Spiteful words spoken can never be unheard.
AP: 1st place 2026
Say it once, say it twice
mad folk yell, it’s not nice.
When the brain, fires in haste
lest a thought falls to waste
tie sour tongues; iron deep frowns
rough hewn gifts don't cast clowns.
Widen your spheres; hone words truly
Great minds bounce; no acts unruly.
.
"say what"
we're talk'n
cabbage eve
,)>
I have gone wooing
Altruism's cycle goes round
Amalgam the temple of sweet cunny moments plying
And the flattering of been crowned
I'v come to surrender
I know distance is key
I know how arid motility alter
Whence the glee desire seeming flee
He rode in with the sunset, spurs jinglin’ low,
A smile like the desert, where nothin’ can grow.
She’d heard his sweet talk once, thought she was wise,
But a cowboy’s charm is a devil in disguise.
He fooled her once with a wink and a grin,
Promised her love like the wide-open wind.
She swore she’d never fall again for his lies,
But the second time ’round, he caught her by surprise.
This time he spoke softer, said vows under skies,
Slipped a ring on her finger, put stars in her eyes.
She gave him her trust, her heart, and her hand,
Believed she was safe with her cowboy then.
A baby soon cried in the still of the night,
She rocked that child by the lantern light.
She thought it was love, thought it was true—
But dang, she was wrong… he fooled her times two.
Now the prairie wind whispers of lessons hard-earned,
Of bridges once trusted that’ll never return.
For a cowgirl’s heart, though broken and scarred,
Rides stronger alone than with love that’s charred.
Time can be most unforgiving.
Once wasted you can't get it back.
Living with regrets is wretched.
Wordku: 5-7-5 words
AP: Honorable Mention 2026
There’s a Turkish saying —
“If you truly love someone, you love them twice.”
I want you to love me for the first time—
to feel that fearless rush
when our eyes first lock.
I want the scent of my perfume
to linger deep within your soul,
and my eyes to pierce your heart
as you glance at lips
still stained with shades of dusk.
And then,
I want to be loved again.
Love me when the waves kiss the sand.
Love me when each month, for days, I lose my spark.
Love me when the day kisses the moon at night.
Love me, so much that when it gets dark
you can guide me back to the light.
Love me once,
and then another time.
Love me still.
Love me steady.
Love me at will.
Love me always—
in peace,
in quiet.
Love me twice.
Reason, are you thinking twice?
Idea, freely roll.
Poison, pen, and paradise!
Grind the golden goal!
When do dreams hit deck deterred?
Carrion crow, thy bird.
When the winner comes in third!
Anguish, how you stirred!
Hell and Heaven, hither hie.
All good people lie?
Warrior wounded, thy cold cry!
Dismay means to die...
Tympani, tomorrow.
Roll like a river deep.
Source, sail through the sorrow.
Caiman, time to creep.
Weather? It gets cold outside.
Weakness? Best to hide.
Windmill? Charge and woe betide.
Wharf rats have no pride.
Jamboree, thy goers.
O party, hand out fun.
Lawn, best call thy mowers.
O sugar, best get spun.
Dark fire, with me one more time!
Burn in riddles black!
Breaker point, upon me rhyme!
Heart of mine, attack!
Gods of death, deal wisdom out!
Suffering, to come!
O steppe horseman, when to shout?
When you have no drum...
twice encapsulated, contents delish
shelled black walnuts
Ah, the innocence of youth
to recapture it, forsooth
Pursue new kinds of pleasures
~ ditch the gin with vermouth
In vast realm between both false realities
efforts of a strained bowel movement collapse
like the arithmetic dreams of abacus beads.
Arthritic persistence contemplates procrastination
while stillborn attempts at cleverness
seem to flicker as defibrillator paddles exchange electrons.
You can’t revive what wasn’t alive.
I once worked with two carpenters
who could never agree on anything.
One would measure the length
The other would intentionally cut it wrong.
The end result was
they never accomplished anything
left their “problem” to be resolved
by those who replaced them.
I want to disappear
Into the fluffy clouds,
Unafraid to fall,
Unafraid to go astray.
I want to disappear
Into the vast oceans,
Unafraid to drown,
Unafraid to fade away.
I want to disappear
Into the towering mountains,
Unafraid to stumble,
Unafraid to lose my way.
I want to disappear
Into nature's endless beauty
To look at them once,
To look at them twice,
To look at the forever,
And still smile.
20/12/24
Today again I turn to the words of Kahlil Gibran…
and share with you his sage advice:
To be able to look back on one’s life with satisfaction…
(is one way)…to live twice.
Today again I turn to the words of Kahlil Gibran…
and share with you his sage advice:
To be able to look back on one’s life with satisfaction…
(is one way)…to live twice.
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