Poetry competition CLOSED 17th December 2016 3:15am
WINNER
Poetryman
Poetryman
RUNNER-UP:
usernames_r_lame
Page:
Pride
"Planting Dandelions"
As a child I picked the pretty dandelions
Rubbed them on my cheeks to make my face turn yellow
And when the flowers turned fluffy and white
I picked the white balloons and blew them into the air
Drifting on the breeze under parachutes spreading seeds
Landing where there once was untainted fertile soil
Taking root and taking over the lawns of greener grass
Laying in wait the butter cups on the hunt for virgin cheeks
The choking weeds suffocate the soft blades where children play
Shredding claws and ferocious teeth finish off the bloody feast
Until all that remains is a killing field of yellow hides
Where the dandy lion forever reigns as king of his pride
And smiling cheeks of innocence blindly embraced in claws of hate
(jj johnson)
"Pride Is One Seed"
One seed is masked in infancy
With its intoxicating allure
Its sexy remedy
Impersonating ones esteem
Inseminating the mind with arrogance
An artificial substitute for confidence
Yet this sweetener tastes un-Equal
Stroking the ego
Through external heights that excite
Attempting to ascend it's slippery slope
Each icy step slides one down tenfold
Leading to a bitterness deep within
Fueling a growing resentment
For all that is physically different
Forgetting that at the core we are One
We are the same
Letting go of who you are not
Is the key to setting us all free
As part of you is a part of me and we
And in One we are all together
Our commonality is the seed of our equality
Yet in the end to ascend in parallel
Imperious souls must atone and reparate
In ways silver pieces cannot compensate
For the shame I carry for four hundred years of hate
Cannot be let go of by one alone
It must instead be released as One together
(jj johnson)
Pride
Shackling pleasure
of what is put on the paper
close the bathroom mirror
save the pills for later
I used to cry behind my bangs
but I find alienation better than starvation of praise
I sound selfish and needy and maybe I am
I was
and will continue to be;
but as long as I can find my way
despite wiry frays
I can pretend to strive
I can pretend that pride
my pride
and your pride
and every ones unnerving intolerable pride
is what makes me happy;
I can pretend in between all these sappy
Christmas commercials that play on a loop until my eyeballs are sore,
that as long as I have apparent achievement, or some Admirality even in the most superficial arrangement,
I will continue to be here;
and maybe so will you
Shackling pleasure
of what is put on the paper
close the bathroom mirror
save the pills for later
I used to cry behind my bangs
but I find alienation better than starvation of praise
I sound selfish and needy and maybe I am
I was
and will continue to be;
but as long as I can find my way
despite wiry frays
I can pretend to strive
I can pretend that pride
my pride
and your pride
and every ones unnerving intolerable pride
is what makes me happy;
I can pretend in between all these sappy
Christmas commercials that play on a loop until my eyeballs are sore,
that as long as I have apparent achievement, or some Admirality even in the most superficial arrangement,
I will continue to be here;
and maybe so will you
Anonymous
My pride
Alone at last with my pride
Alone, bitter down inside
I cast them all aside
To keep hold of my pride
Is it pride that keeps you alive?
Can we survive without any pride?
Oh I wish I could take it back
walk back along the track
my words they cut and hack
Eat my pride, the strength I lack
Alone at last with my pride
Alone, bitter down inside
I cast them all aside
To keep hold of my pride
Is it pride that keeps you alive?
Can we survive without any pride?
Oh I wish I could take it back
walk back along the track
my words they cut and hack
Eat my pride, the strength I lack
"The Echo that Never Fades Away"
I know what you are trying to say
But I hear the echo that never ends
What you seek is pure equality
But the monster inside thrives on the sin within pride
Waging war with fire burns the world entire
Fight fire with water to douse the flame
Burning down your white house on the hill
Baptize the beast to drown it's burden away
You must see pride in all it's forms to break free of it's embrace
For even tiny seeds grow into forests filled with mighty trees
So too it's true of pride we plant and nurture deep inside
With fangs that bite into the heart and suck it hard and dry
Murder the word that tortures our memories of bigger trees
Where a hanging was a lynching and a black life a disease
Yet bigotry knows no boundaries of skin or religion
It doesn't care so much about what you are
But it sure as shit will hate you for anything you ain't
So if you ain't like us, hate will string you up unless you kill it first
You must learn to let it go because it'll never let go of you
It will build you up and stroke your ego, filling your hardened head
Never letting you in on the secret that your soul's already dead
(jj johnson)
I know what you are trying to say
But I hear the echo that never ends
What you seek is pure equality
But the monster inside thrives on the sin within pride
Waging war with fire burns the world entire
Fight fire with water to douse the flame
Burning down your white house on the hill
Baptize the beast to drown it's burden away
You must see pride in all it's forms to break free of it's embrace
For even tiny seeds grow into forests filled with mighty trees
So too it's true of pride we plant and nurture deep inside
With fangs that bite into the heart and suck it hard and dry
Murder the word that tortures our memories of bigger trees
Where a hanging was a lynching and a black life a disease
Yet bigotry knows no boundaries of skin or religion
It doesn't care so much about what you are
But it sure as shit will hate you for anything you ain't
So if you ain't like us, hate will string you up unless you kill it first
You must learn to let it go because it'll never let go of you
It will build you up and stroke your ego, filling your hardened head
Never letting you in on the secret that your soul's already dead
(jj johnson)
Is this
all we have
sympathy
for the innocent
who are being broken
and starved
dreaming
the same dream
of eating the food
that we
throw in the bin
is this
all we have
a strong hope
that we proudly present
to strangers
and friends
while our feelings
sadly sit back
and watch our ignorant
shallow thoughts
entertaining our mind
on how to pretend
that we
with our pride
change life's
all we have
sympathy
for the innocent
who are being broken
and starved
dreaming
the same dream
of eating the food
that we
throw in the bin
is this
all we have
a strong hope
that we proudly present
to strangers
and friends
while our feelings
sadly sit back
and watch our ignorant
shallow thoughts
entertaining our mind
on how to pretend
that we
with our pride
change life's
Eternal Pride….
Attracts and retracts, It pushes and pulls
Defies laws of science and creates its own rules
It hunts and attacks, adapts and reacts
Its never been defeated but often it kills
Lethal weapon of will, reinforced with steel
Bars, cages and barricades build my own shield
No compromise with lies, stains tears in your eyes
It pulls no punches and only gives truth,
Savage and vicious a beast and a brut
Enchanting and engaging, beautifully manipulating
It takes your queen and checks your mate
Holds you down with no escape
Loving and kind, Soul undefined
Fearless and strong, Pride has seen it all and is never wrong
Attracts and retracts, It pushes and pulls
Defies laws of science and creates its own rules
It hunts and attacks, adapts and reacts
Its never been defeated but often it kills
Lethal weapon of will, reinforced with steel
Bars, cages and barricades build my own shield
No compromise with lies, stains tears in your eyes
It pulls no punches and only gives truth,
Savage and vicious a beast and a brut
Enchanting and engaging, beautifully manipulating
It takes your queen and checks your mate
Holds you down with no escape
Loving and kind, Soul undefined
Fearless and strong, Pride has seen it all and is never wrong
Undiminished Pride
Walk up with your head held high
Like the warrior you truly are.
Pride, something that is in your sky.
Take true courage for your scar
That made you brave enough
To face the world. Do not let it mar
Or ruin your ego. The strong stuff
You are made of is not for everyone.
You are one of the strong and tough
Ones, my dear. You still have the sun
Above your head and the clouds below
Your feet. Nothing is over or done
Just quite yet. You will always plough
Your way through. You will never let
Anything dim away including your glow.
Walk up with your head held high
Like the warrior you truly are.
Pride, something that is in your sky.
Take true courage for your scar
That made you brave enough
To face the world. Do not let it mar
Or ruin your ego. The strong stuff
You are made of is not for everyone.
You are one of the strong and tough
Ones, my dear. You still have the sun
Above your head and the clouds below
Your feet. Nothing is over or done
Just quite yet. You will always plough
Your way through. You will never let
Anything dim away including your glow.
P R I D E
R
O
U
D
I've never meant to appear as prideful,
growing up in a loving family.
Youngest, the baby, who always felt loved,
as a giving child filled with charity.
And that's how I've tried to be all my life,
to not bray or hope, expecting in kind.
Yet times have I seen & recognized when
I've overstepped personal policy.
What do I mean when I say it that way?
It means that I know who I really am,
that I'm not as you think, full of myself.
I need to stay grounded, and eye to eye,
'cause I wasn't raised to be otherwise.
I'm not over, or under, anyone
and neither are they no matter what's said.
I welcome the true ones to come visit,
to remind me, and I too, remind them.
I don't need to make up a comfort zone;
I'll do without pride thank you very much.
Photo of a coffee mug design I donated my name to (as one of a group of poets) for a charity event some years back.
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f248/jadepandora/jade%20coffee%20mug00.png
R
O
U
D
I've never meant to appear as prideful,
growing up in a loving family.
Youngest, the baby, who always felt loved,
as a giving child filled with charity.
And that's how I've tried to be all my life,
to not bray or hope, expecting in kind.
Yet times have I seen & recognized when
I've overstepped personal policy.
What do I mean when I say it that way?
It means that I know who I really am,
that I'm not as you think, full of myself.
I need to stay grounded, and eye to eye,
'cause I wasn't raised to be otherwise.
I'm not over, or under, anyone
and neither are they no matter what's said.
I welcome the true ones to come visit,
to remind me, and I too, remind them.
I don't need to make up a comfort zone;
I'll do without pride thank you very much.
Photo of a coffee mug design I donated my name to (as one of a group of poets) for a charity event some years back.
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f248/jadepandora/jade%20coffee%20mug00.png
Thank you Cach, it is an honor, and at the same time a bit ironic for me to win a comp about Pride... i'm not sure how I'm supposed to feel.
Congrats to James k. (Jaykay) and usernames_r_lame for their being selected as well. All of the excellent entries should be applauded!!!
JJ
Congrats to James k. (Jaykay) and usernames_r_lame for their being selected as well. All of the excellent entries should be applauded!!!
JJ
