Flaming red vault of heaven
Regal orb affluence of seven
AP: Honorable Mention 2026
Star of the Sea, dolorous and Byzantine,
throw your royal blue cloak over me,
She who weeps, La Llorona in Kahlo’s Casa Azul, paint my heart
gold under a prehistoric cobalt blue vault of heaven,
The blue! The blue! I am spellbound by the blue!
Lapis and lavender blues of a shining Limoges Mary
And lotuses on faded old Amarna tiles whisper me tales
binding me to the secrecy of an ethereal blue rose,
Azure tropical waves caress a shore strewn with white coral,
Lady Isis, come into a sea-turtle guided dream;
Sky blue rays and fiery blue flames, walk with me and scribe my
Destiny on your crystalline turquoise tablets in etheric Gothic,
Turn me into pure sapphire light,
I am swooning into the soothing blue of every iris and cornflower,
The strange bird that had been singing all along in my heart --
it is blue
they rose majestic and magnificent
and swirled before my eyes
they stole my breath my heart
transported floated in the skies
and to the count of seven
I stood suspended in the vault of heaven
AP: 1st place 2025
Lugubrious blue mood skies funereal and morose shed raindrops,
they unleash tableau vivant torrent’s wet tranche,
blessing, bane or boon from vault of heaven,
damp pearl blob bewitching moisture mellow morph form,
the stuff of less than benign grumpy weather grouch,
whose plight infuses yen for sun-drenched bliss,
haven of the ultra-violet swathe enthusiast,
for others raindrops are a liquid gem relish firmament bequeathed,
to whet voracious craving of nascent pastures,
whose gaunt green blade emaciating stillborn,
that aqueous honey to hue-blazed floral garden in situ bloomers,
who swallow cloudburst drizzle meed in muted slurps,
droplet streak and spiral bubble patten on top hung awning window,
empyrean tear beads that roof top tap dance ritual,
so tantalising to the awestruck spellbound eardrum,
or impromptu downward dribbles on romantic saunterers,
prompting boisterous laughter as they flaunt their dome transparent chromium truss umbrella,
those enraptured red-blooded refugees beneath tilting gust spun bumbershoot,
as mud splatter cherry cheek urchins shriek,
amid the spray and splash globules at agile finger tips
In life’s incessant din
As I search for peace within
Lone spaces I desire
And stillness I adore
Then silence is my mate
And noise is what I hate
Closing my eyes to the outer space
A window opens to my inner space
I begin to find solace in my solitude
And look up to Heaven in gratitude
Enriched with visions pleasurable
I enter into a realm so delectable
The vault of Heaven gemmed and bright
And the Earth and sea overwhelmed in light
The disquiet within me subsides
An unassailable calm slowly descends
I hear a caring voice from somewhere
A faint voice quite reassuring, so near
Then within me the Wider Life emerges
And the lesser life finally submerges
I experience what is true peace and content
And I am so sure it is heaven sent
Oh! What solace is in my solitude!
And how I move into near beatitude!
Jan.31.2023
Finding Peace Poetry Contest
Sponsor- Regina McIntosh
A rainbow looms outside the window
however, she lingers quietly
for the slight strips to portray twilight
as her predominant shrewdness
strive exegesis in the vault of heaven
and they retain the darkness
captivating promises flavor edible orbs
she is doused with succulence
soulful craving skin in hellish bliss
solely for squander
where there is crown motionless
is shattered by midnight rhapsody.
3rd Place Contest Winner
Written: July 07, 2022
A BRIAN STRAND PREMIERE CHOICE Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Brian Strand
A rain cloud gliding like a dove
Between the vault of heaven above
And the parched land below
June.8.2022
Placed Tenth
A Brian Strand Premiere Choice Poetry Contest
Deliver me into blue oh ocean blue and glide me through your waters blue
Sail me to the waves of calm waters in silence, motion me to your waters
as the foam gathers round the edges of the shore, hold me still as I breathe
(BREATH IN - HOLD - OUT)
Turquoise dreams of mermaids and colored fish that swim freely
floating joyfully between blades of grass and seaweed. Join the magic of
the sea dear heart, observe the ocean floor with all its ancient treasures
explore and adore each colorful fish
(BREATH IN - HOLD - OUT)
There in the deep lo and behold is an ancient ship anchored so deep.
Walk into the ship and explore. Open the abandoned treasure box.
Inside on a blue velvet cloth lies the Sacred Mystical Opal. Pick it up
and cradle it in your hands. It has the ability to heal you to the core.
(BREATH IN - HOLD - OUT)
Into the vault of heaven it once was kept but this evening the Angels
have placed it under the sea just for you. It is a gift from your Celestial
Father. Hold it to your heart and give thanks.
An amber moon rises...
Hanging at the Edge of the World.
Against that oily old black sky;
Heaven's Infinite Stage.
Its Grace is old and precise.
A curious, hue of Cyclopean pyres,
slicing the Waning Orb, high!
It emerges to start the Ancient Night.
A cycle as old and eternal as Time.
As inevitable as Death.
As the empty vault of heaven is illuminated
by the amber moon of winter's Icy Eminence
it waltz's the seas of Dreams. Precise!
Darkness sparkles with the sliver of the sun's reflection...
All are awash on celestial seas,
sparkling crystal waves crash on brilliant shores.
On Heaven's Infinite stage
an amber moon reaches its zenith...
At the edge of
Heaven's Eternal Black Sea!
Where a newborn star lights
the vault of heaven under the sky
sapphire, high!
You can find it there,
Not the product of a god or some such!
But, man in his madness brings annihilation
to the makers, the father of the nation,
a nations ghost the dire lands divide….
Figures in raven cloaks flock in murders
of black cabals each a deity in mind
each a quest for inner peace
or damnation an automatic life…
When deviations dire provide the profits of war
and genocidal corporations' greed, seed, needs
and design desires flesh and bone born to non!
Black suited witches and three-piece warlocks
reside in cathedrals of suicide watch!
The automatic atomic night rises like a mantle
of ravens at mass genocides, men of madness
and dire means drive engines of earth demise!
The destination and ruination of all our lives…
Where a newborn star lights the vault
of heaven under the sky sapphire, high!
I shift the car into drive
it slides into the vast
mystery of night
far down the road passes
A road less traveled by the masses
A dark vault of heaven encompasses
as sleep drifts
stars flair here and there
into the deep depth
far away into endless darkness
cities of man burn on the horizon
miles are far and away
lost by the side of the highway
seeing Zion far far behind
Drawn deep into the early dawn
the road flows to the point of vanishing
A mystery within the mystery, majesty
of the enigmatic night
Horizon is where my future awaits
in the borderlands fleeting
From the sacred and profane
I sit and contemplate
I shift the car into drive
turning the car into the coming
storm far on the seam
headlights cutting gloom deep
I shift the engine into drive
down a road, less traveled upon.
Glowing gas station lights, bright
In the smooth endless night
The car rambles on
Down the desolate road
Many shadows have past
Where the indigo black sky is filled
Stars spangle the vault of heaven
Where it meets the horizons gated ledge
Alone on the road
The need drops to close so close to “E”
Almost empty…
An alabaster sundog dangles
In the blue vault of heaven.
Great expectations lie at my feet.
The horizon holds much promise.
It feels like God's divine benediction
To meet a brand new dawn
In this birth month of mine.
At long last, October dawn comes
Stealing up again
In all it's captivating splendor.
My spirits sing hallelujah;
Swirling around with unquestioning glee.
October Poetry Contest (N/A)
Sponsored by Regina McIntosh
Date written: 10/03/2021
Oh, Death where is your ring?
How many more moons will crown the vault of Heaven
Ere’ your folded, flesh-starved fingers
Surround bells that toll
Will you approach, hearing my cries
Rising from the depths of despair
Begging for you specter
Longing to taste your stale breath
Across my lips
Cruelly ignoring my last song
Tarrying within the darkness
Of wicked reverie and irrevocable return
A sneer scintillating deadly desires
Oh, Death lay bare how long
Ere’ the blade in my hand’s
Querulous path draws forth
Crimson streams freeing the scars of misery
Discharging the captor called Opium
Come, whisper caustic rhymes in my ear
Exhaling breath tainted
With the stench of annihilation
Usher me into your bosom
Persuade my wavering hand
To carve away
Etching an endless trail
Of miserly shame
Doing what the gods denied
Doing...
What I have been unable to do
outside, an incomprehensible moon hover
behind wisp fingers gracious poise across vast sky
boisterous songbird-swallows touch by the tease
opalescent wisp of light prance around them
muffle yawning lull wild succumb to slumber
savor fresh breath beneath the vault of heaven
8/6/2021
Sub Categories
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.