Submissions by atarliss
POEMS AND SHORT STORIES
Poet Introduction
I wish I had the strength of a tiger, but in truth I'm as fragile as glass.
ANGER POEM
Published
15th Apr 2015 4:50pm
15th Apr 2015 4:50pm
I Hate Gossip
I wish…
That you would just stop it.
Really, it shouldn't be this hard…
I wish
That when I said his name
Your lips would stay flat-
No sneer-
And you wouldn't recite to me
A dictionary
No, make it the Encyclopedia Britannica,
Every page on your Wikipedia
Dedicated
To the reasons
Why he's a terrible person.
Anybody ever told you
That the expression
"seventy times seven"
Is greater than or equal to
490?
I wish
That all your sneering
And sighing
And frowning
And whining
Would...
That you would just stop it.
Really, it shouldn't be this hard…
I wish
That when I said his name
Your lips would stay flat-
No sneer-
And you wouldn't recite to me
A dictionary
No, make it the Encyclopedia Britannica,
Every page on your Wikipedia
Dedicated
To the reasons
Why he's a terrible person.
Anybody ever told you
That the expression
"seventy times seven"
Is greater than or equal to
490?
I wish
That all your sneering
And sighing
And frowning
And whining
Would...
841 reads
2 Comments
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
14th Apr 2015 5:55pm
14th Apr 2015 5:55pm
Life of a Paper Ball
I was born completely clean and white
But I was so proud when I got my first inky tattoo--
A single sequence of quick-written words--
But the meter was off and the meaning absurd
And now I lie a crumpled corpse on the floor.
But I was so proud when I got my first inky tattoo--
A single sequence of quick-written words--
But the meter was off and the meaning absurd
And now I lie a crumpled corpse on the floor.
621 reads
1 Comment
SELF POEM
Published
14th Apr 2015 5:53pm
14th Apr 2015 5:53pm
Laughing Eyes
When I get old,
I hope I have laugh lines
Around my eyes...
Laughing eyes are made,
Not born,
Achieved and earned
Line by line...
The first line comes
When the soul gets enough substance
To grit its teeth and clench its fists
Beat a sword into a plowshare
And gouge a big smiling furrow
Arrow-straight through the Dust Bowl.
The second line comes
When the mouth laughs
For the first time
While the ears are still ringing
And the hands still shaking from a nightmare.
The third line comes
As a purchase...
I hope I have laugh lines
Around my eyes...
Laughing eyes are made,
Not born,
Achieved and earned
Line by line...
The first line comes
When the soul gets enough substance
To grit its teeth and clench its fists
Beat a sword into a plowshare
And gouge a big smiling furrow
Arrow-straight through the Dust Bowl.
The second line comes
When the mouth laughs
For the first time
While the ears are still ringing
And the hands still shaking from a nightmare.
The third line comes
As a purchase...
701 reads
1 Comment
DARK POEM
Published
13th Apr 2015 4:50pm
13th Apr 2015 4:50pm
Blood Moon Risin'
Blood moon risin'
Better shut your trembling eyes
Blood moon risin'
Death herself now stalks the skies
Blood moon risin'
'Tis a night for fear to reign
Blood moon risin'
Grit your teeth against the pain
Blood moon risin'
Broken glass now paves the streets
Blood moon risin'
Hell's own soldiers stoke the heat
Blood moon risin'
Don't you dare to mourn or weep
Blood moon risin'
You might live if silence keeps.
This poem is dedicated to all those who suffered in the Nazi Holocaust in the event of Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom...
Better shut your trembling eyes
Blood moon risin'
Death herself now stalks the skies
Blood moon risin'
'Tis a night for fear to reign
Blood moon risin'
Grit your teeth against the pain
Blood moon risin'
Broken glass now paves the streets
Blood moon risin'
Hell's own soldiers stoke the heat
Blood moon risin'
Don't you dare to mourn or weep
Blood moon risin'
You might live if silence keeps.
This poem is dedicated to all those who suffered in the Nazi Holocaust in the event of Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom...
800 reads
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
25th Feb 2015 6:09pm
25th Feb 2015 6:09pm
Poem J: Jocularity
The memory of a laugh is better than its moment
A page preserves a joyful tear
Gray matter guards the vivacity of joy
Giggles are knitted in lines on the face
A page preserves a joyful tear
Rosy smiles bloom from negatives
Giggles are knitted in lines on the face
Butterfly wings are better not to touch
Rosy smiles bloom from negatives
Gray matter guards the vivacity of joy
Butterfly wings are better not to touch
The memory of a laugh is better than its moment
A page preserves a joyful tear
Gray matter guards the vivacity of joy
Giggles are knitted in lines on the face
A page preserves a joyful tear
Rosy smiles bloom from negatives
Giggles are knitted in lines on the face
Butterfly wings are better not to touch
Rosy smiles bloom from negatives
Gray matter guards the vivacity of joy
Butterfly wings are better not to touch
The memory of a laugh is better than its moment
573 reads
0 Comments
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
20th Feb 2015 10:24pm
20th Feb 2015 10:24pm
Poem I: Iridescence
Iridescence—
Color with wings,
Always moving, twirling, swirling.
Sparkling shadows, flashing hues;
Sun striking the echoing waters-
Clarity removed -
Rainbows captured in rippling waves;
Wildly sparkling
Distorted images
- reflect -
Images distorted
Sparkling wildly,
Waves rippling in captured rainbows -
Removed clarity
Waters echoing the striking sun;
Hues flashing, shadows sparkling -
Swirling, twirling, moving always,
Wings with color—
Iridescence.
Note: this poem is part of a challenge I undertook to...
Color with wings,
Always moving, twirling, swirling.
Sparkling shadows, flashing hues;
Sun striking the echoing waters-
Clarity removed -
Rainbows captured in rippling waves;
Wildly sparkling
Distorted images
- reflect -
Images distorted
Sparkling wildly,
Waves rippling in captured rainbows -
Removed clarity
Waters echoing the striking sun;
Hues flashing, shadows sparkling -
Swirling, twirling, moving always,
Wings with color—
Iridescence.
Note: this poem is part of a challenge I undertook to...
997 reads
2 Comments
DARK POEM
Published
18th Feb 2015 4:53pm
18th Feb 2015 4:53pm
Poem H: Hidden
Hidden small within my swelling soul…
I know I should reveal it, but
Deep inside I hold my sin; I’m
Dying to confess but driven to deny,
Eternally chained in my own festering heart…will I
Never find relief?
Note: this poem is part of a challenge I undertook to write a poem for each letter of the alphabet.
I know I should reveal it, but
Deep inside I hold my sin; I’m
Dying to confess but driven to deny,
Eternally chained in my own festering heart…will I
Never find relief?
Note: this poem is part of a challenge I undertook to write a poem for each letter of the alphabet.
705 reads
1 Comment
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
18th Feb 2015 4:32pm
18th Feb 2015 4:32pm
Poem G: Gemstone Tetractys
A
Gemstone,
A promise,
Slipped over
Bride’s trembling finger…
A
Gemstone,
A treasure,
Clutched tight by
Pirate’s greedy hands.
A
Gemstone,
A symbol,
Gleaming in a
Kingly golden crown.
A
Gemstone,
A simple
Stone, hewn roughly
From the worthless dirt.
Note: this poem is part of a challenge I undertook to write a poem for each letter of the alphabet.
Gemstone,
A promise,
Slipped over
Bride’s trembling finger…
A
Gemstone,
A treasure,
Clutched tight by
Pirate’s greedy hands.
A
Gemstone,
A symbol,
Gleaming in a
Kingly golden crown.
A
Gemstone,
A simple
Stone, hewn roughly
From the worthless dirt.
Note: this poem is part of a challenge I undertook to write a poem for each letter of the alphabet.
666 reads
1 Comment
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
17th Feb 2015 5:49pm
17th Feb 2015 5:49pm
Poem F: Fairy Folk
Fairy folk go marching when the night turns cold,
Leave their tiny footprints on the window glass.
Silver frost-bells tinkle on their sleighs of gold,
While snowflakes sting the cheeks of each blushing lass.
Fairy folk go marching when the streams freeze hard,
Dance their royal waltzes on bright silver blades.
The wind shrieks their music, a wild winter bard,
Seals their skated trails in gleaming diamond shades.
Fairy folk go marching when clouds quilt the sky,
But the raindrops sing of sun’s returning glow;
When the darkness fades, they with...
Leave their tiny footprints on the window glass.
Silver frost-bells tinkle on their sleighs of gold,
While snowflakes sting the cheeks of each blushing lass.
Fairy folk go marching when the streams freeze hard,
Dance their royal waltzes on bright silver blades.
The wind shrieks their music, a wild winter bard,
Seals their skated trails in gleaming diamond shades.
Fairy folk go marching when clouds quilt the sky,
But the raindrops sing of sun’s returning glow;
When the darkness fades, they with...
639 reads
1 Comment
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
16th Feb 2015 6:22pm
16th Feb 2015 6:22pm
Poem E: Eclipse
Eclipse
Angry clouds swarm the evening sky,
Spreading raven’s wings o’er the stars.
As one beings hold their breath,
Waiting for the moment born of fear
When the bloody moon shall pass above
In its boat of ill-born fortune.
Despairing of the gods’ good fortune,
Ancients watched this angry sky,
Eyes fixed on the curse above
Wrought and written in the stars…
Their hearts whispered nameless fear—
The blood of moon will cease the breath.
Years rolled by, and new breath
Hitched as fingers crossed for fortune ...
Angry clouds swarm the evening sky,
Spreading raven’s wings o’er the stars.
As one beings hold their breath,
Waiting for the moment born of fear
When the bloody moon shall pass above
In its boat of ill-born fortune.
Despairing of the gods’ good fortune,
Ancients watched this angry sky,
Eyes fixed on the curse above
Wrought and written in the stars…
Their hearts whispered nameless fear—
The blood of moon will cease the breath.
Years rolled by, and new breath
Hitched as fingers crossed for fortune ...
729 reads
1 Comment
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
16th Feb 2015 6:12pm
16th Feb 2015 6:12pm
Poem D: Diamond
Diamond
Precious beyond all
Fortune spent for crystal gleam
Wasted over simple stone
Dispendious
Note: this poem is part of a challenge I undertook to write a poem for each letter of the alphabet.
Precious beyond all
Fortune spent for crystal gleam
Wasted over simple stone
Dispendious
Note: this poem is part of a challenge I undertook to write a poem for each letter of the alphabet.
565 reads
0 Comments
OBSERVATIONAL POEM
Published
13th Feb 2015 6:01pm
13th Feb 2015 6:01pm
Poem C: Counting Closing Doors
The door swings, the door falls,
Pounding feet race up the hall,
Answering baby’s frightened squall…
And the door swings, the door falls.
New feet pound the creaking halls,
Muddy fingers streak the walls,
Swinging tattered baby dolls…
And the door swings, the door falls.
Dramatic midnight cell phone calls
Blend with bouncing basketballs
Crushing sloppy homework scrawls…
And the door swings, the door falls.
A tumbling pile now widely sprawls
In the aging, creaking halls,
New books and bags, both large and small…
And...
Pounding feet race up the hall,
Answering baby’s frightened squall…
And the door swings, the door falls.
New feet pound the creaking halls,
Muddy fingers streak the walls,
Swinging tattered baby dolls…
And the door swings, the door falls.
Dramatic midnight cell phone calls
Blend with bouncing basketballs
Crushing sloppy homework scrawls…
And the door swings, the door falls.
A tumbling pile now widely sprawls
In the aging, creaking halls,
New books and bags, both large and small…
And...
642 reads
1 Comment
DU Poetry : Submissions by atarliss
