Best Stalactites Poems
Timeless Cave
Hidden deep out of time on a limestone cliff
its entrance for the ages concealed
paw prints of cave bears on soft clay ground
and smoke-stained walls it harbored
but deeper, still deeper, farther in time
earth’s ancient origins still beckon
for an artist his palm prints left and man’s
greatest testament of eras bygone
panthers and cave lions on smoothed surfaces
lost voices from humanity’s past
he painted in the torches light from us closing
the distance and they all outlast
on cave walls, hyenas, and horses in flight
immortalized remains vibrant echoes
ringing through the millenniums
a masterpiece there lies
in the midst of stalactites and stalagmites,
man’s original Sistine Chapel still rests in peace.
Categories:
stalactites, art, time,
Form:
Free verse
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).
Categories:
stalactites, appreciation, art, nature,
Form:
Ekphrasis
Through eldritch streets I walked alone
With shadows on my track,
Full jellied was my every bone,
I thought my mind would crack.
Through mist and morbid mire I went
To revel where gargoyles dwell,
A guest whose soul was spent,
To meet the host - the King of Hell!
Through caverns dark I made my way,
The squelch of shoe, the crack of bone,
Chittering squeaks from shadowy grays,
Would never leave me alone.
At last I reached the caverned maw,
Ceiling glint with stalactites,
And of course its bretheren I saw,
The saber-toothed stalagmites.
And on the high-domed hellish lair
Hung a grinning crystal skull,
It threw a ghoulish, greening glare
Which made my senses dull.
All around there was a damp,
A noxious putrid smell,
And slightly a-centre on a ramp,
Stood grinning the Lord of Hell.
His feet were hooved, his head was horned,
He flashed his fang-like teeth.
His eyes were huge and darkly burned;
Heart stopped, I could hardly breathe!
"Welcome", boomed my infernal host,
And flashed a rotting smile,
"A welcome drink, a one-time toast,
Before you join my rank and file!"
Something clammy seized my mind,
My clothes turned very wet,
I screamed and woke myself to find
I wasn't dead as yet.
But close to it I surely was,
My narco-ed mind amid I had lain,
At hell's door without a fuss,
When with maddened mind I'd cut my vein!
Categories:
stalactites, dark, death, dream, fantasy,
Form:
Rhyme
Acrid smoke in the scientist’s bell jar
Blankets of chenille-covered snow
Crystalline carbon diamond star
Drips forming stalactites grow
Effervescent waterfalls’ dreams
Frothy-topped cappuccinos
Gelid surfaces of lakes and streams
Halos of angels in holy repose
Icebergs splitting from their source
Jasmine-covered pergolas in Spring
Knuckles clenched in fear or remorse
Love’s purest form sobering
Mandala patterns on frosted window
Newly-born flamboyant flamingos
Opalescent lustre of pearls on show
Pineapple-licious snow cones
Quills of the porcupines’ defense
Ringlets of great-grandparents’ hair
Steamy hot springs vapor intense
Trailing wisps of London fog air
Undulating winter foothill maze
Veils of fine tatted lace purity
Wieliczka Salt Mine passageways
Xilinous spider webs artistry
Yahrzeit candle flame in memoriam
Zephyrus ballooning sails on a whim
Categories:
stalactites, angel, beautiful, snow, water,
Form:
Abecedarian
staircase
ascending where
incandescent
stars are stalactites
hanging in a sapphire sky
of satin
Categories:
stalactites, heaven, stars,
Form:
Verse
I retreat to my own cavern now and then
One that is unknown to all the modern age
A pristine cave that swallows all my cares when
The cacophony of life borders on rage
Pastel stalactites have dripped long before men
Groveled on this planet in quest of a wage
Brightest sunlight spills through ferns and dries my tear
A lizard cocks his head, "You are safe in here."
Categories:
stalactites, fear,
Form:
Rispetto
ICICLES
On my eaves glass stalactites
Sunlight lenses sparkling pure
Formed in secret overnight
Future length of life unsure
But even if they fail and fall
They decorate my ugly wall
Categories:
stalactites, nature
Form:
Verse
In spite of enjoying a very happy life
There are things I wish I had done
Like running naked through the Trevi Fountain
Or climbing the pyramids with a Nun
Walking the length of The Great Wall of China
While playing the Scottish bagpipes
Or exploring the famous Carlsbad Caverns
Dodging stalactites and stalagmites
The Colosseum in Rome is another site
That I've yet to see first hand
Remember the Beatles played a concert there
Now that was an amazing band
354 stairs in the Statue Of Liberty
Could climb them without a problem
Might need to have some oxygen handy
When I get back down to the bottom
Big Ben is an absolute must for my list
Like to hang from its giant minute hand
And straighten up the Leaning Tower is Pisa
While holding a pizza in one hand!
Then there's St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow
An amazingly colourful structure
Commissioned long ago by Ivan the Terrible
Ivan's name sure makes me shudder
So now you know why I gotta stick around
To see all these very famous landmarks
So I can accurately construct every one
At the home when I play in my sandbox
© Jack Ellison 2015
Categories:
stalactites, nonsense, silly,
Form:
Narrative
Diamond Mountain Cave
(Phu Pha Phet Cave)
The largest cave here in Thailand
Has an eighteen acres in total size
It is not that easy for us to find
But if we’ll get in there, it’s a big surprise!
We need to explore first the side of the mountain
Be patient and careful to climb its lofty and rugged stair
A shade half our way offers rest and we’ll not feel in vain
Quite tedious, but an exquisite view awaits us up there
The Diamond Mountain Cave has seven floors
Most of the time, only two floors are offered for all
Twenty rooms are more than enough for two to three hours tour
After stooping down to get in through the very small entrance of the hall
Public exploration is facilitated by its long wooden walkways
As we tour in every chamber ,we’ll be impressed
With our lens, we can’t resist to capture in every way
The formations of stalagmites and stalactites that amaze
To name the most captivating formation inside the cave
Is the stalagmite in a very huge dinosaur-like egg in shape
Standing prominently at the main hall, it’s my fave
Coated with glittering diamond bits, I wish I can touch or scrape
A form which isn’t funny but also with its wondrous beauty
Is a man’s sword-like stone, no malice to catch our attention
There are a lot more making us feel like dreamy
Such as the amazing mushrooms and big jade stone
It’s so fun to walk around on walkways going up and down,
As we feel the cold wind coming in somewhere
Ventilating and protecting us from sweat so as not to frown
Then we’ll come out with big smiles and great experience to share.
April 15, 2013
*man’s sword : the term I use for man’s sexual organ
--I was there.
Categories:
stalactites, adventure, beautiful,
Form:
Rhyme
Most people go bananas
over chocolate
I'm well nuts about nuts
as well
Stuff them in chocolate
ice-cream or sherbet.
Yeah munch on peanuts
brunch on hazelnuts
Ah lunch on pecan nuts
or crunch on chestnuts
For nuts could never
drive one nuts
Ironically nutters
perhaps never ate them
A nutcase perhaps never
pried open
a nut from its case
as nuts could never ever
fall from grace
Any nut brown eyes
shouldn't miss them.
Nuts are an anytime
anywhere snack
Do travel with 'em' in
your backpack
Savour the taste of
salted groundnuts or
roasted peanuts
I even see locals munch
on round kola nuts.
Western walnuts are
tasty too
and acorns ain't just for
squirrels
in forests or the zoo
Enjoy the crunchy East
African cashews
Snack on slivered Indian
almonds
or even Persian
pistachios
Ahem well rhyming this
poem
was sure quite a tough
nut to crack ;)
Rhyming was tough for
this nutty crunchy snack
Besides there's so many
of them
I can't just put em' all in
a nutshell
I can only hope and wish
you enjoy
this nutty tale I tell.
But I do hope to have
offered all the nuts and
bolts on nut variety
And now nothing else
can rhyme here
except its creator the
Almighty
And this poem be as well
for all poetry nuts
for don't all of you poets
have such poetic guts?
A word in caveat now,
yeah go on crack those
nuts
but take care not to
crack your canines
Pray protect your pearly
whites
Your very own precious
stalactites
those right inside your
facial cave mines
and lest with cavity
holes you whine.
Categories:
stalactites, word play, , western,
Form:
Rhyme
I was on me way to Adelaide, to watch the Blues take on the Crows,
it’ll be a super effort winning there, as every Vic here knows,
I could have flown and watched the game and done it in one day,
but decided on a tourist drive to catch the sights along the way.
I took the narrow winding path along the Ocean Road;
took in mountain views of sandy beaches, these special vistas showed;
spent one night in the Grampians with Zumsteins Kangaroos
and another in the Little Desert; a garden filled with many hues.
Then I drove down to Mount Gambier to visit rellies there,
I toured around the blue lakes and the limestone caverns where
stalactites and stalagmites grew from the roof and floor,
and then I found my el dorado… a McDonalds store.
Since the morning I left Melbourne, it’s been all fruit and weet bix,
so its great to find the ‘Golden Arches’ where I get my ‘Macca’ fix;
a nice thick super burger, with a coke and double fries,
and it’s waiting on the counter and so attractive to my eyes.
I found a table that was empty, put down the tray and ate a chip,
placed a serviette upon me lap, grabbed the coke and took a sip,
unwrapped the burger, ate more chips; had another drink of coke,
then watched a couple sit beside me, but neither of them spoke.
It’s obvious that they are married and that both are elderly,
but it seemed strange they ordered, the very same as me,
then I watched the fella cut the burger, in half carefully,
divide the chips and into glasses, pour the coke out equally.
I must admit I felt embarrassed as I watched this small charade,
and thought that being pensioners, times must be pretty hard,
so with a caring gesture, I offered them my burger, chips and coke,
but they refused me generous offer, and the lady quietly spoke.
“I know you mightn’t understand”, and then continued with her riddle,
“But through our married fifty years, we’ve split things down the middle,
what we buy is always shared, including everything we eat.”
Then she sat and watched her husband, scoff his Macca’s treat.
Here I am still quite confused, as I scrutinize what’s going on,
she’s watching as her food goes cold, so I asked her what was wrong,
“Oh nothings wrong” she said, then took a drink to quench her thirst,
“It just so happens that its Harold’s day, to use the false teeth first.”
Categories:
stalactites, food, humor,
Form:
Rhyme
Black squirrels bound skewways
from the house, shadowshifts
falling darkly on
dusty white autumnal
snow. Paw prints run
makeshift memories soon
snowed over. Leaping
on tree trunks they wind their
way upward on paths of birch
bark in quick roundhouse runs.
I watch them go from
a seat by the door
and eavesdrop on the
dripping eaves trough. Icicles
hang like stalactites
and
drip
their
dew
onto
the
driveway.
The heater blows dry
air over my face as
dust rides recirculated
draft flows and floats upward
in a beam of magnetic
light. A thin frosting
of human sloughcells
settles on the windowsill
in a regiment I
attack with the duster
before they regroup and
resettle. Single cells
born of a single self. I
pace circles on the
fading cream carpet.
Categories:
stalactites, animals, confusion, hope, life,
Form:
Alliteration
Frozen
Struck by your hand
Gentle touch makes me stand
Between the eyes I'm captured
Enchanted I am, frozen ice raptured
Crystal dripping stalactites thawed
Stalagmites on ground awed
Then you vanished
Frozen
Categories:
stalactites, senses,
Form:
Rictameter
Eden of my eye
Beauty in culture of ten million
Garden of my eye
Haven of brethren and sistren
Values never weakened, in words spoken
Freedom strengthened, heritage golden
Sprinkled love in dynamite
Ceilings of heaven in stalactites
Grounds softened by stalagmites
Citizens' history, written in strobe light
Magnets of loving people
Ore of the grounds supple
Blanket of salvation
Tablet and core of the nation
Categories:
stalactites, home, inspirational, people, strength,
Form:
Other
((Haiku))
Love seems endlessly
Then stalactites stalagmites
Divorce comes for sure
((Limerick))
She walk down the isle smiling in white dress
In the courthouse in black dress, what a mess
Lovers dancing on the sand
Divorce and money in hand
Got her money's worth, who laughs last laughs best
((Couplet))
The guy thinks he can outsmart the girl
The girl knows after divorce she owns his world
~Divorce Club~
Contest for : (Destroyer ((Poet
Categories:
stalactites, funny, lost love, sad,
Form:
Haiku