Best Thwarting Poems
No matter what you have gone through,
No matter what you have accomplished,
No matter what you have manifested to the world,
No matter what difference you have made,
they just speak about HOW YOU LOOK
Yes, How You Look.
You must have got Gold to the country
You must have shouldered the wings of responsibility
You must have touched many lives
You must have stood by people in their strives
Still, they just care about HOW YOU LOOK.
Yes, How You Look.
I showed the photograph of a foreign affairs minister
In a thought that he would talk about her caliber
Thwarting my expectations, he said, "How short she is!"
Whoever you are, whatever you do, their eye falls on HOW YOU LOOK.
Yes, How You Look.
Met her after a long way in time,
The words she first spoke can't be forgotten in my lifetime.
No 'Hi' and no 'How are you?'
All that she said was, "Jesus. Your face. What is wrong with you?''
It does not matter if you are happy and healthy.
All that matters on the first go is HOW YOU LOOK.
Yes, How You Look.
Cotton on to the fact that
a warm smile is beautiful than rosy lips,
a helping hand is beautiful and not a manicured one,
a loving heart is beautiful than the lustering skin,
a powerful mind is beautiful than pedicured feet.
Your strength defines who you are, not your shape.
Your boldness drives you forth, not your beauty
Look not the skin but notice what's beneath it
Because, when you're in need, it is people not their pomp that comes to your rescue indeed.
Categories:
thwarting, motivation,
Form:
Free verse
I wish to be the gentle breeze
Sweeping tearful eyes
Of the weary midday flower.
Or to be the horrid shadow
Casting fearful darkness
For a passer-by to rest.
A rippling river of white
I wish to be the one
Drenching thirst of arid earth.
Or to be a dancing wave
Of the mighty sea
Playing with a child.
A guild of fleeting clouds
Hiding splendid sun
For a homeless soul,
Or the canopy of green
Thwarting rain for a home,
I wish to be the one.
I wish to be a cresset
Guiding glimpse of hope
In the prosaic paths of pangs
Or to be a firefly
In the dim toilsome journey
Of a soul to his divine home.
Categories:
thwarting, emotions, imagination,
Form:
Free verse
Monet's Impression, Sunrise
First impressions leave memories
that can linger for a very long time
and give a sense of peace and understanding
that rewards the solitude of the mind
with satisfaction in contemplative reflection.
This may be deceiving and can mislead one to believe
that which is right may, in fact, be wrong.
Graciously accept the artist’s shared perception
that there is no ambiguity, only a warning
of the impending storm threatening prevalent reasoning.
The ascending sun, with its reflection on the water,
highlights a sense of direction as the rowers row
across the harbour at the break of morn.
Past cranes and derricks and ships at anchor
beneath a smoke-blurred fiery sky, accented
by pastel shades of blue to create the sombre mood
that expresses Monet’s "Impression, Sunrise" painting
and shares with the onlookers his representation
of nature from an Impressionist’s point of view
in the Industrial Age, heralding in the revolution.
That begs the question, “Where are they going,
and why blood orange?” (Oh, but I’ve seen that colour before.)
Day-to-day inquiries are asked of one another and strangers.
Monet incorporates an art form using oils on canvas,
forcing the audience to observe with curiosity,
thus presenting a sliver of time of life’s tranquillity at sea.
This provocation of thought chinks the consciousness
of seasoned connoisseurs who see change as frightening
and challenges their manipulation of artistic output
(to act like mechanical agents thwarting creativity).
“Will they reach their destination? Will it be as they hoped for?”
Hurry! Though calm, the waters will soon froth in labour.
***
Note:
“Monet’s Impression, Sunrise” is an ekphrastic poem referencing the painting “Impression, Sunrise” (1872) by Claude Monet (1840–1926).
Categories:
thwarting, art, change, culture, education,
Form:
Verse
Ta'likra
was a most stubborn slave
He loved to rattle the chain
It was a sound of pure defiance
that echoed across the lush plantation terrain
Son of Antuk
had a pygmy burning bush spirit
He seethed silently
as the lashes dug deep into his back
The masters hoped the other slaves
would see this bloody spectacle and fear it,
thwarting any thoughts of a rebellious attack
He was beloved by the other slaves,
he had a will of burnished steel
He had a big heart, noble and brave,
his presence strengthened the weak and the ill
The European rulers had a troublesome dilemma:
If they killed Ta'likra, they would make him a martyr;
causing him to live still past his death,
stirring up angry African chants of unrest
And if they let him live,
he would continue to challenge their authority
Thus making it harder to rule over
the other slaves with complete fear and impunity
They struck a balance as to what they would do,
they would whip him daily, give him meager rations
Eventually break his spirit down to ashes
But that didn't work against this
four-foot-two mountain of a man
He was Pygmy,
he was a dark bush man
He was pure African,
borne upon the hot desert sand
He didn't fear death,
he didn't fear pain
Thrice bitten by the deadly viper,
he loved to rattle the chain
The masters, unable to break his spirit,
were perplexed and at wits end
When a wizened one with gnarled raised hand,
offered up a most enlightened plan
This old, white medicine man
appealed to Ta'likra in a peach grove
He said, where would the souls of the ancestors go,
if the tree of life isn't allowed to flourish and grow
The tender buds of the future will wither away,
and the great roots of your ancestors will die here today
Let us gather up the ancient leaves, my warrior friend,
and build a fire of peace
Let us pay homage to the holy ancient ones
with gifts of love and largesse
For as the stars will not always remain in the sky to stay,
the chains of slavery will be removed from your people one day
Ta'likra, the Pygmy prince,
peered into the blue eyes of the old man,
and thought deep on his sage sayings
Then he arose in dignified grace
and silently walked away
He never once rattled his chain again,
he kept his untamed rage locked in the cage within
Categories:
thwarting, america, anger, black african
Form:
Epic
Shelly said that Darlene said that
Tina said that you are an ignorant fool.
So?
Jinny said that Zinna was rolling her eyes at you.
Farina said you have cooties.
So?
Do you want to hear what Allie said about you?
No, thanks.
Minnie said….
“I don’t want to hear it,” I tell her, skipping away.
“You are a poppie butt!” she yells after me.
Thank you, I yell back.
“You are CRAZY!” she hollers, angry now.
“THANK YOU!” I yell louder.
“They were talking trash about you,” my friend tells me.
Wait a second. This is my friend?
“Are you going to talk to them about it?”
No.
Are you going to fight them?
I throw back my head and laugh.
Once I mastered the skip away, the stay away and the thank you
Bullies had no power over me.
They started bothering others.
I try to teach my friends
Bullies will leave you alone
If they don’t think you are getting mad or sad.
Being so danged light skinned .
I had a terrible time mastering
Those telling pink cheeks.
I had to practice with
Trusted friends,
By letting them calling
Me names and practicing
My strategies.
The Keep Away.
The Skip Away.
The Thank You.
Believe me,
I now have it right.
No one bothers
Me now.
It’s simply
No
Damned
Fun.
Categories:
thwarting, 3rd grade, 4th grade,
Form:
Free verse
Reveal
Revealing hidden treasure
Opening to view
Bringing unknown pleasure
Embracing something new
Romance long defended
Thwarting every chance
All the times expended
Movements through the dance
Advancing every dream
Repairing moments past
Inviting as they seem
Erased by Love at last
Kindling the flame
Rapture hard to take
Accepting all the blame
Takes away mistake
Souls embracing last entwine
Ascending to a Love divine
~
Categories:
thwarting, love,
Form:
Quatrain
I am called to be a true keeper of the flame,
Of love, the ever greatest teaching, with the aim;
Of entwining the humans and other beings,
With an unbreakable bond of compassion-strings...!
This, indeed, is like bringing the moon down, so hard,
In a world, by volcanoes of vengeance, ash-charred;
Wars and battles, as though essential gifts held high,
Peace and harmony before them, in meekness, sigh...!
In slaughter of beasts and birds the humans take pride,
Behind pretenses of worships their evils hide;
Building forts and mansions fine forests they destroy,
Thwarting the rhythm of the cosmos, leap in joy...!
Mother earth, cracked by mundane evils, cries in pain,
Birds, beasts and marine creatures feel as though in chain;
Will the world, as made by God once, be seen again?
Will Adams and Eves, with pure probity, births gain?
I'm a prophet assigned with the mission divine,
Of bonding the strayed wild branches one with the vine;
Till the earth and the heaven into love unite,
As a keeper of flame, I must bestow my mite...!
14 March 2022
Pick-A-Title, Vol 29 - Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Edward Ibeh
Categories:
thwarting, god, life, light, love,
Form:
Rhyme
3/25/19
"One More Thing"
This morning
Clouds forming
Soon to be storming
Most ignoring
The warning
Continually warring
Waters forking
Rapids roaring
Avians soaring
As events continue coursing
Heard enough recordings
That were reporting
About global warming
Whether it's sunny or pouring
Cold or scorching
Dogs and cats arrive for boarding
In a building with tile flooring
Bottles uncorking
This life isn't boring
It's rewarding
This world, we're still exploring
Organisms morphing
Meanwhile plants absorbing
The sunlight, that's supporting
All life, according
To people and other sourcing's
Barely affording
Folks snoring
Out of the loop, close and far from any cording
Drugs and people used for transporting
Still gorging
Battling addictions regarding snorting
Far too many hoarding
And overstoring
Thinking they're scoring
Any bull, I'm thwarting
The honest and hard working, I'm supporting
You better stop lording
Before the public starts swarming
About to leave this world, after one more thing
Categories:
thwarting, deep, fun, heart, poetry,
Form:
Rhyme
HANDMAIDEN OF MOON DANCING
fly me to stars in the thrill of one swan night
over a crescent arc to feel a flame of sighs,
teasing dreams so silent yet ever wild
and like a neon light, speak through your feet ,
your ribs twirling in drips of summer’s rage : throw
away the restraint of confined movements
dictated by a body unmoved; of a flower
keeping her flutters from crawling freely on grass
give me a sway through leaps unto ocean’s swell
without need for thought or reason, rather,
lift the flesh made from love or hate, to burst
with primitive heat; fingers liquid in motion unbidden
by a sacred place that doesn’t exist on earth, when
all but the fragrance of a naked skin expresses
the very force that writhes in the faint of depth,
licking the cells inside out.. weightless, bold, soft
dance the crazy dance with me just because
such passion needs to flow along rhythms
burning within… till a weave of spin breaks
into a trance blending a wanton glide with
pirouetting flights raw in some meadow clearing,
pious pose under the tangerine of touch…
handmaiden of moonlight dancing on flames
pluck those eyes ,rise above mortal remains.
©
*i tweaked this free verse with a sonnet’s volta
in the last two lines (10 syl rhyme count instead
of the usual 8 syl pattern)
----------
*Martha Graham is the pioneer of modern dance. As a ballet dancer
and choreographer, she introduced inner movement emphasizing
emotion, spontaneity, and an exploration of psycho-social themes
( feminism, political protest, and labor unrest)through free -flow
of innovative steps, thwarting cultural control over conventional,
metered dance. Her last performance on-stage was in 1970,
at the age of 76; she was working on the choreography for the Olympics
when she died in 1991 at the age of 97.
Graham was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1976
by President Gerald Ford and cited by Time Magazine as
"Dancer of the Century" in 1988, aside from her other accolades.
*Source: Wikipedia.com and www.voanews.com
*Please watch
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUoMc5Am_c0&feature=related
‘ ‘’’’’ ‘’’’
For Cyndi Mac Millan’s Maverick by nette onclaud
Categories:
thwarting, art, inspirational, me, age,
Form:
Free verse
I gave my life for you,
My grit was your prosperity,
So that you could do.
I swallowed at the task,
Girded myself bravely,
Prepared to have a mask.
When self-awareness engulfed,
And loneliness overcame,
Determination was loved.
I fought a man every time,
I faced the thwarting enemy,
No easy game of mine.
I strove to either succeed,
Or to sacrifice my everything,
But the opposition to impede.
I thought of family and you,
Freedom and liberty,
And the rightness of the two.
Categories:
thwarting, bereavement, character, children, courage,
Form:
Rhyme
You were born in a war ravaged state
You lost your man to the caprices of fate
You fell prey to your wayward ways
Victims of betrayal, greed or circumstances
You were drowned in the tide of darkness
Depraved incidents of forced sex and perversions
Rooted in carnal desires and unsated frustrations
The fleshpots in town frowned upon as receptacles of sin
Wisdom of society’s views wearing very thin
Thwarting those in heat from living out their dream
Objects of titillation and subjected to derision
Unfortunately placed or forced in a profession
Reckoned as the world’s oldest
Harlots you are, courtesans at best
Buffers to man’s baser side without respite or rest
Mistress to royalty or a gangster’s moll
You’ve mastered the act of a defenceless doll
Apparently enjoying the bizarre and the extraordinary
But behind this masquerade is the quintessential mercenary
Pandering only to the philandering of the paying strata of humanity
You frequent raunchy night-clubs and sleazy bars
Walk the streets and lurk around dark corners
You are often just a number in the telephone directory
Or recommended for unusual skills, honed to a speciality
But you seldom blackmail, reflecting your innate nobility
Possibly you booze to drown your pain
And get your high on heroin and cocaine
You are accused of ruining marital ties
And of driving your lovers to a life of vice
Who squander fortunes, just affording your price
Hail lady of the night
Only death can release you from your sordid plight
You are the paramour without the strings of a wife
You are the reprieve from loneliness and strife
But alas, you suffer damnation in your earthly life
Categories:
thwarting, social, sympathy, tribute,
Form:
Rhyme
Glow
Surge of expectations are emerging out
Democracy you developed I believe that
Civilization to civilization might be differed culture
Opinions, creed, beliefs manner disciplines other hurdles
These days everywhere bugle of people
Ranting chanting dancing demo for the cracy wanting
Not caring the shoots of heated guns
Many died with the slush of wound they got
No fears merely aspersions to throw the septic stuck in throne
Democracy you established super again
Since the dawn of civilization ancestors fought sacrificing heart
Many were crushed with the tanks in dust
Ultimately you roared from the half of the earth
Discretion you bear all whistled from space
I see these days from the internet
Greets to scientists investors for that with great belief
You have been able to string up all in one
Liberty to express earn name and fame
Do this much further genuine for my earth
Construct road building health hazard removal plus
Secure job for fruit grain, see the nature has never stopped birth
Park sanitation election to rule develop belief all are yours full
Create love and priority as per basis all will cheers you essential glow
At least postpone poverty now welcome overwhelmingly justice
Prudence there is in behavior of faith
Distend glow of happiness for people’s sake
Let come democracy expected by denizen
They have birth right to demand for genuine
Prosperity is here nature has bountiful
Don’t mess thwarting it from up gullible
Leave trickery share freedom as one need all deserve so to come.
Categories:
thwarting, august, beautiful, birth, change,
Form:
Concrete
we got a lot of rain man's wearin ray bands tryin to shake hands
with baked fans it a staged plan to get carly rea pants in front of a video tape.
stumblin mumblin bumblin fools trying to get paid
To say f this chick and f that one
whatever absurd word that flows right off of this tongue
got a dirty mouth, here is some orbitz gum
im sweatin bullets and i cant even afford a gun
but its so free if i want to abort my son then take his lungs
so i can be one hundred and forty one
and be here to see the thwarting of the sun
mr. obama who've worn out your welcome
But what do I know? I'm this republicun
who thinks all girls and boys should become
either a monk or nun and never cum
and pay for all of our condoms and pregnancy prescriptions
Or am I christian who cant have fun
because I know hun its wrong to drink coke and rums
till i am drunk and wait for the ring to get buns
then go condemn kids with weed and pokemon
And its sad to think this what our kids believe
cause this what they preach on the MTV
and their heart beat beats to each tweet and re-tweet
till a pick leaks online then they move on to vines
whatever better trend setter that stimulates the mind
Categories:
thwarting, adventure, america, analogy, bible,
Form:
Lyric
A wandering alien I meander in wonder
Traversing the earth, sky and the sea.
This neo-globe in quick metamorphosis
While in continual circulation
With all of her civility and merchandise
And appurtenances of modernity;
Complexity has transcend
The simplicity of an era and
‘Tis everything has become new:
The huge metallic cacophonous bird,
The neurotic box that outwit the brain
To exceed the axis and compact the universe…
But i wonder still of these invent
To calm the wave and to seal the sky
With all of the kismet of flood,
Storm, earthquake and tsunami!
The dragon had long become a myth
To reborn the surge of rocket boom.
The cackling metal stick inbuilt with death
And the miniature ‘tom to turn the city into ash.
I see a gigantic whale propelled within stomach,
Slosh through surface and beneath the ocean
Thwarting the tumbling wave and serenity below.
There is the polished Everest Mountain to live,
The worker model reacting to button;
The fast metal snake reacting to charge
And the transplantation of Organs….
Man has create a world of wonder
And still I meander for essence and repose!
Great wit and profound ingenuity
Have now surpassed the strength to till
And eyes set on screen and pages
Have undermined the Wisdom of Solomon….
But what pertains to the invent of contentment
With anxiety, frustration and desperation?
Merchants have dawn the mint for barter
And the opportune capitalist is fortunate
With all the communal fortune and as
Titles and honours have excused a name
While prevail the awful distress about
Destitution, sickness, hunger and death
And corruption….? These conundrums…
Still a wanderer, I meander in wonder!
Categories:
thwarting, city, creation, fantasy, life,
Form:
Free verse
Never to be challenged would not be expected.
One’s spirit would truly die, forever being infected.
Respect beyond years of age, enhanced by service scored.
Each day passing seems I am just a little bit more ignored.
Sincerely I see others being from outside welcomed aboard.
Persons with only profit for them are welcomed in accord.
Exasperated I continue to do my job for no extra reward.
Calmness is harder to reorder in my daily extreme restored.
Thwarting abounded, stabbing my abilities with a sword.
Categories:
thwarting, angst, depression, life, people,
Form:
Acrostic