Woe to the ones with a sour attitude
Those who grumble in mumbled words so rude
Their poems sour the air
When one wrote of the 'Herr'
I've grown tired of this silly childish feud
The past, when past is gone,
No amount of wishful thinking will bring it back,
In life, we must move on,
No use crying over memories and flashbacks;
Life is like a flower,
It can be enjoyed as long as it is present,
For soon it will wither,
Then nothing will remain except its fading scent;
Life's like a glass tumbler,
The broken pieces cannot be joined, once shattered,
We mustn't be a grumbler,
Rather, let go of the past and live unfettered;
Life’s like river water,
Once it goes and meets the sea, it does not turn back,
Leave the past to totter,
And reach forth to the future in this fast race track;
As life new attires dons,
Let’s face it with joy and try them on with gladness,
Let bygones be bygones,
Let’s leave behind the past, regrets, and all sadness.
12.03.2021
Inspired by Harivansh Rai Bachchan's "Jo Beet Gayi So Baat Gayi"
(a poem in Hindi, the national language of India)
For Malabika Ray Choudhury's "Inspired by a Translation" contest
The fading ancient sun casts long shadows before me,
as I shuffle slowly and sluggishly down asymmetrical lanes.
How age mellows me like ripe watermelon, squeezing me
until all my ambrosial juices run acidulously dry as dust.
Unsatisfied desire, mental torment and general malaise
conquer my better moods of love, devotion and quietude.
Straggling with widespread dishevelment and disillusions
I try in vain to set an orderly pattern to my straying aims,
hoping some guardian angel were to take my shaking hands
to lead me onwards steadily towards some well defined goal.
Mark my furrowed forehead, tap solidly at my potential energy
fill my withering wrinkles with some sense or empirical reasoning,
but at least give me one essential gift, that a grumbler I'll never be.
All contentious people have their own beliefs,
this anger and discord is very seldom brief.
God in all his glory, loves our gratefulness.
It's growlers, whiners and faultfinders,
that make this world a mess.
Quit wasting time and pay attention to the man upstairs.
For spending time with the Lord, nothing else compares.
Don't be a Grumbler, life's to short to waste it in distress.
Live, love and laugh. Let God in all his glory, take care of all the rest.
Life is about having the right attitude.
Don't be known as one with platitude.
Someone who is a habitual whiner,
is not a good companion at a diner.
Life is always a much happier place
if you don't slap anyone in the face,
so you won't be a curmudgeon grouch
why don't you take a nap on your couch.
No one wants to be around a grumbler
especially one who should be humbler.
Wear a smile instead of a sourpuss frown
and from your own pedestal, step down.
One who brags about his or her work
is really just being a malcontent jerk.
If these words seem harsh and trite,
some fish are known to take a bite.
Kindness is the best way to make a friend
so stop being bitter, just make amends.
Stop being a grouch, no talk or bellyache,
and be nice to others, for goodness sake!
Whether you exhibit the best art or common sense;
Every one desires one or the other,
Put credit or go against it!
The grumbler loves to shovel the tiniest fault
To drown somebody else.
Your good things are good for him.
But if his bad things go bad for you,
He dumps you in plain sight,
Framing you in great shame!
Then you hold a grudge against him;
While he is holding a golden prize,
Feasting his eyes on your deeds.
He is a smart thief,
Clinging to your open wounds or weakest flesh.
But, it is not the world's end.
You need to move on.
You need to be careful.
And prepare an antidote for his poison.
Makmak Enem/8.12.15
He will make everything fabulous
Wait and see
He has a way of doing things
He knows what needs to be done first
And every step thereafter
He knows how to do things
Plan things and make things to come
We don’t even have to worry about the details of it
He is in control
Every minute second
He is on top of it
Don’t sweat, hyperventilate, exasperate
Irritate, gripe, aggravate
The Maker of this world is presiding
In charge
Why agonize, discompose, fret, nervous
While the Father has of hold on his making
God meant for us to enjoy things
Life and everything goes with it
Don’t be a grouch, a wreck, a grumbler
A troublemaker, a moaner, a nitpicker
God meant for you to be happy
Live life, sing a song, dance a storm
Make someone happy
Make yourself happy
Take delight in what you do
Take pleasure in what you accomplished
Be pleased
Get a kick out of things not called for, earned
Have a ball
Have fun
Live a little
God rules
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.