thoughts jump
like grasshoppers
from one idea to the next
between words,
quiet spaces
say more
than we think they do
grandma's old button box
spills memories
on my desk
yesterday walks into today
like rain
through an open window
sometimes
we forget periods
and let our breathing
make the rules
poems can break their lines
anywhere
they want to rest
words stretch
like rubber bands
sometimes they snap
and fly away
half-finished sentences
can be the most
honest ones
when we're hurt,
we pretend everything
is perfectly fine
kitchens and bedrooms
hold secrets
that make us
who we really are
looking closely at the truth
even when it makes us squirm
not yes, not no
freedom lives in the maybe
wild looks like freedom
when you've been sitting
still too long
who are you?
I'm the kid
who won't stay in the box
rivers always
know their way
flowing towards
something bigger
we are the change
we want,
each small choice
creates waves
I no longer praise it, no I don’t,
I no longer call it, the Nation’s pride,
Nor do I raise it anymore, it lost value.
No, it doesn’t hold its meaning anymore.
Unity became just a word, in political rhetoric,
The thread of ubuntu isn’t strong enough to-
Hold together the colors, my flag needs sewing,
Gold, green, blue, black and white no longer wave.
The rainbow isn’t a rainbow in the absence of one color,
Bishop, for now I fold and put away your dream,
No, I will not burn it, for I still believe in the dream,
The rainbow nation is a phoenix t’will rise again and wave the colors.
Perhaps one day, the flag will mend,
And the thread of unity will unite the flag
The colors will wave, vibrant and bright,
Just like Bishop D. Tutu envisioned it.
Until then, I will hold on to the hope,
That ubuntu spirit will kick the coffin open,
The rainbow’s promise will be fulfilled,
Then that will be when I wave the flag again.
A desperate gasp
explosion damp and muffled
march of the pebbles
Waves shape the sound of soaring sea
Ride the tides of what ought to be
Layer on layer out of reach
Breaking breakers bound on our beach
Stirring swirls make clear waters curl
Rolling rumblings leap to unfurl
Watery spritz that twist then sway
As bubbled foam pulls back away
Each wave differing grasping high
Trying to touch the spacious sky
Dreams drenched in schemes form a swell
A place where long lost droplets dwell
While watching waves we hear their call
Musing their constant rise and fall
This seen so many times before
Yet one yearns to see still once more
102 words couplet 16 lines 8/25
Colored Pencil Illustration by G.Gaul
As high as you go,
You must go just as low,
It's the wave flow of life,
Carrying you where you want to go.
Muscles won't grow,
If you don't show,
Drop your fear and go,
In the direction of your connection.
Change your perception,
Experience heaven,
Fall into another lesson,
It's a natural progression.
A necessary step in ascension,
Learning to love less than,
The hand hurting you,
The fire in your view,
As you burn through the swell.
It hurts like hell,
Hard to tell if you'll make it,
Take it from me, you will.
It's a tough hill,
You have the power of will,
A still strong voice in your head,
Keeping you moving ahead.
Climbing again,
Reaching heaven,
Grateful for the blessing,
A present for progressing.
Second guessing our projection,
We fall for another lesson,
A conceptual conscious connection,
Creating every section,
As we use our intention,
Giving attention to what works,
Enjoying all the perks,
As the wave of life jerks you back up again.
It’s ninety one but feels like more,
Like I opened up the Devil’s front door.
He said “Come on in!” with a fire breath grin
Now I’m sweatin' places I ain’t ever been.
The sidewalk’s cookin’ eggs on the sly,
Birds stopped chirpin', too hot to fly.
Even my dog gave me that judgmental look,
Like, “Take me out again and you’re getting cooked.”
Humidity’s clingy like a bad first date,
Stickin’ to me like it’s true soulmate.
My shirt’s now soup, my socks are stew,
And I swear my flip flops just melted through.
AC’s gaspin’, fan’s wheezin’ low
I bribed ‘em both just to halfway blow.
My iced tea’s warm, my will is weak,
I’ve been napping in the fridge since Tuesday this week.
So if you see me walking slow and fried,
Just know it’s the heat I ain’t yet died.
But tell my kin if I do collapse:
Bury me somewhere with cold sweet snacks.
Way out,
a wave starts its run
on a lifting swell then
builds to a peak
until it crests
holding cobra like
high in air, falls
to gravity, folds over
in a thunder of bubbles
to become a wash
running up a beach,
expiring in a lick
of froth to tickle
little feet.
Raging Waves Hiku 29
white foam floating on shore
raging waves crashing on reefs~
ocean`s wild dance.
The bitter taste of unascertained guilt
A snapshot stopped the motion of a wave
It stiffened in a moment at full tilt
And vaguely I remember to press save
Splash of the wave remains in time and space
A year after it comes back at the same day
With the same sun that shines upon your face
You smiled at me, and I smile back today.
Wind
whistles
tempting tune,
on air-swept wings
beguiled birds soar high
to seamless sapphire sky
with the fleet of cotton clouds,
design changing silk shapes adrift.
Art shifts on curved canvas of cobalt,
flows as a freedom form with rhythmic joy.
I’m swept by rapture wave surge of nature,
swaying me on swells of solitude,
resounds the music of silence
in pristine precinct of peace
that suffuses my soul.
Lured by topaz sky,
my mind adorns
jewels of
divine
joy.
Blood of gems
crosses the tides
a fractured tremor
of a weary river
fog of marrow
diluted by tremors
spines chained
to the edges of a coral
sinking deep
stones upon a shore
that quivers
and the body hears
only
a wave
mute
that carves.
My mind is wrapped in wonder,
To think that I could love her;
How can we explore,
Our caring for each other?
All that has ever haunted,
Was a poltergeist, unwanted!
Which prayer could there be,
That is meant for love evolving?
Which prayer should I speak,
May reach God’s ears,
To problem solve it?
Like sunlit tides on a quiet shore,
a breath of peace in each rolling wave,
it hums of freedom, soft and serene—
a prism of truth in motion’s embrace,
where hope drifts in translucent grace.
Contest: Color my mood
Sponsored by: Nette Onclaud
Contest Judged: June 2nd, 2025 5:10:00 AM
Placement: Third
What if the moon played music composed of others' thoughts and wishes? Would you hum along and carry that tune all day after the moon fades and the sun rises?
What if you could see the wind and know that it carried the hopes and dreams of others? Would you allow it to flow through and around you?
What if the sand beneath your feet held the remnants of each person's pain, and the ocean could wash away their sorrow, would you help carry it out to sea?
When you gaze up at the moon, will you let your heart sway with the wind and your soul swim in the ocean?
Though caged in a corner where gallows still loom,
Beware — for it sails on a wave of dark gloom.
A wave from the sea of existence runs red,
A net cast through nightfall and daylight ahead.
You, sovereign hawk in this narrow domain —
Be not content, for these bars still remain.
Yet I bring good news from the breath of the Divine:
Safe shores await, where escape is still mine.
Step once beyond this cocoon of despair —
And hundreds of cages dissolve in the air.
The Master of Being, who raised “Malek” from none,
Now stands in this riddle — where all is undone.
Doubt not — you were sent to remain and embrace,
The cosmos is bursting with kisses and grace.
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