As it was our last night in Santander
we went out for a meal somewhat grander
Perusing the set menu I did choose
three courses with complementary booze
The waiter who came a glass did pour
leaving the bottle for me to have more.
How generous this seemed at such a good price –
those refills of wine did more than suffice;
yet what remained seemed such a shame to waste,
so I poured a glass for Olivia to taste.
With adventures in Spain so soon to lapse
we were thankful for all we'd enjoyed and relaxed.
Soon came the time to our room to adjourn,
I felt in control and steady for the return.
But on our departure I missed a step
and fell to the left. So I must accept
that a glass too many had been imbibed.
Down on the street, Olivia at my side,
a trinity of youths then rushed to my aid,
an old man on the floor before them splayed.
Muchas grazias, I said, when stood upright
relieved to be unhurt on our last night.
Only one rewind--
no more,
no less.
I scroll through the years…
like a hallway of doors.
Some glow with regret ,
some whisper with possibility.
But I would pause before the one
where my stories first came alive -
when " fine " meant “ unhurt!”
I’d open it gently , and
find the version of me shaking,
beneath her careful smile ,
I’d kneel beside her and whisper ...
“ Being afraid doesn’t make you any less worthy of love! ”
Then I’d slip back
into the living quiet of this day.
Softened ,
by the truth
I finally carried home.
written 11272025_Trang Province
Some days I want to die,
I want the pain to end,
None of my texts send,
There’s a stain on my shirt,
Why am I so alert?
How are you unhurt?
I can’t remember where it came from,
White turns red,
I can’t forget the words he said,
Now my white shirt is red,
Everything you said repeats in my head,
Give me back my mind,
All that’s there are the memories you signed,
On days I want to die
I know I must survive,
The one who brings my pain,
I won’t let you gain
For another shed his blood like rain,
As I watch the stain spread until all is red,
And I hear what he said,
I remember,
I do not bleed alone,
For another’s blood was shed for me,
When I cannot see,
And pain is all that guides me,
I remember,
An innocent killed,
300 prophecies fulfilled,
A love so strong,
He forgives every wrong,
His words a song,
Now I belong
He holds me through the pain,
Satan shall make no gain,
Every breath a reminder of who was slain,
In Jesus’ name I proclaim:
“Please take this pain,
For it is you who does reign,”
They walked with me across the bridge,
Holding onto the sides to keep it steady.
I took careful steps,
But they assured me that it was firm.
I walked across unhurt.
They accompanied me through the meadow,
Where I was afraid of the taunting shadows.
They promised to brighten their lamps,
And the light dispersed the shadows,
Leaving us no longer trailed by the night.
They journeyed with me through the mire,
Though I feared the depth beneath us.
They held my hands and lifted me,
And as I looked to my right and left,
They smiled at me,
So I navigated through the muck but didn’t sink.
They travelled with me across the sea,
They carried me on their shoulders.
When we reached the middle of the sea,
Suddenly, they disappeared.
I fell, plunging into the depths,
Struggling to rise to the surface.
As I sank, I saw an approaching hand,
And I remain within this vision.
September 1, 2025.
Glenn Hughes Poetry Contest- RJL, Inspired by Glenn Hughes - BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION - BCC V (2024) RESTLESS (Hughes/Bonamassa)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Travel on
Soul, help me through this life
Many mistakes
Done just to thrive
Oh, yes, I did do
I remain
Searching to undo
The wrongs
I love to live true
Learn to talk to me
Guide me all along
I’ve failed to find you
As you hide deep inside
So feeble your voice
So feeble you speak
I come across
Hundred more instances a day
Minds of complexity
I can’t read their way
Can’t you, the know-all
Help me get along
Unhurt by any
None hurt by me
Guide me always, at all times
You better talk to me, Soul
Somewhere from deep inside me
Learn to talk to me not so feebly
In this life polite
Help me catch the vision of Him
To be worthy of Him
I have to walk in truth’s glaring light
I do
Harbor Forgiveness
His uproar was clear and overt
damage our love in one spurt
wreck Twenty-Ninteen (2019) “Home Port” chert
My soul is deeply deeply burnt
Pure kindhearted intent converts
to mistrust dreadful disconcert
mom, dad overly protection subverts
son’s golden career –- ugly divert
Three against one was no flirt
Cruel heartbreak alone in desert
Heal my ache in bitter dim yurt
I’d rather curse pain than hurt
Why is it, when my heart is hurt
I’d give a sigh of high alert
Will our gentle courtship be revert?
Self-healing must reassert
Again, again forgive to unhurt
Harbor forgiveness free the hurt
There are three colors I see
Meaning freedom for you and me
Because you fight weeks and months too
Defending our red, whit, and blue
Risking your life night and day
Every time you go away
Your heart is filled with new emotions
But through the hell and commotion
You stay strong and really steady
When needed you will be ready
To utilize the skills from training
But it is silently raining
From you eyes when loved ones send
A care package or a friend
Sends a letter saying they
Hope your safe and soon one day
A welcome home parade will find
The sorrow of war is behind
Bringing all the heroes home
Families no longer alone
Babies being seen and held
As a warm touch makes you melt
With so much love that's been waiting
Joy and happiness creating
Smiles of hope all around
Returning unhurt, safe and sound
Lighting candles for those who
Lost their lives for what they do
America will always be here
Sending out the loudest cheer
Soldiers can keep in their hearts
The next time they soon depart
Needing a reason to go on
When faith and hope fade and are gone
Igba Irunmole,
These armies in bright blinding splendour,
Arrayed in unfathomable beauties,
Winged being from beyond the galaxies’
Tracking the blues skies unnoticed,
They walk this earth, unseen by mortal eyes,
Igba Irumole,
Sparkling in beauty, I marked their glowing gaze,
In radiance beyond sunlight,
Watching the sons of men day and night,
Though as servants attending,
Yet as warriors in readiness,
They weary themselves unseen by mortals,
Igba Irunmole
They cover the winds in clouds,
Sprinting through sunlight unhurt,
They mingle in lights with glorious enthusiasm,
Constrained by frequent grandeur
Parading this widening landscape
Igba Irunmole
Is this His beauty? a delightful sunbeam,
Buries my gaze in a blindfold of horror
Well nigh to the end of life,
This frame so frail mingled with pains
A strength not mine imbued within,
There I saw my fickle frame.
footnote . Igba Irunmole translated into English Are myriads of Angels
Igba is number count in Yoruba Language,
Irumole, Iru awon oni Imole, the bearers of Light
with eyes the glow of warmth
with ears the softness of a lullaby sung
with fingers the zing and zang of titillating touch
with tongue the tang on taste buds
with nose the wafts of aromas swirling in spirals
your being is feelings felt,
satiated, unhurt.
A friend on whom you can always depend,
To whom your helping hand you can extend.
To you, he is an oasis in a desert,
In whose company you find yourself unhurt.
In troubled waters, he becomes your anchor;
In financial crisis, he is your reliable banker.
To your earnest requests, he says not ‘no’;
He is ever ready to defend you in one go.
Why all this? He is your alter ego!
FRIENDSHIP Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Beata Agustin
Date: 06-08-2022
First Place
Clemency
A lifetime of experiences
the struggle is to be willing remembering them
as there are large holes calling certain events
are pushed aside.
What was said or done
in the cusp of youth, I forgive myself
with a shrug.
What was done in the middle years
is a matter that cannot be glossed over.
No, it is not about forgiveness
but the acceptance we are not perfect
and thus, be more lenient
when we are trespassed upon.
I will not choose bitterness for slights done.
The river near the houses is now a trickle
soon it will be an ugly scar
across the landscape.
Once we swam her and made love by the river´s bank.
Blessed is the cynical unhurt striding through life.
A man was swallowed by a whale
And lived to tell this humpback tale.
While lobster fishing, suddenly,
Below the waters of the sea,
He felt a bump then all went dark.
In fear, he thought it was a shark.
Not feeling pain, which sure was good,
He was confused, then understood
He’d somehow gotten swallowed whole
By some huge whale out on patrol
To catch himself a seafood meal;
He luckily did not appeal.
For after 30 seconds passed,
The whale spit out a giant blast
Of what he knew did not belong;
The fisherman just tasted wrong.
His buddy pulled him on the boat;
A happy ending, I will note.
Not many do survive, unhurt,
Rejected as a whale’s dessert.
Devastation turned to joy
when searchers heard a muffled sound
and found a tiny, frightened boy
beneath the rubble on the ground.
He lay, unhurt, surrounded by
the storm's debris and clinging to
a blanket. He began to cry,
as did the entire rescue crew.
Still holding to that blanket, he
was lifted from the ruins while
nearby his grieving family,
though lying injured, soon would smile.
Like trinkets, trees and home were tossed
throughout the town, but on that day
of miracles, no lives were lost.
They'll rise, rebuild, rejoice, and pray.
October 20, 2020
entered in Craig Cornish's After the Hurricane Contest
R oses of pink are for me
O n this stem I do look and see
S weet smells you can breathe
E yes love pink roses for free
T he thorns will hurt
H ere I protect my stem skirt
O h red blood will squirt
R un a knife down so you will be unhurt
N ow enjoy without a flirt
Date Written: 7/5/2020
Acrostic Rhyme
4 Place The Flower, The Thorn Or Both Contest Judged: 7/11/2020
Sponsored by: Chantelle Anne Cooke
On a serious note
Fellow poets, please
Open your hearts to send
with alacritous speed
Healing wishes to a poet in need
Our dear friend, Heidi Sands
can use all of our helping hands
She's taken sick in New Hampshire
a virtual medical desert
May she recover completely unhurt
Sub Categories
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