An empty swing sways, lilting loneliness in the breeze,
With no children in play, no laughter's squeal to please,
Its rusty chain creaks a forlorn squeak for days gone by.
Like lonesome clouds that linger longingly in the sky.
The ropes are worn, the seat is torn, thread-bare.
The swing swings a lonely dance, with no one there.
It swings from the memory of when frolicking legs and arms.
Would pull it skyward, to thrust aloft its charms.
The wind blows dust tumbling through the ghost town,
Abandoned by the curse of salt in the ground-waters,
Caused by a wasteful irrigation scheme that shutdown.
Leaving the town barren, devoid of sons or daughters.
The willy-willy wisps of white crystal salt,
Lifts from the dust in the playground's remains.
Evoking ghostly images that twist and somersault
Through the rusty links on the swing link chains.
The empty swing swinging in the breeze,
Is a prayer-wheel, squeaking a mournful mantra hum,
That human greed drags nature down onto its knees,
Knowing what you've done, can't be undone.
Categories:
somersault, games, longing,
Form: Rhyme
Staircase shifts as my footsteps climb
Trapeze tree swing, springy arm chimpanzee
Undulates gripping limbs, gym sublime
Driftwood bone betides baton twirling frenzy
Intimate sub-sand somersault, primate
Orangutang scramble up slope, slip intended
Double view plateau, marina masts poise
Usher terpsichorean dream, breeze buoys
Nautical cavort awkward flap flail sail pelican
Evolves to swan serene seaside glide elegant
Second of August
Serendipity Robust
Categories:
somersault, blue,
Form: Acrostic
Cadence lowers its tenebrous tempo
Dulcet to a morose Memento Mori-bund
Lachrymose ribbon garnet fountain
Ruby rivulets in wine glass Chardonnay
Bubble floats to pop
Silence yet I sway
Miasma tang vitae oh Nueva
So they swing on a rope seputchra
Momma Mia mommy
Bites her lips
Somersault flips
Debauchery
In my hidden boutique adornment boudoir
My basement locked ossuary
Categories:
somersault, art, beautiful, beauty, class,
Form: Sonnet
You have eyes that fly me to the moon
Silver sonnets slip from licorice lips
Making maroon heart do somersault
Flips my DNA to create a new soul
In my womb as you swoon
I feel the formation of life
It feels like butterflies climbing
From cocoon wing a blueberry bloom
As the umbilical cord grows
I can feel this new soul
Clinging to my navel for life
Inside me a sea of red
For baby to be fed
And my tears and fuchsia fears
Melting ambitions creating nutrition
For birthing body is on auto pilot
Despite being an emotional wreck
I am blessed Mother Nature is
Devinely inspired to do her best work
So I can relax and enjoy the birth
Categories:
somersault, anxiety, birth,
Form: Free verse
A Craig Cornish Contest: Empty Room
------------------
A kaleidoscope of unknown thrill rushes
within my swollen veins, needle-pricked –
and the liquid opiate carries me high, upstream
like a somersault in a glistening parade of a trance
intoxicated by multi-colored yet surreal imaginings,
absent from the pungent flavor of bleak reality…
I Am nothing but dust--- till the sensation drains.
The blue hour arrives, a period between morning and dusk
as twilight reflects the fading of my mind’s room
… where my heart aches till dawn snaps this evil poison,
And I cannot grasp soiled dust in my eyes,
The glassy sheets that lay me down on damp floor
forgetting not how pore of my flesh clots,
feverish when in tears: my body trembles
in this sordid room on lease—while I am
unable to wait for the next kick of midnight.
Categories:
somersault, angst, places, recovery from,
Form: Free verse
Emma’s Smile
He picked her up the other day
And from the window, peeking out of the blinds,
I watched them traipse down the driveway
Practically skipping, arms around each other,
Happiness bubbling from their feet,
Somersault energy fuses them.
At the bottom of the driveway
On their way late for something
They stopped for a few breath-beats
And hugged anyway.
Emma laid her head on his shoulder,
Eyes closed as if in relief,
He wrapped her tight around, too, and
They fit.
They stood still for some moments
Holding close,
One to the other, the same.
Emma leaned back to tell him, then,
Some funny little thing and
She beamed.
She smiled up at him with
Truth and
Youth and
Trust and
The sun smiled on her face
In an accident of perfect light, putting
Diamonds in her eyes and
Reality in check and
I knew then;
My girl would know love.
Categories:
somersault, daughter, first love,
Form: Free verse
Away on a Cloud Ship…
Away on a cloud ship
Not a care have I
I play with the breezes
Way up in the sky
I ride on the rainbows
As cloudy storms cry
Then sail with the eagles
And soar on their sighs.
The cool air floats past me
Like gossamer wings
I float on the air streams
That rise like wellsprings
And join with the nimbus,
As cloud songs we sing -
To somersault, hopscotch,
In airy handsprings.
I high five with thunder –
See glory ablaze –
Then gather up sunbeams
For dark rainy days
And make chains of moonbeams
From soft, moonlit rays
To raise up to God’s ears
A new psalm of praise.
Categories:
somersault, beauty, fun, sky,
Form: Rhyme
Questions are proliferating,
people search for answers
in old pants pockets
in long discarded purses.
The scampering feet of baby philosophers
can be heard from the moon.
The media is stymied, they are manipulating,
confiscating and hiding behind the backs
of massively overgrown ballers,
willy-nilly they scribble an alternative reality
upon indoor swimming pools.
The manic mayhem of our daily grind
is wearing our hair thin,
Somebody should take control of the truth,
but it keeps dodging questions
and slamming doors behind it.
Mark my words with invisible ink,
scratch a cat behind its ears,
somersault all you like
but we are all getting overrun
by imperfect pontifications
by the indecent Doctors of spin.
and all this endless self-questioning
keeps replying over and over again
but only in unbreakable code.
Categories:
somersault, poetry,
Form: Free verse
brilliantly colored
scuba diving apparel ~
array on parade
prettily perching
fun, feathered festivity ~
eyes on the prizes
watching and waiting
intelligent inquiry ~
flickering movement
mobile suit gundam
beak poised in full readiness ~
instinctive appetition
diving without halt
flying somersault
NB: Other - Haiku Sonnet form created by David Marshall; 4 haikus plus a couplet of either 5.5 or 7.7 syllables, total of 14 lines.
Categories:
somersault, bird, environment, fish, food,
Form: Other
"Dreams do this, Catcher"
mystery in the heart
misleads the kiss
the kiss bleeds
like a somersault
backwards
into the comfort
of the dream
we find hidden notes
written in the music
we miss the heart’s
true translation
we turn the page
we get down
on our knees
too late the prayers
are taken in the plate
alms waiving
backstop
out of the park
the soft fall
shot hard
left field
right field
catcher
(LadyLabyrinth / 2023)
Categories:
somersault, dream, muse, mystery,
Form: Narrative
These days good cars oddly somersault,
So this jeep you keep ridding of fault
Big cash you shall be getting plus malt;
Journey time I might speed catapult;
Now,alive and kicking,next in vault...
My dear wife won't fancy the result:
Sure to her hit like rudest insult
Today,jeeps could neatly somersault
And I mean the serviced for cursed fault
But their mechanics neatly assault,
Their Goliaths kill with catapult
If you can,you should this bravely halt
Here cars are the meals and you the salt.
Categories:
somersault, care, cry, devotion, wisdom,
Form: Rhyme
There's the soft breath of spring upon the air,
And my airborne friends are filling the skies.
Winter's hard for the ruffling of feathers,
not to mention snowflakes blurring our eyes
I am a white-winged dove and a teacher:
nestlings of summer are filling my class.
I teach them to find seeds in the rich earth
or hidden deeply within desert grass.
We'll be happy when warm breezes beckon,
we'll dance and somersault on lilting air.
Soon the sun will warm our freezing feathers
and spring will sing in answer to our prayer.
If all seasons the same, how to compare
Nature has seasons and we must abide.
Loveliness hides in both blossoms and snow
Still, we rejoice when winter steps aside!
February 8, 2023
for Winter is Not Forever contest
by BJ Legros Kelley
A First Place!
Categories:
somersault, appreciation, leaving, spring, winter,
Form: Rhyme
Somersault, flips and swings like an oar
Cup of salt, flings and stings on floor
Powder of talc, smoothens all
Slides and glides over all
Skip, stretch, turn or twist
Huff, puff like whist
Heart and soul
Fly high
Hop
Categories:
somersault, art, sports,
Form: Nonet
Life can sometimes be complicated;
Love? Love is simple;
There is no but in love;
Alluring candescence doesn’t fade,
with ripples it glows brighter;
Within the curl of a perfect wave
lost in a somersault dancing
head over feet;
Emotions are always complicated
Love? Love is simple;
Wild surf just let’s you glide
you steady each other and fly
through the water;
There is no but in love;
Alluring candescence doesn’t fade,
with ripples it glows brighter;
Life can sometimes be complicated;
Love? Love is simple.
Categories:
somersault, emotions, feelings, love,
Form: Free verse
By a roadside a tattered insult!
Pierced Paul swore not a soul consult.
Why then had he joined case-ending cult?
And who's claiming he can't one assault?
" This guy shall like a car somersault
And like Reeves' Volvo wear horrid fault"
Remembered Reeves is now in a vault!
Penumbra he'd hurt and got result,
Assured a death not difficult:
Reeves to heaven quickly catapult.
In their Penumbra:The stinking rich!
Time to swell bank account of their witch.
It wouldn't count that Target is bony
Or others scaring with face stony;
Witch's sole job to show that Penumbra
Shall her Rivals handle like used bra...
Pierced Paul his foes quit through accident
And on telly watches The Incident.
Categories:
somersault, death, evil, prejudice, violence,
Form: Rhyme
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