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Best Poems Written by Barbara Selby

Below are the all-time best Barbara Selby poems as chosen by PoetrySoup members

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No Man's Land

As I walk familiar sands and hear the watchers sing,
I realize that no man’s land encircles everything.

Footprints are erased by tides tossed forth by angry seas;
Villagers who there reside try hard the gods to please.

They may choose to wander forth and try to cross the sands,
But not a one has proved his worth in crossing no man’s land.

The ground is strewn with bones of those who tried to make a stand
But found when all was said and done they’re claimed by no man’s land.

Barbara Selby

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I Just Don'T Know How To Say Goodbye

I never had problems talking to you before.
I never was unable to look you in the eye.
But the thing I'm saying now, I never said before--
I just don't know how to say goodbye.

I just don't know how to say goodbye,
For every time I try to say it, I just wanna cry.
Every time I hurt you more, a little of me dies,
Now I just don't know how to say goodbye.

The howling winds of destiny have blown our love away,
And we can't get it back, no matter how we try.
You can't give me a reason to make me want to stay,
But I just don't know how to say goodbye.

Details | Barbara Selby Poem

Wind

Like a furious woman,
Brooding and fierce in passing,
Before her people scurry
For shelter from her lashing.

Whipping trees unmercifully,
Beating the green tops around,
Howling with anger and savagery,
Then suddenly all calms down.

Crashing the sea waves higher,
Sometimes not making a sound,
Giving new life to a fire,
Stirring the dust on the ground.

Soft as a baby's faint whisper,
She ruffles a young blade of grass;
Then fierce as the wildest twister
She knocks down walls and breaks glass.

She can be both crushing and helpful,
Fulfilling the needs of the land.
Providing power for the people,
Obeying Nature's commands.

Details | Barbara Selby Poem

Scarlet Rose

This is written as a man talking to his love:

I hold your memory close to my heart,
My beautiful Scarlet Rose.
I wait for the pounding, the breathless part
That only true love can know.

You look sweet as a newborn bloom
Kissed by the fresh  morning dew.
I catch the scent of your soft perfume
As you dance into my view.

You hold my world in steadfast hands
And give me bountiful joy.
The pretties Rose in all the land, 
Dark days and thoughts you destroy.

But, my precious, my own heart's ease,
Our love we never can vow;
Because of your father's hatred for me,
I needs  must depart from you now.

As I leave you with heart in hand
And crystal tear in your eye,
I think of wandering across the land
And know without you I'd die.

For life and love are not meant to part,
And only God above knows
I'll hold you forever in my heart,
My beautiful Scarlet Rose.

Details | Barbara Selby Poem

Nightshade

Pretty woman of the night,
Pain and death her goal in sight
Quickly, with dark eyes alight,
Vision blurs and breathing tight
Shows no favor in the fight.
Curse of Shade's perverse delight,
Tremors reign and with them, fright;
Moss green skirt and halo bright
Dance together in the light.
Shade knows well her earthly plight.
Purple robes and golden hair,
Sought by witches everywhere--
Strong spell cast within her lair
For all who come to find her there.
Noble bearing, regal air,
She sends out her deadly dare:
"Drink my nectar, come and share
your souls, your dreams; they're bounties rare!"
Pretty woman, Pretty Shade,
Deadly poison by you made
All forgotten, life to fade.
Pretty, deadly maiden Shade.

Details | Barbara Selby Poem

The Death of Magic

The herald-mage raced
To the sacred place
Where Mystery and Magic abound.
He threw down his wand,
And broke the fierce bond
That gripped the village and town.
He knew that after
He’d courted disaster
The price, indeed, would be high.
But he never imagined
That such a reaction
Would cause all the Magic to die.
He climbed mountain high
To where earth touched the sky,
Above where the valley unfolded.
He called upon gods
With gestures and nods
And with voice both enraged and emboldened:
“I command thee this night
To return me the right,
The power of Magic to hold!
For without the Magic
Everything would be tragic;
Return!” he cried loudly and bold.
Then as night stole about
He began to have doubt
That the gods would the power return.
And indeed, with long thought
They almost did naught
But as morning sun brightly did burn,
The gods all agreed
And did swiftly decree
That Magic was needed again.
So with powers restored,
And new wand on board
The mage did return to his den.
He may be there still
At the foot of the hill
Protecting his land and kin.

--Barbara Selby

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End of the Line

We thought we could make it together,
We thought it would work out just fine.
We thought that we could build a life together,
But baby, we just found the end of the line.

We built our home on love and affection,
The love we pledged until the end of time.
The baby was the living proof we needed,
But honey, we just found the end of the line.

And the end of the line is a thing
That we have to face up to.
I swear I just can't fake it anymore.
And loneliness is a way of life
And we'll live it--if we can,
I'll be the first by walking out the door.

Yeah, loneliness is a way of life
And we'll live it--if we can.
The Lord knows that we've lived it once before.

Details | Barbara Selby Poem

Four Lonely Walls

As I sit back and stare
At the items on the chair
I get the feeling of being closed in.
So I take up my time
With a verse or a rhyme
As I scrabble for paper and pen.

As I look around me
For things to remind me
Of all the phrases I recall,
The only thing I find
Are the pictures in my mind
And the stillness of four lonely walls.

Four lonely walls that keep closing in on me
And make me want to be near you.
Two lonely windows that gaze out on
A world of broken hearts,
One lonely TV that stares at me
Blankly from the corner.
We're all here and waiting 
Within these four lonely walls.

Details | Barbara Selby Poem

The Abyss

My tortures body and ravaged mind
Sink into a darkness so black and cold
As any description of Hell ever told,
And my soul seeks something more kind.
As the abyss deepens with each day,
My good memories come flooding in
To pull my mind back and away
From the foulness and the din
Of devils howling with delight.
The eternal abyss can tear
The essence of the soul from sight
And cause ceaseless, demented fright
That can and does sear
Into the very mind you try protecting.
A deep eternal Hell like no other
Awaits a tormented mind, rejecting
None but the best and happiest
From the shock of the deepness
And sadness that awaits within the hole.