Submissions by Highway62
POEMS AND SHORT STORIES
Poet Introduction
I like playing with language. I love the satisfaction of structuring a whole poem from just a single line or thought, and making lines rhyme or fit. I like poems that have a dark intensity and a flow to them, and that's what I try to create with mine.
DARK POEM
Published
9th Dec 2009 2:35am
9th Dec 2009 2:35am
The Glencoe Massacre
The clock strikes twelve, the moon strikes silver.
The glow of the heather seeps through the foggy, blood soaked shadows.
The cries of men among crows, and the silence of men recently imposed,
half strewn, like feathers blown, on the eternal dusk of the world
which arises in times of profound despair.
Their silence fills the air.
The hills channel the chiseled crisp wind, no respite, they know
too well, from the pains of slaughter and thoughts of hell.
The wind blows no mercy, cutting through men like the reaper's scythe, it
scurries north...
The glow of the heather seeps through the foggy, blood soaked shadows.
The cries of men among crows, and the silence of men recently imposed,
half strewn, like feathers blown, on the eternal dusk of the world
which arises in times of profound despair.
Their silence fills the air.
The hills channel the chiseled crisp wind, no respite, they know
too well, from the pains of slaughter and thoughts of hell.
The wind blows no mercy, cutting through men like the reaper's scythe, it
scurries north...
814 reads
0 Comments
DARK POEM
Published
1st Dec 2009 3:28am
1st Dec 2009 3:28am
Flags Upon My Mast
Broken and tired as i ponder my plight, the carved bones
of my body lay twisted and unfettered from a world too unjust to care.
In the solemn glare, of every eye that's ever glimpsed or paused to
stare, i feel the wind from a storm of dread blow through my hair.
Fortune won't consume the weak of heart, love hath favoured those who
chose to dare.
As i study words of fate in scripts of past,
questions fly like flags upon my mast, those questions, that burn like
scented candles through the bleak and troubled night, the answers i can
see, in their...
of my body lay twisted and unfettered from a world too unjust to care.
In the solemn glare, of every eye that's ever glimpsed or paused to
stare, i feel the wind from a storm of dread blow through my hair.
Fortune won't consume the weak of heart, love hath favoured those who
chose to dare.
As i study words of fate in scripts of past,
questions fly like flags upon my mast, those questions, that burn like
scented candles through the bleak and troubled night, the answers i can
see, in their...
948 reads
2 Comments
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
28th Nov 2009 8:58pm
28th Nov 2009 8:58pm
The Economy Class
As if by magic, flashes of thoughts distract me in my sleep, the recession's deep. On the fool’s thought-bank, news of its arrival, dampens the souls of investors, debt-drivers, and financial cavaliers. From top to bottom, society, broken by the spirit by which it was made, crumbles to the dust in which it will fade, and grown men drown in a sea of red numbers. History's shoulder, cold no-more, turns to punish those who fled its wrath, and those who tried. Civilization stands on the worthless harbour's wood, drenched in fear and consumers' pride, waiting for the golden ships of time, to steer...
832 reads
0 Comments
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
28th Nov 2009 1:49am
28th Nov 2009 1:49am
The Price of a Postcard
The sun-blessed salty sea breeze, cries beneath the
lemon trees. The old soaked boat 'The Devil's Coat', bobs the harbour,
sails a moat. The pier stands half-chocked with blocks of sugar rock, a
carnival swings lively as the droning tourists flock. The dried-out
grass of summers past, waves beneath the navy, and where her guns were
cast. The church tower's steely glower, stretches far beyond the
petalled bower, it's bells ring out the morning tout, and repeat it
every hour. From silk-glass windows the summer glows and reflects upon
this scene it knows, the...
lemon trees. The old soaked boat 'The Devil's Coat', bobs the harbour,
sails a moat. The pier stands half-chocked with blocks of sugar rock, a
carnival swings lively as the droning tourists flock. The dried-out
grass of summers past, waves beneath the navy, and where her guns were
cast. The church tower's steely glower, stretches far beyond the
petalled bower, it's bells ring out the morning tout, and repeat it
every hour. From silk-glass windows the summer glows and reflects upon
this scene it knows, the...
808 reads
2 Comments
UPBEAT INSPIRATIONAL POEM
Published
26th Nov 2009 2:45am
26th Nov 2009 2:45am
To The Broken Hearted
Do you ever feel you want to die?
Have you ever stopped to reason why?
Do you want to forget but fail to try?
Have you ever told yourself a lie?
If the answer's yes, may you be blessed
For you have just failed life's great test
Go gentle now, your mind can rest.
The bird may have flown, the tree may have grown
but don't be scared you're on your own
For you're the tree, the bird is love
Life it is the sky above
And though your leaves may die, when your roots are stressed
The bird may fly off on it's quest
You're still...
Have you ever stopped to reason why?
Do you want to forget but fail to try?
Have you ever told yourself a lie?
If the answer's yes, may you be blessed
For you have just failed life's great test
Go gentle now, your mind can rest.
The bird may have flown, the tree may have grown
but don't be scared you're on your own
For you're the tree, the bird is love
Life it is the sky above
And though your leaves may die, when your roots are stressed
The bird may fly off on it's quest
You're still...
828 reads
2 Comments
DARK POEM
Published
16th Nov 2009 1:25am
16th Nov 2009 1:25am
Ashes to Ashes
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
the bread has gone, but not the crust
my life has changed and so it must
the love's still there, but where's the lust?
Fortune fades with every day
shadowed by the words i say
should i leave or should i stay?
i vacillate my life away
In a masterful web, you spin your lies
in the aftermath my passion dies
but you'll never hear my anguished cries
only now you can see the pain in my eyes
The rotten leaves, on my dead tree
are happier than i can be
pain and loss is all i see
they've fallen now,...
the bread has gone, but not the crust
my life has changed and so it must
the love's still there, but where's the lust?
Fortune fades with every day
shadowed by the words i say
should i leave or should i stay?
i vacillate my life away
In a masterful web, you spin your lies
in the aftermath my passion dies
but you'll never hear my anguished cries
only now you can see the pain in my eyes
The rotten leaves, on my dead tree
are happier than i can be
pain and loss is all i see
they've fallen now,...
942 reads
5 Comments
UPBEAT INSPIRATIONAL POEM
Published
16th Nov 2009 1:19am
16th Nov 2009 1:19am
Onwards we shall ride...
There's been many a dark and painful stride, but with
fists of hope and glory, onwards we shall ride. There's no undoing in
this sentiment, this ballad's for those who chose not to repent. We'll
lead no trail unspoken, no road, no path, no turn left broken, no
longer shall we sulk or pale or bide! Onwards we shall ride.
Never
shall our tears reflect the scourge of the lonely setting sun, let the
darkness of past trail our heels as we run. Never shall the gaunt weak
wind, scatter our desires far and wide. Let our horses' dark thunder
echo the quakes of...
fists of hope and glory, onwards we shall ride. There's no undoing in
this sentiment, this ballad's for those who chose not to repent. We'll
lead no trail unspoken, no road, no path, no turn left broken, no
longer shall we sulk or pale or bide! Onwards we shall ride.
Never
shall our tears reflect the scourge of the lonely setting sun, let the
darkness of past trail our heels as we run. Never shall the gaunt weak
wind, scatter our desires far and wide. Let our horses' dark thunder
echo the quakes of...
818 reads
0 Comments
ANGER POEM
Published
8th Nov 2009 00:27am
8th Nov 2009 00:27am
The Aching Voyage
I drift from the murky rivers of time, out into the sea of eternity.
As i row against the stormy weaving tide
these waves of hurt and pain, i shall forever ride
as i sail forevermore without my pride
The skies rumble with forsaken desire
They cast their sound like hammer's pound
and the seas rage like blue fire
My boat, built with pale torn, aching hands
it's hull against this rage withstands
i sail towards forgotten lands
and all who i find, in troubled times, lying wasted by the sea of sands
Of life and death, i worry not
the...
As i row against the stormy weaving tide
these waves of hurt and pain, i shall forever ride
as i sail forevermore without my pride
The skies rumble with forsaken desire
They cast their sound like hammer's pound
and the seas rage like blue fire
My boat, built with pale torn, aching hands
it's hull against this rage withstands
i sail towards forgotten lands
and all who i find, in troubled times, lying wasted by the sea of sands
Of life and death, i worry not
the...
857 reads
3 Comments
UPBEAT INSPIRATIONAL POEM
Published
6th Nov 2009 11:10pm
6th Nov 2009 11:10pm
The Tree of Life
I stand defiant in the valley of lost hope, shadowed by
the mountains of pain piled high, between the lake of life, and the
trembling walnut sky, but for the grace of god goes i, too young to
die, too old to cry. Of joy, the unborn thought, my mind can see it
slowly rot, in all it's glory it was never more sought, doomed though i
am, compliant i am not . The rains pour, but still i can hear the
ocean's roar, the waves of love want to know me no more, and so i stand
defiant still, wallowing in my absent will, without but a dream for my
poor head to fill.
...
the mountains of pain piled high, between the lake of life, and the
trembling walnut sky, but for the grace of god goes i, too young to
die, too old to cry. Of joy, the unborn thought, my mind can see it
slowly rot, in all it's glory it was never more sought, doomed though i
am, compliant i am not . The rains pour, but still i can hear the
ocean's roar, the waves of love want to know me no more, and so i stand
defiant still, wallowing in my absent will, without but a dream for my
poor head to fill.
...
1028 reads
2 Comments
ANGER POEM
Published
2nd Nov 2009 2:07am
2nd Nov 2009 2:07am
Never Again
It's not that I'm afraid of life, it's just that the
blade and twist of her knife, cut too deep, too soon, into my aching
worn and weary heart.
I'll never get passed her, nor through nor
over nor by her sweet pasture, I'll only just drift like the fog if we
part. Never was one so enthralling to me, never was one so enraged to
see, her fragile love fall like an apple so free. Now as I shiver in
the cold lonely night, I collapse as I cry for it wasn't to be. The
darkness will never surrender, as I whisper a wish in the ear of the
sun, I pray as I...
blade and twist of her knife, cut too deep, too soon, into my aching
worn and weary heart.
I'll never get passed her, nor through nor
over nor by her sweet pasture, I'll only just drift like the fog if we
part. Never was one so enthralling to me, never was one so enraged to
see, her fragile love fall like an apple so free. Now as I shiver in
the cold lonely night, I collapse as I cry for it wasn't to be. The
darkness will never surrender, as I whisper a wish in the ear of the
sun, I pray as I...
887 reads
0 Comments
DARK POEM
Published
1st Nov 2009 3:44am
1st Nov 2009 3:44am
The Light Infantry
Upon the Somme, on this here day
There lives a family of men, each who weigh
21 grams of spirit or matter
Which one's which is for them to say
To my young eyes, their life seemed grey
And to their eyes now, I hear you pray
I hope our lives are seen in colour
To capture the wars from which we now suffer
And to show them how far we've come, oh father
21 grams of spirit or matter
They stand depressed, not for their fate
Nor for their sudden shift in weight
The truth behind their saddened eyes
Is because they've been, and done, and...
There lives a family of men, each who weigh
21 grams of spirit or matter
Which one's which is for them to say
To my young eyes, their life seemed grey
And to their eyes now, I hear you pray
I hope our lives are seen in colour
To capture the wars from which we now suffer
And to show them how far we've come, oh father
21 grams of spirit or matter
They stand depressed, not for their fate
Nor for their sudden shift in weight
The truth behind their saddened eyes
Is because they've been, and done, and...
1254 reads
7 Comments
DARK POEM
Published
29th Oct 2009 00:36am
29th Oct 2009 00:36am
Adrift in an Uncharted Mind
In the distant glow, of the unfazed moon,
I lie awake in this soft room.
Listening, acutely, to the dancing voices,
Pouring from within the outstretched hollow walls.
My thoughts and dreams,
Far louder and clearer than on this slow night,
Though it seems, tried escaping
Long before the dawn-birds and day-breakers,
Sang and danced with the passing winds of change.
Outside this worn and withered temple,
Far beyond these lands and hills, and trees,
The rocks and sands of defiant upheaval,
Cast themselves forth, from the angry dark
And...
I lie awake in this soft room.
Listening, acutely, to the dancing voices,
Pouring from within the outstretched hollow walls.
My thoughts and dreams,
Far louder and clearer than on this slow night,
Though it seems, tried escaping
Long before the dawn-birds and day-breakers,
Sang and danced with the passing winds of change.
Outside this worn and withered temple,
Far beyond these lands and hills, and trees,
The rocks and sands of defiant upheaval,
Cast themselves forth, from the angry dark
And...
979 reads
3 Comments
DU Poetry : Submissions by Highway62
