after the Sun
has done its part,

allow pieces of me

to evaporate,
to condense,
to sublimate,,,,

I ramble,  on
    and on                 ...,and on
droning, groaning
like the hardened ground,
as, it’s, pierced, by, rain daggers, 

(but unlike it,
the petrichor 
that I release

fails
to 
invigorate me

--the reason
behind this

escapes me)

Drench,,,,, everything!!!!!!! 
!!!!! unleash,,,,, ravage !!!!!
     then 
  devastate!!!!!


simply: 

R e l. e a s e

               
all that chaos
within


then after all that,
revel in the silence

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,
,,,,
,,
,

and so 
I simply lie
down
on my pondering senti.mental stool-
the overthinker, the wandering fool



Cut through me, Rain, 
--be my salve

Burn deep inside me, Sunlight,
--then heal my tatteredness






--------rain and sunlight: lingering thoughts of a loopy, sighing, mind-----

Premium Member On Maydays Day

I turn to my girl highlighting Mayday is near
A day of spectacle that the whole village views
There's Jesters of folly and Knights without fear
Witnessing lances and jokes, always going askew

To view such we can venture along different ways
We can stroll by the river listening to many sounds
In awe as we walk amidst most wondrous displays
That on any given day beautiful vistas abound

Decisions, decisions, as we contemplate which way
It's such a special day wondering what to wear
Beauty personified will my Olive be on this day
Knights or Royal Princes, all they can do is stare

So tomorrow we've decided to be our chosen route
Two hearts in decision, declaring what's their suit



Mayday morn now greets as I turn next to me
She my guiding light as beautiful as the dawn
Excitement illuminates for into her eyes I see
Onto my back I lie, that feel she's now upon

Into this day we go heading along the river
Crystal clear translucent such serenity in it's flow
Under greened canopies cooled shaded deliver
Wafting leaved dress in delightful fanned throw

We sense the clearings near for scents we sense
Sporadic clusters in capture of welcoming eyes
Mayday games have started, distant heard suspense
Knights on horseback mounted, now in espy

Now we're in amidst encapsulated we now are
She's here to cheer, her Sir James, soon to spar



Balcony she now awaits, white steed he's now astride
Blinkered pairings gallop towards intended foe
To win this Mayday he, to fight for her his bride
Eliminate his enemy, witness his crimson flow

His lance in now connect, thrown metal disperses
Petals of beauty hurled of rainbows selected
Images of we, now thinking marital rehearses 
To know on this day, her intended she's elected

Moments of their previous now in recent past
Knowing they're now free in kaleidoscopic stream
Spectrum of feelings now in view full cast
In colourful extremes, fight for your dreams



.

Premium Member Ekphrasis On Monet's Water Lilies

Floating fluttering fleurs
are jewels in fuchsia and magenta
transmuting into taffy hue
with the kiss of dappled sunlight
like her cheeks that blush in pink
with his wondering wink.

The willows are stalactites 
seducing newly bloomed nympheas
slumbering in Egyptian blue water 
like her shaggy windswept hair
teasing her beloved's face
beneath the dancing moonlight.

Oh, Monet,
your 'en plein air' emphyrean elegance
awakens my sacrosanct senses 
as I envisage a Filbert brush
glazing each pearly petal
highlighting sun's luster
on emerald to lime leaves,
on cyan to admiral water,
reflecting cerulean sky
in consummate chiaroscuro. 





7 April 2022


A Briand Strand Premiere Choice Poetry Contest
Sponsored by Brian Strand
8th place


Notes: 
In 1893, Monet, a passionate horticulturist, purchased land with a pond near his property in Giverny, intending to build something "for the pleasure of the eye and also for motifs to paint." The Water Lilies is a 1919 painting by impressionist Claude Monet, one of his Water Lilies series. The painting, the left hand panel of a large pair, depicts a scene in Monet's French pond showing light reflecting off the water with water lilies on the surface. 
(www.metmuseum.org)

*plein-air painting, in its strictest sense, the practice of painting landscape pictures out-of-doors; more loosely, the achievement of an intense impression of the open air (French: plein air) in a landscape painting(www.britannica.com).
© JC Brul  Create an image from this poem.

Premium Member Complacency

Such beauty, only nature could compare
How fair her face, when first she graced my sight
Brown eyes so kind, highlighting flaxen hair
A smile so bright, one thinks of dawn's firstlight

Fate smiled, as we were both caught in love's snare
Entangled hearts immersed to love's delight
Two fools, who both before, had love forsweared 
Both blinded by a love that burned too bright

Yet love is like a garden one must tend
Regardless what one thinks, love is not free
Rewarded richly for the time you spend 
But dying slowly from complacency

If I should say "I love you" 'neath my breath
For her, my love will linger until death


    by Daniel Turner

Premium Member Stick Together People

Stick together      people
the elites 
are gleaning power
from the seeds of misery's garden.

they're dividers of the masses
nothing more-nothing less

they smother smiles - voices. happiness

hoping to keep us in our safe-less spaces
for eternity.

every media outlet is brimming with
half-truthers-distorters-liars
phallic symbols for political parties
erect with hate-void of integrity 
highlighting the ogres of society
breeding fear 
spotlighting the freaks of society 
wanting us believing all white      people
are grand wizard-hearted
that black veins are filled with thug sludge.

corporations are feeding piles of green to the media machine
forever stomping the bent backs of the plow horse class
planting hollow-souled politicians in our garden of democracy

               but in time
all devils will expose themselves
stumble over their own fetid script
in time they'll soon forget their own lies..
slit their throats-hang from ropes
of their own making

stick together         people
unity is the purest form of diversity
stick together         people
soon enough (with help of God) 
we'll turn evil to crumbs.

Premium Member Empty

A life moves on
The empty space
A vacancy
The smile missed face

The heartfelt ache
The hopeful joy
Of knowing birds
Must wings deploy

The silent cloak
Of no-one there
Is draped on shoulders
Poised to bear

A voice, a note
Would lift the heart
Small gesture to
The soul impart

Some comfort
In the knowing that
The gloss of memory
Not turned to matte

For vibrant is
The emptiness
Highlighting your
Full presence, yes

And more
Despite the heartache burn
It waits with Love
For your return

Premium Member A World of Love

In the wine-colored dark of the night, as we stroll 
in the dim-lit gardens of our honeymoon hotel,
we listen to the orchestra, as violins vibrate,
highlighting our love with tender music of olden times.
 
In our embrace we whisper sweet nothings.
We savor the singing of a choir of crickets
as they jump among the sweet-smelling petunias,
listen, guitars tune in an amorous crescendo of love.

We’re in a world, our very own, a world of love
which beckons as it's time for affections,
that echo through the stillness of the night.
Whilst hand in hand our hearts are warm.

Our passage is illuminated with fiery fireflies 
emitting their oscillating unearthly glow,
a flash dance or a moonlight ballet,
so pleasing to the sight, a feast of nature enhancing

euphoria that increases in a culmination
of a passionate harmonious symphony of love.

A Life of Love and Light

Approaching life with love

Lived with an open heart,

Irrespective of others differences

Fundamentally shining light,

Everyone welcome to join me,

Oneness and unity on mass

Favouring love over hate,

Lighting a path and a way to

Omniscient love in this world,

Vehemently embracing unity

Everything equal as it ought to be,

Attaching ourselves more to peace,

Negating hate, war and jealousy

Dedicating our time to betterment,

Lifting up the whole of humanity

Irresistibly the light is drawing me

Great fully exposing the love in me

Highlighting just how life can be

Trusting in the love and the light.

Get a Premium Membership
Turn off ads, get more exposure for your poetry, and get more features with a Premium Membership.
Book: Diverse Voices: The Poetry of Human Rights and the Pursuit of Peace