.
five or
uv'em
one monochrome
pic
thuh
vid
close eyne
your
and wishper
su de
nombre
ella
para niñas
su de
nombre
èl
')
* when 'tome' was first used in english
it referred to a book that was part of a
larger multi-volume work
it comes from thuh werd tomos a greek
noun meaning “section” or “roll of papyrus”
merrium-webster*
who luvz yuh
,)
Once upon a time
I set out to write a story
about going to north Africa
arriving in Ceuta
things were all in order
but no sooner on the bus
than detected reported
ejected from escorted to
and deported 'cross the border
it was to be an expensive
soft leather-covered book
and altho' I took
more than one look
I could not find the words
would fill a tome
and so
tho' second-best
I settled for less
and instead
I wrote this pome
I do not have the time to write a tome
I’ve just too much to do right here at home
I dread the thing that calls with vapid tone
That distant idle chirping of my phone
And yet I must abide and scan the screen
Perhaps it’s something I have never seen
Or worse an urgent message from a teen
Saying the Irish whiskey turned him green
And yet my fingers love the keyboard dance
My mind in fevered harness longs to prance
Upon the snow cap whiteness take a chance
Somehow the empty pages to enhance
Yet I am stuck at home a wingless drone
Resembling the forests aging crone
Subject to a curse turned youth to stone
A voice of cryptic curses to intone
Thus do ancient fingers keyboard dance
The challenge always there to take a chance
Put on your dancing shoes and boldly prance
To hell with those who say “you’re old…you can’t”
Familiarity
Familiar as an old book,
but priceless.
Worn and frayed like,
an ancient tome.
Pages bent and torn,
heavily perused.
Annotated musings scribbled
bring back memories.
The shininess, sexiness, luster,
crispness of new pages,
new cover long gone.
Marriage is like that old book.
Now used, worn and tattered,
but warmer, deeper, richer.
Wine colored sand dunes
An old tome lays unscathed
Under Peter's feet.
I think that I shall pen a tome
an ink stained wandering lengthy poem
that questions all that is and ain’t
that holds you still like drying paint
A brood of words undisciplined
gutted fish no longer finned
thrashing on the sands of time
mouths agape in search for rhyme
I must confess I love the drama
so shun the use of every comma
and periods that single dot
an endless sentence never sought
to break its wave upon the beach
unveiling useless parts of speech
to drop a line and without fail
use the Thesaurus as its bail
yet I must cut this tome quite short
as I am running out of thought
and stories long and endless seem
to lure me to another dream
thus I apologize to those who muster
all their thoughts into a cluster
serve them to us on full platters
to let us know poetry matters
John G. Lawless
©7/26/2022
WHEREVER.
Wherever, you go
I pray you always remember;
My unending concern and deepest,
Truest desires for you.
I know you may forget -
To the cruel hands of time
My long lost name,
But, still i hope you remember always
The sweet and lingering feelings
My name once denotes,
The truest intentions I have for you.
I hope you remember my smile,
Because I still see yours,
In my mind's eye
Oh how could I ever forget?
Your heart melting,
Soul stripping, charming laughter
The brightest smile, i ever came across.
I could never forget,
The mushy sonorous sound,
Of your scintillating voice,
Those sounds that silenced,
All my fears.
Wherever you may be,
I hope you are okay,
And feel proud
When you hear my name
Or think of me
Because, nothing compares,
The ecstasy I feel,
When a thought of you comes to heart.
ZIQA SONNIA GHOPS
Quatrain #833:
TOME
Trust journey trip to teach you light,
Opt with stern grip as faith moves sight;
Merge ideas deep in sacred flow,
Etch where you flip page in full flight.
~~~~~~~~~
Leon Enriquez
02 March 2018
Singapore
Quatrain #863:
TOME
Turn then the page where wise words heal,
Opt for warm stage as joy moves will;
Meet fool or sage with outlook bright,
Embrace old age that mellows feel.
~~~~~~~~~
Leon Enriquez
28 November 2017
Singapore
Quatrain #804:
TOME
Thoughts in clear flow spark a new light,
Opt to forge rhymes as charm blooms bright;
Mind and heart know a vibrant feel,
Etch grand fond times with affluence right.
~~~~~~~~~
Leon Enriquez
31 August 2017
Singapore
Quatrain #728:
TOME
Touch helps you know fond beauty bright,
Observe warm glow in love's clear light;
Make most of flow of success sound,
Embrace wise show of ample sights.
~~~~~~~~~
Leon Enriquez
30 May 2017
Singapore
Quatrain #728:
TOME
Touch helps you know fond beauty bright,
Observe warm glow in love's clear light;
Make most of flow of success sound,
Embrace wise show of ample sights.
~~~~~~~~~
Leon Enriquez
30 May 2017
Singapore
Meet sad or mad or even bad,
Yes to fond cheer as truth marks clear,
Taste treat most glad with joy not fad,
Reach far or near that touch most dear;
Empty your mind of harsh and coarse,
Ask to be true in kind and fact;
See that you find love in times hoarse,
Urge ample dues to live fine act;
Reap with pure ease despite blind fest,
Emerge from pun in chance and change.
Thrill in deep peace that flavours jest,
Observe how fun can string strange range;
Meek moments match that hidden cache,
Etch charming catch in laughter's snatch.
Leon Enriquez
13 February 2017
Singapore
It sits on a shelf, not quite by itself
Leaning on another, bored by the other
Waiting to be picked, waiting
To be held
It sits in the gloom, of a dusty room
Filled with motes and lost notes
Tomes that have gone home
Others that wished they had
It sits where it has sat
High on a shelf
Through two World Wars
A library in pause
You can see it through a window
A monograph in the murk
The work of an author long dead
Stories once read
From this bound book of poems
Stories once told, yet
No one will hold
This yellowed old tome
These sad pages of poetry
Sheets of simile
And lines of depressed rhyme
Where Silverfish have dined
As it now gathers dust
A must; if it’s to rest in peace
Amongst
This graveyard of books
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