Best There For The Taking Poems
Teardrops, bagged eyes, a way of sin
The mirror reveals a lost eternal soul
A conniving move against tonight's phantom glow
Voices circle the insomniac moon
Like magic and beauty, "She's Gone With the Wind."
The idea of love,
broken like yesterday's wishbone.
She is leaving today, her arms, my shelter
Her wings are now immense.
Beauty --- she's gone forever!
Never will she suffer-
Never will she return-
All I have are lost memories,
tracing what is left.
One final deep breath
tequila vice to wash away the pain.....
At Last, Now I See!
Under the drunken stars
I had an epiphany
Stricken like a match
A sunken treasure
At Last, I Knew
You did not belong in there,
you were there for the taking
Frail and sick, no longer sane.
Memories lost, no longer - her
My Mother!
What has become of her?
You're a demon, who played us all
Made us cry, while she slowly withered away
The way you laid waste to her body
Nipping both legs, feeding her through tubes
She rapidly forgot our names' our faces'
I hate you, Alzheimer
I hate the way you took her the first time!
I hate you, Death
I hate the way you claimed her final days!
Sleepless nights and pillowed feathers,
Caress a precious moment around my tender skin
Pretending my mother tucked them in
Anything to help me get past my sleepless nights
Sitting reminiscing
About the subtle signs
Along one’s journey
The roads not traveled
The messages so hard to read
Reminders meant for the soul
Heart longings heard
And those that aren’t
Life passing by
Not taking time to play
Invitations postponed
Believing there’d always be another day
Friends taken for granted
So few opportunities fully grasped
Yet life there for the taking
The seeds of joy neglected
Quiet whispers of could have been
Once the sun goes down
Leaving all our regrets
On the water’s edge
Published in my photo/poetry book ~BY WATER'S EDGE~ 2019
AP: 2nd place 2023
Don't know what this guy would do
Without you peeps to brighten my day
It's worth more than all the gold in the world
Just to hear what you all have to say
The difference between a happy and sad day
Between sunshine and cloudy skies
With each of the loving words you send me
You turn my lows into highs
Happiness is free, it's there for the taking
Reach out and grasp the brass ring
Though some days we lose sight of this fact
And we lose our desire to sing
It doesn't take special talent or knowhow
We all have the ability to laugh
But sometimes though, life has a nasty habit
Sending negatives right off the graph
So when this happens, grab hold of the ring
Hang on for dear life, I implore
Till whatever's causing you grief and despair
Disappears and your faith is restored
Love is like a wonderful special feeling. You wake up next to your love one and look up at the stars on the ceiling. Love gives you butterflies. Love creates friction between your eyes. Love brings you a beautiful smile. Love takes you higher than Mount Everest that will last you for a while. Love comes natural with the one you love. Love is like a billion fire flies hovering above. Love comes and go. True love will always stay and delight your soul. Many people have never found love but when they do it will feel like heaven’s doves. Love is a beauty all around. Love is like space with no sound. Have you ever heard a love bird sing? When you find your love your heart will start to ring. Love is always there for the taking, so find your true love and stop dating.
I folded my umbrella after the rain stopped
the little beads of water formed crystals
on the golden leaves of autumn laying on the ground
I put away my parasol and shook the water off
I really enjoy walking in the rain I get a good feeling
when the weather begins to chill giving the air a brisk coolness
I snuggle in my warm coat to enjoy the warmth of my body
it strengthens my senses
Coming alive from their summer hibernating lair they stimulate
I love autumn
to me it’s the best time of the year
I remember smells that foretell great celebrations to come
Glorious feasts up ahead with great expectations
are the best lead in to the holidays before winter
all wonderful pointing to the end of national turmoil
and the end of uncertainty, the end of doubt and a worrisome future
Happy endings are not always made on a Hollywood stage
people have a lot to do with creating happiness
happiness is there for the taking
if the spirit is willing and mindfully conscious of the alternative
Keep smiling, be happy
the alternative stinks
tomorrow will always be with us
so will sorrow but only if we give in to it perpetually
We are human and resilient
we can smile even laugh at adversity
we can even write songs to bad times
golden autumn leaves with beads of water give me hope.
Night was falling and she waited but the phone stayed silent.
Life was out there for the taking but she refused to move on.
What was the use? Her mind was made up, she would wait.
She would keep waiting till there be no waiting left to do.
AP: Honorable Mention 2026
You've seen them. Those little trays on the store counter with pennies in them and often a sign saying “Take a penny, leave a penny”. On occasion, I have dropped pennies in them, but until just recently, I never had occasion to need one. Falling two cents short of my purchase price, I reached for another dollar, when the clerk said “I've got it” and added the two cents from the tray.
It got me to thinking, which always gets me in trouble, how much those pennies are like poems, lying there for the taking, waiting for someone to want them. Most people will not pick one up. But when they want one, it is nice to know there is one they can have.
Some say pennies aren't worth much, but I beg to differ. Their value varies from person to person. Poems are like that. Their value is generally greatest to the person that offers it. It is given for the most part to please someone else. However, those that read them place their own value upon them. Some they are very thankful for, while others, well, not so much.
The bottom line, to me at least, is a penny is always a penny and a poem is always a poem. It is what we do with it that makes the difference. I know much that I write does not necessarily speak to the reader. But to me, it's value does not decrease. By the same token, I read some things and say “OK” and move on, while others I keep. It doesn't make any difference to me. The author thinks it's great, and so do some readers. That's as good as it gets. If you don't care for it, like the penny, leave it there. But if it fills a need, pick it up and use it.
Dreamers Dream
by Odin Roark
Tulsa’s hard times made the decision easy.
Shouldering backpacks and bedrolls,
Tin cups tied atop
Ready for campfire and bean feasts
With hopefully a moss covered log as pillow,
They took up positions on their dreary piece of road.
New York bound dreamers these.
He confident,
She ashamed for thumbing a stranger,
Bringing a truck to stop and speed them away
From barren lands and dead-end streets,
Trusting their past of gravel and dust laden roads,
Leafless bushes and trees,
Their limbs and branches from parched roots,
Giving but reminders of it all,
The emptiness of nothing.
But now…
Hitching a ride to where liquid gold flowed,
Where paved roads knew no end,
Where visions were realized,
And shade from castles in the air
Were there for the taking.
She’d wait tables,
He’d sweep floors on Wall Street,
But only ‘til she was a star,
And he earned his hustler of hustlers merit.
They’d buy a shiny car,
Bright red and big as a hearse,
Maybe even drive it back to Tulsa,
Where upon their return to the east,
They'd return the favor of long ago,
Pick up a hitcher heading their way,
Even if they were only driving a clunker,
Finding out the real way,
Dreams don’t always work out.
Still…
Dreamers must keep on dreaming,
Even when things don’t go their way,
Otherwise…
Exactly.
Trust Life
Don't let life pass you by,
Waiting for a better day, a better chance.
Live now!
Believe in the Good in people,
Trust Life.
Never walk in anyone's shadow,
Let the light guide you,
Feel the spirit of the universe
In the golden power of the sunlight,
As it gently caresses you face.
Open your eyes to the beauty around you,
Take your strengh from nature,
It is there for the taking.
It will fill you with power
To share with the ones that need it.
Look for the beauty you posess inside,
This is the Life you waited for.
Trust Life- and you could not wish
for more!
You've seen them. Those little trays on the store counter with pennies in them and often a sign saying “Take a penny, leave a penny”. On occasion, I have dropped pennies in them, but until just recently, I never had occasion to need one. Falling two cents short of my purchase price, I reached for another dollar, when the clerk said “I've got it” and added the two cents from the tray.
Why bring that up you may ask. Well, because I was thinking, which always gets me in trouble, how much those pennies are like reading poetry. Most people do not avail themselves of poems that are lying there for the taking, waiting for someone to want them. More people will probably leave poems then ever pick them up. But when they want one, it is nice to know there is one they can have.
People say pennies aren't worth much, but I beg to differ. Their value varies by how much you need or want it. Poems are like that. Their value is generally greatest to the person that offers it. It is given for the soul purpose of pleasing someone else. However, those that use them place their own value upon them. Some they are very thankful to get, while others, well, not so much.
The bottom line, to me at least, is a penny is always a penny and a poem is always a poem. It is what we do with it that makes the difference. I know that much that I write does not necessarily speak to the reader. But to me, it's value does not decrease. By the same token, I read some things and say “ok” and move on, while others I keep. It doesn't make any difference to me. The author thinks it's great, and so do some readers. That's as good as it gets. If you don't like it, like the penny, leave it there. But if it fills a need, pick it up and use it.
That's my two cents worth.
You've got to choose,
to walk in those shoes,
to pay your dues,
to sing the blues.
Something so right,
all shiny and bright,
don't just come in the night,
you've got to bleed and fight!
And when you are winning,
it's just the beginning,
there'll always be new things,
out there for the taking.
Bells, whistles, and fluff,
how much is enough?
Do you need all this stuff?!
Can you call your own bluff?
**********
my machine nature
possibilities untold
there for the taking
i seek... nature gives
i reciprocate... grateful
i recycle waste
human heartbeats
two hundred thousand years old
as one... would deafen
first life... single-cell
no inhibitions... freedom
ruled planet earth
communication
touch alone... we still suffer
bacteria
propagation
cell division... host dictates
perpetual motion
atmospheric life
living on pollutants
bacteria
life's an enigma
only for the human race
still self-destructing
spontaneity...
a human mistake...
acts without thinking
**********
HOPE
When you look deep within your mind or your soul,
where is your HOPE and what does it look like?
How deep is the ravine that carry the waters of wisdom
and the relentless desire to be fulfilled?
Do you wander in a forest of self determination
Knowing you either succeed or fail?
What is to be ; is to be, but by your design.
For only disappointment will be your gain
And you will move on
To desire one more thing
What lack of soul lies deadened by man's mind?
Such limits placed on oneself, mere acceptance.
Overtaken by the drudge of earthly pleasure and sustenance.
Is it hope for fame or fortune; bread and water?
Or is HOPE alive within your soul?
The promise that all that is given will serve to your goal.
The desires of the soulheart, the ravine so deep, so fragile, yet; relentless.
Yearning for a Love so great, as to almost deny the thought.
Fear if you have not found it! Are you lost in the muck?
It is there for the taking. You do not need luck.
Trust in the future, Love you will find.
Patience my soulheart, HOPE has been mine.
A smile on a wing, in dark sunset skies,
three wishes will bring, so close your blue eyes.
Let your soul sweetly sing, but keep the song wise,
don’t wish for the first thing your torn heart desires.
Wish to sever the string that tethers your cries
to the past; never cling, let it sleep where it lies
all broken and aching, where the wind only sighs
amid tears constant flowing to bathe love’s demise.
Wish ahead to a spring where a new songbird flies,
let its melody ring with each day’s sunrise.
Then wish for a waking, where life is the prize;
it’s there for the taking, swap the lows for the highs.
*** for Carolyn's 'Heaven Sent Smiles'
I keep trying to fight but everyday it gets worse,
I'm trying to carve out a path but it hurts
and I loop around to where I stood first.
I'm stuck suffering,
but won't let no fat lady sing.
Relapse,
forget the feeling,
I'll just get back to my feet and I'll stand,
because fate demands,
I'll never live it down if I don't rebound.
I honestly promise to be at my strongest,
in fact no impact or test
can crush my chest, ever,
I'm a last and never rest
not 'til I bask that no flag flew at half mast.
I'll dip and I'll rise like a rollercoaster ride
but I'll never hollow out inside or lose my pride,
I'll battle depressions wickedness with all my witty grittiness
and when I'm knocked down I'll breathe, go again and believe,
with a greed for freedom core and seed 'til I'm freed.
That's the wish beyond painful twists,
a thirst to slit wrists through self hatred,
and the positive drive is confiscated,
but don't be mistaken I'll reinstate it,
I aint breaking, this life aint there for the taking,
I'll rehabilitate me inevitably.