If I died in my sleep tonight,
upon reflection ~
I'd only have one true regret.
Though I tried to make
the most of my time on earth,
of course I've fallen short.
And for that I would be sorry.
I should have done more,
I should have been more,
I should have loved more.
Gifts squandered, time frittered,
thinking of all I could have done,
the many dreams left on the table
because I thought someday I'd have time.
Death is sudden with no do-overs
but really, we do know one day it's coming ~
time should never be taken for granted,
death is not supposed to be a true surprise.
AP: 1st place 2025, Honorable Mention 2025
As the mirror photographs eyes,
Tongues running laps read glazed signs,
Broken phone calls your label
Talking fire cuts fixed cable,
Voices piling in rooms behind.
Snapshotting darkness as I dine,
Mailing timepiece's vessel skies,
Painkillers rocking the cradle,
As the mirror photographs eyes.
The brain's carcass sees the sun rise
Rotating roads, token trails sigh,
Step on streets in staples,
The deck of cards on the table
Covers stained face, breaking disguise
As the mirror photographs eyes
Morning At Work
Impaired by his tremors
And a troublesome cough,
He turned fur into felt
Before cooling things off.
He drooled once or twice
And grew cold in his bones,
But he shaped all the felt
Into all of the cones.
Noon
His 'venomous vipers'
Grew restless again
And woke as the toxins
Played games with his brain.
He began to see strange things
And quickly grew scared
When the writing desk swooped
Like a ravenous bird.
Aware that his dark mind
Was now playing tricks,
He quit work forever
At ten shillings past six.
Night
He sat in The Tabard
Where he found time to think.
His skin had turned orange
As he drowned in his drink.
He recalled the sad day
His wife took off her ring
And with her cards on the table
Left to marry a king.
He pined for his daughter
And the party he'd planned
But she followed her mother
To that far-away land.
Later That Night
While carrying a tea tray
Upstairs to his bed
He tripped over his hat
He'd shook off with his head.
He finally came to
Around six the next night
But from that moment on
All his world was not right.
Cards on the table the game of life begins
As quick as it started it has now ended
Like lighting speed life moves with us in it
The world keeps spinning when we are gone
What happens after life I do not know?
Nor do you it is a guessing game for all
But if you guess wrong you may be ashamed
If you guess right your back in the game
There is a black book of rules that we must follow
If these rules are broken you may start all over
Some try to cheat by not reading these rules
Ashamed they will become when the earth
Swallows them whole
Try to keep up for I'm not your typical princess
I don't need saving, I'm not your damsel in distress
Don't get the wrong impression I don't mind wearing a pretty dress
It's inner beauty not outer beauty with which I do obsess
I'm seeking more than prince charming with a gentle caress
My knight in shining armor must hold more than merely sheer finess
You can surely bet if he accepts the challenge, it won't be a simple game of chess
He better come willing to lay all cards on the table and hold more than exterior but interior strength I too possess
I fight for what and who I believe in, a warrior at heart I must confess
If he's going to come charging in on his white horse I hope he too is a warrior at heart and nothing less
"I hate you" I said.
"I feel the complete opposite." He replied.
That's how he won my heart. Well atleast a piece of. He had won me over for a minute now. He knew how life was going and after a good hour of catching up. He knew how my ex was after me again. He knew I was dating, trying to expand my horizons. He knew how my baby daddy had "the cards on the table." According to my ex , it was technically up to me to decide if we got back or not. But the moment he said "I throw my joker card on the table" that boy took my heart and stole it. I love him. I don't know how it happened but it happened. Although I wanted out this circle I loved him. I must have in my past atleast. Or maybe my future. Pero lo amo.
Spawn of the arcane, glutted, she sprawls upon the sands
of mythos. As victims, star-crossed lovers, outcasts,
we have all seen the traces of these nether lands.
Sphinx-like, besotted, she lays among the bodies dashed.
A pixie smith has cast her silver chains, retained her
inside this mystic plane, stained her hide vintage rose.
Among the cards on the table, it is plain; she purrs.
Do you know what she knows; guess, a riddle she poses.
Protection sought from life's trials is at her command.
But, few coupled or single have journey past her grasp.
Unknown, to the unschooled, their senses unused, banned,
Christendom, the sacred fecund grail has miscast.
From Hatshepsut's visage, bound to Sekhmet she's sworn
beware, beware The Chariot's card once it is drawn.
I write this letter for you to know I commit the evil sin for thee,
I shall not breath the same air thee breath,
I allow my sins to win the battle so by at the night I'll be,
Free by the old oak tree for my blood will spill,
How shall I say this I can't handle the thoughts that roam,
You're lovely but I deserve to roam in the darkness I belong,
Among I am wrong for I kill,
The gods are angry.
The final poem I wrote well this will be the second,
But don't take it as real for this a deal to Lucy,
I walk here in the wastelands bringing war,
See you thought I wouldn't talk about death for death is following thee.
So lets place the cards on the table,
Are you able to decide for suicide Romeo and Juliet style.
Nokushikuzi are they ready to see the wicked I be?
Nor they want to see how the poems be read,
Lead the following of the shadows that roam so here's the moment we bleed.
Written: 10/21/15
A few lines about forks upon the table
Fondue's pronged fork for fingers habile
A taste of life's flavored torgues
Babes brought by the stork
Tough, old meat
Forks
Fork for cake
Tines just for wine corks
Roads that fork and life uncorks
In the end only two tines are stable
A few lines about forks upon the table
Sponsor: Andrea Dietrich
Contest: An Invented Form_Help Me Name It!
The Butterfly
Hourglass
Think about Robert Frost's Poem "The Road Not Taken"..
Think about playing on words a fork in a road..
Think about putting all your cards on the table..
Fox in the fable all cards on the table
My life fits well in Pandora's box
A heart refusing a steady beat
With confusion, it pounds and knocks
When to pay the piper
The fear I face everyday
Like man standing before a sniper
Whose about to have his head blown away
I've tried to play by the rules
but maybe these are words of a desolate fool
I sit before a screen exposing truths in me
For everyone to review and dissect
Could that imply I have
Very little self respect?
I've met with every obstacle
For many years endured in silence real pain
But I no longer choose to
Walk in acid rain
I've become the obtuse
Refusing to continue living life as a recluse
Putting words to good use and
Send a STRONG MESSAGE to those
Who mentally and physically abuse
Harsh as it may seem
He who falters must redeem
A world filled with enmity
And divisions of seed
May the Lord not deafen
His ears to the pleas
Of humanity, cause we are
Lost without his infinite mercies
A man walks into a bar
and throws all of his cards on the table
his best, his worst,
all of his moments
and dreams
spilling out
with him in a pool of blood,
tears,
vomit,
piss,
and a laugh,
and a stumble,
and a moment of angelic grace,
when he touches the sky
with a bit of fiery wit
and a story
that proves he's more of a man,
than he who walks out with a limp
because he hates his own leg,
and walks into a bar
to throw all of his cards on the table.
They agreed to go to their favorite hangout and cigars.
Once they were seated the waiter said that the restaurant had a deal on Italian wine.
In the beginning it was easy, turn the cold shoulder for a few days.
And that was followed by fantastic sex.
He loved to poker her and she carried her part.
But the children came and it was much harder.
They had a full house and the meanness .
The thing that bothered her most was his control issues.
And he believed he ruled over the family like a king.
She always peeked at his hands when they fought.
Whenever he was angry he would clench and unclench his hands.
He knew the relationship was over and he should have folded.
She wanted to lay all her cards on the table.
She had tried hard but when angry her face would get flushed.
They would rake in each others defects and the love died.
The high road was never straight and neither took.
He would raise past issues that were long dead and forget the progress..
He thought he was a stud but the children were his weakness.
He wanted to holdem but she wanted their best.
All she wanted was for him to ante up in the marriage.
They were both bluffing and the love weakened.
If I must tell the truth about getting old,
Then I shall put all my cards on the table
Even when I’m naked I still want to
Slip into something more comfortable
For a moment I lived in fear of the hourglass
It's funny how quickly those feelings can pass
Because now I cant seem to get away from you fast enough
You have a world class poker face, I almost missed your bluff
But I'm calling it out, all chips are in
Mght as well fold now, cuz I'm gonna win
Put your cards on the table, reveal your hand
How I almost fell for it, I'll never understand
You pulled the wool right down over my eyes
A wolf in sheep's clothing, what a clever disguise
You huffed and you puffed and you blew my walls down
Now I'm reduced to a pile of debris left strewn on the ground
Right back where I started, familiar resent
Mulling over the misfortune of wasted time spent
Biting the bitter bullet of unrequited cares
Peeling out my feeling, layer by woeful layer.
peace. sought and desired. lost, often found.
cards on the table: leaving out millions of dice.
rolling and wearing the pattern,
believing trouble to be far behind.
odd. never knew time would tell a lie.
thinking of trouble: laying a path to your name.
seeking and trying your patience,
putting obstacles up against the wall.
tired. depressed and weary. sad, often needy.
reading between the lines: leaving out hundreds of words.
inspiring and creating a pattern,
forging terror in a future land.
hope. a desire to redress the balance.
needing new skills: putting your hands on the wheel.
working and understanding from the heart,
finding the old ways and sowing new seed.
peace. desired and lost. sought, often found.
knowing trouble: dealing with it as and when.
seeking change only when it matters,
believing happiness to be a state of mind.
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