This is the 13th Mother's Day that has come around since your life came to an end.
When you passed away, I didn't just lose a mother, I also lost my best friend.
We used to spend Mother's Days together but we can't anymore.
You went to Heaven twelve years ago when you were sixty-four.
You became a mother in 1967 when you brought my brother into the world.
I was born almost four years later and you incorrectly believed I'd be a girl.
An aneurysm ended your life and we buried you in the ground.
I can not enjoy Mother's Day because you're no longer around.
I'll join you in Heaven but I don't know when.
But it will be great when we're together again.
[Dedicated to Agnes johnson (1948-2013) who passed away on March 6, 2013]
Putting words on paper does not make a poet,
Writing a recipe does not make a cake.
Knowing how to comment on football does not make a coach.
Reading just one book does not make an intellectual...
Saying yes and love, oui and amour does not make a polyglot,
Knowing how to paint a picture badly does not make a painter,
Putting a band-aid on someone does not make a healer,
Heating water and cooking pasta does not make a chef,
Being half-informed does not make someone an expert,
Knowing several things and subjects does not make a wise man,
Being white does not give any privileges,
Loving women does not make a 'womanizer',
Stealing a kiss does not make a thief,
Filling out your income tax form incorrectly does not make you a crook,
Killing sleep does not make someone a scoundrel,
Taking a nap does not make you lazy either,
Knowing how to speak well does not make you a loudmouth,
Knowing how to live with art, it's not a farce...!
This poet has most incorrectly checked
The little box which indicates "insect."
This poem, I therefore flatly reject.
I sharply reproach the writer.
A spider, never an insect, was.
I say this insistently because,
He should say "sorry." Until he does,
I remain a concerned spider.
I had never met Elizabeth E before today.
She works at a different school.
Another Montessori.
She sat down at our round table.
I could tell by a variety of looks that others at our table knew her.
Almost before the group task was explained EE grabbed the paper.
She confiscated the markers too.
Without any help from the other seven teachers she began to talk.
Telling us why she was doing the group activity.
Because she is brilliant, a member of Mensa, and smarter than us.
We all watched her do the entire group project incorrectly.
None of us commented or suggested.
One young newbie tried to make a few suggestions.
But she soon caught on. We were not bright enough to help.
Elizabeth E’s hand was the first one up. She wanted to share.
She loudly and proudly explained what she had done.
The commentator told her that it was completely wrong.
All of us burst out laughing.
Two of us could not stop.
I have never felt less like an idiot.
tally of real rally
had been vacated in valley
submerged by sally
(evaporated in valley)
(a vagrant ((virgin)) in valley)
(very variable vaunting veracity vibrantly voiced in valley)
(got eaten in gally)
(took God for granted in galley)
(has a lot of gall by gully)
(murdered in Mali)
(was sort of smelly)
(would have big belly when in valley
blood of poem runs thin
were great after they had been
famous and free from sin voiced
what I have believed
a great Horn poem you received
now I am relieved
latest and greatest
read Horn Haiku would suggest
have won a contest
he had been haughty
should see her beautiful body
news would be naughty
when we persevere
have a great happy new year
wish you had been here
incorrectly would do steer
my bad news will appear
car was not in gear
Do have a horrendous Horn Haiku
humorous numerous happy day on
display while I will plan to play and
start to pray
Honest Earning
=============
We earn everything
Reputation, wealth,
Experience, life style,
We struggle to achieve.
What really last forever
Is honestly earned things,
We enjoy all for a period
But honest ones remain.
What we earn incorrectly,
Will prick our conscious,
That feeling alone is enough
To correct ourselves.
We brought nothing
When we came into this world.
We take nothing when we
Go out of this world.
Earthly possession of ours
Is our own earnings
None will accompany us
In our last journey
We came into this world
With the help of others
Others will carry us to
Our final destination.
Why crave for temporary
Enjoyments, be honest
And acquire permanent
Satisfaction in your dealings.
Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android
I’M LIKE AN INSTANT POT
I’m like an Instant Pot.
We’re both big and bold.
Heavier than we should be
Fussier than we need be
Neither of us should ever
Sit on the kitchen counter
When not in use.
Our metallic armor,
Fitted seamlessly,
tight and wide around the waist
Hard to keep that much armor shiny
So I don’t try to very often.
We each have different
temperatures,
we operate that way.?Different temperatures
deliver variable output
We both even hiss!
,
Beware the danger of getting it wrong,
Pushing the wrong button,
For it is the user who chooses
How far to turn the knob
How much heat to Render,
For success and bounty
As a temp too great or too small could
Ruin inside us, each.
Operate us incorrectly and we’ll
Explode all over you
When guidelines are taken
Seriously,
Pamphlets and fine print read,
we can both be tricky about
Unfollowed rules.
When you don’t know our laws
Of operation
Our innards could easily
turn to mush
Unrecognizable, inedible,
Salty.
Be reluctant to turn the knob too much.
There is a certain way to say "honey" that is in no way sweet.
A mean, cranky, crabby, put-you-down sort of way.
I did not know this until today.
When I heard a teacher using “honey” incorrectly.
Not an endearment the way she said it.
The whole class was listening.
I wonder if she calls her honey “honey” in this way.
I have always steered clear of her.
This practice will not change.
A period here. a question mark there?
A handful of commas,,,tossed in the air
To fall all willy-nilly but he doesn't care.
Then he closes his eyes so he never sees,
And does it again with apostrophe's.
Next colons: and semis; are put through their paces,
And are frequently found in the oddest of places.
Quotations are more than just dressing or stuffing,
Yet often appear when "nobody said nuffing".
It makes reading a chore just to try to adhere
To a writer's directions of what to do where,
But you barrel on through 'til you get to the end,
Give your eyes time to uncross,
And then try it again.
Some poets abjure punctuation, for sure,
And though not a big fan,
I'm a reasonable man.
e e cummings, for example,
Responds to the call
By using little or no punctuation at all.
Author's note: To quote the author Cormac McCarthy: "If you write properly you shouldn't have to punctuate." Poets such as e e cummings, et al, apparently took him up on that. Please understand, dear reader, that this piece is punctuated incorrectly to make a point. And I blush to admit that I, myself, am overly fond of "quotation marks" and…ellipses.
At night we're all alone in the black nothingness
Of our slowly crawling mind
We travel back to things done incorrectly or left behind.
Once more, the feelings, ignore...
To the racing thoughts , a blind eye...
"Another day, Another chance ,"
We say,
"Try, Try , Try ".
Success before means success again,
As we lie in the trenches, together as friends
Only to arise once more
Feeling deflated, exploited and less-than before.
While those above us sit behind their desks
Speaking of their nickels and dimes
And punch-out clock times,
And whose notes were done and not yet signed.
After so much pain and loss of life
But for those of us who Give and Give once more,
"Forgiveness is Divine" we'll always Implore
Another day breaks with its sky pink and gray,
Leaving Our worried thoughts behind
If we can be of service for yet another day
What is the past tense of Quit?
a. Quitted
b. Quitten
c. Quitude
d. Quittined
e. None of the above
Which of the following is the correct meaning of Alacrity
a. Stubborn, unwilling
b. Alarming, Surprising
c. Mediocrity
d. Eagerness
e. None of the above
What word in the English language is always spelled incorrectly
a. Accommodate
b. Wednesday
c. Necessary
d. Fuchsia
e. None of the above
How would you rate this test
a. It was a great test
b. It was an enjoyable experience
c. It was a very easy test
d. This test deserves a 10
e. All of the above
2-1-2023
The Multiple Choice Poem Poetry Contest
Suzanne Delaney
In the dark of the night, on an All Hallows' Eve,
as I lay down my head and got snugged in the bed,
'twas a shadow that bloomed, caused all senses to leave,
as a huge hairy spider crawled, eyes gleaming red!
Out in front, a large sack that she shuffled along,
so I watched as she loped with that load full of gore,
like the beat from a dirge or a horrid old song,
da-duh-DUM, da-duh-DUM, as she moved 'cross the floor.
Shaking hard, to the edge of the bed, silent crept;
There she was, hairy legs, abdomen bulging fat.
Sweaty palms, frazzled nerves, in the darkness I lept,
closed my eyes, held my breath, threw my slipper - Kersplat!
and as she scuttled off, protecting precious eggs,
I wondered how she'd sound with two more dangling legs.
---------------
for the All Hallows' Evening Poetry Contest
sponsored by Craig Cornish
written on 10/19/22
using anapestic tetrameter for the first 12 lines
and iambic hexameter for the last 2 for effect
(howmanysyllables.com incorrectly reports line 3 as 11 syllables due to the ')
Your love created assets to my soul, taking away my liabilities, balancing it with the goodness of
your hearts equity
You gave me your all, even when you had nothing to gain. You blessed me with joy and carried
all of the pain
Whenever I incorrectly calculated you became my life bond, you gave yourself up for me, how
was I supposed to respond?
I was too clueless, too helpless and too afraid, so you took all of my debt. You took it while
smiling, while cheering while loving me daily without any regret
‘I'm your risk free investment’ is what you used to say. You carried all the costs and paid all the
premiums that life threw my way.
You never complained, you always encouraged, you put me above all, even when I gambled in
life you would be there whenever I fall
But like an uneducated child I signed the loans that life offered me without even reading the fine
print,
Why didn't I squint?
*breath*
Bill paid, my heart now forever impaled by the heaviest splint.
Those who share on Facebook
Must assume, though incorrectly,
That everyone will learn their news,
If even indirectly.
But that is not the case at times,
So pictures and events
Are missed by some who’d like to know,
To varying extents.
The Facebook fans can’t understand
Reluctance to belong,
Believing that not joining up
Is foolish, strange and wrong.
Thus many who have made the choice
To stay off Facebook’s site
Must hope that for important stuff
A friend will shed some light.
“It is what it is” works like a charm --
One could say “it’s what it’s,” no harm,
For "it’s" stands for “it is,” in the grammar book
A fact every careful writer should not overlook.
“Its stand is admirable”; never “It’s stand is admirable”
In writing poetry, the correct form is desirable!
“It’s” doesn’t work when writing “its lack of pizzazz”
It’s is a contraction for “it is,” I repeat, and all that jazz
While “its” denotes “belonging to,” rightfully,
Use them correctly and your poem reads delightfully.
If I am wrong, please let me know right away
“It’s” a pet peeve of mine; “its” incorrect usage drives me insane,
When used incorrectly in a poem, indeed,
It tells me you did not proofread!
written February 2, 2022
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