Long Sestina Poems

Long Sestina Poems. Below are the most popular long Sestina by PoetrySoup Members. You can search for long Sestina poems by poem length and keyword.


Speeches On Different Occasions

We always eulogize a child on his birth   
We also eulogize a person on his death     
On both occasions he is unable to appreciate the praise  
At birth he is unable to understand the words  
At death his ears are unresponsive to the sound   
Why do we always say good things on these occasions?   

Must we confine our eulogy only to these occasions?
A child doesn’t understand our words at the time of his birth
So it doesn’t matter whatever our words may sound
The logic isn’t the same for a person on his death
We have an innate fear that his spirit is hearing our words
We wish to impress the spirit by using words of praise

                                 
Why should we impress the spirit with words of praise?
There is a belief that the spirit will leave after such occasions
Some believe that the spirits are not influenced by words
Our fate after death depends on all our deeds after birth 
All good deeds will be rewarded by the Creator after death
Fate is not decided on words irrespective of how it may sound 

It is impossible to infer true feelings from how the words sound 
We often pretend to please others by telling words of praise
These pretensions are useless when hearing ability ceases on death 
 But may be fruitful when spoken to others on different occasions
It is ineffective when the sense of hearing is undeveloped at birth 
The generation of feelings depends upon how we express the words

Human relations depend on how we express our feelings in words.
Expressions, conveying different feelings, are said in a varying sound
The effectiveness is lost when conveyed to a child at birth
Damaged human relations can be repaired through words of praise
The appropriate expressions must be chosen to suit the occasion
Feelings and expressions must amalgamate in the occasion of death

One of the most solemn occasions in life is that of death
While expressing feelings we carefully select the words
The choice of words  matches the vibes of the occasions
The speeches are characterized by a particular sound
On such occasions we forget our true feelings and praise
Ebullient feelings are aroused on the occasion of birth

The strength of a relationship is expressed by the identity of the sound
The effectiveness of the expressions rest on the choice of words
Alas! The only expressions a child has are cries at birth


Happiness and Joy

Never will another season bring so much joy
A feeling of love, togetherness and happiness
Ring out them festal bells and let’s be jolly
A savior was born, condescended, we are happy
We go to church, offer praise most joyful
Screams of delight, Children playing happily

Lovers holding hands gazing happily
At the beautiful sites, mountain's peaks, rivers of joy
Birds singing sweetly in the air, their songs so melodious and joyful
Every home, through their windows flowing sounds of rapture and happiness
The drunk on the street had one wish to make him happy
Give me some rum, he said, that will make me good and jolly

I played this song last night and it is so fitting, for the topic says Joyful, Joyful
It’s the season of good cheer, a time to give, to dance, to eat and be jolly
Only you can determine your level of happiness
To give of your means it is easy, but to give of yourself many cannot do this happily
Give without grudge, with no intention to receive, that's how giving becomes a joy
To exercise these gems will cleanse the soul; give warm feelings, make us happy

Laughter in the trees, laughter in the breeze, season of laughter, everyone is happy
Gift for baby, gift for mommy, gift for daddy, even the cats and dogs had to be joyful
What the world craves, so elusive for some, thank God in His love, we find great joy
Come one come all let’s jump on the bandwaggon, riding the coach called Super Jolly
The invitation is out, don’t settle in doubt, cast off your cares, ride with us, happily
Great people great love, warmth, sharing caring, all things good gives you happiness

Take friends, co-workers and fellow poets, toss in this great soup pot of happiness
Recycle love, make this world wonderful, song writer says, ‘don’t worry, be happy’
The world needs people who are positive, will see the best in others happily
A smile, a word of cheer, a few words of encouragement, make another’s day joyful
‘Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way’, what good is that if we are not jolly
The Lord has come, so unto this world be peace, love, and most important of all, joy

There is truth and beauty in the person with happiness, looking radiant and joyful
I would give my money just to be happy, to see my loved ones and friends real jolly
Luxury of life I would trade off hapilly, to have the thing the world craves for, joy

Unsung - a Sestina

My brother, Lincoln Beachey, made my life a wonder,
Mother's eyes were full of him and loved how he was bold	
I was the shadow elder son of a family in poverty's control
and struggled to to sustain them until my blind father's death.	
In a grey world, Linc was bright colour caught on the fly
I felt drab and responsible but he dreamed of the sky.

Together we built airships and sailed  upon the sky.
people lifted up their eyes and pointed up in wonder.
Then Orville flew and out of the blue, we began to fly.
we both were taught but I flew first, and I was not so bold.
It was almost suicidal but Lincoln feared not death
but I was timid, not like him, not nearly in control.

I flew straight, flat, low and slow tight grip on control
but Lincoln from the take off; it was like he owned the sky.
He danced on the air and I worried, fearing for his death. 
Others tried to dance his dance and they died.  No wonder
My brother always dared more, did more, forever bold.
Then grief for the dead filled him and no more could he fly.

He was sure it was his fault that they had died, so he did not fly
But like me they had lacked his nerves and his iron control. 
They were others,  the sky was full of men who were bold
Linc tried very hard not to fly but he soon went back to the sky
Then people came in thousands to see his  latest wonder. 
Flying low and slow I bumbled, crashed and came near death.

They saw him loop the loop for the first time and avoid death
He flew the thunder of Niagara's mists; where none had dared to fly
Then raced a car neck and neck, It was a screaming wonder
his plane howled inches over the  drivers head, the finest of control. 
Once he climbed his plane, until fuel was gone, high into the sky.	
None had been higher and silently he glided down. That bold.

Over San Francisco bay he flew and still he was bold
Watched by thousands he seemed to tease death
then, suddenly, my ice cold brother fell from the sky
and I saw him smash into the water. No more to fly.
A wing strut had collapsed and he had no more control	
and I lost my brother and it ended an era of  wonder.

I am old now and look at the sky and I think of the unsung men who used to Fly
Those like me who were not bold  and those who were. We all meet death
but we all look at the Control of a Lincoln Beachy and  love all the  wonder.

Moonlight Adventure

The beautiful day begins in the house.
At the end of it, all that’s left of it is the moon,
Shimmering in all the night’s light.
A door to another world opens.
The only movement is a page turning in a book. 
Suddenly, without notice, an inconceivable object drops.
	
The thing jumps and twirls and once again drops.
A person from another time, the future, enters the large house.
The man, pacing back and forward, finally sends away the hovering book.
He magically transports it to the glistening moon.
Something like a black hole, a portal inexplicably opens.
The book vanishes in a fading yellow light.

The visitor sees something bright, a room full of light.
And inside, a piece of paper from the hands of a child drops.
The door of the room slightly, quietly opens.
A child and her grandmother are drawing and inscrutable house.
In a circle and a beam of inconceivable beauty appears the moon.
On the page, like the hovering object, once again, is the sight of a book.

The child explains that she has, many times that year, read the book.
But her grandmother slowly shows the girl the true “light”.
Now, the girl understands that she was wrong, and now appears the moon!
It comes closer and closer, and then, like a shooting star, down it drops.
The planet has gone down from the sky to have a conversation in the house.
The moon elegantly flies in, as large as an elephant, and its mouth opens.

And now all of the people come close together and a road opens.
The grandmother and child are guided by a rather large book.
In time, the home disappears; they have left the house.
The book vanishes, and all that leads them is a guiding light.
The key to a room, calmly, as if carried by the wind, drops.
“Come in and let’s have a talk,” says not a person, but a face in white, the moon.

The grandmother is surprised, for she is seeing the real, live moon.
A beautiful and long conversation through all the night opens.
Then as dawn arrives, blood-red, the tone of their voices drops.
Grandmother and child come out of the wonderful book.
Outside it is day, a new beginning, another lively light.
They walk o’er their field and talk till’ they reach the house.

In the morning, the otherworldly man leaves the house.
Also, he disappears in a now magnificent golden light.
That is the end; there are no more pages in this book.

Loves Mystical Fable

A rising sun sheds light, Bright
from darkness. To you I turn, our eyes
meet for the first time today. Inspiring, tempting,
I want to ravage you. Reveal your mysteries,
talk to you, a conversation. Enter your mind,
a vocal form of four-play

Remember the night we met? that play
I took you to see Rent, your blue eyes shone bright.
We walked, talked, drank coffee. You opened your mind
to me. Penetrating mine with your baby blue eyes.
I was intrigued by your mysterious 
ways I still am. Everyday your more tempting.

You tease me with your unrelenting, seductive, temptation.
just by looking your direction you play
tricks on me. Everyday I try to unravel your mystery,
still I come up empty. I love that your so bright.
Intelligence shows through your eyes
Another American great mind.

I'll be home later, do you mind?
My friends are going to the bar, it's tempting.
You trust me, I know, it shows through your eyes.
We're all going to watch football, drink and play
pool. Everyday my love grows brighter
for you. that is no mystery

Our love is like a mystical
fable. A story from a romantic mind.
Yes we argue, yes we fight, this brightens,
strengthens our bond. Other women force temptation,
of course. But, I would never play
outside of your watchful eye.

Everywhere I go your eyes 
follow. This is all part of your mystery.
I look forward to coming home, the sexual games we play,
the conversations that stimulate my mind.
I love you, your my temptress,
and like the sun, my love will always shine bright.

Eyes like Cleopatra, with a beautiful Mind
your Mysterious ways, your love, such Temptation
fourPlay in conversation. Never dim, always Bright


stanza 1.............................................. 1,2,3,4,5,6
stanza 2.............................................. 6,1,5,2,4,3
stanza 3.............................................. 3,6,4,1,2,5
stanza 4.............................................. 5,3,2,6,1,4
stanza 5.............................................. 4,5,1,3,6,2
stanza 6.............................................. 2,4,6,5,3,1
concluding tercet 
first line............................................... 2 & 5
second line........................................... 4 & 3
third line............................................... 6 & 1
..........:JP)..............................


Premium Member Em Bracing the Joy

All those High School years, she stared at smiles
and would envy those, lined up in rows
shoulder to shoulder, enjoying the carefree days.
They with porcelain jewels, of sparkling white
she would have given her life to have such shine,
but was much too shy, to seek their eyes

At fifteen years old...she averted her eyes
while beneath her nose, no winning smile
would grace her face.  So, to avoid disgrace, she declined to shine
or laugh with the kids in the algebra rows.
How often she'd long to star in the play and dazzle her whites
"Be patient," they'd tell her...."You'll be a beauty, one day"

And while she waited impatiently for that far away day
keeping chin down, this ugly duckling, with lowered eyes
It may seem extreme, but a few kids, with straight and white,
called her "Metal Mouth", which dampened her spirit and also her smile.
Barely could she eat the mushy fruits, passing the rows
of cripsy foods, ate mostly mashed and white, pining for a crisp apple to shine

She talked with a lisp, while awkward wires shined
and wore horrid bands.  Then on those "Ortho" days
after school, while in uncomfortable chairs lined up in rows,
he'd greet, "How are you, Missy?" ..with his bespectacled eyes.
"Open wide"....(and with pliers that looked like her Dad's, but could fix a smile)
as, with all of his might, he adjusted and tightened....correcting her whites

Branded with bands across the whites
Correcting the gaps, the lapse, the crooked shine
A few like her with awkward smiles
Would count the hours and count the days
Longed for smiles to please the eye
And be so blessed with perfect rows

Finally one day, while sitting in rows
Snip-snip!, at last, he cried..."Let's free these whites"!!
With excitement, the life came back to her eyes
"I'll grant your wish, with a brand new shine!"
She was the happiest girl on the planet today
and she left his office with a brand new smile!

While sitting in school rows, she beams her white teeth, merrily joining the fun
Her eyes always shine now, she stands tall and proud, singing out loud in the sun
And during each school day, she smiles all the time, finally her life has begun!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For Debbie's Joy contest (Sestina)

Dark Woods C F H

I have this story of the garden of evil I saw.
Darkness called to me, I was drawn inwardly.
Walking, a glimpse of beauty came into view.
She intrigued me as to why she was inside.
When I stepped in front of her she smiled.
Not an ordinary smile, one of pure wickedness.

She spoke to me calmly at first, as my eyes did view.
Transformation began as her beauty faded inwardly.
I swear to you that I felt like darkness had smiled.
Her shape changed and now a devil my eyes saw.
Beckoning me she said come with me inside.
My soul captured my mind knew now wickedness.

She told me that I was hers now as the demon smiled.
That I had to take my place beside her in wickedness,
Which the garden of evil was now placed inside.
That the evil call had embedded my heart inwardly.
As she took me aside to a mirror where I could view,
What happened to me, undeniable is what I saw.



I was changing outwardly, as well as inwardly.
My eyes were blood red and horns came into view.
I had become her male counterpart, we both smiled.
Within a couple of moments, I was lost in wickedness.
Then out of darkness other creatures came from inside.
More and more demonic creatures are what I saw.

She said, Meet our armies that mankind cast inside.
That she had waited for me, again her lips smiled.
Upon wave of her hand a mist came into view.
It was me in previous form, yes, you were evil inwardly.
Your whole mortal life you felt you had no wickedness.
Suddenly I knew she was right, this was a prediction I saw.

My destiny was sealed; garden of evil will keep me inside.
A consort I will be to her evil heart, fulfilling wickedness.
Thinking back in my dreams I could have changed what I saw.
Though forever and beyond, darkness grows inwardly.
As we held each other, a vision cast came into view.
We looked deep into each other’s eyes and we smiled.

What we both saw, within her womb something was inside.
We knew we shared wickedness, as the birth came into view.
Love, lust held inwardly, looking on, our baby demon just smiled.

Note. This was part of a dream I had and I feel it was a release to write this to help me fight my personal demons that have always plagued my mind and dreams, maybe I watched to many horror movies when I was younger, I have seen almost all of them more than once

Premium Member When Madness Rides On Moonlight

Days pass into the weak, loveless nights. The moon blinks.
The stars swirl beneath Van Gogh’s brush, as he links.
Comet light passes twisting cypresses, a schizophrenic’s concussion.
On and on, the wind twirls the trees, and does not complain,
nor, does the cosmos cringe awaiting reciprocation.
Lightning bugs mimic the stars. Atoms sneer.

Those who spout love and friendship abandon him, sneering.
Their images dance beneath his lids, when he blinks.
Though denied a compass, his soul does not reciprocate.
Through pain, physical and mental, he still connects, links
with the life which absorbs and excludes him, not complaining.
Nights pass without his mistress, Sien. His mind is concussive.

His face trembles torn in the brass sounds of the storm’s concussions.
The butcher, the baker, the candlestick-maker, all of them, sneer. 
How unmerciful, this cycle, this God to whom he does not complain.
If lack of mercy is just, may he not know why? Time blinks.
Thinking causes pain. Only painting connects him, he links.
He accepts art and the pain, as gifts, choosing not to reciprocate.

Voices, the paint, the moon, the voices say, reciprocate.
He chases mice. The cheese plate falls with a loud concussion.
He rubs his gnarled hands across his lids. He maintains the link. 
How? Why? But, the mice eating his cheese only sneer.
The sunflowers shimmer and wiggle in their vase, as he blinks.
Stumbling, he falls attempting to sit, the chair does not complain.

He had thought God clear as sunlight; yet, the paint complained. 
He was not God; he could not capture the light. He must reciprocate.
After all, who was he, but a mere man, ashes to dust; life blinks.
Ah death, le grand mal, no minor concussion,
He must escape, join the celestial spin, and avoid their sneers.
Sick, yes, sick to death of not being understood, not linking.

The brushes call. He prostitutes himself. Oil spills, connecting, linking.
Theo, brother, never would he forgive. Many others would complain.
Ah, Gauguin, His dear friend, he would understand and not sneer.
If God was truly a loving God, surely, he thought; God will not reciprocate.
The mockers who did not live in Dante’s nine levels of hellish concussion,
they will call his actions cowardly. Merciless, they did not live between the blinks.

Premium Member When Madness Rides On Moonlight

Days pass into the weak, loveless nights. The moon blinks.
The stars swirl beneath Van Gogh’s brush, as he links.
Comet light passes twisting cypresses, a schizophrenic’s concussion.
On and on, the wind twirls the trees, and does not complain,
nor, does the cosmos cringe awaiting reciprocation.
Lightning bugs mimic the stars. Atoms sneer.

Those who spout love and friendship abandon him, sneering.
Their images dance beneath his lids, when he blinks.
Though denied a compass, his soul does not reciprocate.
Through pain, physical and mental, he still connects, links
with the life which absorbs and excludes him, not complaining.
Nights pass without his mistress, Sien. His mind is concussive.

His face trembles torn in the brass sounds of the storm’s concussions.
The butcher, the baker, the candlestick-maker, all of them, sneer. 
How unmerciful, this cycle, this God to whom he does not complain.
If lack of mercy is just, may he not know why? Time blinks.
Thinking causes pain. Only painting connects him, he links.
He accepts art and the pain, as gifts, choosing not to reciprocate.

Voices, the paint, the moon, the voices say, reciprocate.
He chases mice. The cheese plate falls with a loud concussion.
He rubs his gnarled hands across his lids. He maintains the link. 
How? Why? But, the mice eating his cheese only sneer.
The sunflowers shimmer and wiggle in their vase, as he blinks.
Stumbling, he falls attempting to sit, the chair does not complain.

He had thought God clear as sunlight; yet, the paint complained. 
He was not God; he could not capture the light. He must reciprocate.
After all, who was he, but a mere man, ashes to dust; life blinks.
Ah death, le grand mal, no minor concussion,
He must escape, join the celestial spin, and avoid their sneers.
Sick, yes, sick to death of not being understood, not linking.

The brushes call. He prostitutes himself. Oil spills, connecting, linking.
Theo, brother, never would he forgive. Many others would complain.
Ah, Gauguin, His dear friend, he would understand and not sneer.
If God was truly a loving God, surely, he thought; God will not reciprocate.
The mockers who did not live in Dante’s nine levels of hellish concussion,
they will call his actions cowardly. Merciless, they did not live between the blinks.

How To Feel When Your House Burns Down

How to Feel When Your House Burns Down
The home you are raised in is a mother tongue. 
I was four when it was built, an age when innocence
turns river water and all that lives within to blood.
First birthdays and first dances fortify the mantel. 
This home transports milestones, our own vessel
to move us from sidewalk chalk to the attempt to outrun  
 
the stagnancy found only in the debilitation of the long run. 
At seven, I held him in my arms and love upon my tongue. 
Promises danced on my lips and ran rampant on my vessels. 
College funds started in a baby bottle, tiny wishes held in a cent.
I remember grappling with his growth, attempting to mantle
the affinity we pinky promised deep into our own blood.
 
At twelve, my father taught me to dance in the blood 
and glass on the hardwood. Still, I watch his fingers run 
to sow flowers in my mother's hair, her back, mantling, 
the image of infatuation, true love, in our minds. A tongue
of tenderness has our childlike innocence  
giggling and shouting at the inamoratas and the vessel 
 
of devotion in which each of us was vesselled 
into this life. Each of us was born in the fervor of blood, 
so sweet. My mother threaded honey, burned incense, 
and chewed lemon slices whole to hold us near. She ran 
baths of salts and oils, to cleanse the ever growing tongue 
of infernos that caressed, more captivated, our mantel 
 
of consciousness. For many years, we tied sheets to mantels. 
With pillows and blankets, we’d build ourselves a vessel
to a land of fairies and warriors who shared the same tongue. 
Pool noodles became swords. Here we spilled blood, 
convincing ourselves if we were to sprint, leap, run 
fast enough we too could fly amongst the rest, innocent
 
to the world around us. At nineteen, I watch the innocence 
leave our home. Adolescent memories that kiss the mantel 
turn to sharp licks in the wild fire that is running 
through the bones of our sweltering home, the vessel 
of affinities, dances, compassion, imagination, and the blood 
that connects it all, now lapped up with tongues, 
 
too heavy for the innocent, a cancerous burn in our vessels.
The mantle of snow is no relief to the flames that drip like blood.
And still, we do not run, we wait for the final lick of a mother's tongue.
© Lauren Lee  Create an image from this poem.

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