He grinned broadly from the corner
a percussive serrated smile,
cadaverous lips displaying
a rakish scarecrow style.
His emaciated figure chattered
suspended precariously from a hook;
I was completely startled
by his penetrating look.
His wink was disconcerting,
those vacant eyes held wide;
I wouldn’t call him cheeky
though he displayed a gangly pride.
One arm extended slightly
as if inviting my embrace;
it might feel a little morbid
held against that hollow face.
Gothic trends might call him charming
though his apparel seems unique,
one would only see it hanging
in a nudist colony boutique.
One dance was all he wanted
waltzing the orthopedic floor,
that physician’s skeletal dummy
I just couldn’t make myself ignore.
July 31, 2026
Skeletons Poetry Contest
Seth Pina, Sponsor
You do not know
of who I am
and yet you brush me broadly.
These shoes I wear
and all I've seen
to wit,
has helped to shape me.
Presumptive you
without a clue
your arrogance astounding!
I do not care,
your thought's are skewed
distorting who I might be.
This brush you use
accusingly,
bristled with ignorance.
Just who I am
or choose to be
your brush
does not define me!
I was helpless,
I was shining.
You were knowing.
and bestowing.
When my steps were unsteady,
you held my hand.
You were ready.
Age is just a number, you said
grinning broadly like a
little girl repeating a loving fib.
You wanted a protector,
a guardian of devotion.
But I am not your Paul Bunyan,
the mighty timberman in your dreams.
In my twilight, I remember so many
mighty forests burning to cinder.
Frailty disintegrates the will.
Big-strong-protecting-men wilt with age.
They offer their pleading eyes,
longing to be cradled.
Maturity is mortality ticking.
I was helpless,
I was shining.
You were knowing,
and bestowing.
When my steps were unsteady,
you held my hand.
Smile Exercises for the blues
Smile, even when your heart feels blue
Smile, even a straight one will do
Smile, even when the ground is shaking
Smile, even when your heart is breaking
Smile, widely, smile broadly, chase the greys away
Smile, in the sun, or in the wind, or even on rainy days
Smile, when you feel like shouting
Smile, when you feel like being still
Smile, when life is hard to bear
Smile, when its hard to care
Smiling when the world seems dark,
Does something to your heart
Smile, when the world seems terrifying
Smile, when you feel like crying
The simple action of your smile,
changes a day from dark to grey.
Smile at a stranger or a friend,
Smile with a shiver, or with a bend.
Smiling is something that I hope will never ever end.
Inspired by the YouTube’s videos
I watch the aging actors’ faces
Part of my youth, of there and then
The ruthless time erases traces
To waypoint stops, us younger when
So pensive, humbling and revealing
The glory past and fame archived
Age catches up, ain’t no concealing
And none of it can be revived
Those shows - naïve, addicting, funny
Or maybe serious and sad
The days one hasn’t had much money
Yet better-looking, girl or lad
The stunning beauties, macho fellas
They shined so brightly on the screens
We watched them, feeling slightly jealous
Uncrowned princes, lords and queens
Time has no mercy, twisting faces
And gruesome copies all is left
It slowly goes through the paces
Keeps us uneasy and bereft
Why do the actors age so oddly?
Me? I’m the same as ever been
To perish thought, dismissing broadly
The glaring truth, which isn’t sin
We gaze, but what’s the image here?
Not them. It’s us, the way we were
If you’re a woman – shed a tear
If you’re a man – go feel a stir
November 2, 2024
If you have an enemy,
Treat him like a friend
He may not understand this
He may be too dense to comprehend.
When people do not like you,
It is not your fault.
They may not know the reason,
Why are you not their sort?
Some types of people,
Are their worst enemy,
They live in ivory towers
And look down on those they see.
But if you do not seem to notice
And pretend you do not care
Try smiling broadly,
If you should meet them anywhere.
You will confuse them,
And they will not be sure what to do
Should they smile back,
Or be obnoxious to you.
If they still don't want my friendship
It will no longer matter to me
As I will have to be content with the fact
C'EST LA VIE!
The lady who cleans the dead
The woman who washed and dressed the body of my wife´s brother came for a visit and to get paid for her service
I noticed the nails of her hands were manicured pink
did she in her daily work touch more dead bodies daily than live ones? She looked beach clean, bet she used gloves when eating lunch.
I made ill at ease, studying her like she was an alien, deeply tanned, this was understandable spending so much time in a cellar full of corpses.
Why had she chosen this profession, perhaps she had studied to be a doctor and failed.
A new idea struck me if I suddenly died, she would clean me, put lipstick on my dead lips, and rouge on my cheeks for a cheap laugh
I smiled broadly at her and nodded to what she said showing my best side, you never know.
A word which first takes the mind straight to sin
And as soon to evil one could not win:
Always remember ‘spiritual exam’
For what you and I weigh in Divine Gram…
You can guess the examiner: Satan,
Sometimes, choosing an uncaring Nathan:
The too-good-at-cracking-the-harshest joke
And you could not but his face in blood soak…
In the world of lust a kiss made a must
And she’s another’s wife, not counted cost;
In the game of cards staking a Million
One had borrowed from a bank’s strict bullion…
In the field of writing, plagiarism,
No thought about its sure cataclysm
I could argue: behind many murders
By killers sure they’d still see their mothers:
More broadly, taking the risky for safe,
Then, realizing that it does hard skin chafe…
That which we could escape its penalty
But this takes not to a finality…
Naked David is extremely sexy:
oh, how magnificent is his young body!
Was he sculptured to shun shame and deceit?
Should he be dressed accordingly to meet
a certain social code of decency?
Naked David broadly appeals with his attractive traits:
chest, arms, face, glance and mighty warrior legs;
he was chiseled out from a very cold and massive piece
of marble: no soul touched it as if it had a disease!
David's vibrant youth is ever eternal, unlikely ours!
Naked David is the reflection of that innocent age,
his endearing look increases his imposing appearance;
is it embarrassment or a denial of sexuality?
Michelangelo was marveled at its grandiosity:
he created a stunning statue that emanated elegance!
Naked David ignores looks of lurid disgust,
many would cover him up, not only to repel dust;
would he project his angelic beauty to admirers,
and to us who shouldn't be ashamed of our bodies...
that need clothes to hide that specific private part?
They say this shall pass too,
But here I am standing in the never-ending queue,
On a road reflecting an infinite path in my rearview.
Slowly and slowly, it induces a demure attitude
Giving up on your jolly side along with it too.
Nothing is permanent under this changing blue
Except the blurry future covered with dew.
But instead of falling apart shortly
Look towards the dark side broadly
It made you realize that you are not alone totally.
Leaving behind all the delusion mindset
You walk towards your comfort nest
Away from the worries of the materialistic crew
Towards the dark side it is just you.
Take Me There
Take me to the place where it’s broadly known
In meadows and woods famous poets roamed
Where hosts of blithe yellow daffodils dance
In expectation of budding romance.
To view magnificent mountains and lakes
And spectacular countryside landscapes
In hopefulness that it all will inspire
My muse to explode alike a drumfire.
The Lake District I will visit one day
There’s so much to view and do on a stay
Such serenity and astounding grace
Is found in Cumbria’s stunning showplace.
*+*+*
9th January 2023
Take Me There Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Margarita Lillico
They say: we are all aboard one boat do you agree?
There are many sailboats in the choppy sea.
Some ocean liners provide comfort and luxury.
Others dispense leisure and a drink on the balcony.
The star's radiance is not a concern.
I realize we do not view them. Wilt yearns.
Our murky self-portrait is enigmatic.
It is the paradigm stalker and emphatic.
We sat down after sliding into the ground.
We also have a similar identity around.
We have self-assurance and are proactive.
Akin a careful skydiver, we remain tractive
Our territory is growing with the breeze.
With our feet dangling outside appease
We are appreciative of the world broadly.
As I saw it rise, the dome seemed ungodly.
Man's eyesight is cloaked in darkness.
We face the side of the world in blackness.
When we assess a man, we do view gloom.
We all had to flee while jostling and doom.
Written: December 19, 2022
Written: December 19, 2022
All the little feathers in her wings
Stood firmly at attention
And as she stood tall
Her straightened back
Unfurled the last twisted barbs
She stood on her tip toes at the station
Waiting for the fog to clear
The air's stomach was full of rain
She stood tall and taut
Gazing out over the rails, the buildings, the parks, her empty home, the little dots of strangers, she saw broadly
Her lost love and past
And just flew above it all
What if the sun was the moon
And the moon could shine at noon?
What if the earth was the heaven
And everything we ask for could be given?
What if God was Satan
And everything could change its pattern?
What if a long the way you lose hope
And the 'good' Satan gives you the rope?
What if I could be born again
And when born rich I call it a gain?
What if the sky ceases to be blue
And Elmer dislikes glue?
What if the drying of oceans is our fear
And we can fill it with our tears?
What if our hearts are heavy
And our minds are wavy?
What if everyday I meet kissy little girls
And with their hair in curls?
What if I make a lot of fun
And way they run?
What if I broadly smile
And they all go wild?
What if Maangi loves Fred
And Maingi bread?
What if I blindly love Elsie
And everyone else sees?
What if everything I've said is true
And you don't have the slightest clue?
John Lenda (Poetic World,2022)
We bought a doorstop today,
For our great-grandson Noah
It was in the shape of a Giraffe
One like I've never seen before.
This doorstop had an attitude,
He had a cheeky grin,
His eyes were bright as buttons
They sucked us in.
I picked up the cute giraffe,
He looked adorable
We began to laugh,
Its presence was ignorable.
We both smiled broadly,
I was still cuddling the giraffe,
It became infectious,
Other shoppers smiled as they passed.
You're in your second childhood,
Said my husband tenderly,
I never left my first one
It's a place I choose to be.
It is a happy place
Without responsibility,
A place we can play all day,
Together you and me.
As I sit here writing,
This useless little rhyme,
That perky little giraffe,
Has been with me all the time.
It seems ridiculous
To think of this stuffed little thing.
Can raise a person's spirits,
And for a while, make sad hearts sing!
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