Best Texas Poems
yellow petals, lone star highs -
catching the Black-eyed Susans
with butterfly eyes
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am a thousand violet tongues
licking the wind, silently bending
beneath the blistering Texas sun.
I unfurl where the highway
forgets its name,
where the sky
presses down like a warm hand.
I am not regal;
I am not obedient~
I am a wildflower,
a spill of indigo
against the thirsty Texas earth.
I do not beg. I do not bow.
Only nod~
a friendly howdy
when the pickup trucks rumble past,
kicking up the Texas dust
that settles like old prayers.
The cattle low at my presence,
their hooves careful, almost reverent.
Wind bends me; I bow back.
Rain comes; I drink deep.
At dusk, my petals close like fists~
small, stubborn prayers.
Each spring, I return.
I open~
a rebellion of color.
I am not delicate. I am patient
I am waiting
for you to pull over,
to kneel in the dirt next to me
and take a picture with me~
a Texas tradition.
I am the lupine that remembers
the Comanche horses,
the oil rigs,
rodeos, and
the subdivisions
creeping like frost.
When they pave this field,
I will rise through the cracks, for
I am as defiant as Texas.
I am the Texas’ state flower.
I am the bluebonnet.
sun’s heat sunders sand
clustered lanced leaves green hug
widow’s tears collapse
Widow’s Tears is the common name for Commelina erecta var. angustifolia, they bloom on
Texas beaches in sand or clay, and have the characteristic of flowering early in the morning
and fading by noon. The bloom in all seasons but I chose spring to be more commonly
approachable. [1]
[1] Wildflowers and Other Plants of Texas Beaches and Islands, Alfred Richardson
She sent me a message while I was walking Mr. Reilly,
She said “Look up, and tell me what you see.”
I thought I would impress her with my poetical ways so I answered,
Bus zooming by…
Brown leaves on the sidewalk ahead,
And a shadowy figure that Reilly and I will soon pass,
The smell of the Indian bakery warming my insides on an autumn evening.
“I love fresh bread,” she said, “What do you hear?”
Crisp slate grey sky,
And the wind gently shaking loose more tan and brown leaves,
And cars sliding by,
Each with its unique sound of tires on asphalt,
Creating its own steady hush.
She then messaged, “You’re very good at this,
I’m going to read that again!”
but I went on…
A few drops of cool rain,
The rain here, even when it’s pouring,
Seems to be made of a lighter liquid.
It’s not the hard thick drops of a West Texas down pour,
And it’s almost disappointing when
I don’t have the residual layer of dirt on my windshield after the rain,
Almost.
They say there is thunder in the springtime,
But I suspect they don’t know what real thunder is,
Here in California.
In the West Texas springtime,
When entire sky is filled with all the mountains,
That are missing from the landscape,
You can feel the power and,
The threatening posture of the storm,
But you take up the challenge and face the lightning,
And it fills you with excitement,
And if you have a lover,
It is during these storms that your fantasies come true.
Silver flashes across your lover’s skin,
Passion filled faces caught in the strobe of lightning,
And the pounding rain beating on the windows.
The mix of cold wet air,
And the sweaty heat of deep kisses and breath.
They don’t know what they’re missing here,
In California,
But I do,
And maybe someday I’ll have her.
Michael F. Lewis
11/29/2012
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToCr_Xo1LPk
West Texas Wildflowers
Waving in the wind
Weather-worn whispering
Whirling warnings to my window
As I water my wallflower
The weeds won’t stop growing
So I whistle the wisdom
I once welcomed
As I wish it away
Watch me wane
As it wastes me away
I’m wilting
With the willows
Weeping
Weakening in this web
woven around me
I’ve quit wondering
What a wasted world
I’m surrounded by
Windows but the walls are all warping
Who waged this war not worth winning?
Will all you want
But wait as you will if you are not working
No time for wandering
I work because I’m weltering
But I’ll always grow weary of the wyrd
The west Texas wildflowers warned me
Into your arms, we raise our lovely children lost!
The innocent ones, that we raised and you created...
Killed by a soul-less madman,may his judgement
be swift!
Forgive us, for we are horrendous killers, too!
We the conscience-less, we killed far more unborn
today.
Seven hundred, who will never see the light of day?
Our selfishness is absolutely unconscionable !
But we care not for your word, only our selfish wants.
We cry for elephants, but a child’s death means but
naught to us.
We are led by crackpots who shake hands with the air??
And, yes, these very same, smilingly, support infanticide.
And we are lied to, in the name of political power.
No gun has feet or hands, an insult to human thought.
But dead bodies, Lord, are gold to the politically inept!
When their political power, thirsts for tragedy, from a
well deserved, selfish drought.
Death and Satan, today, doing a most joyful dance!
For now..here is power’s golden chance.
To create fear, the falsehood that guns kill.
Guns are not human beings,only a human pulls the
trigger.
In the Judaea- Christian Bible, writ for us, it states:
“Thou shalt not kill”
Here on your planet, tyrants, for that is who they are..
Want to take all guns away,that won’t change our loss
today.
But when tyrants own all guns, they will turn them upon
us, to them, absolute power loves absolute fun!
Do turn this Spring day, the deepest, ebony, black!
Till we start turning our backs on lies and slaughtering the
unborn, so plentiful.
And come back to you; and till then, we are most sinful,
lost and utterly pitiful.
A special place for the beautiful teachers, killed,I do
beseech thee.
They, like you, Lord, loved children at their knee.
Alas, special people taken in May, help us heal, Lord?
Of this, I fervently do pray!
5/24/2022
On the twelve days of Christmas, West Texas gave to me
twelve tarantulas creepin’,
eleven javelinas diggin’,
ten jack rabbits jumpin’,
nine skunks a stinkin’,
eight mantis prayin’,
seven snakes swimmin’,
six mountain lions,
five sunny days,
four mockingbirds,
three hoary bats,
two horned toads,
and a cowbird in a mesquite tree.
On the twelve days of Christmas, West Texas gave to me
twelve oxeye creepin’,
eleven acanthus flamin’,
ten willows twistin’,
nine cholla jumpin’,
eight tumbleweeds rollin’,
seven shin diggers stickin’,
six purple thistles,
five sunny days,
four mountain laurels,
three ruby muhly,
two hawthorn,
and mistletoe in an elm tree.
Texas has been kind to me;
You have to understand.
In the state of Texas;
Is where I found my man.
They raise a lot of cattle,
Bovines large beyond belief.
I think this is the reason;
That Texans love their beef.
You grind it and you pound it,
Most any cut will do.
Then brown it in a big old pot;
Add onion when you're through.
Cook down with red tomatoes,
And lots of chili powder;
Add garlic, salt and pepper.
Then simmer for an hour.
I like Texas Chili
I always add some beans,
Not everybody's favorite
But better than it seems.
Texas has been kind to me;
So do not be forlorn;
In the state of Texas,
Is where my son was born.
Please let me just reflect a bit;
And wax a little silly.
Texas has been kind to me,
And I like Texas Chile.
We have a vehicle on Mars
Down on Earth, no gas for our cars
No heat overnight
No water in sight
in Texas, they're just seeing stars!
Proud brothers and sisters once
again having to defend The USA,
at its Southern Border. But, today,
unlike threats of the past, the invading
army are sick, hungry, destitute bands
of migrants – who have been tricked
into entering the Nation illegally. Tricked
by evil, Marxist tyrants, our Present
Administration, advocating for a far less
free Republic than that imagined by noble
and honorable predecessors. Will we let
these Texas Patriots stand alone?
Perhaps damning future American
generations, to the hellish fires of
Despotism.
TEXAS PRAIRIE PARADISE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
here, where the horizon bends.
the morning sun spills its warmth.
the Texas prairie stretches~
a vast unbroken beauty where
golden grasses sway.
the air, thick with the scent of sage,
wraps around me like a familiar embrace.
dust motes dance in the light,
tiny galaxies suspended
in the quiet splendor of morning.
cacti punctuate the landscape
these sentinels of resilience,
their spines reminding me
that life thrives in the harshest of places,
and wildflowers burst forth, fragile yet fierce.
here, the earth breathes differently.
my heart learns to listen
to the distant call of a hawk,
to the rustle of a rabbit, and
to the soft sighs of the prairie.
the hawk circles high above me,
its shadow gliding across the land,
a guardian of this sprawling solitude,
reminds me of the freedom,
of the vastness within and without.
I stand rooted in this stillness, finding clarity.
in the expanse, I find belonging.
beneath the wide-open sky,
I am both lost
and found.
The beautiful arks flashes
While molting metal slashes
Diving deep into my flesh
I reach for a much needed breath
As poisonous fumes fill my lungs
A welders passion threw my veins it runs
So i reach down deep for i em a welder i will not retreat
I've gained my respect
Standpipe conductors wellheads 7018 i inject
Welding all day and under a full moon light
I send a prayer that lord gives me the might
Weeks months away from home
Hearing little voices only threw a phone
I promised to make a better life for y'all
I em a Texas rig welder I'm ready for any rig call
Springtime has erupted; life's everywhere
With a fine chartreuse film that floats through the air.
The live oaks are blooming along with golden mesquite-
The scents of renewal are verdant and sweet.
Chameleon fields that change overnight;
A plethora of color; an artists delight
Yellow, so bright it hurts the eyes,
Covers the hills like a huge sunshine tide.
Pastures of green and wild onion white
Deceive the perception with flowered highlights.
Black and white calves frolic and play
Through the myriad of colors on display.
Seas of Indian paintbrush in brash scarlet red
Abut pink morning primrose, gently lifting its head;
Kaleidoscope gaillardia next to wine-colored phlox,
Mad impressionist Nature has pulled out the stops
Painting great Texas with colors galore
Then deciding to add just one color more
And up shoots the bonnets in startling blue.
Our states flower emblem, a salute to you.
JSC 2003
Animals prairie wise
Nocturnal ends meaning
sleeping. blasting sun..'
Mission, Texas ( where I am From )
M...My home town is Mission, My state is Texas.
I...It is by the Southern part of Texas, by the Mexican border.
S...Some good Tex Mex. food can be found there.
S...Some winter Texans have adopted this place.
I...It is known for it's hot climate.
O...Over the years it has grown, but not much.
N...New comers are always welcome.
T...Texas is known for it's Cowboys. Rodeos and Southern hospitality.
E...Everything in Texas is big, even our Texas jokes.
X...Xoom into Texas and you shall see- just how we can be.
A...Always a big smile to welcome you, just come on over and see what's new.
S...Seeing is believing, so they say, so how about it - are you game?
04/06/2014
Written by Lucilla M. Carrillo
For contest - Where I am From