Better dead than living,
Better terminated than throbbing,
Better left than held,
Better abandoned than acquired.
Better understand than love,
Better pouncing than dancing,
Better challenged than agitated,
Better hungry than satiated.
Better feline than canine,
Better violence than romance,
Better cunning than running,
Better punched than bunched.
Better sorry than safe,
Better thrown than bowed,
Better disturbed than serene,
Better abused than adored.
Better soiled than vowed,
Better cuffed than chatted,
Better rough than soft,
Better fire than freeze.
Better statued than tattooed,
Better chaos than calm,
Better broken than forgotten,
Better strange than ordinary.
Better… always better.
Little Echoes spreading 1
Behind the gilded gates where history sleeps,
Huge ancient institution secrets keeps.
Yet modern spotlights pierce the palace shade,
To question how its wealth and power were made
Bound to the empires of an older age,
And written on the slave trade's darkest page.
The whispers spoke of skin and unborn heirs,
A shadow cast upon the golden stairs,
ink in Dutch translations sparked the flame,
And public voices rose to shield a name.
Then questions asked of origins and birth,
Denied a British citizen her worth.
The tabloids spun their headlines day by day,
As ancient structures blocked the modern way.
From old exemptions hidden in the past,
To broad exclusions never meant to last,
The crown still wrestles with the words it spoke,
And changes stirring in the winds that woke.
Better requires less of the bitter,
And more of the Guinness.
Better requires less of life on a platter,
And more serious efforts to clean up a mess.
Better requires more reason for a natter,
And less reason for chatter that is meaningless.
Better requires more use of brain matter,
And less use of fixes that are useless.
Better requires more names that are dapper,
And less numbers that give only errors to address.
Better requires wallets that are fatter,
And less taxes for the mad hatter to bless.
Better requires more home runs from the next batter,
And less coaching by those who are clueless.
Better requires less glass to shatter,
And more children to progress.
Better requires empathy in quantity, more than a smatter,
And failure to appreciate the opposite sex, a sign of weakness.
Better requires more waste turned into matter,
And nature, to fear less.
Better requires perfect people to scatter,
And those who strive for better to be free of stress.
Better requires kindness not to clatter,
And envy to be no one's mistress.
Brewed with similar ingredients
as when baking bread,
a Maßkrug of beer in Germany
is called a 'glass sandwich' instead.
Yet, as half a loaf
is better than none,
if the glass is half full,
and another half empty,
of the two,
which is the optimal one?
My palms has been good to you all
Since time memorial
My palms felt your weakness
Your simultaneous pain
Through the beauty of your skin
Although my palms are rough
Hardened by the toughness of the earth
Although we dreamed dreams
Under rain and sunshine
Hoping to meet peace at the mountain top
I couldn't sit on my family tree ??
Because the tide in me bore you
Looking at the cloud now
It seems beautiful over my head
I count you all among the stars in heaven
My palms will always know you
Although you have a nutritious smile
Just like my other stars
I still count compassion among you all
The order of a vitamin
Simply, life, a hair is for fun
Spoken worth, a willing shade to climb?
Into your lap, a wholer smile for any who would innocence
Spare me the details, in a cup of frequent spirits
High as a kite, with a reach to the stars, somewhere over the rainbow
I see your shared shall, if not the coolness of a remembered wit
Silver bells to come, an avidness of a problem we both know....
Toenails?
Simple rhythm of a bliss for ideology to bloom
Sakes without a created pain, to inform my clash with strength
Continue with a silent night, misery, promises to few, with soon
Could ink have an unexpected owe?
Silly accusations of windy deeds I have a saved repose
Lucky as this would seem, I have a question for adding a quiet mouse
Live and let live, or a sweet sincerity I should know, in the smile of a prose
Here goes kiddo...
Smile at the song of a fruity share, in a distant house
Walls of livid kindness, a God of asking a reason of a flower?
Lizards with a wisdom's tooth don't, promise us a spill of cleverness from Gods?
River to the sea
long road to that better land,
who knows what we'll find
Many nasty mean online reviews
This ballerina has not paid her dues
Don’t bother the drive to Syracuse
Seeing this performance, you will lose
The actors have missed many cues
This circus simply does not have a muse
The seats were stiffer than most church pews
Many performers had ugly dirty shoes
You can ask many critic gurus
I will bring them in by three’s and two’s
This ballet did nothing but confuse
Most of the company had no clues
Did the director have a silly muse?
Brittle scenery needed better glues
Lights went out due to a faulty fuse
This is one of my better interviews
I met you in a solemn moment in my life
but you removed all my darkness with a single smile
from that first second of us locking eyes
I felt this burning love that I could never disguise
I waited by the bar that night expecting the same
now that I think about it I couldn’t tell you the names
of who I was with or the drinks in my hand
I remember hoping I was someone you’d understand
I tried to hide the rush of heat that moved through me
when you turned your head and suddenly I was all you could see
it’s like you saw my walls up and braved the climb
then you fell into my arms, and now you’re mine
nowadays when I wake I feel lighter step by step
having spent all those hours so close to your chest
with you, the mundane is never the same
you make me feel like I win every game
I long to be yours in every life time
things can get better, I take you as my sign
They’ve built bridges
wanting to cross them
to conquer the other side
where the grass is greener.
They want what they can’t see
and will go to great lengths
to lay claim to the other side
where the sky is ever bluer.
Men’s dreams entice them
to reach out to distant shores
convinced what lies beyond
is infallibly better.
AP: 2nd place 2026
MORE BETTER BLUES COMING
I
Contrary to the thinking of some,
The blues is not wallowing in depression;
Rather, it's the tribulations of overcoming it
With divine wisdom, guidance, and determination:-
Thus, there's got to be coming
A much more better blues
Than what is streaming
In our society today:-
Once considered an admirable country,
Our society today is slowly becoming
That ghostly Humpty Dumpty model
Of the so-called Free World:-
II
Jazzing with the keloid spirit
Of my hope-fueling Ancestors,
I'm so determined to survive
The present muddy waters:-
Indeed, today there are many strong spirits,
Striking–like hammers–oppressive depression;
Many fuel-spirited minds…bodies…and souls…
Sowing reaping seeds of more better blues:-
More better blues for a more better people,
Overcoming the sinister Oppressive Syndrome;
Modified beings ensuring that liberty and equanimity
Will therefore now and forever be, in life as well as in death:-
the psychic reader was gorgeous from her neck to her nose
her bright brown eyes were star-like, with angelic glows
I immediately felt comfortable, as she asked my permission
to hold my hands, so she could complete her mission
She told me things about me I had forgotten myself
Took out an astrology book from an upper shelf
Gave me some tips on what else I could do
To be happier yet, and chase away every blue
Her insight was remarkable, her empathy intact
I was still thinking about my reading years after the fact
this psychic reader had me under a Bohemian spell
She knew me better than me; she knew me quite well
Love it, Respect it,
or pack your bags and head out,
for some place better.
Where are the rugged individualists of yesteryear
the men with faces carved from rock
and skin as tight as leather
To confront the neighborhood bullies
to tell ‘em where they can take their act
and the dangerous explosives they set off
To take back America’s mean streets
~ to replace them with safe, free streets
A possum of high degree
invited me
for snails and tea.
I would, of course, politely decline
to find another place to dine.
I like my snails with wine.
Sub Categories
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.