When I Fall
By Frank Daub
When I fall unaware of sin,
is God aware of me? Does He
see sin as second chance to win
Eternity?
And if eternity’s the prize
Which degree will I find there?
The brightened streams of Paradise
Or the tempest--blackened air?
Foul tempest wind dost beset thy slumber,
its rain doth drain and dampen to stupor.
I rithe at thy great agony's bequest,
haunted by frightening reminiscence.
'Still the torrid pleas of thy soul!', I cry.
Thunder does naught to distill the shrill screams.
Lightning drenches me in thick vulgar sweat;
heart racing, mind pacing, fervent unrest.
'Will I e'er see a brighter morn than this?';
for foul tempest has consumed most my years.
But just then, when all seemed undone, foregone;
rain culls, clouds lift, and a rainbow now dawns.
09.02.2026
('Resist the devil, and he shall flee')
('I have set my rainbow in the clouds...')
Like a great storm she makes her path,
flying ever higher; blowing wild and free.
The warm winds of her supple breath
caressed an old soul when inhaled by me.
Enthralled a heart; and made her mark;
strong heart being held in passion’s silk chains.
Spellbound is he whom she touches,
with sweet seductions of pleasures and pains.
She’s a lady of worldly ways,
a tender lover; wise beyond her years.
Though her confidence overflows,
deep down inside, she locks away dark fears.
As a hurricane, she’s a force,
yet in her heart burns gentle desires.
Her spirit may rage for hours,
drenching her lover with torrid fires.
She possesses many faces;
a tempestual lady with a tender soul.
Holds the power to break a heart,
with the beauty to touch…and make it whole.
Teasing rumble in the distance,
faint fragrance of petrichor,
redolence of rain nymphs
drifting along in primal scent,
like a mesmerizing lover hovering,
tantalizing, provocative.
Pent up emotion mounts, burns,
a yearning fountain of ecstasy,
love bursting forth flashing bolts
splitting skies and scorching earth;
saturate my soul with storm
relentless love of tempest born.
One with nature's searing surge,
I am consumed when we converge.
Copyright, 7-3-2026
Yet another vestige of love lost
whetted cheeks and swollen eyes
life's cruel moments wreak havoc
within the softness of one's heart.
A heart stops beating with malice
the breath gone in a rattle and hum
final whispers and the brain quivers
dormant pulse and a bluish pallor.
The tempest roars insatiably loud
a body can be lost, never to be found
great ships disintegrate upon granite
lives are left, penned on parchment.
The Reaper stares jubilant from rocks
as a grand lighthouse loses once more.
Clothing and splintered wood float by
as rubble and rabble left on the shore.
In a stormy gale, glows a freakish orb
slapped by the tail of a golden stingray
harbinger doomed in a soulless sky
tears in the torrent beget a dark night.
Written: May 21, 2026, for a contest sponsored by Bj Legros Kelley
Checked by howmanysyllables.com
1st place contest winner
******************
whitecaps whip the bay
west wind wrestles restless waves ~
salt sprays silver light
T’is calm ‘ere the rain
Wind nippy at dusk
Making joints to pain
Teeth, chatter, to task
Birds back to nest
In an envelope, dark
Awaiting the tempest
To make its mark
From afar, small deal
On site, t’is more serious
Brollies and coats for real
The deluge will be furious
Lasts a while ,then abates
Tropical clime at best
The land now procreates
Dust to put, to rest
The rhythm and rhyme
To repeat many a time
When blackest night of yesterdays doth creep,
And grief's cold dagger twists within the breast,
Depression's leaden chains forbid all sleep,
In tombs of past the living heart finds rest.
When anxious fires consume the trembling soul,
And phantom terrors of the days unborn
Like howling tempests rack the mind's control,
In future's void the weary spirit's torn.
Yet sweet the hour when peace at last descends,
And present's golden light doth softly shine;
No ghost of sorrow, no tomorrow rends
The quiet joy that blooms in this divine.
O mortal, break these chains of then and when--
Live thou in Now, and be made whole again.
tempest pools
he works all day
my woodman
he deserves some play
some interchange in tempest pools
my woodman makes me sigh
he makes me giggle
his pleasure’s my triumph
whatever I do is exchanged for better
my woodman’s prodigal tongue
sparks soul-confirming oaths
I lose myself
Lucky me
I have a woodman
the gipsy's cool audacity
and I’ve known the charms of love
.
.
Songs for this:
Teach Me Tonight by James Taylor
Everytime You Make Me Smile by Massimo Costa & Mika Logo
I'll Tumble 4 Ya by Culture Club
The starting line in the short run
a tempest of tension
At the finish, bursts the tape
release of aggression
In the long run, the lines reverse
the start relaxes into stride…
Crescendoing to the end, where
is felt a frenzied, fateful tide
My heart opens to burning desire
Joy crosses the shadow and breathes fire
I walk along the edge of silence
Fear whispers low and pulls me dire
Hope rises bright and draws me higher
Your voice awakens a new dawn
Tenderness flows softly on
I stand facing quiet doubt
Anger rumbles, heavy and drawn
Love returns, stronger than before dawn
She wish we could only be justly friends,
Keep desirable distance off love's tempest;
Tempting her turbulent sea; my rod blends...
Downwards be parted to wet her banks' dust.
I am no one's boyfriend for all love cares,
Gearing up chilling pressure fun does slick
Of calm moments messed up in thrilling tears,
Or of joy that flow down the spine of trick.
She have given it a deep thought per chance,
Love staged aright between flaw and flow...
Whether it won't end up been a hopeless trance,
Or become real by which love truly grow.
Desiring dream daring delightful date,
Lasting lovely life labels loosely late.
Ice, what do I imagine.
So far away, I’m floating.
At a distance, I see
the problem, but can’t
make it out. Will my lights
go out; will I freeze?
Blanketed by ice, arctic
circulation - thank the Lord
I have another body
to keep me warm.
Ice falling from frigid sky;
the tempest of crystals.
Will I survive this attack
to the South as the North
L A U G H S!
Stuck in ice, on T O P
of a hill, with curvy driveway.
New car underneath cover.
Here comes the ice, the bite
from a monster storm -
the North laughs with
twinkling eyes. The shelves
are empty in the stores.
But see me, cousin, with
icy brows, frozen fingertips,
no lights, no television.
I’m floating on the sea;
can’t make out what
will become of me. Woe
is me. I’ve eaten chicken
fingers in frozen form.
I’m an animal. Electricity.
This tempest hasn’t even warmed,
but the warning from my dreams
is on fire; glacier imaginations
inside my head - icicles form.
Survival of the fittest Southerner;
a crack of thunder, ice, ice wonder.
Floating, at a distance, cousin.
Clouds collapse into themselves, a restless gathering on the horizon,
The air is thick with electricity and unseen pressure,
All at once, the sky cracks open—
A jagged brilliance, white and sharp,
Splits the darkness, rattling bones and silence.
Horizontal rain erupts—not drops, but sheets,
Carving the world into fragments,
Vision blurred and uncertain,
Wind screams, unbound by order,
Wrenches branches, hurls debris,
The world bends beneath its force,
A raw exhibition of nature’s indifference.
Windows pulse with thunder, trembling glass,
Lights flicker, shadows multiply,
Inside, a pulse—steady, instinctual,
Waits for the storm’s rage to subside,
For the hush to gather again at the door,
For the air to return, soft and clear.
The memory of chaos lingers, just beyond the pane.
Tempest Poetry Contest
1/20/2026
Sponsored by: Robert James Liguori
The tempest kicked my door in twice,
spilled thunder like bad gambling dice,
lightning argued with the sky.
Roofs took flight, quite unprepared,
trees complained it wasn’t fair,
even rain rolled its eyes at me.
I stood soaked through, profoundly small,
negotiating with the squall,
promising tea if it would hush.
The storm replied with extra wind,
as if to say, “Don’t kid, old friend,”
then tripped me with a flying leaf.
Still, somewhere past the noisy fuss,
beneath the chaos making a mess,
my heart rehearsed a quieter joke:
if peace won’t come by sunny means,
I’ll laugh it in between the screams,
and wait the tempest out, politely.
Sub Categories
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.