Dice black and white
Not looking for a fight
Lucky hands, grip tight
Wanting a winning sight
Put pair into flight
Fist raised, power, and might
Snake eyes say good night
Coffee stained canvases and pages,
A sweet life of art and rhyme,
a Snake River
painter and poet
Loses track of time
Because he's so caught up
in the beauty
He's bringing to life
By: J.N.R Dutton
When of food we did talk
she would balk
of course
to feed on horse
and quail
at tasting snail
but who knew
squirrel stew
was taboo
and don't you know
altho'
I'd never cadge a badger
eating crow
was a no-no
thus dining out
was an ordeal
for there's no knowing
what could be our meal
as going hungry is not fun
when it came to the crunch
I've had ants bat and snake
for lunch
I am the worst of a past life.
She reveled.
She cherished.
I am wavelengths.
I don’t believe a gravestone tells much.
Or can be sold for much.
In flux.
We are each frayed ends of dead ends.
We are each other’s dead flowers.
We are each snake eyes.
Roll the dice and it will tell you you’re on life number 5.
SNAKES OF THE GARDEN
One snake sits curled up;
Another hangs in a tree.
A third one crawling:-
All of them thought provoking;
Especially, the treed one:-
Painting: The Scream by Edvard Munch
my sweaty palms grip
the sides of my head
eyes wide with terror
a shrill scream rises
in my throat
my stomach is twisted
in Gordion knots
my feet are welded
to the pavement
my knees begin
to buckle
I feel thirty pairs of eyes
staring straight
through me
suddenly my mood
dissipates
thank goodness the tiny
green garter snake
has darted into the bushes
Slithering black snake
slides through the prickly, dry thorns.
Surprise! What's up Homes?
There once was a snake
Whose name was Jake
He slithered and slid
And kept well hid
But had a bad encounter with a rake.
He went to jail
For killing a snail
Committed the crime
So he served his time
And lived to tell the tale.
He had too much grog
And got it on with a frog
But was later found
Living deep underground
Far away in a dirty old bog.
Meeting in the dark,
away from prying eyes.
Away from wagging tongues,
spewing evil venom like a snake.
Our love must go on,
for we are soul mates.
The lights look like diamonds,
your diamond eyes match.
Somehow this view left me,
totally speechless.
Spunky Cottonmouth
plops into the black river.
He winds towards my boat.
Day on the levee.
Blue Racer twists through the sand.
He gleams in the sun.
Mottled Water Snake
winds through the turpid, foul pond.
Look! A fresh minnow!
Winner 9th Place: 1461 Brian Strand (4/9/26)
On snake’s mouth blood there’s none any,
Nor on a bitten one’s body.
Evil officials when prevail,
Ruler nor ruled would wealth avail.
_________________________
Sanskrit Translation | 21.01.2026 | blood, corruption, snake, government, quatrain
Note: Some quatrains called shlokas in Sanskrit are known as Subhaashhitams, words well-said. This one shows what happens when in a kingdom the administration officials are corrupt. A snake bites but leaves evidence of blood on its mouth nor on the person whom it bites. So do the corrupt leave any money trail. They not only drain the treasury of the ruler, of the ruled as well. Transliteration follows.
Na sarpasya mukhe raktam,
na dashtasya kalevare |
Na prajaasu na bhoopaale
dhanam dur-adhikaarini || Subhaashhitam ||
boa constrictor
sidles up to pet owner
measuring for lunch
Gladys had raised Bowie since he was a baby snake.
They had a loving relationship
Did not get many guests.
Bothered neither of them
They had each other
Bowie liked to lie in bed next to Gladys
It gave him comfort as he grew longer and longer
He was ten years old now, longer than the bed
His tail curled over onto the floor
He stopped eating and Gladys grew concerned.
She called the vet.
“Get out of the house now!” the vet told her.
Your Boa Constrictor is measuring you, getting ready to eat you!”
Maybe it was the crack in his voice.
But Gladys did not argue.
Animal Control came in and took Bowie away.
As far as we know she does not have a new snake.
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