Through lenses cold and ground from mountain glass,
We watched the dying worlds of iron pass.
For generations, every spark we found
Was tethered to a bleeding, broken ground—
The sudden flash of silo doors undone,
The brief, horrific birthing of a sun,
Then ash that drifted like a heavy shroud
To lock a planet in a toxic cloud.
We turned our mirrors to the northern sky,
Expecting just another world to die,
To see Vaeloria’s final signature
Be etched in fire, black and premature.
We braced for the familiar, sudden glare
Of empires burning down their final air.
But what we found across the cosmic deep
Was not the final, static-riddled sleep.
The planet did not burn; it started glowing,
A quiet, silver respiration growing,
As if a willow made of starlight grew
And drank the poison till the sky turned blue.
No high radiation tore the night,
But pulses of a deep, organic light.
A lonely mind had stitched the broken spheres,
And washed away a century of fears.
We leaned into our sights, amazed to see
A world redeemed by a single tree.
All men marked by a Redeemer risen
gain the King’s key to living life now with purpose.
Not doomed, nor driven, but by chance, choice…
rogues repent, generate goodwill day by day,
finding forgiveness through God's grace.
Previous lives lost to selfish struggling
hold heaven as their future hope’s harbor.
roots of evil fall
into the swirling mire ~
light guides the soul
Dripping with sin, I climb.
mine eyes burn, unblinking.
I have seen a thousand crimes.
each one a tooth in dark.
each one a hymn gone rancid.
the pit of absence breathes.
it feeds on nameless hours.
crawling endlessly, it seems.
I keep my hands in ash.
I keep my mouth in iron.
silence repeats my verdict.
no saints arrive, no banners.
only the bruise of memory.
only the stench of mercy.
my ribs learn stubborn cadence.
my pulse drags a rusted chain.
I rise by counting losses.
I rise by swallowing smoke.
the walls confess in wet tongues.
the dark writes laws on skin.
yet I make my way up.
step after step, unholy.
eyes burning, still I look.
and do not look away.
As I bow my head to pray,
Thankful for this solitude,
A tender voice whispers softly,
"Have no fears."
I lift my tear-clouded eyes to you,
Encouraged by the strength within my soul,
Faithfully, I praise your love.
There is no other way
Without God constantly by my side.
Guide me towards salvation, Lord,
Using this servant's faulty steps.
You designed me since creation—
I am a sinner, and you have carried me.
There is nothing else I desire:
No riches, possessions, or fame.
Nothing compares to you, Oh Lord!
I entrust you with my soul,
In all my days and nights.
Keep me safely guarded,
Under your power,
Under your might,
As I rejoice in my trials.
You set my path straight,
Against the darkness and all plights.
Within time that never stands still,
Surrounded by chaos,
Cover me with your precious blood,
And rid me of my shame.
I will soar, high as an eagle, bold and free.
That is where I want to be—
Proclaiming your Holy name,
From now to eternity.
Thus, by the grace of Jesus Christ,
I am redeemed,
All the days of my life.
I met her in a dream at a washing station in Bangladesh
I might have tried to hold her hand by the thread she held
Which passed through the interior of a manicured shrub
Severely cut into the form of a dense sunless topiary ball
So tightly was it manicured to create a studied appearance
Of formal stability and calm that no air or sunlight reached its interior
And you could smell the rot from inside at a distance
And hear the screams of a six-year-old child from inside as well
Calling out desperately from the rot for attention and care
That I might follow the thread and see into the plant I dare not go
For there were broken off rotten limbs of its trunk lying by its side
From those who tried to reach the centre of the shrub before
So, I held back my desire to reach the centre and stopped out the noise.
I sat in the sunlight of what was once northern India and wondered at life’s destruction
Where none of Shiva’s many arms could penetrate into planned obstruction for aid
And the course of fate finds its way into unexpected dreams on night pillows rest.
I wondered where the teardrops go,
Once they have been softly wept.
Do they wander with the winds,
Or rest where Heaven's secrets slept?
I followed one through autumn fields;
It kissed the earth without a sound.
By spring, a bloom of bluebonnets
Had crowned the very place it found.
Another sought an ancient oak
And disappeared beneath its grain.
The tree stood taller year by year,
Made stronger by another rain.
Another reached a stranger's heart
Who smiled though burdened by despair.
It bloomed into a gentle grace
That neither soul knew lingered there.
For every teardrop remembered hope
When I remembered only pain.
It gathered all my broken prayers
And whispered them like summer rain.
For every teardrop remembered love
When I believed that love had flown.
It stitched together thread by thread
The tattered places I'd outgrown.
For every teardrop remembered light
Though all I saw was endless night.
It kept a flame I could not tend
Until the dawn returned my sight.
So, if you wonder where they go,
Do not search the earth or sea.
The tears I thought the world had lost...
Were busy becoming me.
At the end
there are no sides,
we walk in peace
to a place of calm
that land beyond the sun,
it matters not who won or lost
when all is said and done
Hidden away, I watched a demon Marcus cleanse his soul,
Midst sage and stone, the ritual took control.
A blessed prayer to purge the dark within,
To find a future free of ancient sin.
Cleansed and renewed by the candle's ray,
Marcus rose to face the coming day.
Snatched away by a mock role.
Despair not.
Discard innocence — a troublesome memory disassociates.
Time recursively scrolls the memory:
Trying / Failing.
When was it lost?
In the combined turbulence
of the intersecting visual produced by
the mind’s perception of reality and self through eyes.
Caught thinking, dreaming:
“What is sleep?"
"I can’t know sleep — who is she?"
"I know she sounds ugly."
"I love sleep, but she doesn’t love me for real.”
Being seen through by another,
yet receiving recognition.
Redemption is still always possible.
Humanity doesn’t have to be some chimerical tragedy.
Alchemic deals made in belligerence,
producing mercurial blood.
Hear the Thunder roar
Watch the lightning flash
Darkness through the walk
Listen to the skies
Observe and see the change
Image of transform
Darkness turned to light
Walk by sight but not by mere understanding
Heaven spoken words
Pursue and exchange
Thunder roars again
Lightning flashes once more
Never be misled
Truth being beyond the skies
Walk in knowing and being wise.
Some walk away from Jesus,
their prayers feel cold, unheard.
They see the world’s great evil
and doubt the Father’s Word.
But shadows do not conquer,
they only test the flame.
The devil plants deception,
yet Christ still calls our name.
Our King once wore a crown here,
not jewels, but thorns of pain.
He died to bring redemption,
so sinners could be saved.
That crown became His glory,
for death was overthrown.
And now He reigns eternal,
a King upon His throne.
So when the nights feel heavy,
when faith is pressed and tried,
remember Christ is faithful.
His mercy will not hide.
The road is long and narrow,
yet His love will never fade away.
The crown He wears reminds us
our debt has all been paid.
And if the path seems empty,
with doubts too sharp to bear,
the King who died to save you
still waits for you in prayer.
"It's finished!" Love's triumphant* shout
redemption fulfilled without doubt...
God reached mankind by grace indeed
saving me, in faith, to be freed...
Grateful, I serve through worship-route.
*Psalms 47:1 O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.
April 4, 2026
4th place, "1460 SHORT FORM" Poetry Writing Premiere Contest
Sponsored by Brian Strand; judged on 4/6/2026
my thoughts
scattered abroad
stolen -carried -copied (my thoughts)
by those who seek to gain their fame
my soul
body
taken by food
ice cream -fast food -soda (my body)
I'm determined to lose it all
brick house
seeking
mind and spirit
strength to get me through times (my strength)
an awakening of my soul
triumph
I sit and feel the darkness in my soul,
Trapped within a deep, dark hole.
I fall down on my knees,
Pleading for God to rescue me.
Lifting up my head to see,
I cry, “Is anyone there to comfort me?”
My soul is wretched with despair,
Feeling as though no one cares.
Out of the darkness, a small light grows,
An angel appears, all aglow.
She whispers softly as she nears,
“God has always been here.”
The angel’s words begin to stir my soul,
Though the gloom has taken its toll.
Then suddenly, out of the dark,
The angel’s light ignites a spark.
My soul begins to shine within,
Knowing God has forgiven me for my sins.
So when life’s burdens take their toll,
God’s light and power will make me whole.
One need only fall upon their knees,
For forgiveness and love are the keys.
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