Best Sunset Poems
At day's end, I take in the last light
seeping into the dark waters
across the bay and keep it here.
I gather the sound of departing gulls
smudged on the sky, the quietening
settle of birds in the cypress trees
along the foreshore, the giggle
of a child high on a swing
being pushed by a mothers hand.
I hold here the gentle sweep
of waves soaking into wet sand,
the slow roll of seaweed, bubbles
bursting around shells, wings
low over the water.
I draw in the evening and keep
it close with its lights
sprinkled around the edges
of the headland,
emerging stars hung soundless
in the heavens, the blinking
passage of a southbound airplane
heading into a long night.
From somewhere, the smell
of honeysuckle spilling
into the waiting air.
I make my way home, filled
with all that I have taken in,
almost happy having little space
left over to fit myself.
Melting sorrows drift toward tomorrow
when sounds dance in hushed irrelevance.
Sacred seconds are held in creation's tawny yolk
as crystal waves of wind bid farewell to this day's fate.
A single dove darts through cinnamon plumes
in one last dance through heavens gate.
With ageless dreams bathed in honey gold
it wings its way in graceful sway.
How fleeting life might slip from sight
when passion yearns for its beholder.
Reminders linger in the dusk
of mysteries lost and treasures plundered.
I stand this post as infinity spills across the sky
and wonder fills the trueness of my heart...
07/20/2018
Dusk or Dawn Contest
Sponsored by Emile Pinet
First Place 08/02/2018
Royal blue sky scattered sapphire clouds
On horizon embroidered in navy blue attire
Summoned by the onset of marigold sun
Emitting amber gold on tuscan yellow fire
Where tapestry of fluffy lavender floats
Decorating patterns of designs periwinkle
Mosaic of colors then spray-paint the water
Spreading a layer of golden yellow cover
Shimmering gold dust on twilight ripples
Abutting brushstrokes of dark blue egyptian
I saw you briefly where first time we met
On the lonely bridge that extends into bay
But as the dark landmass peeked its head
And the lifeless vegetation glinted despair
The tangerine breeze announced your exit
Quivering our aura beneath glittering riffle
For you refused to witness impending flame--
Broken vows ablaze in last breath of sunset
Written: August 4, 2018
Submitted on February 6, 2023 to:
2022 Poetry Marathon Qualifiers' FINAL Placement Contest
Sponsor: Mark Toney
Submitted on December 7, 2022 To:
Placed 3rd: 2022 Poetry Marathon Mile 22 Poetry Contest
Sponsor: Mark Toney
Poem of the day on August 7, 2018
Placed first in standard contest #180 by Brian Strand
Starlight
As sunset fades from pink to violet
And twilight skies show trees in silhouette
Our heaven's open vault of diamonds shine
In awestruck twinkling glimmers so divine.
Reflections from these stars upon the sea
Share a peaceful grace with humanity.
Moon with its companion Venus, not far
Displays bright light but neither are a star.
Oh Shooting star, though brief, how bright your tail
That blazes sparkling lights within your trail.
Star struck am I to view your awesome sight
Within deep dark indigo skies of night.
You bedazzle so my romantic heart
Though light years we may be so far apart.
You charge my ardent senses with delight.
I long to see a glimpse of you each night.
My star struck days I know will never end
As your glow and my passion for you blend.
Oh planetary wonders that you are
'Tis God that has created every star.
2-23-22
First posted 3-20-20
~Poem of the Day March 23, 2020~
Thank you Poetry Soup Team and PS members for this honor.
~Second Place~
The Night Sky Poetry Contest judged 4/30/2022
Sponsored by: Anna Marie Kaianah
~6th Place~
Premiere Contest: A Star's Heartbeat
Sponsored by: Chantelle Anne Cooke
~3rd Place~
STRAND CHOICE M,any form,any theme
Sponsor Brian Strand
To Dreamland on Sunset's Lullaby
Gracefully the young crescent moon
ascends the sky like a cosmic tune;
replacing the drowsy pale yellow sun
sinking on a golden glowing horizon.
To dreamland on a lullaby of silvery twilight...
to dreamland floating with music of night.
Even as shadows of day seek rest,
choirs of songbirds fly home to nest.
But asleep I'll be before stars start to shine;
asleep I'll be before Venus and Mars align.
To dreamland on a lullaby of silvery twilight...
to dreamland floating with music of night.
Melodies of powder-puff pinks and baby blues,
splashed on sunset's orange-tinted hues;
gently I'll slip into a cocoon of sweet slumber,
on the wings of a celestial lullaby so tender.
To dreamland on a lullaby of silvery twilight...
to dreamland floating with music of night.
The trials of day fade gloriously to gray,
and into Sandman's restful arms I will lay.
My restless spirit is calmed from within,
serenaded by nature's soothing violin.
To dreamland on a lullaby of silvery twilight...
to dreamland floating with music of night.
03-23-2018
Contest: Lullaby in the Sunset
Sponsor: Vermillion Scythe
Placement: 1st (PoetrySoup Premiere Contest winner)
Fading sun elaborates
Tuscan yellow tinges
As vibrancy floats
Lavender on periwinkle
Embossing clouds
In shades of amethyst
Granting scenic vision
Atop the red bridge
Suspended in perpetuity
From vermilion towers
In resplendent posture
Sounding final appeal
From the complacent sea
Echoed by morbid hills
Seducing her fragility
Prompting her to leap
Gasping last breath
Fearful and perplexed
If there's solace in death
July 5, 2018
Placed 1st in standard contest #100 by Brian Strand
NOTE:
Since its opening in 1937, estimated 1,600 people have committed suicide by jumping from the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California.
Find me then, when gilded ruby sky
Adorns mauve twilight on canvas pink
Pleasing ardor of magenta dreams
Tinting smiles in brushstrokes tangerine;
Find me then, when ocean's blue bosom
Scintillates waves' vermilion passions
As sun's orange glow folds in embrace
Caressing kiss of love --find me then.
June 11, 2020
Placed 3rd: Repeat the phrase poetry contest
Nine syllables per line (hommanysyllables.com)
Sponsor: Nette Onclaud
“The Queen-Sized Bed”.
© London F. Buss
A queen-size bed was coming slowly,
down the rough dirt track.
As it drew closer,
The wheels clumsily mounted on the base of each leg,
rattled like a hospital gurney on the stones.
The bed was being pushed slowly,
ever so, carefully.
By a weary old man in tattered clothes and worn-out shoes.
as he drew closer, and closer,
I saw that he was pushing his dying wife who was,
lying in a dressing gown under the covers,
in the Queen-Sized Bed.
He pushed carefully trying not to shake the bed,
excessively.
His wife's head was supported by four pillows,
she had wispy strings of silver white hair.
She was dying.
Several I.V. Bottles dangled off a hook,
And dripped painkillers into her arm.
She was awake but barely conscious,
I wondered where they were going,
but in my heart, I knew...
privacy for an hour,
I came back as the sun was setting.
I found them together sitting on the bed,
Looking over the ocean.
The old man was holding his dying wife,
in his arms… stroking her silver hair under the sparkling,
southern cross.
They were sharing her last sunset as,
the dying embers of a fiery sun faded into the ocean.
Night fell and I walked home alone,
I had witnessed love real love,
something I had never experienced,
something I had never known.
If you’re near Cowell and you look hard enough,
You may just find the queen-size bed,
with a tattered mattress and exposed springs,
quietly rusting away outside a decrepit ruin of a barn.
Take a closer look at the legs and you will find four rusting,
gurney wheels.
and if you approach quietly on a moonlit night,
you will hear soft sobbing in the whistling wind,
as it dreams of that dying sunset,
under the southern cross...
and the milky way lights up the sky,
soaring into the heavens
as the angels sing.
I wrote this non fiction poem
For Debra Jean..
When the first glimpse
of silver crescent
sprinkles citrine dust,
sparkling pink brooks
spring forth,
flowing through
emerald green forests.
Moss covered Pine
trees spread their branches,
reaching towards
the setting amber sun.
Cherry blossom clouds
coat the dusky horizon,
unfurling lilac lavender
hues amidst the
paper-cut skyline,
and the last beam
of light starts to
fade into nocturnal bliss.
The twilight nightingale
can be heard,
comforting us
in the distance.
Lulling us to a
restful slumber
under the star
blanketed stratosphere.
And something
about the way
warm marshmallow
threads entwine
with mulberry tints,
reminds me that
every ending
is a synonym
to new beginnings.
Yet, I tell the
caviar smeared sunsets
about our
secret collaborations,
questioning the glowing
gold of Swarovski
rings splattered across
the evening sky,
incensed with
the fragrance of jasmine
that lingers on
the summer breeze.
Will blushing
sangria streaks,
stretch their feathers,
paint my blazing
heart of hurt in
vermilion stars?
or is this love,
another passing
phase, like the waning
sighs of moonrise?
As afternoon fades
and the shadows grow longer
daylight turns to dusk
As daytime slowly comes to end,
and twilight spreads across the sky;
the stars in heavens thus ascend.
As daytime slowly comes to end,
the birds in trees the night to spend,
for in the darkness do not fly;
as daytime slowly comes to end,
and twilight spreads across the sky.
After the sun sets
and darkness blankets the land
lovers start to play
Please kiss me when the sun has set,
and darkness overtakes the land,
and daily chores have all been met.
Please kiss me when the sun has set;
make this a night to ne’er forget;
all night fulfill our love’s demand.
Please kiss me when the sun has set,
and darkness overtakes the land.
As darkness arrives
lovers cling to each other
love the night away
February 22, 2018
Poem of the Day - February 24, 2018
Dedicated, a second time, to our beloved Connie.
At twilight, prismed skies unfold
Painting Earth in roseate light
Pastel hues brushed on clouds in flight
Pink threads woven with rays of gold
Marmalade fingers fade to peach
Sinking low, out of human reach
A sanguine sun nears dusk's threshold
Waves ripple with his last shimmer
Dazzling beams of sunset glimmer
'tween sea and sky, since ages old
He sleeps 'til each new day is born
And flowers sip the dew of morn
Earth is veiled by night and grows cold
Moon of pearl glows and stars glisten
Nightingales sweetly sing ~ listen
At twilight, prismed skies unfold
Pink threads woven with rays of gold
A sanguine sun nears dusk's threshold
'tween sea and sky, since ages old
Earth is veiled by night and grows cold
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Connie, your Constanza form is a gift to us all.
Not written for a contest, but to honor Connie Wong.
Submitted on 9/14/2022 To Mark Toney's Marathon Mile 14
Pushed there for a thousand years
and will be for a thousand more,
pushed there by the gentle winds
the silver waves upon the shore.
Ancient trees who watched here daily
are now dark silhouettes 'round the rim,
as dusk settles in over the still lake
and a dragonfly takes a final skim.
As the sun dips below the surface
silver waters gain a hint of gold,
their riches flow around my feet
giving me memories to be told.
The sands of time sift down below
where life goes drifting by,
and laid there for a thousand years
and beneath them, so shall I.
And become like a silhouette
to watch all life drift by,
and reliving in every moment
never stopping to ask why.
Pushed there by flowing currents
and the wind's most gentle roar,
I fade away like the golden sun
glint silver waves upon the shore.
Nourished by garland skies of scarlet blue
And velvet grass in golden green festoon
September wed us; one heart, made of two
Days of turquoise kisses, too much, too few
Cloud castles filled our eyes, too long, too soon
Nourished by garland skies of scarlet blue
As courting butterflies demurely flew
In circles, touching a sunset lagoon
September wed us; one heart, made of two
Oaks framed in ancient splendor crafted new
Leaves burst in layered passion of maroon
Nourished by garland skies of scarlet blue
Once summer romance burned off, what is true
Love's music swayed our souls, set to its tune
September wed us; one heart, made of two
I held one ivory rose, clinging dew
Made lovelier under her sapphire moon
Nourished by garland skies of scarlet blue
September wed us; one heart, made of two.
pink marshmallow clouds
tinted by the setting sun
artist mixes oils
11/13/19
Sunset Shiverings
When the sun goes down
we shiver, it's cold!
Stop complaining, you look so old!
Inside,don a warm sweater.
Ah, yes~ so much better!
Now light the fireplace
Warm my chilled hands.
My lips.
Glow!
November 16, 2019