Best Mesas Poems


Premium Member The Mystic Valley of Dzoku

While rambling like a vagabond in a seraphic poetic submersion, in a remote region, witnessed the most captivated sight ever, 
a sleeping valley rippled in wild blooms, as sparkling in mystical celestial beam, in the mesas of the clouds, the Dzukou Valley, 
a remote dale at the border of Nagaland and Manipur, 
in the untrodden tableland of India's Northeast!

The picturesque landscape was ringing with the
once in a lifetime scene of emerald shades of hillocks 
paving the way for azure mountaintops,
 luminous flowers waving in the winds amongst the tall grasses!

The vale was tweeting and twirling amidst the virgin vegetations enriched with the spectacular sights of verdant forests, 
exquisite flora and fauna, 
serpentine streams, myriads of panoramic pink 
and white wild blooms that dot
 the vast caldera of the valley and its' verdant meadows, 
alongside the meandering rivers of Dzukou and Japfu,
 appeared as the absolute paragon of serenity and tranquility!

Surrounded by the whispering platonic hills, 
with numerous colorful flying creatures,
the valley seemed as smuggled over
the dewdrops' fragrant feral fruits, 
Oak and Rhododendron forests are a feast to the eyes!

Half way up and any signs of tracks disappear,
and one is just left with wheezing enigmatic bamboo thickets!

Botanists' delight, trackers' paradise, seraph's psyche,
 rovers' riddle, is reclining placidly , 
the untrodden earth's lulling lullaby,
 in the abode of the divine Lily's
 anomalous nature's absolute pamphlet,
 a rich biodiversity hotspots
of endemic species, the Dzoku Valley;
an uninhabited unsullied phosphorus valley

Note: 
 The Dzüko Valley is  located at the borders of the states of Nagaland and Manipur in Northeast India. The valley is  known for its extremely rich biodiversity, seasonal flowers and flora & fauna. It is situated at an altitude of 2452 m above sea level.

© Silpika Kalita
Categories: mesas, adventure, appreciation, beauty, earth,
Form: Free verse

' El Toro - Rojo '

Como’ Si’ Yama’, Senor’
Como’ Si Yama’, Por Favor’…
… for Below That Embroidered Sombrero’
Shone Eyes Like El Dorado

He Was A Tall and Handsome Hombre’
Like The Range of Sierra Madre’
…Now, He Sat Center The Cantina
Surrounded by Bonita – Senhoritas

He Smiled, “Buenos-Dias Senora’”
Por Favor, Por Que’ El-Hora’ ?...
If So, Have A Seat, Mi- Amiga’
And Mercedes, Bring Over More Cerveza

He Was… Rodrigo Reyes-Pacheco’
Best - of The West, of Vaqueros’
He Came to Compete in The Rodeos
And Win Fame and Fortune in Pesos’

He Came Thru El Paso De’ Tejas
Thru Dusty Rancheros and Mesas
To Ride on El Toro Rojo
Who Has Never Been Ridden Befo’…

La Viva’… Arriva’  … Rodrigo
The Brave and The Bold Caballero’
Champion Bull Rider, from Old Mexico
Vaya’… Con Dios’ !... Rodrigo

Now, El Toro Rojo, Was Dangerous
For Killing Men, El Rojo, Was Infamous
His Horns Had Pierced Many A Corazon
Ripped Flesh, Like It Was Piñata’ Hung

I Informed All of This To Rodrigo
The Hombre, Was Bent on Being Macho’…
… He Would Ride Toro Rojo, Manyana’
Said “Gracias”… But My Cares Were Por Nada’ !

La Viva’… Arriva’… Rodrigo
The Brave and The Bold Caballero’
Champion Bull Rider, from Old Mexico
Vaya’… Con Dios’!... Rodrigo

… Now, He Wasn’t Loco in La Cabeza’
I Just Didn’t Comprehende’ … “Que’ Pasa”
But I Saw Rodrigo Atop… El Rojo 
… ! He Rode Like A Latino – Tornado ! …

He Rode El Rojo, To The End…
Then, Turned ‘Round and Rode Him Again…
Rodrigo had Won… Just Like He Planned…
Because El Toro – Rojo …   …  Was Mexican !

La’ Viva’ … Arriva’ … Rodrigo
The Brave and The Bold Caballero
Champion Bull Rider from Old Mexico
Vaya’ … Con Dios ! … Rodrigo….
Vaya’ … Con Dios !... Rodrigo o o o o o


for Ruben Ortellao... 
I Don't Really Know 
What Your Branch of Humanity is... 
(Spanish, French or Other)
But I thought You Might Like 
This Whimsical Poem...  
Oh... And Thank You For Your 
Most Generous Comments... 
(Cause I Know You Are A Fantastic Poet... 
I've Read Several of Yours 
and I Love Them Too...)

 (P.S.  Excuse the Spelling... 
I'm Spanish Illiterate (Smile)
MoonBee
Categories: mesas, adventure, animals, cowboy-western, fantasy,
Form: Light Verse

Premium Member Desert Paint

The two-lane road stretches
through a shimmering glaze
to the horizon, passing
smokestacks of mesas spewing
clay and maize in vaporous mass.

I hear the sibylline whisper of rain 
through emerald brush
and serpentine hiss
of slithering sand.
The acrid smell permeates
evergreen and purple sage,
carries the aroma
with fine dust.

I point my thumb west,
a prayer for a willing traveler
to whisk me away 
from the cumulative downpour
when the desert paint 
floods umber in the gullies.
Categories: mesas, color, imagery, rain,
Form: Ekphrasis

Book: Radiant Verses: A Journey Through Inspiring Poetry


Wild Horses ~ {a Septolet}

beautiful bangtail
spirit untamed
racing tumbleweeds
thundering
across mesas

stallions wrestle
under night skies...
Categories: mesas, adventure, animals, cowboy-western, imagination,
Form: Free verse

Premium Member Awakening to the Red Road: An Ecopoetic Odyssey 'Part 4 of 6'

IV. Interconnected Web

Teach your children the ethos of 
   the rampart-
   of the earth under their feet. 
Is it more than just soil? It's heaven — 
The Chosen Hallowed Retreat 
Where we connect

For you must see life as fully rich with 
    the resounding vibrations of our 
    kindred lives on this sacred earth. 
    Our temporary home.   
For whatever happens to her 
    happens to our kindred race.

All life is connected. Wouldn't you agree?
For all life is like 
    blood that unites a family,
by a process of no creation. 
     For there is no division.  One must see
Humanity and other forms of life 
    are knitted together... 
    by the fabric of existence. 
    Which are only a part of 
    circle of life cycle.
Each time we do, we are getting 
our bodies intertwined.

Just like the Hopi who revere sacred mesas, 
    we must honor our...
Ancestral wisdom -
    winding through desert canyons.
A sacred thread is planting -
    our stories into the mother land.
Into the wind-carved rocks' etched. In coyotes'...
  starry night songs!
We hear earth's eternal rhythms, 
    guiding us along.

Feel the warmth of the sun-soaked soil 
    beneath bare feet.
Perhaps, the cool, refreshing 
    touch of mountain - 
    stream water.
Let us smell the wild sage carried on 
    a gentle breeze.
And hear the wind swept leaves of 
    ancient trees.
In these moments, we connect to 
    the heartbeat of the earth.

As Katsina spirits teach through 
   their dances that
We are temporary guests 
    on this sacred land.
Yes, stewards of its beauty, bounty, 
    and balance. —
Our legacy layered by our 
    own deeds' hands.
Through each mindful step and every 
    gentle touch
We praise and honor 
    the interconnectedness web of life.

So Must Stop! and ask: 

How now can we translate this 
    intimate and spiritual connection into
    a harmonic coexistence and illiminate 
    the discordant strife?
Categories: mesas, earth, life, native american,
Form: Free verse

Premium Member The Amazon of the East

Dihing, adjoining borderline with Arunachal,  on the foothills of mighty Patkai, 
In the encircling mesas of terrestrial plains of high altitudes, 
lies the Assam Valley's tropical wet evergreen forests, 
Named after its thick density of  trees and profuse diverse ecology, 
the Amazon of the East,  the Dehing- Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary. 

An abode to the myriad of endangered species, copious floras and faunas, a hotspot, the zone of world's richest biodiversity.
As amazing as Amazon's tropical forests, dark and dense:
The country's lungs like last lowland the evergreen rainforest. 

Where the tallest of the tall trees with creepers  are competing
 for the sunlight forming greenish lavish canopies. 
                    There, the animal kingdom awakens, whoops;
                     When the light falls, fathoming the density, filters in        
The floras with the exotic species: orchids,  lianas, epiphytes, are sparse and unique, 
The faunas endless, the sole quirky reserve in the country with its' lush evergreen ecological system. 

Nestled amidst the most picturesque valleys and hills, 
Is reclining the lungs of the congenial climate for survival, of the region
A celestial abode on earth of the rarest IUCN red listed, on the verge of extinct species, 
TheDehing Patkai, the richest part of the Sub-Himalayan region,  a major carbon sink ecosystem. 
. 
 The Amazon of the East, with its sacred biodiversity hotspot, 
is apprehensive of it's extinction 
As the relentless injudicious mining and digging, 
Has taken away the pulses of the oxygen feeding lush terrain, 

Imagine a world devoid of rainforests, where we need to carry oxygen tanks, the most unfortunate substitution! 
It's sending signals after signals not to play with its' immensely diverse tropical bio- canopy region;
To save the last remaining unparalleled foliage, affluent lowland from excision! 
As no amount of wealth will be enough to save us from the impending outcomes of  destruction, 
        Pivotal to rescue and redeem the Amazon of the East;
the tropical evergreen Dehing -Patkai reserve, the richest rainforest of the region!
Categories: mesas, earth, education, environment, nature,
Form: Free verse


Premium Member The Ghost Dance Part II

2.

                                     Waiting for Wovoka

For some time the old ones gazed that way,
Then came a seer,
A man named Wovoka.
Who told them he had heard their voices calling in the night to him,
That voices spoke to him of better times soon to come,
That might be brought forth by a special way and a special dance
That would bring to birth a stronger magic than that of Progress,
That would dispel the evil changes.

They listened and they took heart
With the pitiful fervor of the desperate.
He taught his new believers his way and his dance,
And for a time, a fragile time in their trembling twilight
They feltl the spirit of a former time lying still upon their hearts,
A thing beyond the shallow grasp of youth.

     They sit stonily, unmoved in their fogs, remembering tales.
     When no one looks,
     They turn their failing eyes back to the red mesas
     To recall the Dance of the Ghosts.
Categories: mesas, history, native american, tribute,
Form: Free verse

Premium Member The Utopia Untrodden

Have seen an utopian lane, amidst the thicket, latent In the abode of the clouds, in the lap of  the tranquil wilderness, far far away from the mundane mist! 
A  wheezing sparsely inhabited hamlet, Khonoma, a centuries- old settlement, so green, so serene!
 Its' pristine unsullied views, lush wilderness, verdant bushes, aromatic wild blooms, resplendent orchids, rippling rills, are untouched and sacred! 

The Angami tribes, the thorpes' dwellers lead an uncustomary simple life, crammed with ancient, timeless traditions and practices, with nature's absolute accord! 

The unique panaromic cultivation practice, terrace farming, sprawling on the slopes makes the very sight elating! 
Look, the remote richest biodiversity region is twirling with the endemic scented native flora and fauna, the boscage are cramming with untamed wild colourful fruits! 

The revered cultural bird, the grey-billed Tragpon, is intoning from the bushes, making the milieu frolic! 
Myriads of colourful birds are migrating to nestle in the sacred bushes of the mystic rills! 
The  pellucid drops from the misty mesas of  nearby cascades are playing with the colourful pebbles! 

Far from the pandemic, the cherubic hilly terrain is bustling with cerulean rills, shrouded by tropical rain forests and stepped paddy fields! 

How finite are the rustic folks' wants and needs, the primitive shanties to dwell, the crystal cascades to quench, the crops of the golden fields to feed the mouths, the vibrant fiestas with nature's changing seasons to celebrate! 

A paragon of men and nature in absolute  harmony, is lying placidly, the transcendental picturesque tableland, Khonoma, the wheezing green hamlet, an utopia untrodden to bless the naive natives of the far flung highland! 

" Sometimes in quest of no man's Utopia, we may miss the existing unleashed Utopia in proximity, yet untrodden " Quote by poet

 November 11th 2021
Contest: " U"  contest, New Poems Only
Sponsored by: Constane La France
Categories: mesas, appreciation, beauty, culture, farm,
Form: Pastoral

Premium Member Heil Valley (Lyons, Colorado)

The valley so far and wide below
Linden rocks on to capture the show

Bluebells ring to take a picture
mountain lions roam a permenant fixture

And on we trek up the valley
It kind of looks like Cali

And the birds chirp and sing
But oh, does that hot sun sting

Oh look, there's a beautiful sight
Purple mountains with such height

And the time to look at the flat mesas sublime
Let's sit down at the picnic table and have a diet lime

In the green shade now at noon time
Is it a crime to see such lush beauty on not even a dime?
Categories: mesas, nature
Form: Rhyme

1998

i ride to work four days a week
one hour each way.
i don’t like it
but i take the ride.
jerry springer is on the t.v. nightly
i don’t like it
but i watch.
somewhere in between…
of aryan dreams
black power screams
brown men plying in trade
mobile laboratories
moon over the mesas
the valley stretched out below
mountainside condos
trailer park bimbos
babies still die in the ghetto.
Categories: mesas, culture,
Form: Free verse

Premium Member Dancing Bear

your eyes, black diamonds as dark and potent as your soul
your skin, the color of your sandstone mesas
your hair, a sacred silky, shiny, black mane
stranded with blue lapis, white shell, and red corral
Navajo princess with your big burning heart 
full of Native sorrow

generation after generation
of poverty, degradation and shame, 
opportunity stolen before your ancestors were born
your reservation a waste of stray dogs, alcoholism and dirty water
you 
are the most beautiful woman I know

beauty far deeper than your warm terracotta skin
I fall into the abysmal depth of your eyes
into such strong medicine
that in conquering you, I am conquered like Custer's last stand 
and lowered a realm or two
...a holy healing realm 
or two
where I see 
all that lies before and after
you

you are your beautiful people, you are your wasted land and all its shame
you are
your eyes
when I gaze into the glittering dark realm above
your eyes are all I see
"the brain is wider than the sky" said Emily *
but the windows of your soul
contain the whole multitude of universes 
inhabited by every bit of joy and sorrow

dark-souled
Navajo 
princess
you are more, more than all of them
so much more than this world

the drums are drumming a sacred beat 
and Dancing Bear moves the spirit world 
the bells your feet ring
and the feathers your limbs flutter
tell the greatest of the great spirits 
about this hell on earth 
make the sky listen, make the wind obey
make the way even

there is no time (and never was) 
for anyone to escape these words
It falls and rises again
again and again and again

dark-souled
Navajo
princess

knows
Categories: mesas, angst, beauty, native american,
Form: Free verse

Continuing Job Search Implodes

When I was skinned

I made a little list-

Call it (Something Here) :

It started out,

'I am getting older,

what should I do? '

Like go on the road,

Actually join the Legion or

Take vows for the ashram of Guru SatChitAnanda.

.

Buy acre of land and travel trailer

Raise garden, keep White Leghorns

(like Dad) ,

Foment Graduate School riots,

Teach,

Commit suicide with tea

Commit horoscopes for money

Or go home or

Sell health foods and

Grind my own peanut butter

Drive a Big Rig

Ten days on the road

Eating fries and dogs

Or

Take a job with the state

As employment counselor

Give out food stamps.

Walk across Africa

Without shoes,

Establish base lines for jumping beans

Test kangaroos for tie-downs

Photograph mangoes in flight

Or herd silver-plated ants,

Forest Ranger in Chromium Forest,

Study ancient petroglyphs for Shell

Herd sheep on mesas in Utah

Wander High Desert in search of

New alluvial fans,

Search for aliens in Rachel (NV)

Put all on a number in Vegas,

(List ends here):

Call the President,

I've got a job

In Trust, (some state here) ,

Job Duties:

Replacing Wisdom Teeth

Milking dry rattlers

Finding wild women

Listening for Agave worms,

Raising desert flowers

And sitting quietly with the stars,

'There you go...'

'Thanks! '
Categories: mesas, career, jobs, satire,
Form: Free verse

Trumpland

I ride the mesas
Wherever I go
Are Hopi, Zuni,
And tall Navajo

So many people
On dry, barren land
All Trump says is,
"They sure have got sand!"
Categories: mesas, betrayal, corruption, discrimination, environment,
Form: Rhyme

Whispered Wonders

The brisk Autumn breeze
crisply smiles and leaves
inviting seasonal ascendance.
Past dark hollowed eaves
her departing breath weaves
a path for Winter's wondrous entrance.

Courtly canyons kowtow 
the mighty mesas bow
sparking December's grand revival.
Barren branches applaud
as mountain peaks laud
Jack Frost's ever welcomed arrival.

Carols liltingly sung
whilst wreaths are gently hung 
silver enchantment lusters the ground.
The old and the young catch
snowflakes on their tongues 
choirs of church bells neatly resound.

Cozied from silent chills 
tapered candles sleep on sills
illuming the dusk’s frosted splendor.
A forest brook’s trickles
forge tiny icicles
dripping tears of crystal surrender.

Christmas trees brightly greet
joyous townsfolk on the street 
tiny tots, all too well, understand.
Ole Saint Nick and his sleigh
are just a few stars away
from visiting their white wonderland.

Truelove skaters take flight,
under an arctic twilight, 
snuggling snowbirds coo and entice.
Deer and bunnies espy,
'neath the moon's watchful eye,
young lovers etching hearts in the ice.

Winter’s sparkle and glow
softly sings in the snow -
her grandeur is timeless and few.
Yet, before her winds shift
she bestows us a gift
and Spring makes her yearly debut.
© John Heck  Create an image from this poem.
Categories: mesas, seasonsautumn,
Form: Rhyme

Premium Member The Ghost Dance, Part Vi

TODAY

Black Elk said: "A peoples' dream died there... it was a beautiful dream. The Nation's hoop is broken and scattered. There is no center any longer, and the Sacred Tree is dead."

The People were not taken up,
Nor did they die.
They lingered through time and the march of Progress,
As most fell into step, shedding all they'd been,
To drift along with the tide.

But for the many who held on in the Feverland,
Where change came slowly, if at all,
Their wrinkles grew deeper, eyes clouding
Likes skies heavy with storm,
Visions wavering ephemerally,
Seeing like ghosts,
Becoming ghosts.
Their dream is long dead
But the memory of it lingers smoldering
As unquiet ashes in unsteady hearts.
In the quiet of the blackest nights,
Or in the stillness that precedes the dawn,
If one listens closely, with committed heart
One may hear faint echoes
Like the cries of some bird
Unimaginably distant.

The fire is out, only hope goes on smoking 
As ever, the last ember to die.
The old gaze out onto the mesas,
Watching the sun paint them red as it sets,
Listening the while for other sounds from other times,
Dreaming sweet dreams when they doze.

     When the rare rains fall,
     Settling the choking dust,
     Some who went to the White Schools remember
     The shortest verse of the White Man's Book:

     Jesus wept.

Does He weep now, supplicant before His Father's throne?
Imploring mercy for His adopted Brothers,
Betrayed as He was Himself betrayed?

Are these drops from the sky His tears,
Or only rain?

The old men,
Less learned,
Ponder this verse of their own:

          The old men
          Say
          The Earth only
          Endures.
          You spoke truly,
          You are right.
Categories: mesas, history, humanity, native american,
Form: Free verse
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