Poetry Battle 1(Feb -'15)

Wow.. I'm honored, to advance.. And wanna wish the best of luck to, Toni.. She's an awesome writer.. i think i'm the underdog in this final round.. much respect..


Dave

Dave, I appreciate your words so much. I think you are a fantastic writer and I feel like the underdog, too! Good luck to you as well...

Mazel tov Dave & Tonsicales. and thanks Romantic for the hospitality! :)

Life Began: My Soundtrack


since birth i’ve know, something was different
wonderful parents, home life was a dream
remembrance of comfort, maybe a little sheltered
nurtured with compassion, humble memories justify
teenage angst spilled, my rebellious nature awakened
awkward from the norm, this anxiety was born
claustrophobic paranoia, unable to adjust or control
peers and relatives judged, a black sheep since day one

schoolyard pissing contests, became the battlegrounds
taunted projectiles fired, the shrapnel embedded
beneath my skin, the social scars remain
anger spawning self-hatred, family my only blessing
contemplated suicide daily, how i prayed for death
it never fucking came, my reality blurred
falling apart at the seams, full on meltdown
i needed someone, something to call my own

finally it happened, a savior appeared to me
no it wasn’t jesus or god, or others read about
this was an art form, a religion tailor made
hand-crafted for me, her name was music
heavy and furious, yet so understanding
soothing every nightmare, speaking to my soul
her inner workings, my holy trinity
three beautiful sisters, music, poetry, and alcohol

i visited my church nightly, such an apt pupil
i was faithful, to the mercy of her hand
listening to the word, and writing my own
drinking the sweet nectar, from her scared cup
learning at an erratic pace, page after page
my blood laced pen, mad driven lyrics
lusting to be heard, in tortured songs
the ghost tapes, of my soundtrack

fast forward, twenty-four years later
the formula that worked, started to implode
depression, crippling anxiety, addiction
burned out, dying slowly, self-denial
cleaned up my ways, in the nick of time
started to rebuild myself, picking up the scattered pieces
i met an angel, one who showed me true love
i married her, had two beautiful kids

life began..

Beautiful, Dave...

Thanks, Toni.. i appreciate your kind words.. much respect.. and best of luck..


warm regards,

Dave

My Life as a Poem

I remember my childhood
playground of crippling fear
gentle horrors of swing sets
and monkey bars

all the girls seemed
to speak the same language
but when I tried to make a sound
my tongue retracted back into my mouth

soon the pain began to translate itself
into scrawling words
I found I could scream onto paper
what I could not utter in life

Mama would say
you are brilliant
you can do anything
how I ached to believe her

knowing deep inside it wasn’t true
tears smarting my eyes
because I ached desperately
to matter in life

sometimes everything seemed
so acutely beautiful
I could think about it forever
crying in my room

how humans suffered
but have tried to write
those impossible feelings down
to where those sentences of life

become indelible
breathe on their own
and so beautifully
never die

I was so afraid to die
and not leave something behind
I could not stand the thought
of a life like mine

wasted and fumbling
crawling on hands and knees
I took a job at a funeral home
and found the transitory nature

of our brief existences
made my throat tighten
all those people I tried to help
those people alone

defenseless
flowers frozen in time forever
I want when I am
frozen like a doll

to leave a map of my fever behind
something that says Toni lived here once
that a strange sad girl
hurt and yearned

snorted things that looked like snow
fell into the arms of strange men
anything to not feel the emptiness
that was herself

then wrote it down
as best she could
trying to record the story
of a girl perpetually lost

hoping to be led back home
a Heart is saying this

Beautiful write, Toni..

Yes

Vishal, I cannot express how honored I felt to be a part of this competition. My sincerest congratulations to my friend Dave - his piece was truly beautiful and so passionate. Also, I wanted to say how excellent everyone's work was, especially that of my contenders Minerva and Austin. Hope to see you all again soon, and all my best wishes to everyone. Thank you.

Wow.. i'm so honored to win this contest.. Congrats, to Toni.. on writing a fine piece and being such a good friend.. also congrats to all who participated, everyone of you are wonderful writers.. Vishal, thanks for hosting, and making this contest fun.. as well as very challenging.. Thank you...


Dave