years have taken their toll
that's how we roll
we do our very best
and let go of the rest
we watch our life go by
and try our best not to cry
the world is in bad shape
i'm choking on a sour grape
AP: 2nd place 2025
Too late...for first impressions
Too late...for last reflections
Too late...for long discussions
Too late...for lost objections
Too late...for mending fences
Too late...for new romances
Too late...to pay the Piper
Too late...for second chances
Too late!!!
It started off so well, so good,
Every language we spoke, understood.
Forever, we thought, it would last,
Yet somehow, those moments slipped past.
We carried happy souls inside,
But now we ride a different tide.
To make amends, it’s not too late,
Yet pride keeps tossing feelings like fate.
Yes, things aren’t well, yet we let them slide,
Waiting for truth, while we choose what to hide.
We listen to what we want to hear,
Even when the answers are crystal clear.
You’ve been hurt, called names, misunderstood,
Yet here you remain—resilient, and good.
I know I’ve done things I cannot undo,
Actions and words you never knew.
But not all that’s spoken tells the truth,
Some are lies, some shadows of youth.
As the saying goes, though friends may stay,
Not all hearts wish us well along the way.
Be careful with kindness, don’t give it away..
Too much of it leads the heart astray.
It’s not always ego when drawing a line..
Sometimes it’s courage.. a much healthier sign.
In the end, it’s just you in the fight..
So guard your peace, and sleep well at night.
Things will shift and people will stray..
Be true to yourself, and don’t be afraid..
All great things begin with a spark..
A dream ignites through the cold and the dark.
Goodbyes may sting, but don’t resist..
Some exits lead to paths you missed.
Tune in to your soul, its quiet, wise beat..
Not noise and chaos where loud voices meet.
A "no" that’s true beats a "yes" that’s fake..
Better for the heart, than a promise that breaks.
You played with fire, and yes, you were burned..
Every scar a reminder of something you learned.
And though attention may shine and fade..
Respect is always the sweeter accolade.
aborted ambitions
time squandered
dreams abandoned
a life mismanaged
a ship with
no one at the helm
subject to the currents
and the whim of winds
idle and adrift
we've run out of options
out of time and
out of excuses
AP: Honorable Mention 2025
Submitted on June 2, 2025 for contest YOUR CHOICE T sponsored by BRIAN STRAND - Honorable Mention
Not so much
a lie
with little
truth to tell
Not so much
goodbye
with greetings
gone to hell
Not so much
romance
with feelings
dead or pawned
Not so much
to dream
with sleep
— bereft and gone
(Bryn Mawr College: May, 2025)
do you think that it is a date?
is it too late to clarify?
is it too late to take?
to take back the words I always would say?
do you think that it is a date?
watch horror movies over call?
Is it too late,
to tell you that I don't like horror?
did you take that the wrong way?
not in movies, not on dates
I don't like horror
I meant it as a date
I regret it
but it is too late
No, it's not too late;
It's n e v e r too late
to make your wrongs right,
to chase after dreams,
to a p o l o g i z e.
It's not too late
to fall in love,
to tell someone
your true feelings...
or to try
again, as
long as you
have breath
within...
you.
Shadows fall too deep,
Empty crown, a silent plea,
Justice sleeps below.
©bfa032325
the pulse of humanity
shudders in throbbing pain
meanwhile muffled cries of hopelessness
await redemption as tears of time
may possibly wash away
man's devastation
AP: 3rd place 2025
Opportunities come in varying disguises
Chances missed always causes disgusts
Nevertheless, time always is evolving.
The wheel can't be reinvented but requires
improving
Too Many Too Late. Time and chance has passed.
The next generation will seize the moment that is paused.
(Written 12th March, 2025)
It is not too late,
To learn how to extrapolate,
As your ideas may not resonate,
With those who see the future state,
Of things, if your ideas are allowed to eventuate,
With no time to contemplate,
What could end up on our plate.
I woke up morning late,
oh, forsake I hope I’m not late.
Black Friday!
It’s that time of year.
The official season for shoppers is here.
I hustle simultaneously with rut of shoppers,
on the road flocking to stores and malls,
while some shop by phones making calls.
To bustle for the best deal to get.
When prices plummet, the steal is set.
I shop like it’s a reality game,
to see how much money I save,
does what consider for me to gain.
That too impulsive will bring buyer pain.
Like a rollercoaster up and down the aisle I peek,
greeting shoppers with smile as I seek.
The aisles are a ruinous display from shoppers.
I am in shattered by the fact,
where on the shelves my item lacks.
I did not consider the timing,
now too late for Christmas finding.
Too late Cock, too late, dawn missed.
Your 'cock-a-doddle do' laments in the mist!
For your alarm is set too late to matter,
Too late, to make selfish greed smash and shatter.
In days gone by, humankind once believed,
That common good by proxy could be achieved.
To stop climate change with a united stand.
To end the endless wars that hate fanned.
But when the day dawns it's all for one,
Not one for all that we could become.
The tragedy of the commons always has its sway
And real hope of for change is swept away.
For we always delay what we need to do,
Until its too late, or almost too late to.
Going broke
small private colleges
can't compete
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