Best Tracked Poems
I tracked along a silver trail
carved out from Earthly dust
by rays persistent in the dark
and midnight wanderlust.
It led me to a bubbling fount
of sulfurous mud and tar;
whereupon I chanced a glimpse
and found a fallen star.
An ancient from celestial realms
ensnared terrestrially
dimly glowing in the murk
I heard it sing to me:
Sojourner of the moonlit way
I sense thy beating heart
I’ve travelled from infinity
now hearken ere you part.
You roam upon this infant orb,
you draw from it thy life,
but I sense greed and evil scorn
and no land void of strife.
I beg you tell me how it came
that creatures such as thee
have found such hatred in thy souls
to punish endlessly.
It’s not so bad, I said out loud
we know of love as well…
as to the fate of mother Earth
I simply can’t foretell.
The ground beneath my weary feet
gave way to empty space
then all around me in the void
I saw the human race.
Starving children, ill and gaunt
were kicked by wing-tipped shoes.
Females ranging every clime
in silence nursed abuse.
In darkness men were plotting war
in light their banners raised
it mattered not which way I looked
some evil met my gaze.
Make it stop, I beg you please!
Why poison thou my mind?
What can I do to stop all this,
is no good left to find?
Sojourner of the moonlit way
I sense thy beating heart
I’ve travelled from infinity
now hearken ere you part.
You roam upon this infant orb,
you draw from it thy life,
and though you’re one of many men
love in thy chest is rife.
You must return to whence you came
you must confer abroad
the goodness that within thee burns
seek first to serve the flawed.
Think on the vast expanse of space
so empty, dark and cold…
and how despite the hopeless cause
star-light you still behold.
So too might thou, if you’ll but try
endure this awful plight
for in the vast expanse of hate
love is thy shining light.
07/16/15
The storms are raging on the rollin' sea, and on the highway of regret
Yes, I played around, was unfaithful to you, I'd change it all you bet.
I truly loved you with all my heart, but I tried to act all cool
I'd stay out partying all night long and now realise I was just a fool.
I'd get in, go straight to bed and stay in there till noon
You'd come in from work as I was going out and I'd say "I'll see you soon"
I went to a seedy club one night, when I should have been home in bed
Your sister tracked me down that night, I'll never forget what she said.
"Susan has taken an overdose and she's been rushed to A and E"
Those words were like an electric shock and it was all because of me
We finally got to the hospital and I was in such a terrible state.
All your family were there crying by your bed and I knew we were too late.
Your dad said "John you're not welcome here and its best that you leave,
Please don't come to her funeral and find somewhere else to grieve".
I went back to our empty house and I just broke down and cried
And it hit me that the way that I'd treated you is the reason why you died.
I spiralled downhill very fast and quickly turned to drink
My mind was in a turmoil; I couldn't focus to even think
I lost our house and all my friends and I was sleeping rough
I wanted to end my useless life because I'd had enough.
Folk at a local church took pity on me and slowly I got well
I found some purpose with my life and escaped my living hell
I still have some bad days though and I know I'm not there yet
And on those bad days I slowly walk on that highway of regret.
Written February 12th 2020.
For Poetic lines 3 - love Songs Poetry Contest.
Sponsored By Silent One.
The first line of this poem-The storms are raging on the rollin' sea and on the highway of regret is from the song- Make you feel my love and the credit goes to the writer of the song- Bob Dylan ).
I have tracked my New Year's Resolutions
over the years these are my fantastic results.
Resolution One
2011: I will try to be more attentive to Lauren.
2012: I will pay more attention to what's her name...ah...Lori...I know I'm close.
2013: I will try for reconciliation with Lo.
2014: I will try to be more attentive to Carol.
Resolution Two
2011: I will walk 35,000 steps a day this year.
2012: I will definitely start my walking routine this year at 10,000 steps a day.
2013: I will walk once a week.
2014: I will try to drive past a gym at least once a week.
Resolution Three
2008: I will not stare at women's cleavage .
2009: I will cut down the amount of time I stare at women's cleavage.
2010: I will stop being so obvious when I stare at women's cleavage.
2011: I will attempt to stop getting caught staring at women's cleavage.
2012: I will stop increasing the time I spend staring at women's cleavage.
2013: I will seek professional help as directed by the courts.
2014: I will try to stop starring at the female prison guards cleavage.
Resolution Four
2011: I will not let my siblings push me around.
2012: I will stick up for myself with at least one of my siblings.
2013: I will not let my siblings bullying depress me.
2014: I will talk to Dr. Potter and the group about my siblings.
Resolution Five
2008: I will read Clarissa this year all 1534 pages.
2009: I did not read Clarissa I will read Varney The Vampire all 866 pages.
2010: I will read the first 50 pages of Varney The Vampire this year.
2011: I will read some articles in the newspaper this year.
2012: I will try and finish the comics section this year.
2013: I will read one strip in the cartoon section this year.
2014: I will read the fortune cookie thingy the next time I have Chinese Food.
18~12~2014
Sponsor: Regina Riddle
Contest Name: New Year's Resolution
When doves on evenings, calm and still, call out a hollow tone,
They rouse a medley, old as time, so few have ever known.
The whispered lines of its refrains resound of yesterday,
In ancient tales and bygone trails that man cannot portray.
I’ve rode and worked along a trail throughout my many years.
I’ve heard the tales the sages tell of raging Longhorn steers,
Of soldiers marching single file or mounted days on end,
Of Indians, conquistadors and Rangers tracking men.
Mackenzie Trail is not well known for time obscures its fame,
But high regard is placed on it by those who know its name.
Its story’s scribed in black and white, its remnants etched in stone,
Its way was marked by sweat and blood, by grave and bleaching bone.
The broad frontier that it traversed had yet to be surveyed
And danger seemed to lie in wait at every turn and grade.
From Fort Clark Springs to forts on north, it led Mackenzie’s men
To risk their lives out on the trail, then brought them home again.
A mound lies near Mackenzie Lake, where horse thieves met despair,
For Rangers tracked their hurried trail and hung them then and there.
And near a barn not far away, in Live Oaks’ blissful shade,
The remnants of a camp still lie where soldiers often laid.
I’ve rode the trail and damned the rock that cost my horse a shoe.
I’ve crossed its draws that filled with rain and made my lips turn blue.
Its rugged paths have tested me and all who’ve come this way,
Yet, it remains my trail through time, my bond with yesterday.
Mackenzie Trail will long survive, a monument to will,
That I recall when I ride near on evenings, calm and still;
When doves exclaim in harmony, their lonely, hollow tone
And rouse the medley, old as time, so few have ever known.
OLD MA.
Old Ma always gave the kids a nice treat
Always nuts and never anything sweet
But they soon found out why
Nuts were in great supply
Choc nut bars she'd only suck cos no teeth...
NO HIDING PLACE.
An old gangster robbed a bank and he ran
Flew out from Canada then onto Japan
The Mounties tracked him down
In old Tokyo Town
He was caught cos they always get their man...
A WARDROBE MALFUNCTION
Went to a posh restaurant called Vicars
A girl walked out the loo, there were titters
Her face turned a bright red
At what's every girls dread
She'd gone and tucked her dress down her knickers...
DOMINATRIX.
A dominatrix from the state of Maine
Enjoyed hanky panky out in the rain
She'd use a leather fetter
T'would shrink as it got wetter
And her clients would pass out with the pain..
A FRIEND IN NEED.
The outback two mates went to catch a 'roo
One got cut short and said "I need the loo"
A spider crawled up his knee
As he was starting to pee
And bit him hard on his digeridoo...
His mate phoned the flying doctor who said
"Suck out the Poison if it has turned red"
He thought to himself no way
His mate said "well what's he say?"
He said "in 'bout half an hour you'll be dead" ...
LOST THEIR WAY. For Gershon Wolf
Geese flew south they were honking and hinking
Snow storm came they were blinded and blinking
They had no way of knowing
Where the hell they were going
To see them sway you'd think they'd been drinking...
Written 21st October 2020.
JED.
Jed the horse thief was a bit of a dope
Stole a pretty horse and tried to elope
Folk declared him a horse thief
And for giving them much grief
They dangled him at the end of a rope...
PADDY O'HARE.
A deep sea diver called Paddy O'Hare
Was on the sea bed without any care
His watch he forgot to check
Coughed and said" oh flippin heck"
Never surfaced cos he ran out of air...
BARTHOLOMEW LOTT.
The great explorer Bartholomew Lott
Was in the jungle with Jimmy the Scot
Cannibal's came in the night
They both put up a great fight
But were outnumbered and put in a pot...
FRED.
Fred tried to run away with his lover
Was caught in the act by his dear mother
She said this cannot be
T'will end in tragedy
His lover was the wife of his brother...
JIHADI (WON'T BE MISSED).
Bin Sayed said everything will be fine
Told a Jihadi bomber to cross the line
But Jihadi didn't know
Something was about to blow
A loud kaboom when he stepped on a mine...
LOUISE.
An old woman by the name of Louise
Had a fur coat that made everyone sneeze
Also they'd start to twitch
And scratch raw from the itch
She found out it was infested with fleas...
KEITH THE TROLL
There was a vile and nasty troll called Keith
Bullied the weak and shy into defeat
He lived in a small town
A victim tracked him down
Now he's seen walking around with no teeth...
Written 26th February 2020.
Poetry is like medication, in each release of expression,
there is healing - Poet.
In the realms of lost childhoods,
where demons prey upon the defenceless -
no one hears your screams.
I wandered spiritless,
like an abdicated soul,
renouncing my existence.
But the pain kept me alive.
I was an unknown vagabond,
forgotten and begotten,
within an eerie mist of misunderstanding.
Sly shadows with crimson eyes
tracked my silent sighs of sorrow,
so I suppressed sincere secrets -
too embarrassed to express.
Until I fell upon verses from dead rhapsodists,
which taught me to become that poem.
With blessings from pseudonym poets,
wounded words began to burn in metaphors.
Ink engulfed in sizzling lava dripped
in impulsive poetic allusions -
expression led to a catharsis of clarity.
I found an abode in decorative alliteration,
a perfect province in personified prose,
where each stanza became my sanctuary.
Under the shelter of fervent free verse,
I collected every shard of hope,
and placed them in my heart.
Sonnets of sentimental dwellings,
revealed syllables of an untold narrative.
The curse of Iambic pentameter
could not prevent bleeding blisters from healing.
My quill is now a silent juxtaposition
of deafening poetic onomatopoeia.
Cecil the lion of Zimbabwe, famous and beloved,
Shot by a bow hunter after being lured from his home;
It took Cecil forty hours to die, how he must have suffered,
They tracked him down and shot, skinned and beheaded him.
It was senseless, cowardly, cruel and barbaric,
Oh I weep for Cecil the lion with the rest of the world;
And all animals victims of trophy hunters who kill for the fun,
Our voices must be united and be strong, we must end poaching.
We must demand justice for Cecil and all animals,
The hunting for sport must be stopped as it is murder;
No amount of money makes it right, no more heads on walls,
No more animals killed by cowards with big egos and money to do it.
Sign a petition, make your voice heard loudly,
Laws need to change so that animals no longer die;
This particular killer will be tracked down just like he did,
But we will be more humane, we won't shot, skin and behead him.
This coward in hiding must face justice in Zimbabwe.
__________________________
August 26, 2015
Poetry/Verse/Justice For Cecil The Lion
Copyright Protected, ID 15-703-723-0
All Rights Reserved. Written under Pseudonym.
For the contest , What Is Your Form Of Justice,
sponsor, Tammy Reams
First Place
(An invented ghost tale)
A tale was told how centuries ago
at one old wooden bridge, there had occurred
a tragedy, for led there by some foe,
three children, by his scythe, were massacred.
It plagued my mind what drove him to this act;
how evil could prevail and not atone!
So one dank night the path to death I tracked,
and on the bridge I found myself alone.
Then suddenly I shrank. There loomed ahead
a disembodied soul with horror’s face.
Then circling endlessly the bridge, he fled,
as smaller ghosts with bandied blades gave chase.
Three gravestones lie nearby - no less. . . no more.
And yet the spirits I had seen were four!
An oldie for Carolyn Devonshire's Halloween Fright Poetry Contest
On Africa's Great Plains the animals roam free
And you can see them close up when on safari
Rhino, elephant, giraffe and gazelle
Lions, hippos and monkeys as well.
But they're all in danger from a predator called man
Who goes out his way to kill as many as he can
From a mile away under the African sun
He shoots them dead with a high powered gun.
Big business to some, there is money to be made
One that springs to mind is the ivory trade
Some people will pay handsomely
To have piano keys made out of ivory.
Some cultures believe horns hold some kind of magic
But that's medieval thinking and so very tragic
It's upsetting to see these great creatures fall
Just so the rich can display their horns on a wall.
Their young are left orphaned to struggle and die
So very upsetting it would make you cry
And the King of beasts are considered a trophy
Are tracked down and hunted mercilessly.
Some species of these animals are dwindling fast
And if the slaughter continues they will not last
Sometime in the future, don't bother to look
The only place you'll find them will be in a book.
But you can help to end this cruel trade
Before you buy goods, check how they are made
If they contain animal parts then do walk away
Together we can ensure that this vile trade doesn't pay.
Written 19 January 2018.
### - ## - ####
There you go you have been identified
### - ## - ####
You have been marked
Branded, tracked, and electronically lo-jacked
Forever part of the system
### - ## - ####
Cataloged, tethered, and bound by a digital rope
0's and 1's
Forever lost digitally
And reasonably beyond hope
A sequence of numbers
To be put in a human catalogue
### - ## - ####
To be accessed, reviewed, and assessed
Through the cyber fog
You are a number, not a name
You are part of the inventory
Of the cold hearted insane
### - ## - ####
Welcome to the warehouse we call earth
We want your presence, we crave your birth
Another soul to feed the beast
Another set of digits to add to the feast
### - ## - ####
No need to worry because you are free
Just never be late when you pay me
### - ## - ####
9 little numbers to keep you straight
9 little ways to control your fate
Think of this when you obey
Live with this day by day
### - ## - ####
It is the freedom
For which you pay
Log in, sign on, and punch the clock
My obedient tax paying flock
For the masses and your little number
You have been introduced
To the greed driven financial slumber
Welcome !
### - ## - ####
Eric (and sometimes not)
Life happens when you're busy,
Making other plans,
And things are often side tracked,
By circumstantial demands.
When you least expect it,
And sometimes when you do,
Life throws you a curve ball,
And some folks sit and stew.
They fuss and cuss and grumble,
Stomp their feet and call out names,
When it's just life in one big bundle,
And there's no one to blame.
Stuff happens, that's the way it is,
Grow up and face the facts.
Learn to face it like a man,
Stop putting on an act,
Like everything should be just fine,
Should be a bed of roses,
Well every rose bush has some thorns,
As well as blossoms for our noses.
Life justisn't perfect.
It's just not meant to be.
It's not your fault and it's not mine.
There's no use blaming me.
Relax and learn to smile at life.
Just take it as it comes.
You really have no other choice.
You might as well have fun.
Learn to laugh at life, Chill Out,
You'll come out better in the trade,
If when life hands you some lemons,
You'll make some lemonade.
You'll live a whole lot longer,
And maybe keep your wife,
If you stop your griping,
And accept that that's just life.
Judy Ball
(after Alfred de Vigny)
He glided through the somber pines,
a shark in surly ocean.
In truth, I loved his sleek, low lines,
the danger in his motion.
Wild creatures do the best they can
to keep their young ones fed,
and I'm ashamed to be a man -
I shot the snow wolf dead.
The first ball doesn't always kill.
He'd need another round.
I tracked his blood up Cullen Hill,
to where he'd gone to ground.
To meet with death, he chose his place
under a dogwood tree:
as I beheld his handsome face,
he blazed fierce eyes at me.
He knew the game was up at last,
nowhere to run or hide:
but in that glare, a meaning passed
that's scalded me inside.
I saw acceptance in his look,
and dignity, and hurt.
And wonder, at the time I took,
as I knelt in the dirt.
"It's how it is," the green eyes said,
"to moan or whine is weak.
You've done for me. I'll soon be dead.
There are no words to speak."
I did it with my hunting knife,
then wept hard for my friend.
I pray I'll own his grace in life,
his courage at my end.
In May I joined in a collaborative write
with Jan Allison about a bi-polar bear
Since then the furry marine mammal
Has been treated at Arctic Health Care
Here is an update that may interest you
After six months of meds and therapy
Her symptons are even worse than before
She's being tracked; for her it's a tragedy
Lady polar bear roams the Arctic plains
feasting on ocean fish and baby seals
She goes on a rampage when hungry
A carnivore doesn't like missing meals
She loves to dive into frigid waters
from floe to floe, she paddles til weary
searching for the most protective cave
to hibernate. Beware of her and be leary
Lady bi-polar bear met a mate to her liking
and soon she'll become a brand new mama
While she hibernates with a baby cub or two
I'll fly to the Andes, in search of a lovely llama
The original collaboration from May 2017:
https://www.poetrysoup.com/poem/bi_polar_bear_collaboration_with_lin_lane_901528
,,,,,,,,,,~.~.~.~,,,,,,,,,,,
if ever i had two hours with you… or three,
the vacancy of this quaint café and barren
shores would be refilled with the pouring
of pink- frosted air on our glass-window’s past;
the multitude of disheveled suns ripping
arms of surrender; raged midnights ending
into carmine mornings; swallowed inches of stars
turning into lyrics replayed. and what splendor to
infect the whiteness or redness of seasons’
fingers wearing the pains and gains of many
a porcelain days. then,
to recall the sevens and nines of time’s scalpel
cutting our names into crumpled paper: a departure
of hearts traveling in different territories.
we inched away,
not because of lack for vows marked in deepest
sands. but… by fate’s desire to cart you in
a faraway land, while i.. i burned telephone lines
hiding beneath the long distance of regrets…
yearning for your comeback instead
of stamped letters thousands of miles so
removed from alleys where our arms used to walk,
we side-tracked along with stooping songs
that gently genuflected…
if and when we meet again, two or three hours
by time's grace, oh the fluttering of a thousand
thoughts would not be enough to say you were
the trunk that got away, and i was your last rose
that lost its stem.
all rights reserved
©
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love lost from long distance relationship
For Frank Herrera's Contest
By: nette onclaud