Best Incognita Poems
Peering beyond reach of human capacity
I revolve around the sun in a solar orbit,
Looking deep in space for origins of bygone
Going way beyond anyone has ever gone,
Exploring unknown world of astronomy
Searching light from first stars and galaxies
Traversing back in time where it all began,
Forming our universe after the Big-Bang.
Some 13.6 billion light-years my eyes reach,
Studying evolution, formation of galaxies,
Vast, colorful, mysterious shapes and sizes,
Eying origins of life and planetary systems
Probing, discovering, unfathomable infinity,
For one light-year equals six trillion miles~
A feat, only for the confidence of audacity.
I capture images spectacular to every sight,
Viewing light that is invisible to human eye
Locating nebulae, gas planets, dust clouds,
Collision of galaxies where stars are born,
Traversing back in time where it all began,
Probing galactic universe~ terra incognita.
No longer a phantasy, I am real as can be,
An eye of science and a mind of curiosity,
Intellectual tenacity and proof of ingenuity,
In acumen and wisdom of Astrophysicists,
I am the bold vision of infrared astronomy,
I am the flight vying hypnotic destination
Buoying on wings of scholarly inspiration.
Much is yet undone, for I have just begun,
Orbiting diligently until my work is done,
Until dreams become reality of my mission.
For insight into creation, I am the ray of hope~
I am the James Webb Space Telescope.
August 28, 2022
Placed 1st: This or That, Vol 13 Poetry Contest
Sponsor: Edward Ibeh
Title chosen: Terra Incognita
Note: NASA launched James Webb Telescope on December 25, 2021.
Images are being released starting July 12, 2022.
You can view the spectacular images at: Webb.nasa.gov
Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners
European Space Agency and Canadian Space Agency.
Categories:
incognita, science, space, stars, universe,
Form:
Personification
So strange this land, old and yet young.
Where is this place of tall green trees,
and grey-haired men in unknown tongue?
they must have traveled summer's breeze.
Adobe brick quonset "chalets"
mud-soaked roadways in all the blocks.
WACs and wives and waifs everyday
midst hollyhocks and four o'clocks.
Los Alamos*, this place must be.
A land of Oz 'neath bluest sky.
Where science dealt humanity
a fatal blow, then watched it die.
A perfect paradox is this.
How splendid to contrast the two--
a lovely place/a devil's kiss,
and wisdom sprinkled like the dew.
I left quite soon but still recall
the secrets hidden on each page.
The lilac mountains looming tall,
their perfume of fission and sage.
August 5, 2022
"Terra Incognita"
for This or That, Vol. 13, poetry contest
by Edward Ibeth
*Los Alamos Laboratories, New Mexico, are where the atomic bombs were
created then dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan in WWII.
Categories:
incognita, 12th grade, america, creation,
Form:
Rhyme
"Life is either daring adventure or nothing at all."
Quote by _Helen Keller
I would like to be an adventurer,
and set sail for places terra incognita;
still uncharted, unknown, undiscovered on earth,
in remote corners of the world !
It would be amazing to find places,
and be the first to walk the land;
areas untouched, mysterious, maybe forbidden,
perhaps an unmapped lost city !
Be the first to roam a forest jungle,
wild, quite strange and dangerous;
unexplored until my discovery or so I believe,
oh, to find a paradise pristine !
_____________________
August 07, 2022
Poetry/Verse/Terra Incognita
Copyright Protected, ID 08-147-562-07
All Rights Reserved, 2022, Constance La France
Theme chosen - Terra Incognita
Written for the Standard contest, This or That, Vol. 13
sponsor, Edward Ibeh, Judged 09/04/2022
Third Place
Categories:
incognita, adventure,
Form:
Verse
I heard of lands both far and near
where wealth beyond tale can conceive.
With rivers deep and mountains sheer
for the brave to challenge and reave.
I heard of them and I believe
this call that moves me to explore.
I should follow my heart and weave
the path where none has gone before.
Through legends spread by foe and peer,
my head and heart do wish me leave
the comforts of my home so dear
to seek the thrills that I perceive.
The first to achieve and retrieve
power and fame I can’t ignore,
the tug on the conqueror’s sleeve,
the path where none has gone before.
I’m confident in what I hear,
stand ready with sword, shield, and greave.
No time for mortal dread nor tear.
No time to cause angst or aggrieve
the loss of friend or kin bereave.
I sail to explore a new shore
and swear on death I will not leave
the path where none has gone before.
I seek your audience and ear
to beg, my dear Prince; I implore
your blessing, funds, and ships to steer
the path where none has gone before.
Categories:
incognita, adventure, boat, confidence, courage,
Form:
Ballade
I didn’t listen to his words
Even though, in my heart, I heard
When he told me I was a hypocrite
I found myself praying for God’s intervention
For the assurance that I wasn’t being
A hypocrite – a fraud, a phony
I wasn’t someone who was just pretending
To love the Savior, my whole world
The answer to my every anxiousness
The reason for every hope I had ever had
I didn’t listen to him when he said
You’re a hypocrite – You’re not saved
But I found myself searching my heart
Turning over each thought, every motive
All the reasons I had for not giving into
The things he wanted – his desires, his hunger
The greed that was something he flaunted
Even though he accused me, in all truth
It had been his continual urgency for more – more
Urging me to go above and beyond my power
That caused me to disregard his final demands
I didn’t listen to him or his accusations
I soon found my sympathy for him wavering…
Although I had always been one of his supporters
I found myself – terra incognita now
Unable or unwilling to let go of my plans
To give in to his claims, his pressure, his petitions
I realized, finally, that his complaints, his blaming
Had brought me to the rude awakening…
It was not me at all – He was the double-dealer
Of his allegations… his finger pointing came full circle
To the man he saw in the mirror, in his reflection!
This or That, Vol 13 Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Edward Ibeh
Terra Incognita
August 8, 2022
Categories:
incognita, abuse, anger, angst, anti
Form:
Free verse
In my dream, I sailed away
Over the tame waters of a tranquil bay
And landed in a magic isle
Never set foot before by anyone alive
A pleasant retreat of birds and beasts
Far removed from world’s dust and heat
A terra incognita with a magic spell
Hidden away at Nature’s veiled breast
The sky was rent with songs of birds
The air, smelling of odors sweet
Here and there were exotic blooms
Bulrush, Blue bells and Lavenders fresh
I roamed frivolously from end to end
Of that enchanted land of idyllic charm
With twining creepers and silken grass
Proclaiming aloud of a perennial spring
My heart leaped in euphoric delight
My senses alerted in ecstatic thrill
My feet moved in an explorer’s gait
After the treasures stashed in its caverns deep
I rambled relentlessly through untrodden paths
Feasting on the marvels, my eyes could catch
Arching trees framing a leafy roof
And fruits, ripe and raw, hanging from every bough
As Nature, thus unveiled her bounty before,
My fancy, unfettered took to wings.
I loved my sway over that terra incognita
With treasures galore that none could claim
August. 12.2022
~ Placed First~
This or That, Vol.13.Poetry Contest
Sponsor- Edward Ibeh
Categories:
incognita, beautiful, fantasy, solitude,
Form:
Free verse
The emerald forest uniquely so mystique,
as far as I can see beyond the horizon,
shrouded by surreal stillness it spreads,
wraps me as I amble in rippling breeze.
Its charming cadence enthralls
my essence suffused with rhapsody.
As I walk on the fading forest path
around the shadows of ancient trees,
the clumps of desiccated amber leaves,
falling from dry boughs at the end of their time,
my footsteps crumple to make the music
for my enchanted journey unfinished within.
At sunset hour out of the forest I now saunter
toward the enigmatic realm of obscurity,
concealed in the serene sanctum of eternity.
Soaking the final flash of twilight splendor,
I walk the last mile on the time-track of life
to go to terra incognita as a forlorn traveler.
________________
August 14, 2022
Title chosen : Terra Incognita
Contest : This Or That, Vol 13
Sponsored by : Edward Ibeh
Categories:
incognita, analogy, death, life,
Form:
Free verse
My reefs look dazzling in the dawn light.
A sea of hypocrisy and lies that we must fight.
They are held to what they are allowed to view,
And yield when they grip their identity and hue.
I can hear sighing while I'm still close firmly,
Millennia ago, by beings apt to live eternally.
I can feel their vicinity and smell their fragrance.
It clasps me from behind and grabs my flagrance.
We follow in the footsteps of our predecessors,
And behave visibly toward enticing assessors.
There was an aiming brain area you won't believe,
As surely as a harp, we allow creeds to leave.
I hear mirth while a harp plays awe-tune finery.
Father was the donor, and I await your midwifery.
When it's dark outside and you can grip the stars,
I dwell under the glow of lightning and scars.
A royal seagull holds all distress and saltiness,
Tears of despair fall freely and with snottiness.
Something floats over the burdened couple,
You've lost much delight due to this supple.
My reefs of logic, mystery, and terra incognita,
Ouachitas goldsmiths were jarred by Amanita.
Adverse times allude to a poet's stark weary right,
Ideal lovers, Poseidon and the neat Amphitrite.
Stop at the limit of the path, and then proceed,
When did most souls stop using spiked metal?
Set on the inert tools and the virtue laws creed,
It's time for testing, for ages to avow their mettle.
My dark and grim retentions fulfill my dream,
Lulling tones of a long-forgotten cradle scream.
In the twilight, forlorn and tender songs unfold,
In the pulsing beats of entering and release, untold.
My reefs look dazzling in the dawn light,
A sea of hypocrisy and lies that we must fight.
They are stuck with what they are entitled to view,
Focus on the future, not their burial lot due.
My boat goes across a cool, undulating lake,
Seven stars' light bulbs burn dimly in my sake.
1st Place Contest Winner
Written: August 05, 2022
This or That, Vol 13 Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Edward Ibeh
Categories:
incognita, analogy, appreciation,
Form:
Rhyme
*Image of Pelosi Leaves Taipei by BBC.
Terra Incognita
Diurnal moments margin in my head,
As metamorphosis pirouettes hands,
Nightmarish recall exit none be said,
An armistice mosey in of spilt sands.
Logjam beliefs wane gains, prosperity,
Erring hand fingered an island nation,
Right foresees windfall, voters clarity,
Left wins Red China, lost the election.
Past oversights also recent letdowns,
Amiss twentieth, twenty-first embed,
Ruse an angle nefarious look rounds,
Dame be a torpedo full speed ahead!
It is a jigsaw board, a puzzling face,
An instance period to bygone years,
A world in awe as one alters a pace,
A nation benign oddity brew peers.
2022 August 25
*2nd Place*
This or That, Vol 13
~~Edward Ibeh: Judged 2022 September 04
Terra Incognita
Categories:
incognita, betrayal, bullying, history, power,
Form:
Quatrain
Far beyond the reaches of the Milky Way
A galaxy exists which remains unnamed
Unseen by human eye or large telescope,
It is, to my knowledge, not yet defamed.
Pure and undefiled, suitable for living
In a Goldilocks zone yet to be uncovered
Fresh clean air, and an abundance of water,
Awaiting its coordinates to be discovered.
A terra incognita resembling heaven
Is just beyond the reach of our technology
But, we are advancing in our capability
To comprehend its complicated cosmology.
Someday, it promises a necessary respite
A new home for humanity in far outer space
When we’ve destroyed our home on earth
We can start ruining a new, pristine place!
SECOND PLACE WINNER
Written August 3, 2022
Submitted to "This or That, Vol. 13" Poetry Contest
Sponsored by Edward Ibeh
Categories:
incognita, places, universe,
Form:
Quatrain
Terra Incognita
Hidden!
Uncharted eternity birthing
Roiling!
In a slow dance
The pregnant pause of terra’s faults
Breaks o p e n
In slip strikes
Earth’s fiery magma
Spit back into the hands of Heaven’s potter
Churning!
Moody
Mercurial
Footprint on the landscape’s soul
Journey to epiphany and nature’s improvisation
New land birthed
Uncharted steamy islands
The territory of infinity’s face revealed
Spouting from the abyss of oblivion
Amorphous!
Shapeless
Nameless
Anonymous
Ambivalent explosions of molten earth
Unmapped anticipation
For future nomad’s unquenchable quests.
8-29-22
Contest: This or That
Sponsor: Edward Ibeh
Title Chosen Terra Incognita
11-14-22
Contest: Mile 20 Poetry Marathon
Sponsor: Mark Toney
25 Lines
Categories:
incognita, birth, earth, fire, life,
Form:
Free verse
fear of the unknown
a terra incognita
where we will still go
Categories:
incognita, introspection, life
Form:
Haiku
Cave of our heart, virgin and unexplored,
invites us to go in within,
relinquishing both thought and senses five,
that our soul’s journey may begin.
No sooner we so choose, without excuse,
magnetic currents engulf form,
bestowing God’s gift of rapturous bliss;
caress divine, tender touch warm.
We cognise the dance of polarities,
driven by soul’s yearning to feel
pangs of separation and then union,
in fullness of bliss beats appeal.
In timeless time, hues of love are ingrained,
etched upon fabric of our soul,
propelled by our pure heart’s childlike desire,
to become the flame we extol.
04-August-2022
This or That, Vol 13 Poetry Contest
Sponsor: Edward Ibeh
“Terra Incognita”
HMS, Rhymezone, PS Grammar
Categories:
incognita, joy, love, spiritual,
Form:
Quatrain
A supermoon
Larger than Jupiter
Causes the King of Roman Gods
To feel small.
The unexplored region
Beyond the Milky Way
Waits a millennium
For the first arrivals
Colonists name their new world
Prosperina, goddess of agriculture
Wine and freedom~
For they have escaped tyranny!
Image credit: Helena Valenzuela Widerström
Categories:
incognita, science, science fiction,
Form:
Free verse
I know well of a cat's ear, eye, nose, teeth, coat, paws and claws,
Do I know, what's behind its look and mysterious pause?
I know a dog's acute sense of smell; muscles and fingers,
Do I know what's going-on when he quietly lingers?
I see my neighbor-child stand exuberantly leaping,
I stand in awe, when, within seconds, I see him weeping...!
Fair or black or tanned skins - with smiles show human externals,
Soft or hard or kind or cruel - who, knows, their internals?
Streams and lakes seem silent and gentle, surface still and calm,
Within, hurling currents and whirlpools, don't they, sometimes, harm...?
Seas and oceans have treasures abundant; who, knows, how much?
Midst greed to collect these, who has dared their bottom to touch...?
Stars are matters of joy; we count them; do we know the whole?
Puzzles of constellations and galaxies touch each one's soul...!
Is rhythm of universe and cosmos, fully explored?
In their elegant contours what a mystical concord...?
Faith and theologies talk of God, who is he or she?
Hill or vale or human form - how he or she looks to be...?
Death I know; grave and coffin too; there from where will I go?
Does sun glow there? Breeze blows? Snow falls? Rains with squall? What I know...???
18 August 2022
This or That, Vol 13 Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Edward Ibeh
Categories:
incognita, death, life, mystery, nature,
Form:
Rhyme