sweet smile, bright eyes
own style, street wise,
It claps down through the lonely lane of view,
Far an eyesore with intent, trying not
To build out of raw annoyance long queue,
Lined up in weakness from a feat so hot.
Bit by bit, busy mornings mining miles
Away from nearer tease, closing up luck,
With tense atmosphere clawing calm styles,
Beasts in loyal heart lately riding truck.
On weary road, catching fun of captives,
Past weighs… each weird run’s timing: shooting .
Now, on its fitness, time what fun forgives—
A stake of peace commending rolling spit.
On a roaring mountain top upon birth,
Off silent valley’s stage: offensive death.
Forgiveness is also dawn light on those water-worn stones
Forgiveness is a midnight river, sluggish and cold,
It shatters ice in the heart, thawing frozen bars of pride.
It flows through driftwood memories—gnarled, half-submerged bones,
Each knot a scar where grief and betrayal once were bold.
Forgiveness is also dawn light on those water-worn stones.
The current heavy with lodged pain, with roots ungroned,
Yet soft fingers of gold coax shadows into gold.
It shatters ice in the heart, thawing frozen bars of pride.
It is gardener’s gentle hands, though bleeding, when love owns
Its weeds of rancor, tilled soil where new rosebuds unfold.
Forgiveness is also dawn light on those water-worn stones.
I remember every ripple, every edge of what’s gone,
Yet in that remembering learn each wave must be controlled.
It shatters ice in the heart, thawing frozen bars of pride.
May this tender light linger, a balm after long nights, known
As hope beneath our feet, mercy quietly extolled.
Forgiveness is also dawn light on those water-worn stones,
It shatters ice in the heart, thawing frozen bars of pride.
So be there
SO BE THERE
TO KNOW MY LOVE FOR YOU AT THE LAST SUNSET
TO KNOW YOUR HEART AND GUT FEELINGS FOR THEY RIDE TOGETHER FOR CARNIVALS OFFEN
MAYBE STILL CONFUSED ABOUT OUR LOVE
WHICH ROLLS MORE THAN THE WHEELS RIDES ON MY NEARBY CHILDREN PLAYGROUND
SO BE THERE FOR MORE OR NO MORE OF US
WELL THAT WOULD DO .......
My dad had thirteen siblings
worked for every thing he ever got
many hand-me-downs but no handouts
AP: Honorable Mention 2025
Dry your tears, quell your fears,
Their fears just cloud their eye!
They find no time to understand...
What's worse, they won't even try!
You don't have to defend your heart,
To mend your heart!
Swell with Pride, open wide...
And give your heart a fresh start!
they sit outside the penny candy store,
old men slap dominoes on chipped tables,
smoke curling up like prayers
their wives gave up saying.
i lean on the fire escape,
watch them call me mami
like it’s my birthright —
call me solid, thick like the block,
hips wide enough to hold the gossip
and still swing.
they say ju got that caramel skin,
that soft bite in your mouth
when you try to say sweet —
they say i’m loud, i’m stubborn,
i argue with my hands and my hips,
i got too much to say for a girl
that comes from stoops and window sills.
but this is my gospel —
my curvy body a prayer,
my no’s a sermon,
my laugh breaks their cigar smoke,
my name rides the domino slam —
mira, mami, this girl ain’t leaving
her corner for nobody.
we are the authors of our life's opus
every scene and every chapter
we hold the pen as we record
history dreams and ambitions
stepping into the shoes of the hero
our integrity and pride on the line
one day we'll sign off on that final page
AP: Honorable Mention 2025
“Spring is when life's alive in everything.” Christina Rossetti
Springtime Splendour
SPRING TIME UNDER VISIBLE WAY
Radiantly making headway
To carpet the hills with deep green
And sprinkle beauty across land
A BEE COMES DANCING EAGERLY
From midst of its honeyed perfume
To a park with flowers in bloom
To seek nectar for its beehive
BIRDS COMING DOWN EARNESTLY FREE
Are welcome to their breeding grounds
With open arms and joyful heart
Until time for them to depart
GOLDEN HYACINTH, IRIS, JASMINE, KALMIA
And many more, comely flowers
Adorn the alleys and park side
Nature`s sensory springtime pride
good conscience smirks~
veiled beneath the weight of pride
truth unmasks my lies
It takes a Big Stick,
To approach the Mound with Pride!
It takes a BIGGER STICK,
To encroach a MOUND that WIDE!
I have lost many loved people in my life
and I live with my forever grief
the love lost that hurts the most to me
was my sweet mother's sad death
my anchor and safe harbor
she always encouraged me to write
to be the best I could be
and she taught me gardening
now, my mother tends God's heavenly garden
mother was so full of joy and mirth for life
she was kind to everyone she met
had not an enemy in this world
but she got sick- sick for years
she faced illness with courage
I was proud of her each day
then, one day things went wrong
she was in the hospital
on a life support machine
and I said, please doctor turn the machine's off
I knew my mother and how she wanted to live
it was not on a life support machine
I cannot explain how hard it was
but, I felt God holding my hand
and then, she was gone from me
like a bird she flew straight to heaven
for days I was just an empty shell
as whispers flowed- you can do this
and I taught you to be strong daughter
so, I lifted my head up greeting the people
who came to bid Mom goodbye
Whispers draped in silver thread,
Promises soft, but sharp when read,
The tongue, a painter, skilled and sly,
Crafts a world from truthful lies.
A candle glows in shadow’s skin,
Light concealed where dark begins,
Hope is sold in fragile guise,
By merchants dealing truthful lies.
They dress the wound with tender care,
While leaving poison hidden there,
A smile can mask a thousand cries,
And truth dissolves in truthful lies.
Yet somewhere deep, beneath the guise,
A clearer flame, unchained, will rise.
For though deceit may cloud the skies,
The soul remembers—truth survives
Keep smiling through dark times,
life’s a rollercoaster of ups and downs
~ your attitude your only strength
Wordku: 5-7-5 words
AP: Honorable Mention 2025
More than words, but experiences
Through turmoil of intimidation
Dignity of Character
Storms that only a Poet knows
Story ethics
Dialog prelude
Voices shouting
Emotions unleashed
Sentences leading the way
Script sense
Passing moments of unsettled thoughts
Midnight writing of ideas
The premiere of what is too come
Alpha by Alpha scenery seen
Feeling and impact
Tears anguish from reflection
Happy and sad times
Influences offering the push through struggles
Time being the accelerate
Echoes chanting approved
Rising from the deep ocean surface
Sacrifice after sacrifice
Rising above all
Answering to one’s call
Conquering dreams that were possibilities
Poet’s Unity
Theo honor
Discovery of a Poet being exploration
Responsibility and commitment
Destiny charged
Born to achieve
Poet elements of Purpose, Objective, Expressions and Transform
Feel and believe it.
Specific Types of Pride Poems
Definition | What is Pride in Poetry?
Poems Related to Pride
conceit, dignity, ego trip, ego, egoism, egotism, happiness, haughtiness, honor, joy, narcissism, pleasure, pride and joy, pridefulness, satisfaction, self admiration, self confidence, self glorification, self love, self regard, self respect, self satisfaction, self sufficiency, self trust, self worth, sufficiency, swag, swagger, vanity,