In the night, the sea was still,
Maggie Province, with iron will,
A mission clear, eyes set on the prize,
But shadows linger, beneath dark skies.
Fire the guns, let the thunder roll,
Echoes of courage, in a brave heart's soul,
But the darkness hides, they’re flanking our way,
Fight till the end, through the storm we’ll sway.
A warship lurking, laying down the mines,
We charged through the waves, as fate entwines,
But a cruiser’s wrath, came rushing in,
No mercy shown, where this battle will begin.
The ocean roars, as we stand our ground,
In the face of doom, our spirits are bound,
With every shot, we’ll make our mark,
But the night grows colder, and the sea turns dark.
Down we go, with the stars as our guide,
Brothers in arms, forever we’ll ride,
In the depths of the ocean, tales will resound,
Of the brave destroyer, that fought all around.
THE GIFT
Given a gift so undefined,
my life to win or lose.
Told, "Accept your fate," "capitulate," but
quit wears another man's shoes.
Diminished down to nothingness,
quadriplegic, useless, frail.
The respirator blocks my voice.
My body's now my jail
Days into weeks, weeks into months,
grappling insanity.
Barely alive, and trying to fight, for
sake of my humanity.
Dragging my brain down memory lane
picking my life apart.
Epiphanes, oaths, and promises.
The world for one fresh start.
Etched so deep, each time I weep
when Freebird starts to groove.
Playing along on my air guitar
when I felt my fingers move.
Tears are pouring down my face.
My life in every word.
My fingers missing every note.
I am my own freebird.
Then the work begins, so arduous.
The battle still up hill.
Nothing in this world will stop
a man with iron will.
I kept all oaths and promises.
I own my life again.
It didn't just make me stronger,
it made me a better man.
Bellowing heart screams in rage
I calm it down and turn the page
Mask in place , ready to play
Oh dear heart , not today
Whispering mind asking for a turn
Unblinking eyes waiting for a burn
I follow steps lathered in gray
On dear heart , not today
Iron will cover broken dreams
Tears flowing in silent screams
I swallow it down and again obey
Oh dear heart , not today
Haunted voices hushed but still loud
I stand there waiting for parting cloud
Sprinting spirit looking to roam
Oh dear heart , let's go back home.
From riven ways and lent-for heaven’s vault
we clime on breath enwrit with slender ink,
each word a sworn avouchment ’gainst the dark,
each line a stout denial unto Lethe.
Hands erst in thrall do now the aether shape
with sigils forged of cinder, ash, and balm;
the orphan’s moan, the widow’s fervent cry,
lie twinn’d upon one consecrated leaf.
No tongue herein is beggared or despised—
the hush’d confession, clamant plea alike;
the scripture born of weal and wounded flesh
doth pace as peers in kingly even-stead.
We sing of marches loos’d from iron will,
of Right relearning how to quicken fair;
for Peace is not engender’d out of hush,
but sired by heedful ear to elder griefs.
This labour is no idle courtly sport,
nor dalliance of metre, wit, and breath—
it is a synod call’d by mortal hope,
where Mercy mounts the throne of trembling Fear.
Here, in these staves, the world recalls itself:
that Freedom waketh when all tales are weigh’d,
and Concord draweth first untroubled breath
when every soul long mute is bid to sing.
With nerves of steel and iron will,
I rolled a boulder up a hill.
With perseverance, guts and grit,
I almost reached the top of it,
but the rock then went the other way,
and as I speak to you today,
I must tell you the reason that
I stand before you, pancake flat.
Boundary rope trope it's the hope that kills
Fatality of the banality of all Bazball’s frills
Hilarity of baggie greens nationwide thrills
Beer swills spills hosts dreams full to the gills
Totality of the brutality still gives me the chills
Stokes not chipper has to swallow a bitter pill
Can't fallow our ripper skipper’s skill & iron will
Our leader will wallow in the shrill media mill
His men shi*ter…hollow can't follow Ben's drill
Callow not brill..of shallow Bazball had our fill
Hallow the Wizards of Oz are still top of the bill
The country alive cheering let's go in for the kill
Begin fearing the din of sneering & jeering 5 nil
All killer.. not a scintilla of filler.. like the thriller in Manila
Mean baggie green bangers obscene BazBall gall clangers
Head distiller a pillar has such skill.. touch with his silky tiller
Starc’s iron will topped the bill with hefty lefty driller flotilla
No beige or vanilla just fancy dan elan like Faustino Asprilla
The fate of blind date no real surprise surprise can hear Cilla
England Ashes grief, flashes of mischief of late great Keith Miller
In the belly of Enugu’s coal-dark earth,
Men toiled beneath for all they were worth.
Sweat and silence, pickaxe and pain,
Digging riches, yet bound by chain.
No crown they wore, though kings they stood,
Their hands were scarred, their hearts were good.
But when they rose with voices loud,
The empire answered with gun and shroud.
November wept in forty-nine,
As rifles cracked a crimson line.
Twenty-one fell, dreams undone,
Beneath the unforgiving sun.
They asked for bread, were given lead,
By those whose flags in silence bled.
Their only crime? To dare to stand,
For justice on their native land.
The coal was black, but deeper still,
Was British greed and iron will.
Yet from that grave, a fire grew,
A cry for freedom, strong and true.
Oh Iva Valley, sacred ground,
Where martyr’s blood still speaks profound.
Not just a tale of loss and dust,
But how the broken found their trust.
Their names may fade from pages read,
But history walks where they once bled.
And every step toward liberty’s light
Was paved by those who dared to fight.
Sitting here with the wind,
as it swats at my hair.
The sun dancing with clouds,
with them our part will share.
The interplay of light,
that decries nature's sway.
Holds too the lost secrets,
of a more godly day.
From afar came the gods,
to plant the seeds of time.
Where desire can be king,
and a common man shine.
History will point out,
the man with iron will.
Who comes with a mission,
for a god to fulfill.
The ancient dark drama,
where a man has to choose.
from having everything,
when his life he must lose!
Pick-A-Title, Vol 54 Poetry Contest // Sponsored by: Edward Ibeh
Contest Judged: 9/5/2025 5:24:00 PM
( 2nd Place )
Written: August 13, 2025
It stalks in silent corners of the mind.
A whisper, jagged, dark, and undefined.
Its claws creeps walls we dare not show,
eyes ecstatic where our hearts should glow.
It scoff on mistrust, on every hidden fear,
gnawing at the edges of what we hold dear,
A silent growl underneath the laughing sound.
A truth too fierce to face the day unbound.
Yet deep down inside the marrow of this fight.
A spark ignites a flutter of quiet light.
We don’t meet the beast with sword or shield
but with the quiet courage the heart alone can hold
It howls, it rampage, yet we will not fall,
it's shadow recoils before our inner call.
The beast is vicious, but we are more vicious still--
Adepts of the darkness by our iron will.
Not Judas alone has sold the Lord,
We all have bartered flesh for sword.
Not Pilate alone has washed his hands,
We all have turned from burning lands.
Not spears alone have pierced the side,
But tongues of fire where lies abide.
Not nails alone have fixed the pain,
But hearts like doors that won't remain.
For when the orphan sought our bread,
We fed him dust and turned our head.
For when the mother screamed in flame,
We bowed our eyes and praised God’s name.
Not Judas alone shall bear the blame,
The world is crucified the same;
And till the stone rolls from the tomb,
War plants its seed, love finds no room.
Not crowns of thorn alone still sting,
But crowns of gold that curse their king.
Not wooden cross alone can kill,
But laws unjust, and iron will.
Not blood alone upon the ground,
But silent debts that still abound.
Not only one betrayed with kiss:
We trade the truth for war’s abyss.
So let no heart claim it is pure,
While bombs fall far, yet we endure;
For every soul that turns away
Adds nails to Calvary today.
Hire the Hood 1
I know you want to hire the hood.
To give them work, like you said you would.
To lift them up, and make life good,
To see success spread through the neighborhood.
But hire those with drive and skill,
With passion, purpose, and iron will.
People who can play their part,
With sharp minds and loyal hearts.
They must align with what you do,
Share the vision and see it through.
Because business needs more than love alone,
It takes talent, and smart moves to build your throne.
If you hire the hood, or not, get the best—do it right,
Choose the ones who bring the fight and the light.
Help each other grow, help each other thrive.
That’s how you keep the dream alive.
It’s always good to give people a chance
But, it takes the right people to make your job enhance.
The same time you’re giving people equality
Make sure your getting people who can put out good quality.
A withered hand,his body frail
Where once formidable strength
had been,
He still had a cast iron will,
but there was so much
that stroke had stolen
By: J.N.R Dutton
If only time could turn around,
To days where love, like rivers, found,
The laughter shared in sunlit haze,
Where hearts would dance in joy's embrace.
If only I could grasp once more,
The fleeting moments we adore,
To steal a glance, to hold you near,
And quiet all the creeping fear.
I'd turn the hands of time in flight,
To bask in warmth of sweet delight,
No shadows of regret to trace,
Just memories in a warm embrace.
Yet time, it flows; it won't relent,
And leaves behind what we lament,
But still, in dreams, you linger near,
In whispers soft, I hold you dear.
If only time could go back still,
I'd weave our hopes with iron will;
In every heartbeat, love would grow,
Together bound, forever flow
Yesterday’s Wishes 6-25-24
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yesterday’s Wishes
Yesterday’s wishes never grow stale,
Immortal dream walkers glint in platinum.
Fresh hope with wings, like moonbeams in a mason jar,
Nudges wrinkled wishing stars
To capture a prayer implored on the first star,
Slipping through starlight on a chivalrous quest
Determined to take destiny outside the ephemeral.
One fluttering penny never scarred by disbelief
Lives in moments of perpetual could.
A breath, ever new, kisses Heaven
On a still pond without wrinkles
With a heartbeat that shakes time and astronomy
By blasting beyond algorithms and black holes
Into the unexamined fantastical.
Ever youthful wishes charge past the iron will of probabilities
When heartbeats flutter outside of mortality.
Possible stomps on the impossible in resurrection
Grabbing Eden’s fragments, fancies of faith,
As yesterday’s wishes belong to eternity
And live in a forever dawn waiting to bloom.
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