Poetry competition CLOSED 30th April 2024 5:12pm
A public vote has been requested
2024 Official DUP NaPoWriMo Challenge
27/30
Mausoleum Style Mind
tail spin life
spiralling
into darkness
sinking feelings
bite down
securing a
tighter grip
guilt crawls
over self
mausoleum
style mind
sadness
weaved tightly
totally bound
to it
acratched deeper
onto skin
plumetting trust
never recovered
pussling imagination
drowning me
ponder all
shades vlack
powerful expression
tearing inside
ripping out
reason for living
nothingness resides
guest like
but altogether
unwelcome
numbing
everything i am
being shadowy
more fate than design
Unique Word Count 70
Mausoleum Style Mind
tail spin life
spiralling
into darkness
sinking feelings
bite down
securing a
tighter grip
guilt crawls
over self
mausoleum
style mind
sadness
weaved tightly
totally bound
to it
acratched deeper
onto skin
plumetting trust
never recovered
pussling imagination
drowning me
ponder all
shades vlack
powerful expression
tearing inside
ripping out
reason for living
nothingness resides
guest like
but altogether
unwelcome
numbing
everything i am
being shadowy
more fate than design
Unique Word Count 70
26/30
(MIGHT COST ME A LITTLE)
Oil vapor hovers before me
A long and twisty shape
Like a slowly spinning creature
In the sea’s midnight layer
Wet shards of broken glass
An archepelago of chaos
Lay down at my feet
It’s been that kind of day
Things went dark there for a mo
We’re troubleshooting it
No matter how this goes I’m glad
To be back in your good graces
(59 uw)
(MIGHT COST ME A LITTLE)
Oil vapor hovers before me
A long and twisty shape
Like a slowly spinning creature
In the sea’s midnight layer
Wet shards of broken glass
An archepelago of chaos
Lay down at my feet
It’s been that kind of day
Things went dark there for a mo
We’re troubleshooting it
No matter how this goes I’m glad
To be back in your good graces
(59 uw)
26/30
I Am The One
Sitting here
Inside my mind
Searching for the pattern
The air is still
The wind I feel
Can carry away the chatter
There's John's head
Being served
On a silver platter
Is he still blessed?
Dead and referenced
Not even atom matters
The leaf unfurls
To drop the seed
The only way to plant trust
The wind flows through
Upon which crowd screams
Release Barrabas
It weighs like silver
Upon the cobbles
Delivered for free
Free to deliver
Hands washed in blood
Nailed down in glee
Sitting here
Under this tree
Searching for the answer
It's found in me
And nothing more
Within a weave of thorns
Acorn born once more
Sharpening my horns
The fool is gone
Nothing lost
Shadow of double crossed
I Am The One
Sitting here
Inside my mind
Searching for the pattern
The air is still
The wind I feel
Can carry away the chatter
There's John's head
Being served
On a silver platter
Is he still blessed?
Dead and referenced
Not even atom matters
The leaf unfurls
To drop the seed
The only way to plant trust
The wind flows through
Upon which crowd screams
Release Barrabas
It weighs like silver
Upon the cobbles
Delivered for free
Free to deliver
Hands washed in blood
Nailed down in glee
Sitting here
Under this tree
Searching for the answer
It's found in me
And nothing more
Within a weave of thorns
Acorn born once more
Sharpening my horns
The fool is gone
Nothing lost
Shadow of double crossed
26/30
Repentance
Repentance is a hollow house
Holy ground, some say
Grieving ivy swallowed in thorns of sin
The place so familiar
Though you’ve never been
Stumbling, you’d tangle in bushes
Before the brick and mortar
Is it heaven or hell, that lurks behind these righteous doors?
Who could say, who could worn?
I’ll tell you of a man,
so weakened by the earth below,
he made the choice to rise and go
Running to repentance
Arms outstretched
Some say he made it in
Others say he dropped dead at the fence
And not the door
Tell me, what’s the use?
Persuasion is a sinister snake of abuse
In the coils of Leviathan’s serpent hands
We choke, we fold like towers of cards
Built by a higher power
Those sacred walls devour, I know it so
If you journey there, heed my words
Some call it prayer
It is a blessing in disguise
Through the golden thickets
Through pearlescent vines
Should you make it in, I wish you well
But hoping is of little help
Once welcomed past the doorbell
Should you turn around and savor the sights
Graze the fence, that circles and winds
Could there be a corpse somewhere beside?
A rotten soul to find?
Yes, in fact, there just might.
Repentance
Repentance is a hollow house
Holy ground, some say
Grieving ivy swallowed in thorns of sin
The place so familiar
Though you’ve never been
Stumbling, you’d tangle in bushes
Before the brick and mortar
Is it heaven or hell, that lurks behind these righteous doors?
Who could say, who could worn?
I’ll tell you of a man,
so weakened by the earth below,
he made the choice to rise and go
Running to repentance
Arms outstretched
Some say he made it in
Others say he dropped dead at the fence
And not the door
Tell me, what’s the use?
Persuasion is a sinister snake of abuse
In the coils of Leviathan’s serpent hands
We choke, we fold like towers of cards
Built by a higher power
Those sacred walls devour, I know it so
If you journey there, heed my words
Some call it prayer
It is a blessing in disguise
Through the golden thickets
Through pearlescent vines
Should you make it in, I wish you well
But hoping is of little help
Once welcomed past the doorbell
Should you turn around and savor the sights
Graze the fence, that circles and winds
Could there be a corpse somewhere beside?
A rotten soul to find?
Yes, in fact, there just might.
27/30
Am I Cheating Death or Is Death Cheating Me?
Am I alive or just surviving
Waking up and going through the motions
I breathe, my heart beats
Yet I suffocate beneath the surface
Earning my share of the air in my lungs
Everything is mortgaged
I wager time and bid on my dreams
I take the risk of delays against the hope of an un-promising tomorrow
Can dimmer futures house within the light of brighter days ahead
In this world overcast of shadows
The clouds are circling to descend
Heaven is a loaded orbit
Like we’re playing roulette with the stars we provoke
How long until the gravity of depravity pulls down the sky
We fake like we’re thriving on the scraps of a rich man’s table
While we hoist the weight of our debts for financed luxuries
Every rose on loan till the cold of winter
Masquerading behind the props of our prosperity in decay
Our harvests overrun by the crush of our careless footprints
Perpetually cultivating a toxic soil
When every plant dies before it blossoms
I cannot taste the nectar for the trees that are bare
Vines dwarfed as the roots are fruitless
Spread thin for miles in an aimless sense of destination
Making ourselves at home in a wasteland
Am I alive or just surviving
Counting down with word play mutiny
I write against the mundane
Every poem is just another wilted flower…
Am I Cheating Death or Is Death Cheating Me?
Am I alive or just surviving
Waking up and going through the motions
I breathe, my heart beats
Yet I suffocate beneath the surface
Earning my share of the air in my lungs
Everything is mortgaged
I wager time and bid on my dreams
I take the risk of delays against the hope of an un-promising tomorrow
Can dimmer futures house within the light of brighter days ahead
In this world overcast of shadows
The clouds are circling to descend
Heaven is a loaded orbit
Like we’re playing roulette with the stars we provoke
How long until the gravity of depravity pulls down the sky
We fake like we’re thriving on the scraps of a rich man’s table
While we hoist the weight of our debts for financed luxuries
Every rose on loan till the cold of winter
Masquerading behind the props of our prosperity in decay
Our harvests overrun by the crush of our careless footprints
Perpetually cultivating a toxic soil
When every plant dies before it blossoms
I cannot taste the nectar for the trees that are bare
Vines dwarfed as the roots are fruitless
Spread thin for miles in an aimless sense of destination
Making ourselves at home in a wasteland
Am I alive or just surviving
Counting down with word play mutiny
I write against the mundane
Every poem is just another wilted flower…
27/30
A day at the races
We slid sideways out the minibus
Stags on a do when the beer was free
and ducks waddled to the loo
quacking jesus I need to pee.
I asked advice from the flat caps
that carried papers and studied form
as the army ants clicked the turnstiles
dropping ticket stubs on the lawn.
The course was heavy under hoof
and cut like a boxer in the rain
the totes in the corner shouted odds
so I put a tenner on Song remains the same.
She looked as wasted as the groom to be
but the sages said she runs well soft
I thought of Led Zep so didn’t disagree
as the tannoy crackled “ and their off”
The thunderous pack when through the first fence
spilling jockeys like an egg and spoon race loser.
The cloud of flung mud stuck to the riders
too close behind the muck spreader bowser.
We moved ourselves for a photo finish,
someone said just two horses left in it.
As they rounded the straight
I was in a right state
but she ran well soft for my winnings.
A day at the races
We slid sideways out the minibus
Stags on a do when the beer was free
and ducks waddled to the loo
quacking jesus I need to pee.
I asked advice from the flat caps
that carried papers and studied form
as the army ants clicked the turnstiles
dropping ticket stubs on the lawn.
The course was heavy under hoof
and cut like a boxer in the rain
the totes in the corner shouted odds
so I put a tenner on Song remains the same.
She looked as wasted as the groom to be
but the sages said she runs well soft
I thought of Led Zep so didn’t disagree
as the tannoy crackled “ and their off”
The thunderous pack when through the first fence
spilling jockeys like an egg and spoon race loser.
The cloud of flung mud stuck to the riders
too close behind the muck spreader bowser.
We moved ourselves for a photo finish,
someone said just two horses left in it.
As they rounded the straight
I was in a right state
but she ran well soft for my winnings.
27/30
PULSING WITH A HUGE LIGHT
Everything is pulsing with a huge light
my footsteps crunching on the gravelly path
two wild boar near the river — they take fright
Must press on, make sure I’m home before dark
wild boar, hidden, grunts as I pass
my footsteps crunching on the gravelly path
The river has become part of my art
I listen to Her, accompanied by birds
wild boar, hidden, grunts as I pass
Silence does not mean one is lost for words
but changing the mode of communication
I listen to Her, accompanied by birds
Panpsychism needs no verification
truth outlasts all vain ideologies
which try to disrupt communication
Why kill with scientific™ apologies
when wild boar by the river take fright?
Know that truth outlasts vain ideologies
since everything’s pulsing with a huge light.
PULSING WITH A HUGE LIGHT
Everything is pulsing with a huge light
my footsteps crunching on the gravelly path
two wild boar near the river — they take fright
Must press on, make sure I’m home before dark
wild boar, hidden, grunts as I pass
my footsteps crunching on the gravelly path
The river has become part of my art
I listen to Her, accompanied by birds
wild boar, hidden, grunts as I pass
Silence does not mean one is lost for words
but changing the mode of communication
I listen to Her, accompanied by birds
Panpsychism needs no verification
truth outlasts all vain ideologies
which try to disrupt communication
Why kill with scientific™ apologies
when wild boar by the river take fright?
Know that truth outlasts vain ideologies
since everything’s pulsing with a huge light.
27/30
Blah Blah Blah
Did we improve from the ancients?
Granted, in industry and technology
maybe even in other areas, as well
improvements, inventions
not Freedom but more free time
Idle periods for angry rants
differences of opinion
Diatribe – an old Greek word
a Pastime or Discourse
now reduced to long
drawn out rants
falling on deaf ears
drowning in hyperbole
54 unique words
Blah Blah Blah
Did we improve from the ancients?
Granted, in industry and technology
maybe even in other areas, as well
improvements, inventions
not Freedom but more free time
Idle periods for angry rants
differences of opinion
Diatribe – an old Greek word
a Pastime or Discourse
now reduced to long
drawn out rants
falling on deaf ears
drowning in hyperbole
54 unique words
27/30
Spark
spark conversation
spark intention
sparks always lead to change
when you smother the sparks
within and among you
things just remain the same
a spark is a glimmer
a spark is a hint
a nucleus of a notion
a spark can provoke
a spark animates
a spark sets things in motion
a single spark
strategically applied
can ignite a chain reaction
a handful of sparks
spread far and wide
connects small flames in common action
I don’t need to be
the entire blaze
to bring light into the dark
I just want to wake you
to kindle your spirit
I just want to be the spark
Spark
spark conversation
spark intention
sparks always lead to change
when you smother the sparks
within and among you
things just remain the same
a spark is a glimmer
a spark is a hint
a nucleus of a notion
a spark can provoke
a spark animates
a spark sets things in motion
a single spark
strategically applied
can ignite a chain reaction
a handful of sparks
spread far and wide
connects small flames in common action
I don’t need to be
the entire blaze
to bring light into the dark
I just want to wake you
to kindle your spirit
I just want to be the spark
27/30
For You
I hope everyone experiences
Someone like you in their lifetime
Who can completely love them before
They love themselves
Sometimes it’s a parent
Sometimes it’s a sister
Sometimes a lover or friend
But your strong arms grabbed me
And your kindness revived me
And your love brought me back from hell
The wounded woman
Who had abandoned herself
Now has a desire to live
Not just existing
Not as victim
Not passive-aggressively
I will move mountains
My words a fountain
For you
Only love light and peace
For You
I hope everyone experiences
Someone like you in their lifetime
Who can completely love them before
They love themselves
Sometimes it’s a parent
Sometimes it’s a sister
Sometimes a lover or friend
But your strong arms grabbed me
And your kindness revived me
And your love brought me back from hell
The wounded woman
Who had abandoned herself
Now has a desire to live
Not just existing
Not as victim
Not passive-aggressively
I will move mountains
My words a fountain
For you
Only love light and peace
27/30
A Very Dumb Question
If I was a tree what kind would I be?
A silly question between you and me.
Who cares if I was an elm, or an oak.
All those limbs couldn’t give you a choke.
A pine, a fir, or a dark spruce,
so much resemble a very tight noose.
Each has a beauty, a story to tell-
serenely they stand silent and quell.
What kind of tree would I be-
a weeping willow.
How else to explain-
the tears on my pillow.
57 u/w
A Very Dumb Question
If I was a tree what kind would I be?
A silly question between you and me.
Who cares if I was an elm, or an oak.
All those limbs couldn’t give you a choke.
A pine, a fir, or a dark spruce,
so much resemble a very tight noose.
Each has a beauty, a story to tell-
serenely they stand silent and quell.
What kind of tree would I be-
a weeping willow.
How else to explain-
the tears on my pillow.
57 u/w
27 of 30
creature of habit
I have a startlingly large collection of movies
among them are television series...
{some from my childhood days...}
documentaries ...
& a bizarre array of disaster films...
...many of them low budget & cheesy
about which my family teases me
but I love them
550 {& counting...} dvds
yet I will binge watch the same dozen or so
when asked why I don't view the rest
I was at a loss to explain
until I saw an article that deeply resonates
it stated that trauma survivors frequently watch reruns of a favorite show
{ummm...that would be me...}
reread books already read
{I've been known to finish the last page...
...flip back to the beginning & start again}
listen to the same music on repeat
{guilty again...}
because we know how it ends
it doesn't change
thereby making it safe
so little about life can say the same
see what I'm saying...
I don't know if I'm alone
thought it was interesting
maybe someone else can relate...
...or I might be crazy
I need the escape...
to step out of my daily reality
...but crave the comfort...
...of familiarity
creature of habit
I have a startlingly large collection of movies
among them are television series...
{some from my childhood days...}
documentaries ...
& a bizarre array of disaster films...
...many of them low budget & cheesy
about which my family teases me
but I love them
550 {& counting...} dvds
yet I will binge watch the same dozen or so
when asked why I don't view the rest
I was at a loss to explain
until I saw an article that deeply resonates
it stated that trauma survivors frequently watch reruns of a favorite show
{ummm...that would be me...}
reread books already read
{I've been known to finish the last page...
...flip back to the beginning & start again}
listen to the same music on repeat
{guilty again...}
because we know how it ends
it doesn't change
thereby making it safe
so little about life can say the same
see what I'm saying...
I don't know if I'm alone
thought it was interesting
maybe someone else can relate...
...or I might be crazy
I need the escape...
to step out of my daily reality
...but crave the comfort...
...of familiarity
27/30
the king
Golden blazer and swept back hair
Moving along
With his every move –
How can you take your eyes
Off the man onstage?
It was a kind of welcome,
I think – the whole song and dance,
Deep voice serenade,
A learned,
Mastered,
Pre-war persuasion.
I sat, pretty
Dazed,
Taking the man and the lights in –
The music and the sway,
The thrusts of the hips of the
Devil in disguise –
Devil who just shot me a grin, shot me
A saucy wink.
I raised to him
My glowing glass
Of Atomic Cocktail,
I took a drink.
Faded posters, old world sleaze,
Gold and hair grease –
Viva, New Vegas.
the king
Golden blazer and swept back hair
Moving along
With his every move –
How can you take your eyes
Off the man onstage?
It was a kind of welcome,
I think – the whole song and dance,
Deep voice serenade,
A learned,
Mastered,
Pre-war persuasion.
I sat, pretty
Dazed,
Taking the man and the lights in –
The music and the sway,
The thrusts of the hips of the
Devil in disguise –
Devil who just shot me a grin, shot me
A saucy wink.
I raised to him
My glowing glass
Of Atomic Cocktail,
I took a drink.
Faded posters, old world sleaze,
Gold and hair grease –
Viva, New Vegas.
27/30
Awry
History repeats
resting still
here alone
feeling ill
what happened
to today?
all motivation
slipped away
lost is time
life a chore
a disposition
required cure
unbearable
unhealthy place
desperate
seeking grace
no light exists
tunnel dark
in despair
without spark
grey and dreary
this day amiss
all seems dull
emotional abyss
Awry
History repeats
resting still
here alone
feeling ill
what happened
to today?
all motivation
slipped away
lost is time
life a chore
a disposition
required cure
unbearable
unhealthy place
desperate
seeking grace
no light exists
tunnel dark
in despair
without spark
grey and dreary
this day amiss
all seems dull
emotional abyss
27/30
sweet n spicy
such a feast for the eyes
where does one come
every day??
spicy scooter
giving a spicy kick
spicy job in spicy office
spicy boss
life covered in spices
from morning to evening,
spicy politics of the country
spicy ups and downs
drifting in spicy regionalism
casteism..
it is like a fragrance in the air
it is blooming
it is making every corner,
every place fragrant,
it is spreading its sweetness,
it is making someone so special
every dish prepared requires
tempering to enhance
not only the taste but
also the visual appeal..
sweet n spicy
such a feast for the eyes
where does one come
every day??
spicy scooter
giving a spicy kick
spicy job in spicy office
spicy boss
life covered in spices
from morning to evening,
spicy politics of the country
spicy ups and downs
drifting in spicy regionalism
casteism..
it is like a fragrance in the air
it is blooming
it is making every corner,
every place fragrant,
it is spreading its sweetness,
it is making someone so special
every dish prepared requires
tempering to enhance
not only the taste but
also the visual appeal..
