Possessing that beauty of the final girl,
known to all as the queen of screams.
Exaggerated and full of dramatic flair,
she sees Samhain in a plain pumpkin.
Known to all as the queen of screams,
a harrowing silence often precedes her.
She sees Samhain in a plain pumpkin,
hidden scars come out with a dull glow.
A harrowing silence often precedes her,
even with lips painted sinful burgundy.
Hidden scars come out with a dull glow
fanning the ancestral spirit in the air.
Even with lips painted sinful burgundy,
the shadows obey and conceal fear.
Fanning the ancestral spirit in the air,
brazen belief is always at your back.
The shadows obey and conceal fear,
exaggerated and full of dramatic flair.
Brazen belief is always at your back,
possessing that beauty of the final girl.
Green envious words set on fire
Ambitious absurd crazy with desire
Salty teal tears that cut like shears
Licorice fears blackened by years
Improvised strength in indigo words
Grossly exaggerated like flight of bird
How high it soars without your jealousy
Till you shoot it down committing felony
Instead of being wind of encouragement
Needing a win you embrace then lament
Gorging selfish spirit lacking red repents
SUR REALITY
in a dream
glaring
passion
intangible thrills
this symphony
cannot last
as
if
in a dream
night
as far
as the eye
can see
then
alone
wretched
exaggerated
proportions
develop
age
or
decay
we
cannot judge
contemporary
to the core
we
search
for conception.
with all due respect
exaggerated words use -
feeds my disbelief
Deep within the city park
stood Barnaby, a highly
grumpy, semi- sentient apple
tree.
He absolutely despised
when children approached
with fawning, goofy faces to
steal his fruit.
Whenever kids giggled and
reached up, Barnaby would
furiously shake his wooden
branches.
THWACK! A barrage of ripe,
juicy red apples went flying
like heat- seeking missiles.
He pelted the screaming kids
right on their bottoms, chuckling
a low, creaky laugh.
The children thought it was a
hilarious game and ran through
the park intentionally.
They made ridiculous,
exaggerated kissy- faces just
to trigger the tree's flying fruit
defense.
Barnaby snorted woodchips,
launching a rapid- fire green
Granny Smith straight at a
nose.
The park echoed with loud,
joyful snorts as apples
bounced harmlessly off
targeted bellies.
The grumpy tree finally
smiled, realizing his thrown
treats made everyone incredibly
happy.
Tall, proud, somewhat conceited,
the elegant yacht sailed into the bay
(a place of meetings,
snuggery to a medley of lesser idols)
as a swan takes to a lake.
It dropped anchor,
aloof from the rest,
aware of the stare of covetous eyes,
it basked in calm waters.
Come night, its garland of lights
illumine the grace of a presence;
a rarity, speaking of riches,
unimaginable wealth;
dipping and bowing in exaggerated gestures:
a language all its own.
At the break of day, it set sail once more,
on a broad reach leaving the barnacled bay behind,
distancing itself from the blue bay’s waters,
the green of its eyes.
Yet, miles away on a distant shore,
once fierce waves, now a dying wake
make a gentle ripple
shifting the sands of envy
even as memory of its billowing sails
vanishes over the horizon
urged on by the persistence of protective winds.
(1st Prize in Craig Cornish's A Broad Reach Contest)
INTENDED INTEPRETATIONS-:-
essential
contoured
outlines
equally
simplified
in SIMILAR SHADES
appropriate
exaggerated
regulated
transfer
motifs
with IMPETUOUS
short-comings
discreetly
written
abstract
verbage
Beware, timid taste buds—this dish looks bold,
Under the creamy sauce hides flavor, not fire.
Tomatoes whisper sweetness, butter sings softly,
Turmeric and friends merely gossip—not riot.
Even those who think ketchup is “too spicy”
Realize the panic was greatly exaggerated.
Mild curry perfumes the air like a warm welcome,
And naan bread stands ready as a tasty shield.
Skeptics take one cautious bite… then another,
And suddenly their plates look mysteriously empty.
Laughter follows the discovery that “spicy”
Actually means “please pass me more.”
Chicken swims happily in buttery clouds,
Hearts melt faster than the sauce in the pan.
If your tongue survives mayonnaise, you’ll be fine.
Come bravely to the table—no fire extinguisher needed.
Keep calm, chew slowly, enjoy the adventure.
Every bite converts another spice-nervous soul.
Now who said flavor had to be frightening?
eccentric
mischievious
quirky
sensations
insouciance
splashed
in
glimpses
of complicated
offhand
fashions
witty
comical
coherent
counterpoint
so
unnervingly
curious
in exaggerated
nonsensical
carricatures
seething
teeming
augmented
elongated
elaborations
absurb
amusing
into
rough-hewn
reminders
“Follow your heart, follow your heart,” they say-
but mine bends with the rain,
is bruised by a passing comment,
strangled by the silence
of an awkward moment.
I circle words on a screen,
reading, re-reading,
overthinking… overthinking…
Until my heart
feels more like a maze
of endless calculation.
I’ve tried, for so long,
to live by that phrase,
yet every word pulls me outward,
into the fog of exaggerated judgement
as if I were the center of all things.
Narcissistic, I know
or just sensitive.
And still, like a bee plunging
into a flower too deep,
I find myself sinking,
cloaked in a pollen-fluff
that never belonged to me.
We often communicate to the people
We use edited phrase to frank them
One of the most important asset is
To be by yourself, express who you are
Show yourself with beauty, genuine
No exaggerated aspiration, real you
No photoshopped soul, feel yourself
Doing the most wonderful unique you.
As we consider others
With more than a few objections
Can we unveil
Our own masked reflections?
As we review our brother
With an exaggerated disdain
Can we become cognizant
Of the true source of our pain?
As we inspect our neighbor
With ever ascending exasperation
Can we give pause and question
The root of our vexation?
As we give the mirror
Just one more searching glance
In order to adjust ourselves
So as to leave nothing to chance
Can we afford each other
Just one more unbiased look
Beyond the cover
And into the treasures of the book?
VERBOSITY extensive exaggerated & embellished expositions
The pressure to perform, which grips the soul
In the moment of action, digs its claw
Deep into the body, taking control —
Tense hands, weak knees, shallow breathing, clenched jaw —
Those symptoms of exaggerated worry
And anticipated anxiety
Are themselves the causes of that dreary
Failure to achieve. With some gaiety,
Attempt to fail instead, shoot to flounder;
This paradoxical intention, see,
May be just what sweeps the legs from under
Our deepest seated fears and sets us free.
“Let go,” said the Buddha. “Dive in,” declares
Viktor Frankl. One succeeds when one dares.
easy-going eccentric electric Eddie Edward
eagerly evolved, earnestly earning earthy eclectic
elixirs, executing exaggerated embellishments,
emotionalizing enchanting encyclopedic endorsements,
epitomizing enlightened entanglements, enticing envious emotions.
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