In the pursuit of happiness
Americans chase fortune and fame
gold galore and a place
where everyone knows their name
but they could tone it down a bit
and not go loudly announcing it
to all and sundry with every word
it seems infinitely preferable
if some are seen and never heard
but on the other hand in another land
while leading lives of quiet desperation
trapped in their traditional ways
the British hang on in hope
of distant future better days
and tho' always first to join a queue
there are the few exceptions who
break the rule at every chance
don't give a whit or backward glance
hats off to them for their contribution
as every generation needs a new revolution
I'm hurting, I'm wounded –
looking for an escape.
This life’s become unbearable –
there's nowhere I feel safe.
If only there was something –
(that) could take away my pain.
I searched for any remedy –
(that might) make me want to stay.
I drink on any antidote –
I'd stitch me up myself.
I'd literally do anything –
to find something that helps.
But I don't have the tools –
nor do I have some type of potion.
The ways, they come and go –
I'm overwhelmed with my emotions.
So, if I were to find something –
that might make me feel sane;
something to bring me peace –
and calm the noise inside my brain.
I'd probably believe it first –
that it were just a dream.
I don't think that I would believe –
that it were what it seemed.
I'd likely think it were a hoax –
just lies coded with glitter.
Not all that glitters is real gold –
so what makes this thing differ?
Don't get me wrong, I'd try it –
I’d risk it all for new found hope.
If there were just the slightest help –
I do anything to cope.
I’ve found an all new low –
is it just me, or am I dying?
I'm running out of options –
so tell me: what else is worth trying?
And in some mesmerized way
I AM ABOVE THE OVERPASS
I CAN SENSE THE DRIFT OF SILENCE
I FLOUNDER AND FLAP
WITH PASSION AND WONDER;
AN ERRATIC DISPLAY OF DISCIPLINE.
WHilst I contine to steer the ship,
Indolently,
Slapping hands away.
To all the Misters
Who thought me a sister
Who found me a bore
In which to abhor.
Who tolerated me in "loving" pursuit of something "else"
Than "love 'til death do us part" as chimes
The whimsical of chapel wedding bells:
I do apologize for having stayed so long
I wish you well, though I dismissed you "gone"
Please do know...from the depth of my soul
I wouldn't have stayed so very long
But, if I did over-welcome my stay., I'll just have you know
I only did embedding the simple thought deep in my soul
That YOU were suitable for me to build MY dream,
Fulfill my goals and visions - yet unforeseen
First thing's first: A "safe" haven is what you miss
All for YOUR exchange altar-trade - a dollar for a kiss....
They said nothing lasts forever—
so I chased the wind’s cruel jest,
through streets where ghosts don’t remember,
and love is just a fleeting guest.
I gathered dust in empty rooms,
kissed echoes soft against the wall,
built altars out of hollow looms—
but silence was my greatest fall.
Oh, nothing was a faithful prize,
it never left, it never lied,
yet when I reached with starving eyes,
it slipped like smoke right through my pride.
Now take it all—my breath, my name—
but leave me just one thing to hold:
a hand to pull me from this flame,
a voice to warm the endless cold.
For nothing fills a hollow chest—
but you? You could make nothing less.
Don’t give up until you drink from the silver cup.
America
Dust in the air glistens gold
and random words dance
as I let thoughts wander.
My loft, an empty chamber.
dormant ground
outside my window
brushstrokes of grays and browns
Another prompt, and I
wonder how to say
something never said.
Memories I embrace.
a morning in February
winter lingers
lost conversations
alarm bell-snooze-alarm
once- twice-again
my chest bears the weight
of something ageless and true.
time whispers
in every moment
a promise of spring
I bear my age
but throw off covers
knowing there’s so much
left to do—a new poem awaits.
I fear the hounds - ever they chase;
I must keep my pace or risk their overtake.
I fear the hounds, their hurtling pursuit;
I must watch my path to avoid rock and root.
I fear the hounds - ever they follow;
My feet must not fail me if I’m to make it to the morrow.
I hear the hounds, frantic as they bay,
My life the spoils they scrabble to claim.
I hear the hounds, and I wish to just rest;
I’m so weary of fleeing and giving my best.
I hear the hounds, and the temptation is great;
I slow my pace, and my end I embrace.
I see the hounds, and my blood runs cold;
They snarl with triumph and sprint to take hold.
I see the hounds - love of pride, love of me,
The easy path, wide and sloping in gentle degrees.
I see the hounds, and myself I revile:
Am I truly that tired, or just lacking the will for self-denial?
I flee the hounds; I lengthen my stride -
I’ll give them no easy victory tonight.
I flee the hounds - oh, they howl in rage;
They were just within reach of snaring their prey.
I flee the hounds through the brambles I run,
With faith that I’ll rest with the return of the Son.
I like to give pursuit.
Can't make it too easy for you.
Catch me if you can.
Wordku: 5-7-5 words
AP: Honorable Mention 2025
Destined a red rose, as her tired feet were that day
Day she stepped on the bus, she sat where she should
Should, upfront, where she belongs, so peacefully
Peacefully, with fortitude, seeking equality and justice.
Justice she never thought would come with such liberty
Liberty divinely shining, smiling eloquently, abundantly
Abundantly with God’s fortitude, her aching feet planted
Planted to move not, like a tree rooted beside still waters.
Waters of stillness in her soul, running deep, led by God
God leading her through the valley of the shadow of death
Death where the Lord is her Shepherd—she feared no evil
Evil, His rod and staff protect her with goodness and mercy.
Mercy, she shows all the days of her life compassionately
Compassionately, with reverence and love for humanity.
© Dr. Joseph S. Spence Sr., Ph.D. (Epulaeryu Master). All Rights Reserved. December 1, 2025.
I'm in the Pursuit of Peace;
Elohim my Father's release;
I have a right to live;
Humanity mainly takes not give;
I live because of God in Christ;
Fundamental choices our rights;
Regardless of my race, sex, nationality;
Basic formidable fundamentally;
Freedoms to have my own spot on Earth;
No man deems my worth;
Equally to everyone protected;
From unequivocal mistreatment;
No matter who you are,
We are all children of God
Good or bad, rich, poor choices;
Are to be pleasured diverse verses;
~
Direct choices, divine grace surely hails;
Human rights and pursuit of peace avails;
In trembling streets where silent voices plead,
We build our law on dignity — not fear.
Each soul, each breath, a claim to equal need,
Justice whispers soft for all to hear.
When rights stand firm against the tyrant’s reign,
We sow the seeds of trust in broken lands.
No longer bound by chains of grief and pain,
Peacemakers walk with open, healing hands.
In courts and councils, truth begins to bloom,
Where accountability finds its place.
Through shared respect, we clear away the gloom,
And give tomorrow’s dream a human face.
For lasting peace is more than quiet nights —
It lives in rights, in hope, in shared refrain.
When each life matters, wrongs we dare to right,
We forge a world where love prevails again.
Outside my window, the sun smiled.
No sirens screamed and no explosions resounded.
No tearful wails interrupted my serenity.
This, I thought, must be peace -
As long as I ignored the news.
Nobody tore me from my bed,
Bruised my skin,
Nor forced water down my throat.
My human rights, intact -
A privilege of my distance.
Ahhhh!
My cocoa tasted as sweet as my innocence
from the cradle of my recliner.
Why borrow trouble?
Am I my brother’s keeper?
My skin frosted as my heart shivered.
A cold thought formed.
The quote echoed a ghostly reminder from whom that question originated.
A chilling realization that hiding was actively choosing
to raise Cain.
Where was the chaos sown?
Where were the voices stilled?
I must not sit, I must not wait!
Comfort must be sacrificed,
before I also found that I had become the one who was not Abel.
We’re born with a voice, a spirit, a name..
The heart holds a fire, each soul holds a claim.
No chains should be fastened, no silence imposed..
For freedom is ours, it cannot be closed.
The right to be sheltered, the right to be fed..
To live without terror, to dream without dread.
The right to speak truth when the powerful lie..
The right to a future where children don't cry..
Yet hatred still lingers, it poisons the air..
It whispers division, it teaches despair.
But peace is a seed.. though fragile, though small..
When planted in justice, it rises for all.
Lift up the weary, let mercy be shown..
No soul walks this earth on a journey alone.
When hands join in unity, when barriers fall..
The anthem of freedom unites great and small.
Let kindness be louder than cannons of war..
Let rights be the shelter we all can stand for.
For peace isn’t distant, it waits to increase..
The moment we choose it, humanity’s peace.
It is perfectly fine
to chase wealth
to build a life of gold
and a career that sparkles in the sun.
But it is not fine to forget
what it means to be just
to lose the path of virtue
for Dharma is the soul’s compass
and without it, even grace demands a cost
Know this:
the riches & the fame
the applause & the beauty
they are only tools, not truth.
True living begins
not with what you hold
but with how you walk
in righteousness
in virtue
in peace with the self.
Dreams fade not away;
Our active efforts bring us
The crown of glory.
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