Standing one foot on boat, one on shore,
spasmodically the current twists,
dark green bouncing water pulls.
Quickly choose which way to turn,
avoid the vacuum of delay;
familiar land and sheltering home
or enticing adventure on the waves.
Decide before equilibrium shifts
and lands me where all options break
in regrettable sea of sad mistakes.
Zodiac Signs as Inspiration Poetry Contest
Nette Onclaud, Sponsor
Date of Poem: 7-8-2026
It was the green
That caught my eye
The red seemed, elusive
Do not touch
You can't hold
Why have eyes
If forbidden to experience
Is the norm
Day after day
Finding people
But no way to connect
They would speak
I would reject
Advances to communicate
Defenses engaged
Soul inflamed
I just want a taste
Not like a huge bite
Certainly not the entire amount
But unknown consequences
Are too many to count
Loops engaged
Pressure building
In the reach
Aggressive, passively
Trying not to offend
Too late for sorrow
Not worthy of the mend
It's over, hope died
Vulnerability covered
With immature vines
Awaiting judgement
Cutoff, cast out
It would be nice
To at least have my Adam
Roaming around
In a fall world
Alone and defiled
Feels alien, regrettable
Sentenced to isolation
Written by Trudy Schrader 05-20-2026
Removal of the orient gleam of
an ephemeral existence.
The Constrict persistent,
a secure suffocation.
To suffer in gasping provocation.
Null proclimation, writhe.
Grade A exasperation,
desperate for lung expansion.
Consumed by a jaw unhinged
and sealed in
scale-tight enzyme digestion.
Allowed self-doubt to
let myself
down,
this road
I
led myself
down.
Inhale freshwater,
I
held myself
down.
Becoming a defenseless lure,
helpless and approachable.
Grace never held her hand out.
Regrettable rational, internal dialogue
soured by stupidity.
Remedial action, to focus on discrepancies.
Mocked by the laughing flatulence expulsion.
Giggles to self as motor function falters.
Off to nowhere, cease feeling weather.
A headless chicken or lamb to slaughter?
We brought ourselves out here.
Neanderthal deliverance service.
Severed head, served on a bedrock platter,
apple-gagged,
toothless banter.
Like dreams ~ as conscience echoes through the dark,
and life's mirage laps upon my shores
where dunes of sand are blown like drifts of snow.
I'm lost ~ alone ~ not knowing where to go,
except between where beach roses grow and...
where love is/was still unforgettable ~ regrettable?
too perfect to ever last?
Like clouds that swept by the August moon and
off 'til morning ...
Was it a mistake to leave you there - to run,
when morning twilight exposed our skin - our sin - our honor?
Now, life leaves us dwelling in one night and a summer
that should never have been, and a tomorrow that
never was......but remains
in my twilight of yesterdays, but not in my twilight
of regrets.........except to never
have seen you again...
Struggling to make sense out of the bible,
Think it a lot of babble,
Or just another fable.
Before you bin your bible,
Which would be regrettable,
Take a look at the other book I have on my table.
A book that could play a part,
In a change of heart,
A book that stands apart,
With words full of heart,
And daily quotes that could give your day a kickstart,
With communication tips to impart,
So you will take heart,
When things look like falling apart,
The book
Seasons of the heart,
By Fr John Powell, S.J.
.
I have made myriads of blunders but yours makes my heart ache
That I didn't tell you, makes it the most regrettable mistake.
But,like the moon I will love you silently from afar
Knowing well that you will never be my emotions Chauffeur.
Living in remorse is just something I must take
We always knew that day would come,
When we'd done our best and our work is done;
When in a Moment, our hearts would weigh a tone;
When in a Moment, we would stand hurt and stunned.
The Moment she said, "Let me do my own thing",
Was one Moment that would never make us sing.
We became aware that she had begun to spread her wings,
And letting go of her was one of the hardest things.
That Moment wasn't a treasured one, but a most regrettable one.
That painful Moment sat on our hearts as if it weighed a tone.
Our eyes and ears revealed the fading of a hallowed bond.
We were losing Birdie Girl in spite of all the good we had done.
Birdie Girl grew wings and we had no choice but to let her go.
She wanted to find her own way; to go with the wind-flow.
We prayed that her newfound freedom would enable her to grow.
Yesterday? Gone. Today? Fear. We had to trust God for tomorrow.
Unlike us, she was too young to understand the turbulence;
Too young to realize that life was more than a song and dance;
Too naive to recognize how birds of prey could destroy her advance.
But with tearful eyes and a heavy heart, we observed in the distance.
Naked pink American hotdogs, inedible
Their popularity, barely regrettable
Ego perched high on vanity’s pedestal ~
Fritters gift of life by deeds regrettable
20-March-2023
If I could take it all back
Every wrong ever wrought
Every regrettable thing
Every broken wing
I'd lay it all to rest
In an unmarked plot
Over which I would plant
Quiet thyme
And no-leaf clovers
Lilies of denial
And forget-me-nows
There would be no memorial
No elegy, no eulogy
No monody, no dirge
Not even a calaverita
Unless one is desperate
Enough to count this poem
This nobituary, if you will
No lamentation
No regrets
No go-away birds
No mourning doves
Nor egrets to bear the pall
Only leave the dead featherless
Laid down without down
To comfort them
And the egrets
Stand stilted and white
As nothing
Melancholy
As marble statues
In the silk gray dusk
Like lilies on a grave.
MY TURN
It was so tragic, I laughed out loud
Not because I am cold or insensitive
But my emotions just got scrambled
An unconscious response or reflex
But it was an inappropriate outburst
In those regrettable circumstances
When sadness should really prevail
And weeping masses tear their hair
Shuffling slowly past that awful sight
Each with their personal suffering
Laden heavy upon sloped shoulders
But to me, this had yet another side
At last, perhaps even a chance for joy
No longer that dead hand of control
Nor a damp blanket choking freedom
Now finally it was my turn. My turn.
In retrospect, I wish I could take back every single regrettable sin!!
But the Sin-Take-Away-er, the Lamb, forgives so I may begin again.
(John 1:29)
Here lies Eleanor McKenzie Wedgewood
Passed as an elderly genteel virgin should
Never meeting her desired mate,
A sadly regrettable fate
It's said, moreover, she did the best she could.
Written June 12, 2022
In the place where I live,
there was nothing before...
No house, no constructions
it was total desolation...
Now they planted grain of
development, sowed
bricks, glass and tiles and
invented urban labyrinth
in the place of haphazard and stones...
But they brought regrettable
resulting from modernity:
Fear, terror, accidents and assaults...
Is this progress...!?
When your feeling lost in life
Wondering if the pain is worth the price
Just know, there will always be good and bad days
When you wake up and put your feet on the ground
Be aware of all your words that make a sound
Remember, always be where you stand, and you are the words you say
Do the things that mean the most
Know the dark is where you'll find hope
A loss is just an opportunity to find another way
Keep on pushing through this life
There's no doubt you'll have to sacrifice
The reward is the work your willing to pay
When you lay your body down
If you were lost, now know you've found
The path is narrow, but you’re going to find the way
Never give up or compromise
You don't have to live a lie
Remember, you choose to care what other people say
Learn to let go of the uncontrollables
Don't do things that are regrettable
Always go beyond what's acceptable
This is how you become unforgettable
Sometimes life may seem insurmountable
Just accept its unpredictable
Have faith that you’re exceptional
And you become unforgettable
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