I meet Dave at a high school dance and found him charming,
he was handsome and swept me off my feet:
we danced the night away and we had eyes for only us,
at the end of the night he walked me home;
and we shared an innocent kiss . . .
We met several times after that and to be real truthful,
I was starting to find him dull and boring:
so, I told him that we would not see each other again,
I thought he understood but I was wrong;
he started following me everywhere . . .
Calling me endlessly and leaving me love-sick messages,
it was like he was possessed and obsessed with me:
I was scared . . . it was so all consuming and intrusive,
he had this unhealthy fixation on me;
so, I told my parents about it . . .
My parents called the police and we met with them,
what they told us was shocking to hear:
Dave had an intense history of stalking girls,
I was not the first to report him;
all the police could do is talk to him . . .
There once was a Dave of my acquaintance:
his demeanour all steady and calm;
his life had a predictable cadence,
a true gentleman whose presence was balm.
Names given our storms such as Arwen or Bram,
being less common leave fewer affected
by weather extremes than for Dave or for Sam.
How would you feel with your name selected?
Choosing a virtue when naming a child
such as Prudence or Joy means taking a chance.
She may grow up to be sorrowful or wild,
with other parents then looking askance.
Here in Appleby with ten years now passed
has there been a boy named Desmond I ask?
Madame sun has always had a bit of a crush on the moon
They see each other from afar daily, and of course, sometimes on zoom
the moon is conflicted as to whether it will work out
Go for it! Yells the star named Dave, who loves to shout.
But what if we can never fully together truly be?
The moon is practical, and has the wisdom of at least twenty-three
Madame Sun is nurturing, she is worth the trouble says the star.
If you do not go for her, I will, and I have a car.
This irritated the moon because he always wanted to have a car.
He had never liked Dave, but now he disliked him by far.
If Dave liked Madame sun, he would go after her now for sure.
Madame sun paid off Dave, a loyal sidekick for sure.
Dave the delighted scarecrow had a dance and a tune
He pranced straw out of his leggings from night until noon
Black crows danced with him, making him their best friend
They even restuffed him, keeping him on the mend.
I think it musta been '66 -
the year of the storm when he was in a fix
and you could buy french fries for a dime.
Wasn't that a time -
the day Dave forgot to rhyme.
The attorneys general and the traders Joe
combined operations to make some dough.
Did that sell organic honey?
Don't ask me. Follow the money.
A a cultivator you hope he might just listen.?
A man who knows how valuble time is'
When other cockys, take the mission
Just to show the wofkings.' Look mate.)
They are not asking..You to just agree.!
They know as do I the, land lie planned
And its where, you never want to go ya'see? Look up (agenda 2030) and think
Of the Burma campaign.' The blood and
Sweat, of your protectors, fighting in swamp and gunshots rain.' Some made it
Back to keep a farm.' Yet others never did.! Though you; enjoyed such freedom
That card, now under the deck is being slid.' And the death card is being shuffled'
In the bush city..? Why not check out the
Game.' Break out some..Bickys and tea
Old mate.? And your? Or our? Cockys, will
Make the any confab; real plain.'
Dave Crandall is a fella who is always in tune.
Don't believe it when they say he's crazy as a loon.
He's a vegetarian, so you might not relate
to the curious items that you find on his plate.
He loves to solve mind-bending math puzzles just for fun,
and whether you like it or not, he'll surely ask you one.
He's got the sense of a blow-up animal balloon.
His favorite thing to watch is a Betty Boop cartoon.
He likes black and white movies from nineteen thirty-nine,
and folk songs from sixty-two, like "kisses, sweeter than wine."
While these anomalies, you might not think are so great,
I think you will agree, he should gain a little weight.
Strumming along to a troubadour's lament
tears pool and flow while I press
the strings playing out the notes
forcing myself as
I struggle to forge forward
overcome with a sorrow beyond sorrows
and a grief with no relief
Through the rhythm of the music
my heart relaxes
the timing, the tempo
measured with intimate design
the lyrics vibrate softly
streams of colorful patterns
hues of indigos and yellows
suffuse my mind
resonate within and through me
soothing the jarring cacophony
unblocking the dark kaleidoscopic roots
strangling my bright spirit
and writhing aspiring soul
It’s times like these
I know I’ll be calmed
as I cradle my guitar
and let the tears fall and wash away
this incessant tempestuous scourge
with the prayerful affirmations
It's time to put it away
rest its strings
along with the gnawing merciless
uncertainties
Dave
Reflective, questioning, introspective, introverted
Father of Daniel
Lover of Daniel, music, and mathematics
Who feels wonder, gratitude, and sentiment
Who fears climate change, nuclear war, and ill health
Who would like to see a passenger pigeon, a Tyrannosaurus Rex, and Pentangle in concert
Resident of Seal Beach, California
Crandall
Daniel
I admit, I'm awfully proud
Of traits with which my son's endowed -
Handsome, kind, thoughtful, wise, and bright.
Could it be, I did something right?
Disco ball of memories jostle for attention.
An oak tree of a man encasing:
Sunflower children's smiles and bear hugs
Dancing around the room forevermore...
Every piece of you, given so freely,
Now lives eternally...
My love where have you gone?
My face like snow that’s white
He touched my face that night
He said it lit like light.
You have betrayed me lover
I’ll never be your other
So, so long my friend.
As the year closes, Dave smells the roses
To his girlfriend Dina he proposes
Though he thought 'Nothing's wrong'
Dave had waited too long
On Dave's roses Dina soon forecloses
Jimmy made a Harley Davidson Man Cave.
The competition was on said cousin Dave.
He likes owls, so he made an owl retreat.
Isn’t that cute said his manly friends, oh so sweet.
he tried to give it to the wife, but she…
Was building herself a dragonfly tree.
With butterflies and whimsy all around.
Dave was stuck in his owl, which bats soon found.
Ten guitars line the wall
A rack of six, a rack of four
Standing sideways to me while
Proudly facing me, two more
Making the point that this was a
Place of music, joy, creative pain
Emphasised by the lyrics of
A broken daisy chain,
Another a song of
A life over too soon
The only expressed regret of
How he would miss the moon.
Music flowing over me
As I sit with half closed eyes
Sinking into the mood
Unaware of time flowing by.
Twelve guitars stand watching
Making me aware
This is a place of music
Of crafting, loving care.
I think they still watched me
As we closed the door
Wishing there had been time
To listen to so much more.
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.