Somersaults Poems

Dive

                                          DIVE
                                      jack knife
                                   somersaults

                                teenage aquatics
                            daredevil manoeuvres
                     outrageous tricks just for kicks

                    "having a laugh making a splash"

                8 / 20 / 2025.

Baby Steps

I'll take them one by one
Won't think too far ahead
Day by day until that day
When someday's here, instead 
When someday's now today
When waiting is no more 
When baby steps turn somersaults
I'll cartwheel to your door

The Lighter Side of Antisemitism

     For those who want to ‘kill all the Jews’
        Here’s some food for thought

     Get a rabbi to extend Passover one more week
        You’ll love what will have been wrought

     For another week of ‘matzo only’
        Jews’ stomachs will do somersaults

     And that way it won’t be antisemitism’s fault
        ~ that our bowel functions came to a halt

13th November

A dandelion seed ball -
how fragile it is floating 
the still air. I reach out
but it somersaults 
in the disturbance 
of my moving hand. 
I want to hold it 
but it keeps floating away. 

It moves on the slightest
puff of my breath. 
I've caught it !
cupped in my closed hands -
but it's no longer whole
only a collection
of parts, fragments 
of what was, 
a memory now.

Hell…it's the 13th today !.
My fathers birthday.
He's been dead 
twenty seven years.
I should have told him
that I loved him  
far more than I did.

Summer Quatrains

Summer Quatrains – Swap Quatrains 6-19-24
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summer Quatrains

Silk ribbons of ice melt into wellsprings
With jubilant serenades, heartfelt,
Frozen heartbeats freed from rime flow on wings
Into wellsprings silk ribbons of ice melt.

The brooding nimbus bows to solstice’ clouds
Dandelion days doze in clover now
As the Dayspring moon chants reveries out loud
To solstice’ clouds the brooding nimbus bows.

The rumpled season rides on wings of change,
Dancing in the ether where dreams abide,
Somersaults o’re a wishing star’s exchange
On wings of change the rumpled season rides.

In summer’s sunlight winter’s rose arises
Past the melancholy veils of dark starlight
Opens silky buds, rapture’s surprises,
Winter’s rose arises in summer sunlight.

Yesterday's Wishes

Without sugar, I'll sip on my espresso
I can still taste yesterday's sweetness

We abandoned yesterday's mistakes, worries, and despair
all money in the world cannot resuscitate yesterday
our actions and words are irreversible somersaults.

Yesterday's wishes dried up like lost dreams in the woods
golden skin echoed hollow vows with a wistful, spun glow
Alms shimmer like souls, but we can't rule out karma
we must avoid future risks, hurdles, and a stoic canvas.

Dreams and stones mingle, like torn bones or hearts
sun rays dye crimson roses—an icy reminder of lost shine
Gypsy whispers, dancing blades, and wigs create chaos
broken glass shards can form vows and heal scars
hedged hymns that hum in hectic hoods are tedious.

defied the cosmos and sought fortune and fame
revered and emulated idols of love and peace
but wished to be Gandhi or Mandela and achieve triumph
Philosophy and psychology foster love.

Pinprick orbs, a bohemian strain, drift with sun dust
everything I remember seems like yesterday
If life gives you the embers you asked for, embrace the pearls.

Somersaults On the Trampoline

Jumping, bouncing up down really keen.
Double somersaults on the trampoline.
Enthusiasm loud giggles.
Out doing big brothers errs,
Bouncing higher, higher like jumping bean.

What goes up,  must come straight down. What the hack!
Double flip, lull …. plop, flop, flat on their back.
Turns head over heels in air
Landing on their feet with flair.
This's the upright way you do it with knack.

5/11/2024

SIT-UPONS

Sit-upons that we wove together.
The troop activity. How many spots
will remember me?

The wicker basket and picnic blanket
woven into the amphitheatre. We,
my hubby and I,
cozied up, listened to Amy Grant.

My towel, with the Caribbean islands,
sinking in the warm sand, waiting
for my salt-sea body to rest.

My familiar easy chair,
the grandkids are always
welcome to share.

The pews that retain glory and praise
on Sundays and Wednesdays.

The split-level stairs,
carpeted teal,
where I oft sit and watch
somersaults
and converse with a houseful.

There are the horses,
that lent their backs,
brought me to greater heights -
walked me on the Cozumel beach,
‘round Yukon’s emerald lake,
and one that wanted to dive off a cliff,
“whoa…no!” I took control.

On my childhood bed,
so close to my sister-cousin.
We laughed and shared -
now it's only in my memory.

The yellow bus, -
my hopes and dreams were sown
within its polyester seats.

So many places where I sat,
brimming above or below the surface.
So many places we stay and go.
We squat, recline, attack.

Death Fish in Key West

Scientists describe it as an event
In the hot paradise of Key West

Condos festivals hotels
Dancing feet under bells of lights
I’ve sung Margaritaville there
Myself

Beneath the docks

Pan fish spin in the new green pea sea
Mad somersaults
Alone
To their own kind of tambourine

Bring out your Dead
Bring out your Dead

14-foot Swordfish swish their tails
Beach themselves by the dawn of rails
Swim in the sandpaper sun’s preferable agony
A woman stands by cries and mutters
“I’m so sorry”

Reaches for his folded-over fin
Comfort to the roadside beggar

Sting Ray does the butterfly
Chops atop the ocean’s surface
Charges something unseen beating its wings
Battering the space where waves dot the sky
As if it were an archangel screaming
Stop it! Stop It!

To the Great False Prophet Anthropomorphism

Animals and plants are as human
As we
Without fingers and hands to see

All creatures speak from a conscience
Possess morals
If we’d listen from beyond our own shortcomings
And denial

The Key West fish are calling us
In plain language

Help us help us
We’re boiling to death.

Winter Light

Winter Light 1-25-24
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Winter Light

Winter light streaks through trees
Laughs in games of freeze tag
Plays “catch me, if you can.”
Somersaults through the frost
Bare light’s playful game plan.

Winter light streaks through trees
Dashing on north wind’s breath
Inhales scent of new snow,
Trailing saffron streamers,
Dark escapes as light flows.

Winter light streaks through trees 
Pirouettes pastel hues
Branches stretch for warm light,
Morning light bundles boughs,
Chases dark tints from night.

Winter light streaks through trees
Twirls and shouts, wild and free
Shares secrets in dawn’s shades
Tints of yellow joy zoom,
In shades like gold brocade.

Nineteenth Century Meets Twenty-first

 Tom Sawyer did three somersaults, a back flip, stood on his head

   Becky Thatcher scrolled up and down her device ~ said, 'Go soak your head'

artic somersaults

artic somersaults 11-30-23
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
artic somersaults

arctic colors bluster
 gossamer rainbow ripples ~
  northern lights fanfare

north winds of daybreak
 electric neon highlights ~
  polar bears snoring

pink and green streaks flash
 watermelon auroras ~
  iceberg skyscrapers

auroras fox trot
 light in staccato steps ~
  high stepping brilliance

tundra skies blush
 frozen lights do somersaults ~
  polar breaths glow

Cosmic Stoicism: a Carnival of Absurd Wisdom

In stoic carnival, emotions juggle,
laughter somersaults on a tightrope of reason.
Epictetus, ringmaster, dons a clown's nose,
philosophy as whimsical sideshow.

Stoicism, circus tent of paradox,
where the lion tamer wrestles inner beasts.
The trapeze of fate swings on absurdity,
as three Moirai perform an acrobatic feat.

Seneca's stoic beard, a magical illusion,
transforms into a confetti-spewing waterfall.
Cynicism rides a unicycle of cosmic irony,
while Zeno's paradox becomes a funhouse mirror.

In a carnival of wisdom turned wild,
stoicism pirouettes on the edge of the bizarre.
Life's absurdities, the grand finale,
a cosmic joke echoing in stoic guffaws.

Weave

the tempered veil of years with a weave of sweet and sour
can be lavish like the pleasurable return of good deeds
take what you learn from sky high places
                                    that bleed clouds to the hills

weave towards green with its hypnotic continuity
reach for the weightlessness of a dandelion seed
                        in a breeze of somersaults 

weave away if lies spoken with zest 
                                                become believable 
seek a safe place from huff and puff winds
             woven into refuge like design in a quilt
find what's essential like peek-a-boo games
                                     that tickle a child to glee

work strains
whittles at days
the hourglass sighs at what sags away

summer still holds the chatter of birds
young buds still weave upward
                      ungloving hands holding chains and fear
joy still roams to signboards above
nothing desolate
a sanctuary
Elysium 
        in walls that rise
        in stars unnamed

Louise - Fictional

Please recall Louise is fictional.

She cannot walk in the park with a dog,

or do somersaults.

She won't be found at Bartholomew Library
reciting poetry.


She is and always will be fictional,
so cannot be so viewed.


Again, I stress she's fictional, completely, completely, for all time,


for already you imagine her with dog
that won't stop barking,

admire her cleverness in Bartholomew's gymnastic class,

or hear her quiet voice
giving poetry something it hasn't had for years.







4/5/2023

• Short Somersaults Poems
• Famous Somersaults Poems
• Best Somersaults Poems
• Read Somersaults Poems
• Long Somersaults Poems
• Somersaults Quotes