DUP Poem of the Month - July 2017
Poem-Worm
Poetry Worm
Joined 1st Nov 2016
Forum Posts: 346
Poetry Worm
Thought Provoker
Forum Posts: 346
Poetry Contest Description
Submit or Nominate a poem you feel apt to represent DUP in the Hall of Fame for July '17
Greetings, Fellow Poets! It's time for our "Poem of the Month" to be featured in the DUP 'Poem of the Month Hall of Fame' and on the official facebook page in July, 2017.
You have three weeks to submit or nominate one of your own favorite poems or one of another DUP poet!
No DUPLICATES. If someone nominates the same poem the entry will be deleted. If you like it that much wait and vote for it!
Any genre except erotica or pornography. This is a Facebook feature and we must adhere to their guidelines.
While previous Poem of the Month Hall of Fame members are ineligible (we may revisit after a year or so), you may still nominate them in the Spirit of support. The nominations will be checked as "Non Entry" when the vote begins.
Any member who is banned or disables their account PRIOR to the win will be automatically disqualified.
Any nominated member who wishes to opt out of the competition may do so by messaging me. I will contact the person who nominated you and request an alternate nomination.
Nomination Duration is three weeks followed by a week of site voting!
And GO!
You have three weeks to submit or nominate one of your own favorite poems or one of another DUP poet!
No DUPLICATES. If someone nominates the same poem the entry will be deleted. If you like it that much wait and vote for it!
Any genre except erotica or pornography. This is a Facebook feature and we must adhere to their guidelines.
While previous Poem of the Month Hall of Fame members are ineligible (we may revisit after a year or so), you may still nominate them in the Spirit of support. The nominations will be checked as "Non Entry" when the vote begins.
Any member who is banned or disables their account PRIOR to the win will be automatically disqualified.
Any nominated member who wishes to opt out of the competition may do so by messaging me. I will contact the person who nominated you and request an alternate nomination.
Nomination Duration is three weeks followed by a week of site voting!
And GO!
Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
[2017] Paroled
after an untold
number of years
having done his time
released from a cold cell
reeking with sweat, farts, grime
and other assorted stenches
from three hundred Spartans strong
ready to leap forth with spears
from trenches dug in deep
along the outskirts of this
underworld kingdom come
to latent complacency
walks in with a madder than
Max in the Thunderdome
expression and proceeds
to kick me square in the gut
and off my feet
proclaiming, Brother,
THIS IS POETRY!
number of years
having done his time
released from a cold cell
reeking with sweat, farts, grime
and other assorted stenches
from three hundred Spartans strong
ready to leap forth with spears
from trenches dug in deep
along the outskirts of this
underworld kingdom come
to latent complacency
walks in with a madder than
Max in the Thunderdome
expression and proceeds
to kick me square in the gut
and off my feet
proclaiming, Brother,
THIS IS POETRY!
Written by JohnnyBlaze
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
[2017] The Conversation
Life is not always a poem
that you can critique
over and over to isolate
where the communication
breakdown occurred between
writer and reader
Sometimes it is both
necessary and easier
for everyone's sake
to hit the reset button
and return to where
the conversation began
Written by JohnnyBlaze
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
[ Love ] One Of The Variants
a collaboration with Psycotic Mastermind
One
condensed version of Alone
a nickname for Only
restless spirit squandering wishes
upon fleeting shooting stars
in your case, Lonely
---you've gambled away so many chances
pining over unfulfilled romances
while sparingly sharing your scars
Witnessing your reflection
in the eyes of another
speaks of alignment with a lover
while saying little about you
in unpoetic verses
Even couples spending a lifetime together
vowing to love each other for worse or better
may live in entirely alternative universes
Soul mates are for those
who believe in such things---
fingers adorned with matching rings;
their spectral digits grasping
for one another in a crowd
Empty are beds for those who despair
Why is there no one for them to care?
Fending for themselves as they wail aloud
Those afraid of being left behind
settling for the first person they find
discover choices were made in haste
Others cautiously take their sweet time
sipping friendship as if a fine wine
choosing a selection best suiting their taste
Some invite rejection by rejecting invitation
committing to a lifetime of limitation
bypassing many forks along a winding trail---
unlike those never finding their way back
following an apparition until they lose track
writing new chapters to a never ending tale
letting their hearts wash away in tide
drifting aimless in an anchorless boat ride
with only ideals filling the sail
Such detours meant to deter;
searching for a mate less than perfect ensures
the return trip home is minus more failure
Wine drinker
Nature hiker
Ghost hunter
Ocean sailor
We come together
in a higher being way
How we cross paths---
we are unable to say
take comfort in knowing
another is out there
It is different for everyone
Everyone is unique
Who you seek out
may be waiting for
someone else next week
or right outside your door
It all depends on who you are
not where
When push comes to shoving
your honesty around
leaving you battered, bruised
in defeat on the ground
and you are done lying to yourself---
which one of the variants
will you choose be?
One
condensed version of Alone
a nickname for Only
restless spirit squandering wishes
upon fleeting shooting stars
in your case, Lonely
---you've gambled away so many chances
pining over unfulfilled romances
while sparingly sharing your scars
Witnessing your reflection
in the eyes of another
speaks of alignment with a lover
while saying little about you
in unpoetic verses
Even couples spending a lifetime together
vowing to love each other for worse or better
may live in entirely alternative universes
Soul mates are for those
who believe in such things---
fingers adorned with matching rings;
their spectral digits grasping
for one another in a crowd
Empty are beds for those who despair
Why is there no one for them to care?
Fending for themselves as they wail aloud
Those afraid of being left behind
settling for the first person they find
discover choices were made in haste
Others cautiously take their sweet time
sipping friendship as if a fine wine
choosing a selection best suiting their taste
Some invite rejection by rejecting invitation
committing to a lifetime of limitation
bypassing many forks along a winding trail---
unlike those never finding their way back
following an apparition until they lose track
writing new chapters to a never ending tale
letting their hearts wash away in tide
drifting aimless in an anchorless boat ride
with only ideals filling the sail
Such detours meant to deter;
searching for a mate less than perfect ensures
the return trip home is minus more failure
Wine drinker
Nature hiker
Ghost hunter
Ocean sailor
We come together
in a higher being way
How we cross paths---
we are unable to say
take comfort in knowing
another is out there
It is different for everyone
Everyone is unique
Who you seek out
may be waiting for
someone else next week
or right outside your door
It all depends on who you are
not where
When push comes to shoving
your honesty around
leaving you battered, bruised
in defeat on the ground
and you are done lying to yourself---
which one of the variants
will you choose be?
Written by JohnnyBlaze
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
Belonging Together
A guy from the wrong side of the train tracks
And she was a girl with the silver spoon in her
Mouth, but lost in the bigger world. The cracks
Keep them together, not apart. They were
Two fools, having everything bounded
Together. Everything else passing by was a blur.
They did not want to lose what kept them grounded.
Life was crazy and on the edge, but they always
Had each other. They were surrounded
By dishonesty. They were never lost in the blaze
Of the fire and other elements. They were stronger
Than what brought them down and they raise
Each other up through it all. They held on longer
Than most. The up and down ride has been
Far from over for them. They stand up taller.
They have never been out or in
Of style because they do not care about
The latest fashion trend. They just want to grin
And bare it all, even the bad parts. They never pout
When life gets tough and down in the dumps.
Darling, they are never down and out.
Nothing but adrenaline and positivity pumps
Through their system. It is a part of their bloodline.
Everyday grind, determination and bumps
Are just a part of who they are. They sign
Away their hearts so freely because they trust
Each other just enough. Never undermine
Their love because what they have is far from lust
And fatal attraction. They had something natural
Like chemistry. They wanted to be lighter than the gust
Of wind. They are far from being collateral
Damage from this dangerous war this world
Is trying to launch against them. They are not detachable
To everyone else, but they are protected and curled
Up against one another to be saved from something unfurled.
And she was a girl with the silver spoon in her
Mouth, but lost in the bigger world. The cracks
Keep them together, not apart. They were
Two fools, having everything bounded
Together. Everything else passing by was a blur.
They did not want to lose what kept them grounded.
Life was crazy and on the edge, but they always
Had each other. They were surrounded
By dishonesty. They were never lost in the blaze
Of the fire and other elements. They were stronger
Than what brought them down and they raise
Each other up through it all. They held on longer
Than most. The up and down ride has been
Far from over for them. They stand up taller.
They have never been out or in
Of style because they do not care about
The latest fashion trend. They just want to grin
And bare it all, even the bad parts. They never pout
When life gets tough and down in the dumps.
Darling, they are never down and out.
Nothing but adrenaline and positivity pumps
Through their system. It is a part of their bloodline.
Everyday grind, determination and bumps
Are just a part of who they are. They sign
Away their hearts so freely because they trust
Each other just enough. Never undermine
Their love because what they have is far from lust
And fatal attraction. They had something natural
Like chemistry. They wanted to be lighter than the gust
Of wind. They are far from being collateral
Damage from this dangerous war this world
Is trying to launch against them. They are not detachable
To everyone else, but they are protected and curled
Up against one another to be saved from something unfurled.
Written by eswaller
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
I Trust the Stars, Which Makes No Sense
Your eyes are like glass on a fire escape,
they make leaving painful.
You remind me of a sadder me
That had not yet known the agony
Of a Capulet/Montague feud.
But a me that had never known such pain
Was a me without you,
And that just won’t do,
Because we aren’t starcrossed,
we’re lightyear stretched.
Distance is the Devil,
And Circumstance is a wretch,
Both defined by what they try to take…
… little do they know,
That there are hearts at stake.
But I know that a strong heart is not defined by what it lacks,
But by what it takes back from the ravenous entropy of the miles,
And that a pain earned is better than stolen joy.
You make me a better person.
I forget my existential angst when you smile.
And that makes you one of the best things that happen to me
they make leaving painful.
You remind me of a sadder me
That had not yet known the agony
Of a Capulet/Montague feud.
But a me that had never known such pain
Was a me without you,
And that just won’t do,
Because we aren’t starcrossed,
we’re lightyear stretched.
Distance is the Devil,
And Circumstance is a wretch,
Both defined by what they try to take…
… little do they know,
That there are hearts at stake.
But I know that a strong heart is not defined by what it lacks,
But by what it takes back from the ravenous entropy of the miles,
And that a pain earned is better than stolen joy.
You make me a better person.
I forget my existential angst when you smile.
And that makes you one of the best things that happen to me
Written by HedonsHerald
(Alexander Johnson)
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
Stream of Consciousness
Reaching heights holds no hesitation for me. But there is a time when I find myself needing to come down. Sometimes in gigantic leaps. Descending down into the likeness of another.
I was once a part of them, I heard what they taught me, I was changed, I experienced what they experienced. We were as one.
The time came to leave them, although. And knowing their concepts and summarising experiences I loomed above them. Not as anything superior, but as one who observes the city from a top of a skyscraper, or a carnival from the top of a Ferris wheel. I saw them, I saw around them, I saw what they could be missing and I longed for it. I journeyed further and further up until I reached a point where I could see all those who I have previously related to. The Spiritual, the youth, the travellers, the foresters, the repelled, the reached. I observed them. I observed there was a part of me left in each of them. As if my mortality was split and held onto by each one and my spirit was just left floating like a balloon. Maybe even that has been sectioned off.
Now I am in this place, and I descend myself; though all of me wants to keep grasping the moon beams and pulling myself up. I must find the minute components of this place once more. Somewhat I feel as if I am abandoning the rest of myself, silencing it. Merging myself back together at this point would be hurried, and the atoms are just as important as the whole.
I am composed of much. I feel much. I don't completely understand who is it that I am. A liquid substance, with grey eyes, as a rain cloud. Form is an unfamiliar thing.
But when I am grounded and I just see one, when I just focus on who is in my sight at the moment, it doesn't seem as scary. I don't feel as separated, maybe because they understand as well. Maybe because I see the part of them that desires to loom upward. Yet we are both here, to not cut off what we know outside of these walls, but to bring what we know into them. We expand the perspective of all who have not reached as high as us
I was once a part of them, I heard what they taught me, I was changed, I experienced what they experienced. We were as one.
The time came to leave them, although. And knowing their concepts and summarising experiences I loomed above them. Not as anything superior, but as one who observes the city from a top of a skyscraper, or a carnival from the top of a Ferris wheel. I saw them, I saw around them, I saw what they could be missing and I longed for it. I journeyed further and further up until I reached a point where I could see all those who I have previously related to. The Spiritual, the youth, the travellers, the foresters, the repelled, the reached. I observed them. I observed there was a part of me left in each of them. As if my mortality was split and held onto by each one and my spirit was just left floating like a balloon. Maybe even that has been sectioned off.
Now I am in this place, and I descend myself; though all of me wants to keep grasping the moon beams and pulling myself up. I must find the minute components of this place once more. Somewhat I feel as if I am abandoning the rest of myself, silencing it. Merging myself back together at this point would be hurried, and the atoms are just as important as the whole.
I am composed of much. I feel much. I don't completely understand who is it that I am. A liquid substance, with grey eyes, as a rain cloud. Form is an unfamiliar thing.
But when I am grounded and I just see one, when I just focus on who is in my sight at the moment, it doesn't seem as scary. I don't feel as separated, maybe because they understand as well. Maybe because I see the part of them that desires to loom upward. Yet we are both here, to not cut off what we know outside of these walls, but to bring what we know into them. We expand the perspective of all who have not reached as high as us
Written by Isgyppie_
(The_perpetual_journey_)
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
We must remember.
We crawled up from sea,
After the wreckage of battles once born.
We’ve been sailing ships at broken heart harbor,
Boarding runaway trains down lonely night tracks.
We are not accustom to these revolution prairies,
Even though we were born natives and pioneers of pain.
New arrivals to the unknown,
We are restlessly searching for the light halos
On the horizons of today.
Carrying pages of the past,
They are still dripping from the journey.
We move onward towards tomorrow.
Creating a wind to dry them
For the readings of the future.
We must tell these stories.
We are made for this.
We must remember.
After the wreckage of battles once born.
We’ve been sailing ships at broken heart harbor,
Boarding runaway trains down lonely night tracks.
We are not accustom to these revolution prairies,
Even though we were born natives and pioneers of pain.
New arrivals to the unknown,
We are restlessly searching for the light halos
On the horizons of today.
Carrying pages of the past,
They are still dripping from the journey.
We move onward towards tomorrow.
Creating a wind to dry them
For the readings of the future.
We must tell these stories.
We are made for this.
We must remember.
Written by IntoTheRain
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
[ SN ] A Pirate's Life
Fortunes are made by foolish men
there for the taking to be taken;
forget about buried treasure
In far away lands forsaken
Give me a vessel worthy of raking
by cannon fire
Hear the wind in the sails
above your head as the crew
hoists them higher
Never will you
ever witness another view
quite like this
Ripe for the plundering
is the horizon of white and blue
Lust and desire---
such a fine line betwixt the two
And no time for wondering
which is true
What say you?
Aye!
The kingdom of the Seven Seas
knows not a lord or master
It boils down to which Captain's ship
can withstand guns, sail faster
Do you have what it takes to be a pirate?
Are you ruthless as the sharks
Cold as the sea?
Can you take another
man's hard earned wages
without giving him anything in return
save misery?
Load up the shot into the Long Nines
Make ready the grappling hooks and lines
Prepare to board, risk your lives
for silver and gold
For adventure
beyond your wildest fantasy
To live forever onward
til end of written history
Be you young or old---
are you that daring enough
---that bold to sail with me?
Let me hear you!
AYE!
Written by JohnnyBlaze
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
Related submission no longer exists.
Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
Alone
I have been unhappy for so long
that I wonder if there's any happiness left
in the world, for me. When you were sixteen
and they told you that your life was just beginning,
that if you ended it now you'd be drawing
the curtain on a show full of riches, excitement,
and life, you knew they were lying, of course,
but probably not meaning to. The stitches
come undone; the methadone of food,
TV, a little music here and there, and the illusion
of companionship is growing dull
until it is only ineffective. I am here for you, my son,
said the fictional god, and I listened
as best as I could for a while.
that I wonder if there's any happiness left
in the world, for me. When you were sixteen
and they told you that your life was just beginning,
that if you ended it now you'd be drawing
the curtain on a show full of riches, excitement,
and life, you knew they were lying, of course,
but probably not meaning to. The stitches
come undone; the methadone of food,
TV, a little music here and there, and the illusion
of companionship is growing dull
until it is only ineffective. I am here for you, my son,
said the fictional god, and I listened
as best as I could for a while.
Written by The_Silly_Sibyl
(Jack Thomas)
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
Stirring a Memory
Standing over the stove
sauteeing this
simmering that
mostly from memory
but she keeps the notes nearby
her handwriting slow, careful
his less so
sometimes barely legible
He provided bits and pieces
adding emphasis
to what she'd written while watching
It wasn't the only meal he made for them
but the one best-loved
because it took time and always came with stories
as he stirred
They played on her mind
like his sauce on her tongue
Sometimes she'd cry making it alone
never tasting quite the same
only close enough
to touch
This recipe preserved on paper years ago
was the only tangible gift
he'd given her
Written by paperstains
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
[ Legacy ] Beaded Curtains
She taps
ash into shot glass
neglected by dishwashers
for decades
admiring sunlit cigarette
smoke phantoms mingling
with beaded curtains between her
and shattered, blacked out windows
long boarded over
remnants of a hey day
when girls like her glittered
more than gold or diamonds
banking on the drunken
generosity of gentlemen
amusingly referred to
behind their backs
as Cottonwood
and Khaki Package;
their hard earned paychecks
liquidated into dollar bills
burning through dampened
pockets
The best customers
were the quiet ones
who only came to watch
If she missed anything about
the Shakin' Bacon Strip Club
it was them
They did not leer
or get anywhere near
intoxicated as others
nor did they paw at
and grope the dancers
She sighs
Perhaps it was a fool's hope
that twenty-seven years later
they fondly remembered
her just the same
Written by PsycoticMastermind
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Ahavati
Forum Posts: 14281
Tyrant of Words
116
Joined 11th Apr 2015Forum Posts: 14281
[ SK ] Round And Round
The grill of chrome smiles
as she nips heels
The odometer of your life
running out of miles
as you run short of breath
with little time to reflect
on whatever, if any
chain of cause and effect
Death!
continues accelerating
at an alarming rate;
fight or flight syndrome
geared into Overdrive
bringing you to this
philosophy of living
in the moment
now keeping you alive
All the while
the wheels on
Christine?
go round and round
Is what Cuntingham named her
round and round
so close to grinding you
into One with the
ice and asphalt ground
Not very nice
but who's fault
is it really ... ?
Yeah, that's right, Shitter
Written by JohnnyBlaze
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