They say energy never dies
but never said it'd stay for the entire ride
hand in hand, losing their minds
Even in the darkness
there's nowhere to hide
thought that when their worlds decided to collide
the pain would finally subside
Did they ever really try?
or did they just shut down inside?
countless excruciating tears they've cried
yet still numb
from losing so many loved ones that died...
time after time after time
consuming lust filled emotions
had them drowning in eachother's souls
but fears fueled the endless lies
that their bruised egos told
slowly making their hearts turn cold
so unaware of the true dimension
they belonged in
a place they created together
as their souls continued
intertwining & binding
defining forever
manifested their own demons
trying to protect themselves
from expected cruel intentions
boy, were they relentless
made nothing but a huge mess of this
love & desire
mixed with fear & anger
created an unextinguishable fire
adding fuel to the flames
whenever he was inside her
one anothers new drug
they couldn't get any higher
Written: August 28, 2026, for a contest sponsored by Brian Strand
Note: Creating a clerihew suite (a connected series) allows to convey a hilarious biographical narrative or analyze a historical event from several perspectives. Because clerihews are so brief, connecting three or four of them creates a lighthearted narrative arc.
********************
The teenage William Shakespeare
found himself steered by sudden fear
When 'Anne Hathaway' said 'We are to be wed'
he packed up his quills & to London he fled
When writing tragedies at 'The Globe'
he wore a truly fancy velvet robe
However it caught fire during 'Henry VIII'
burning the theater right down to the gate
The aging wordsmith William Shakespeare
felt the English language was so austere
So he invented the words eyeball and swagger
just to find a rhyme for a bloody dagger
When it came time to bury William Shakespeare
his lawyer shed a real dubious tear
For he left his wife no money or bread
only his clearly favorite second-best bed
Spared a change—
Spared a week, spared everything that made me weak.
Spared the week that made me weak.
Spared the people who think I am a “geek.”
Spared the light that made me weak,
From a dream that wasn’t supposed to find an end,
Because there was nothing to seek.
Library
Off to bury
Minds, spending time
Reading, soaring to imaginative levels
Harvesting curious ideas, challenging the devil
Experiencing many worlds, action always in a swirl
Around their setting, where the conflict can be upsetting
But when, the story comes to an end, happiness wins over the sin
If not in a hurry, destiny, visit the library, where the imagination will come alive, and cry
A good book is the way, to carry a day, under the sky blue, enjoying fantasies that are cool
Now I will never be dirt free
You've covered me head to toe
It's in my hair and in my mouth
Stuck like gum in the roots of my hair
A sour taste like a lemon or a not-yet-ripe strawberry
No matter how much I bathe
You’ve done the irreversible
The unforgivable
I am treated like a garden bed
Used in the spring and neglected in the winter
You use me to grow new things
like roses and fruits and berries
I hope everything you grow wilts rots away like the maggots that fill your sick mind and sick heart
You are an earth worm, but I am not your filth to consume
No matter how much you change
Now I will never be dirt free
moonlight
cascades
over the falls
landing on the boat
covered, floating
in the ebonic sea breeze
I am in there
so are you
if you so choose
both sleeping
something about
Hawaii
unhurries the heart
waits for
floating leis
lazily drifting
in the ebb and flow
of forever after
Winter cold bitter
Escape icy elements
Ruby red warm fire
Embracing the home sweet home
Illuminating loves light
I'm hurting, I'm wounded –
looking for an escape.
This life’s become unbearable –
there's nowhere I feel safe.
If only there was something –
(that) could take away my pain.
I searched for any remedy –
(that might) make me want to stay.
I drink on any antidote –
I'd stitch me up myself.
I'd literally do anything –
to find something that helps.
But I don't have the tools –
nor do I have some type of potion.
The ways, they come and go –
I'm overwhelmed with my emotions.
So, if I were to find something –
that might make me feel sane;
something to bring me peace –
and calm the noise inside my brain.
I'd probably believe it first –
that it were just a dream.
I don't think that I would believe –
that it were what it seemed.
I'd likely think it were a hoax –
just lies coded with glitter.
Not all that glitters is real gold –
so what makes this thing differ?
Don't get me wrong, I'd try it –
I’d risk it all for new found hope.
If there were just the slightest help –
I do anything to cope.
I’ve found an all new low –
is it just me, or am I dying?
I'm running out of options –
so tell me: what else is worth trying?
I was driving a station wagon, Dad on my right
Mom, young kids, and dog in back seat
Construction ahead, a warning light
In my mind I keep the scene on repeat
I saw the truck in my rearview mirror
It was going fast, I was going slow
I couldn't accelerate as it got nearer
It climbed on our wagon, in Idaho.
It forced the rear of the car into asphalt
The rear doors sealed, but the dog did a vault
Mom lifted the kids over, seared her skin
Moved sideways and a flame shot up where she'd been.
We all made it out, and Mormons took us in
Kids made Mormon friends, and we regrouped
Took an airplane the rest of the way to the coast
Not a story of which I can boast.
Dad's summer teaching had to cover the cost
But we won something, not just lost
We found strength and friendship where we didn't expect
From people whose kindness I'll never forget.
Now every flashing warning light
Takes me back to that July.
A rearview mirror, one long breath,
The line between life and death.
Besides the Mormons, I also thank fate
Death has to come, but death had to wait.
I love poetry
Where else can tragedy
Become so achingly beautiful
Horror made ethereal
Tears like jewels
Fall musically to the floor
Even demons dance to
The rhythm you create
Nightmares shrink
Into phrases on a page
Finding haven in quatrains
Freedom in metaphors
Structure in meters
I escape into this
Fantastical world
Parallel to the harsh
Reality
I can not control
Escape
Do you ever just need an escape?
An escape from reality?
Your past?
Your present?
The thoughts inside your head?
The overthinking of every little thing?
Every mistake?
Every miss spoken word ?
Everything unsaid?
Every regret?
Every small thing you could’ve done better?
No matter how big or small
Each moment replays in your head,
Wondering
what could I have said different?
What could I have done different?
What could I have done better?
But you gotta escape from those thoughts
Find a way to block them out
Do anything but face them.
But it all ends the same
You just keep thinking and thinking,
Until it eats you alive ,
Then you’ll realize
You gotta face it
And eventually,
You will
Dewy trees hold me at night for now
Clapping branches of loud entropy
I am sheltered by its vaned vow
A green truth for me and the poppy
And those poppy’s will grow ever tall
Then be torn by a kids naughty
And as I lay till the cold fall
My hair will wilt and seeds will cry
For they have only the spring to bawl
As for the hair, I’ll make some lie
About dew and poppy seeds
At reality i will never try
I brought the rent home
after a day of work in the heat.
The homeowner was gone.
His uncle who he took in
was yelling
I went away.
Clothes cluttered
the living room floor.
Sometimes I had to admit
to myself I felt this
was not a home to me.
Last night I searched
my laptop for images
of women once loved
and allowed my mind
to wander.
a wanderer
maybe that was who
I was meant to be
The moon looked in
the window while
the television in the living
room played the same thing.
Another housemate slept on the couch.
A manager asked if I could
come in on a day off.
I told him no to protect
my time and allow myself
to drive around and write.
He called it a hobby—
never read the books I wrote.
My books were kept on a shelf
above the dresser in my bedroom.
In my dreams another was born.
meditation-finding spiritual peace away from the world
Well... hello hello to you.
And a fine how do you do.
I've escaped from the zoo.
AP: Honorable Mention 2026
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