He wandered away from troubles
but he never gets tired of solving
whatever he does…
always with heart and soul.
He stayed strong through many hardships.
Whoever tries to strike him down,
he still rises without holding back.
He keeps walking--
even when the road is not easy today too.
This Week's Poetry Challenge: Exactly 50 Words
Write a poem using exactly 50 words.
Challenge Dates: July 27, 2026 - August 2, 2026.
His tired smile felt genuinely warm
It's the daily norm since he was born
Life is an endless loop of closed doors
Searching for hope among endless pores
Born into seaside harbor
Felt the wave of endless labor
Shouldering pain and liability
Sailing for honest security
Touching the mild ocean breeze
Smiled tiredly along freezing sneeze
Homecoming after relentless work
Grabs and sighs at dinner fork
Looking upon paled door
Grabbles within open pores
Shut the lights hoping for relief
Dreaming upon hopeless beliefs
A continuous cycle day and night
A tired smile without light
TEXTURE OF MINIMALISM: Title - Denim
Sponsor: Nette Onclaud
Date: 16-Nov-2025
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Old dirty blues,
Lived in and once beloved.
All that dirt speaks of time -
Stains mark a living hard earned.
Faded hand prints,
Of the love lost on the way,
Dreams of home not to be --
Pocket heavy with pennies.
A gust of wind she is
Flowing through the fields
Flowers bloomed each one she touches
A beauty only month of may yields
Grateful for the memories we hold
For each laugh and each fight
At every phase of my life
You were there for me each time
No matter the hardships you face
You make your way through the crowd
From deep down from my heart
You make me immensely proud
Purest heart with a hint of mischief
The kindest eyes ever seen
The sunshine gets dim when she smiles
A beauty with a soul so serene...
I am as cold as ice inside an arctic force wind.
A glacier slowly melting from things I can't control.
I can see the end but growing stronger is my goal.
I hang on like a ship that's sinking so tragically.
The world will move you if you let it, so magically.
On the outside you will see sad eyes worn down from every wave.
I wish I could love myself enough to be saved,
The summer sun is sweltering hot and the ice is mostly gone.
If you look really closely you'll see the same droplets in the ocean moving like a song.
Every day is getting harder but each day I let go and become strong.
Finally the glacier in my heart has melted thoroughly.
Now I feel I won this war, as I am apart of everything the infinite ocean I feel full heartedly.
I move as the sea moves let go of all I hold.
Now I shine and sparkle a force so bold.
Confused and at a loss
I become mind blank and speechless
From young to old
Difficulties and hardships never end
Knowledge and experience can't help
Patience and perseverance slowly wear out
But the world still sleeps and wakes up
But the moon still shines and the stars still twinkle
It seems telling me to pursuit continuously
Amongst the hustle and bustle
That wake up the morning and the earth
Amongst the crowds
That come and go in an endless flow
Amongst the poetry
That sounds one's heart
The twelve zodiacs
In the Chinese calendar
Signifies twelve potentialities
Twelve characters
Twelve charms
All will contribute to
The varieties and success of the world
One may believe that
The pig - simple and easily satisfied are non-crime committing
The dog - alert for dangers give warning in times
The rooster-give morning calls for a fresh day work, so abiding and loyal
The monkey-inquisitive though, add laughters to cheer up the world
The sheep-a coat of protection from freezing and so hardships
The horse-galloping like a swift wind, symbolizing energetic will bring success
The snake-a winding movement to escape from blockades and hardships in a wise way
The dragon-signifies prosperity, and dreams will come true with hardworks
The rabbit-soft and humble in nature
The tiger-energetic and powerful
The ox-hardworking and enduring
The rat-active even in the darkness of misfortunes
These twelve distinguishing characters of mankind
Will decide the future of the world tomorrow
Underground to breadth it’s hard
On the ground to stay alive one hustles
The darker the days ,the fewer the friends they say.
Empty vessels we are, noises of negativity we spread,
As we go around hating and hurting .
Emotions as hearts break ,
To trust we find hardships
But without love alone we feel
Wallowing in self pity we are,
Wishing to just be swallowed up by the earth
As now hollow we have become;
The hopeless we are termed
But to keep going - where does one find HOPE?
The rose bud
The soft petals
Clad between the sepals
Oblivious to daily dismals
Drops of water dribbled
Gliding soflty off the sepals
Not a single drop
Reaching the smooth petals.
Sweet Little Rose
She was protected likewise
by her beloved parents
Shielded was she of difficulties
Not a single hardship did she encounter
They were deviated vehemently
By this armour called Parents!
The rose bud had bloomed
Into a beautiful flower
The sepals had curled downwards
All the same supporting the rose.
The rains came again
How the droplets
Landed ruthlessly on the petals!
Poor rose flower was drenched!
Little Rose blossomed
Into a lovely maiden
Her parents were bent with age
Yet upholded their Rose.
Challenges arose again
How they bore down
Upon Sweet Rose
Poor Rose was burdened!
PADDLE YOUR OWN CANOE
Stand tall, raise high, blame not thy lot,
Tread path swift, find faults naught;
Decisions tough, impediments bountiful, solution yet to be taught,
On crossroads held, crisscross paths, life distraught!
Hold your ground yet firmly tread,
Not a cake walk though, life’s hostile instead;
Exhibit valour, let spirits soar overhead,
Vanquish hurdles, flaunt thy smile, joyous tranquility spread!
Befogged vision, life seems tangled,
Heartbroken defeated when dreams sometimes mangled;
With courage, steadfastness life no more wrangled,
Sing to the tunes of the chiming bells jangled!
Choicest blessings the Divine shall bestow,
If and only if you paddle your own canoe!
SMILE IF YOU CAN!
Entangled betwixt the web of life,
Whence facing a situation terrible;
Support all lost, roads all crossed,
Befogged vision, intent ambiguous;
Amidst the hassle, resistant struggle,
Attempt with a tranquil earnest persistence;
Overlook the distress; Smile if you can!
The inevitable confusion life presents,
Assessing the worth of an earthling’s presence;
Not solely one but inclusive of all,
Each one’s life’s brimful of strife;
Struck at some point with forces adverse,
Troubled to the core, agonized heart-broken;
Overlook the adversity; Smile if you can!
When confronting a rival, mighty, callous,
Retaliate not with revenge, provoke not thyself;
Instill thy benevolence in thy rival’s heart,
Bestow thy compassion, benign goodness;
Leave not thy stance, amenable, cordial,
To smile at an enemy is to disarm him;
Forgive thy enemy; Smile if you can!
They talk to me… I take no interest
For I like not their likes…
When I talk to them--- about angels, and heavens,
And about life, magic and things I like
They listen not
And the boasters, like parrots
Start praising their minds…
And talk of trivial things
Like brands, latest fashion, new model cars and their favorite cigarette
They seems impressed of themselves
And tell me in hidden words, how better they are than I
For they understand the world and know life's art
I smile on their faces, but laugh at them in my heart…
They know not the truth of life
Or they ignore the cry of Truth
And turn a blind Eye towards the Reality
Or may be it’s a parallel universe
they are living in
In my world, Moon has strains
And flowers wilt young
kids play with the debris of their wrecked houses
Mothers bury the empty coffins of their dead sons
Sons wait for their murdered fathers to bring them food
And dughters wipe mothers' tears with their torn clothes
How can I celebrate this life...??
They do...
They must have got a different world
(~Paghunda)
As a child, I learned that life is cruel
And justice is blind
My loving family filled with secrets and care
All I ever wanted
A love to call my own
A place to be unafraid of my surroundings
Why am I ever denied
Leaving scars on my heart
All I ever needed was a love that is real
To never feel alone and disregarded
All I ever wanted was my time on the moonlit path of romance
To feel loved and safe
But I was held to a standard around my elders
Hope that they would change their ideas
So my hope was twisted and rooted to fear
I hide myself, who I am,
All I ever wanted acceptance and love
So keep hidden my secret designs my plots a face worn
I watch on the outside as others delight in the pleasures and joys of love
Days turn to hours and hours to years
When they solve the mysteries once beheld by misguided eyes
And all truths are spoken confessions boldly told
Then can I finally come home
UNTOLD HARDSHIPS
Waging no war against atrocities,
Opulent lessin offering any resistance to social evils,
Marring herself by subduing to wicked hands,
Aura of venom often dowans on her to make her spiritless
Nadir is her social strata in her living milieu!!
By God’s grace, we can rejoice midst difficulties
He upholds us from our infirmities
For us to overcome inabilities
And engage in ministerial activities.
Through the Lord’s might, we can be joyful against labor pain
He fortifies our faith along hardship’s strain
For us to testify about heavenly gain
He assures us to reap* toil’s harvest-grain.
Galatians 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
August 5, 2019
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