You tied the noose that I hang from
I stare at the writing on the wall
I feel like all the words are written wrong
My feet can’t find the stall
I wish my thoughts would just be gone
I am the rope in which they tie
I can’t seem to shape the future of my life
Got me thinking am I the one who’s ready to die
I decided to roll the dice
Sick of living a lie
Why did I think twice
Now I’m begging for a reason why
When they made Humpty Dumpty
He turned out to be grumpy
Because of his fragile state
He's not to make a mistake
A padded path, made for him
Full of cotton, thick not thin
He must go only this way
He wants the opposite way
But it's dangerous we say
Stubbornly he climbs the wall
We begged him that he would fall
So tethering there he sat
He told everyone to skat
His look was not like before
It seems he wants to ignore
As the town tried to implore
He had a new agenda
His life is so delicate
So this is how things will take
Unhappy was he
He said one, two, three
And fell openly
into smithereens
All the kings horses and all
the kings men couldn't put
Humpty together again
Hickory, dickory, dock.
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck nine,
It was past the deadline!
He missed an interview,
the job fell through.
He fell sadly to his knees,
no paycheck – no cheese.
As morning light unveils its grace,
A modest smile adorns each face.
No need for grandeur, just beguile,
A simple smile, a cherished style.
No eloquence in words to find,
Just a gentle grin, so unconfined.
It speaks of joy with whispers slight,
In the dialect of smiles, pure and bright.
A sunlit spark upon your lips,
Igniting joy with playful quips.
Unfussy, potent, this gesture mild,
A universal language, forever styled.
'Neath the sun's gentle, warm embrace,
A humble smile graces each face.
No need for grandeur, no elaborate style,
In simplicity, joy begins to compile.
A curve of lips, a radiant gleam,
A modest smile, a tranquil dream.
It whispers tales of warmth and ease,
In every line, a gentle breeze.
No intricate verses, no complicated wiles,
Just the enchantment of those simple smiles.
A language universal, tender and neat,
In moments of joy, hearts discreet.
So let it blossom like petals in a pile,
The allure found in a simple smile.
Oh, the piggy loves you
The piggy loves me
The piggy is homeless,
yessiree.
Give the pig a cookie
Give the pig a bed
Or maybe a sarcophagus,
in case the piggy's dead.
Punch'm in the snout
Poke'm in the eye
Take the piggy home
and dump'm in the sty
Ten tiny pollywogs
Happy as can be
Along came an alligator
Ate up three.
Seven skittish pollywogs
Beneath a lily pad
Up swam a rainbow trout
They all died sad.
THE MYSTERY OF HUMPTY DUMPTY
Humpty Dumpty was indeed a spy
Whose favorite dish was egg custard pie
He couldn't resist even one little bite
And usually ate a whole pie every night
Yes, he loved egg custard but that ain't all
He loved to eat it while sitting on a wall
Watching the king's horses and all his men
Prance all around the kingdom glen
One day Humpty got engrossed in his pie
And forgot that the wall was really quite high
He tumbled and fell with a mighty crash
Receiving more than just a small gash
In fact he burst open like a water spout
And his blood and guts all poured out
All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty Dumpty together again
So they left him propped up against his favorite wall
And now when visitors come to call
They ask, "Whatever is that horrible creature,
With all the cracks as his best feature?"
Oh, that's Humpty Dumpty, the famous spy
Whose greatest downfall was egg custard pie
One day he fell and got all broken
But we keep him around just as a token
26 June 2018
For the contest sponsored by Faraz Ajmal
Julius Jaggery Jones
Had an ache deep in his bones
Sang the blues for nickels and dollars
In mellowest of baritones.
Julius Jaggery Jones
Seated on street cobblestones
Paid his dues in groanings and hollers
Delivering back alley moans.
His name is Björn and Im here to say he has the biggest brown eyes Ive seen today he lost his bone and feels all alone what a sad day for little Björn
he looks high and low and even dug a hole for his bone to go and looked and looked with all his might but no there is no bone in sight, Oh where Oh where could that bone be for maybe he left it under a tree,
So well look and look till we find his bone for its like ones telephone you just cant leave at home.
In the bushes lurked a man
Keeping handy
Bits of candy
Luring children in the bushes
Where he hit them,
Scratched them, bit them.
If a man hides in the bushes
Don't go near him
If you hear him
In the bushes with a club
He will beat you,
Cook you, eat you.
This is another unpublished early poem, circa 1969, from the forever-after ongoing series "Lucifera's Questionable Daycare Poems and Stories."
Five fat Porkers
Five fat Porkers, in a Pig Sty
Eating Swill and Cabbages,
Grunting with a me oh my.
One of these Pigs called Emily,
Was taken out one day,
Now delicious rashers of Bacon,
Three cheers and a hip hooray.
Four fat Porkers, in a Pig Sty
Eating Swill and Cabbages,
Grunting with a me oh my.
One of these Pigs called Reginald,
Was taken out one day,
To make some succulent Sausages,
Three cheers and a hip hooray.
Three fat Porkers, in a Pig Sty
Eating Swill and Cabbages,
Grunting with a me oh my.
One of these Pigs called Millicent,
Was taken out one day,
To star in a Roast Hog Supper,
Three cheers and a hip hooray.
Two fat Porkers, in a Pig Sty
Eating Swill and Cabbages,
Grunting with a me oh my.
One of these Pigs called Albert,
Was taken out one day,
To craft some joints of juicy Pork,
Three cheers and a hip hooray.
One fat Porker, all alone in a Pig Sty
Eating Swill and Cabbages,
Grunting with a cry and a sigh.
One fat Sow called Rita,
Was taken out one day,
Put in the field with the Gloucester’s,
Three cheers and a hip hooray.
Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe
By Valerie Odom
March 5, 2017
Eeny, meeny, miny, moe
Catch a tiger by the toe
If he hollers let him go,
Eeny, meeny, miny, moe
My mother told me
To pick the very best one
And you are not it
Eeny, meeny, miny, moe
By day I have to put on a show
Just sit and smile and not say no
While they give me their opinions on my afro
Eeny, meeny, miny, moe
By night my sorrows start to glow
My rhythmic notes begin to flow
And form into material
They tried to tell me
Keep your head high
And you will not fall
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.