Best Straightforward Poems
No one told us, in the straightforward language of streets and desires,
That life would keep pushing us forward, like an unrelenting wind,
Even when we're too tired or too defeated to get out of bed,
That sometimes the days could be so heavy that the air becomes a burden.
No one taught us to hide tears under a mask of indifference,
To laugh with sarcasm, even when the soul is torn apart,
To step forward on roads paved with compromises and unfulfilled desires,
An inner city where every corner is an explosion of passion and regret.
We grew up with stories that ended well, like dreams too sweet,
Where everyone smiled and rested under a crepe paper sky,
But life doesn't wait, it continues to unfold, cruel and splendid,
Leaving us to learn how to go on, even when the heart is a battlefield.
Perhaps that is true strength, not glory and applause,
But finding a way to move forward, quietly, like a poet among words,
Even when no one sees, when only silence listens,
A poem of the heart that refuses to stop, a verse written on the walls of an inner fortress.
And maybe that's enough, to keep moving,
Step by step, with a heart that refuses to yield,
To find beauty in every breath, even when it hurts,
A magical, melancholic poem, written by our steps on the vast canvas of destiny.
Truth, justice and the American way…*
Back up to Pilate
“What is truth?”
If you can question it
than you can let go of it
An honest answer
forbidden, revoked, crucified
Who is truth -
the better question
His words stationed
before, during, and after the cross
a divine human being
has a way with words
clarifications not needed
where common sense prevails
He made them male and female
with corresponding body parts
gave women
the gift of carrying
the most precious thing on earth
Mary would tell the truth
Politicians pervert the truth
Pilate washed his hands of the truth
Where does America stand?
Praying hands
or idle idolatry
looking away from the cursèd tree
distaining Ripley
choosing
to believe not
what your eyes see
as straightforward
what they’ve always seen
from the beginning
Is this how we know it’s the end?
Kim Rodrigues © 7/21/2022
*From Superman
"Plain women know more about men than beautiful ones do."
Katherine Hepburn
Beauty in the mind of the beholder
Labelling prejudice masks of projection
Cursive weaving loops of adornment
Venus hidden under Mona Lisa’s smile
Mirror mirror on the cat walk’s wall
I know nothing but that I know well
Narcissus marvels in the golden pond
A snake slithers from an apple tree
William Tell shoots again from the hip
Marilyn shows off curves of delight
Bows to a cross of enchantment
Takes another sniff of cocaine
Hepburn revels in passing Morning Glory
Seduces independence unveils her charm
Stakes claim on Goddess of smashing seduction
When the looking glass shatters to pieces
Burrows wrinkles deep in the face of time
Cinderella throws a shoe at the image
A crossdresser debunks devouring myths of fatal femmes
Hermaphrodite mounts a quick challenge on Trojan horses
And after all its a plain man’s ride in a beautiful world
No serenade and no rodeo when Juliet receives
Romeo disguised as a bank clark from hell
Counts his losses when costumes fall short
And yet we classify the beast and its false allure
When instead we are better advised to take value
From upright meaning without mascara and shadows
The scribe challenges such categorization
Dips his nib into a fountain of truth and
Chuckles when lip sticks kiss true virtue
03rd January 2020
If you are mourning the loss of someone or something, take the time and space you need. It's your journey. Don't let anyone try to push you into something you're not ready for, whether it be feelings or actions.
Whatever you're going through, and whether you choose to go it alone or ask for help, know that you're never alone. There is a lot of positive energy (and there are many spiritual beings) in the Universe to help each of us. Blessings and best wishes.
Grief is not a straightforward journey
By Michelle Morris
27/12/2022
Grief is not a straightforward journey
It is filled with feelings and emotions
Like when we peel an onion
It's layers can leave us tearing
But working through those layers
Helps us in the end
Like an onion can enhance a meal
Our depths reveal how we deal
There is no reason to follow
A to-do list of social mores
It's more important to work through
Your feelings and emotions
We never know
Whether it will be quick or slow
We can only follow
Our own special path of life lessons
And even when we think
We've healed the pain within
The feelings can come rushing back
On a birthday or anniversary
Be gentle on yourself
And hold on to your good memories
Try to remember that Death
Only takes mortal bodies
The souls of loved ones remain
They will last forever
And we will get to see them again
In an everlasting hereafter
So, feel what you need to feel
And move at your own pace
May you be blessed and held
Within the Universe's embrace
© Michelle Morris, 2022
A straight line, laity,
And crooked one quite weighty,
In topsy-turvy
A poetic metre’s world,
Friend, why be such a straight bird?
And why so long winding
Where a crooked line softness shows,
One straight, harshness and stress,
In world of woes, oh warped that goes,
Where a crooked line softness shows—
In such an awkward world of woes,
What use straightforwardness
Where a crooked line softness shows,
One straight, harshness and stress!
___________________________________
Triolet |12.07.2023| poetry, world
Poet’s note: What Tanka takes five short and sweet lines, a Triolet takes eight and longer ones.
straight from the horse's
mouth where vets check its teeth to
determine it's age
*more to follow---check back