Out of Respect
At the monument to the Roman Emperor Hadrian near the Tower
There is no place to put flowers
But if they made a pedestal there
And wrote Put your flowers here
I’ve no doubt that
People would bring their flowers to the foot of the statue
Out of respect for law and order
What a good move that would be
And politically useful
Some
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Categories:
with all respect, parody, political,
Form: Free verse
Offered my respects
what could i do
but stop and let pass
the funeral procession
for a beloved horse
who lived a life
fraught with nobility
AP: Honorable Mention 2025
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Categories:
with all respect, appreciation, death, life,
Form: Free verse
The Respect Pact
The Respect Pact
We believe that respect is the foundation of every meaningful relationship, community, and conversation. This pact is our shared commitment to uphold values that foster trust, empathy, and inclusion.
1. Value Every Voice
- Listen actively and without interruption.
- Encourage diverse perspectives and honor different experiences.
- Speak with honesty, but always
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Categories:
with all respect, appreciation, care, character, cool,
Form: Free verse
The love
Silently, you gaze and cheekily,
and you pretend,
he doesn't look at you,
from gaze of his corners
and his expression
not momentarily
but too a simple wish,
as you blush head down
so silently,
being lovingly
sparks so fly
& notices
He wishes,
to feel your tease
and cheeks radiantly,
flushing like car fluids,
Dawn's not hung like heads
of a morning hunt
of the prancing rein-deers
being shot for just action,
for
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Categories:
with all respect, innocence, introspection, love,
Form: Rhyme
Won't Take That
She gave her word and I just believed,
was the best thing that happened to me,
but, before long, on camera I see
her sneaking with a man who lives up the street.
Probed her for truth, but, oh, she just lie,
never had a hint of guilt in her eyes,
how can someone feel that justified,
even showed her the tape,
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Categories:
with all respect, abortion, conflict, endurance, men,
Form: Rhyme
Ode aan een avondmaaltijd
voor CINDY ANSONG
Je eten is heerlijk
de pittigheid en hartige toevoeging
naar de schemering is een aangrijpende kreet
een gesloten lengte.
Als de nek van een giraf uit de wolken
die volledig tevreden is
Ik slaakte een geschrokken kreet
met een DANKJEWEL.
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Categories:
with all respect, anger, appreciation, art, culture,
Form: Ode
When Money Becomes Power
I have known the hollow silence of empty hands,
once full of gold, now dust and fading strands.
I gave my heart in seasons bright and fair,
helping those in need, with love laid bare.
But when the coins ran out, the doors grew cold,
no pennies left to buy a dream or hold.
Help came shackled, wrapped in debt’s tight
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Categories:
with all respect, humanity, inspirational, mental health,
Form: Free verse
Respect for the Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama, who has earned
great respect and admiration,
has said that, after his death,
he will achieve reincarnation.
The school of Mahayana,
a Buddhist doctrine,
teaches social concern
and universal salvation,
a revered belief system
in his Tibetan nation.
The government of China,
with its history of prevarication,
insists that only it can decide
on the Dalai Lama's next manifestation,
showing complete disrespect
for
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Categories:
with all respect, appreciation, religion,
Form: Rhyme
When Leadership Forgot Her Name
Leadership once stood so tall,
But lost her spine along the hall.
No knocks, no words, just silent calls—
She wiped away the names on walls.
Silence sits—a secret scribe,
Whispers soft, commands prescribe.
No voice to speak, no hand to shake,
Just shadows where the echoes break.
Respect once tried to find her place,
But Ego barred her from the space.
He strode in
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Categories:
with all respect, education, integrity, leadership, pride,
Form: Rhyme
FULLER LIVING
"Im not doing this because you told me to
Im doing this because I feel sorry for you"
No, you don't.
You want love.
You want acceptance.
You're scared it isn't real
Scrapes and bare bones wilting in your soul
Waiting for your joy to steal
No home to call your own
The eyes are windows to a world inside
You
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Categories:
with all respect, 12th grade, abuse, analogy,
Form: Blitz
Oh lovely lady
Oh lovely lady of ivory hair
How your pale skin shimmers in the day
How your hazel eyes compliment your smile
With teeth as white as pearls
And lips of a blushing rose
Your walk as even as a calm stream
And your voice as sweet as honey
Such a shame for a soulless shell
She holds such
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Categories:
with all respect, absence, age, angst, appreciation,
Form: Free verse
The Keeper of the Circle
I do not rule with iron hand,
but with the rhythm of sacred sand—
each grain a word, each line a sign,
where order breathes and hearts align.
Before the lesson dares to start,
I plant the law with quiet art:
Not carved in stone, but shaped in grace—
a whispered guide, a steady place.
I walk not tall with voice raised high,
but
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Categories:
with all respect, education, inspirational, spiritual,
Form: Lyric
A Final Word
I left because my body broke,
And weighed with grief, my spirit spoke.
I told you oft, I made things clear,
Yet pressure came—not care, but fear.
No shame I bear for what I owe,
I acted true, as you well know.
The key I left, the money too—
What’s lost beyond, I never knew.
I paused before I took my leave,
Awaiting peace
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Categories:
with all respect, life, money, spiritual,
Form: Lyric
Disability poem Pl-ease
Don’t see only our disabilit-ease,
Don’t deny us basic facilit-ease,
Don’t ignore our many abilit-ease,
Don’t compound our varied difficult-ease,
Deal head-on with the harsh realit-ease.
You never know what life has in store,
You may fall one day and rise no more,
You may join our ranks, afraid, unsure,
You may write words to plead; implore.
We are not an alien race,
We
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Categories:
with all respect, angst, anxiety, destiny, discrimination,
Form: Rhyme
Memorial
One day a year to mark a sacrifice profound
One day a year to visit the ground
One day a year for the bugle to sound
One day a year a nation’s memory is found
Hardly enough for the terrible cost
Hardly enough for the lives that were lost
One day a year for the flags to adorn
One day a year
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Categories:
with all respect, death, memorial, memorial day,
Form: Rhyme
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