MAID OF ORLÉANS
Poem written for and submitted to “Myth and Memory” Poetry Contest, Vanya Evangeline, sponsor.
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A warrior saint came from the plains of rural France,
a beautiful maiden named Joan, dressed in simple clothes,
not of noble lineage, but of modest beginnings
her faith unmatched.
Shielded by heavenly whispers,
she took up a religious cause~
mounted on horseback, brandishing God’s mighty saber,
she fought for her country in the name of the Lord.
Unscathed from battle she emerged,
waving her banner of courage throughout the land,
but treason and betrayal
would one day bring her untimely end.
Alone she stood in the court of politicians,
falsely accused and forsaken; yet,
in the face of pain, Joan’s faith and resolve
would not be contained, her spirit and fortitude remained.
The humble shepherdess warrior, was bound to a stake
her body consumed by fire, her valor inspirational.
This humble warrior saint, later canonized and martyred,
continues to embolden and enthrall.
Hello, my most esteemed poets,
I am trying an experiment that I believe has not been done here on the PS site. I have posted a new poetry contest called "The Prismatic Self: A Gauntlet of Mirrors within the Arena.".
The JUDGES have now been selected:
1. Lin Lane
2. Ink Empress
3. Duke Beaufort
4. Vanya Evangeline
5. Anne Winter
6. Hiya Sharma
7. Andrea Dietrich
8. Daniel Rodgers
Since only one person can view the contest, all contestants' submissions will be distributed between the group for input and ratings. When the contest is complete and we have the final list of winners, we will have personal insights from all the judges for each winner and all honorable mentions.
Thank you for your time and patience
Blessings,
Daniel
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i felt like a princess
going off to the ball
dressed to the nines
my hair all done up
in ribbons ‘n curls
glittery earrings
long silky gloves
ran up both my arms
i put on my glass slippers
hoped to be swept off my feet
and dance the whole night away
the length of my train sway and sway
i got to the venue the music delightful
soon i was spinning whirling and twirling
a prima ballerina pirouetting and waltzing
showing off all my very best ballroom moves
i swept the floor as wide and gracefully as i could
all night rock ‘n rolling in rhythm ad libbing freestyle
the orchestra was on fire with hits one after the other
out of nowhere the stroke of midnight did surprise me
so i picked up my dress finding the exit as quick as i could
executed a quick curtsy and reverence before disappearing
AP: 2nd place 2025, 3rd place 2020
Submitted on February 20, 2025 for contest POETRY COMES IN ALL KINDS OF SHAPE sponsored by VANYA EVANGELINA - Honorable Mention
and December 18, 2019 for contest N-A RERUN 4 sponsored by JOHN HAMILTON - RANKED 3RD
In competition, neck and neck
They held each other's pace.
The crowd was rooting silently
The whole entire race.
The both of them so well-prepared,
They'd practiced and they'd trained,
So every possibility
Their brains had entertained.
The final minutes soon approached
And I was thrilled to see
Both Vanya* and Gokul* were winners
Of the Spelling Bee!
*Vanya Shivashankar and Gokul Venkatachalam
were declared co-winners of the 2015
Scripps National Spelling Bee last night.
We used to lick our postage stamps
To stick them on a letter;
But now the stamps do self-adhere,
Yet does that make life better?
And that’s how Vanya’s rant begins
In Chris Durang’s new play*
Which I feel very privileged
To have watched and loved today.
The character bemoans the fact
That life has changed so much;
Today we need technology
Like weakness needs a crutch.
And though life seems much easier,
It comes at quite a cost.
The things that once connected us
Have somehow all been lost.
The younger generation
Can’t remember stamps we licked;
And the old days being better
They would surely contradict.
*”Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike”
i liked vanyas story
with which i could relate.
Dead on the inside
then engulfed by your fate.
when you've always been nothing,
"special" just doesn't fit snuggly
and thats when the whole world turns
much more ugly
and we play for the apocolypse
because we all need to die.
Vanya and i didn,t need to be special,
we just wanted to try.
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