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thaumadzo He seesthaumadzo in Free Verse More Like This
with his soul
and the largeness
of his heart.
He shows us
beauty in
simplicity
and
dignity in the
forgotten.
Ghosts
and
warriors
both find peace in this
poet’s wilderness
while we marvel
at the stories his
camera tells.
lightlesssince you've gonelightless in Free Verse More Like This
your memory lay upon my world
like a shadow across the sun
a point of impenetrable darkness
for which there is
no remedy
Tank Away, 5Lily blossoms spokeTank Away, 5 in Haiku & Eastern More Like This
of hope, and of purity.
Scattered on the grave
of everything they'd hoped for,
flowers dissolve into dust.
MistressI weep becauseMistress in Free Verse More Like This
I don't know what you had
for breakfast
and wonder what
on earth I'm doing.
But when,
in the deep traces of the night,
you choke my name,
I remember why
I came.
keenthe words hidekeen in Free Verse More Like This
trembling behind my teeth
like sparrows seeking
refuge in a storm
a flock of fear
and retribution
I bite back,
for once flown,
they won't be
recalled
shrieks slip
through frantic fingers
to escape as
groaning sighs
dying in the
chill air of morning
like songbirds
which have learned
not to
sing
withertime has no stakewither in Open More Like This
in the reality of now
(and now is
all we have)
years can pass
in moments
(like when you
said goodbye)
in seconds,
I changed
(from a soft-skinned
smiling girl)
into an old crone
with a shriveled
heart
vestigea yellow tree standsvestige in Open More Like This
in a copse of deadwood -
the only remnant of autumn
it's not a pretty tree like the shining
golds of New England – more a
brownish ochre still green
at the center
not the glorious turning
of fall but a
reluctant fading
into winter
like a tired woman
waiting for a lover
who won't
come home
Frostit's cold tonightFrost in Free Verse More Like This
the chill blows
through me as if
my bones were
bare
like leafless
branches in
the bleak
winds of
November
and I find no
comfort
as winter
comes
anewthe yearsanew in Free Verse More Like This
hang on my
bones
like winter
on the vine
my once-supple
limbs shake
in the
tempest of
your discontent
my sere trunk
cracks beneath
the weather
of your
wrath
you plow
me into
this hard
earth one
last time
and my
roots are
finally
torn free
(of you)
now I settle
like dust
in this fallow
field and wait
for spring
dark harvestwe once wore each otherdark harvest in Free Verse More Like This
as comfortably as
an egg wears its shell
our restless minds
deeply interweaving,
our bodies one
but ever-suspect,
you held your
inner self back
leaving mine to
shiver naked
in the dark
and now we feast
alone on the bitter fruit
of your doubt
Gray Eyes Your gray eyes hypnotize and entice me to dance.Gray Eyes in Free Verse More Like This
They pierce me to the soul. Glowing in the sweet
silence of this room. I see our whole future in your
gray eyes.
BeneathWhen you look at me, who do you see? Do you ever think that I dreamed of something better than this? Do you ever stop, to take a moment, to look deeper? Have you ever glimpsed beneath the layers of skin to spy the heart and soul within? I suppose you haven't, do you regret it now?Beneath in Free Verse More Like This
Wild ThingYou wondered, once, why I loved you. Let me explain as simply as I can: You are a wild and beautiful thing, my hands pressed against your heart and all I can think is that I do not deserve you. I do not know if I can hold you and let you go as a wild thing should be held and let go. Shall we never regret it? Will you love me forever? Beautiful, wild thing that you are, I love you as a wilting flower loves the sun and rain. I love you as fiercely as a heart can, with all that I have to give and even what I did not know I could give. I love you because you are what I waited for, what I hoped for and I have not been disappointed.Wild Thing in Free Verse More Like This
Mistress BrightsideYou play with my heart like it is a toy, something insignificant.Mistress Brightside in Free Verse More Like This
Churning through the fallacies and the memories,
Drowning in the deceptively calm ocean of your words,
Slipping further and further beneath waves you created.
You play with people like they are toys, something insignificant.
You are a vicious game of cat and mouse, why am I the mouse?
Twisted lullabies lull me to sleep, putrid in their sweetness.
Everything distorts in your wake, once good and now perverse.
I am askew, I am off center, dangling above your wickedness.
You are the cat and I the mouse, why am I always your mouse?
You are destiny, seductive and flirtatiou
The Unread LetterThe Unread Letter in Free Verse More Like This
The Unread Letter
If I could go back in time
I would, and say what I really wanted to say
Then maybe, just maybe you would still be mine
And I never would have had to go through all of this pain
I yearn to take it all back
To cast away every word that was said
I want you to know I didn't mean any of that
Because I knew you were the one when we first met
You're the one that let go
I was the one to get left behind
You're the one that took my soul
I was the one that had a break down that night
-
You said nothing
And left me waiting
I needed you to say something
I silently pleaded for you to say anything
Maybe I thought it was a
Frozen WhirlpoolFrozen Whirlpool in Free Verse More Like This
Frozen Whirlpool
Somewhere...in the ocean
There is a whirlpool...that is...frozen
-
I no longer had anything keeping me bound to this world
You were my love, you were my chain, and my heart was a link
And I couldn't bear the thought of never seeing your face anymore
So my knees gave, as I let my thoughts break, and I forced myself to sink
-
Somewhere...in the darkness
There is a soul...which became faithless
-
All those memories down the drain
I feel the bitterness of hope
While my tears rain
I cannot cope
-
Somewhere...in the depths
There is a spark...cradled by emptiness
-
My pain will always remain in time
As I never w
S. NoteS. Note in Free Verse More Like This
S. Note
Dear mother, dear father
Dear brother, dear sister
Don't worry, you still have each other
And without me you're all so much stronger
Leave me behind and let me go, I promise the days will get brighter
Dear teachers, dear counselors
Dear therapists, dear doctors
You have my gratitude for what you all did
But I hit rock bottom too many times, and this last one was it
The end of the road again, as if no one could have kept me from a coffin
-
I was not fit to live life
I failed at everything, every time
I sincerely did my very best, I really tried
I just could no longer stand feeling so powerless inside
I lay wide awake ev
ScarmakerScarmaker in Free Verse More Like This
Scarmaker
Your promises kept
Breaking Breaking Breaking
I tried to hold onto those hopeful words you said
But you've always managed to hurt the both of us in the end
These tears shed
Seething Seething Seething
Down and away like liquified memories of regret
While every stinging mistake rushes back and quickly spreads
My hands left
Trembling Trembling Trembling
I find myself feeling lost in this inner emptiness
As all of my love for you continually bleeds out of my chest
-
This is our last resort / Please don't say it's so!
There's no trus
The Beginning Or The End?The Beginning Or The End? in Short Stories More Like This
The Beginning Or The End?
I dreamed a dream that was in my head. I had unexpectedly taken an afternoon nap, resting peacefully in our secret place. I laid out on the softness of an old quilted blanket I often took with me when I went deep within the woods outside of the town of Chester. My aunt Lori had made it when she was just a girl and then gave it to me when I was born. Raggedy and slightly torn, it was the perfect thing to use for a picnic without fear of it getting ruined because it was already on its way out. Octagon pieces of fabric of faded reds, blues, and grays, decorated lightly with tiny daisies. The stitching
The Loungemascara band-aidsThe Lounge in Free Verse More Like This
and cosmic blush
tepid hand shakes
and trysts of lust
forever daunting
the panther prowl
forever seeking
somewhere, somehow
smoke rings gather
in spectral mist
slow movements
elbows and twists
shoulders furled up
in the cold
no one knows
which way to go
but car crashes
are just as common,
as hope.
My DearestMy Dearest in Flash Fiction & Vignettes More Like This
Dearest Robert,
Every night I walk the narrow path to The Door, Your Door. (I tell no one. I make sure they're not watching). They tried to keep me from you. Did you know they hid the letters? They hid them, but I found them in the attic underneath a pile of your clothes. They tried to donate those too, but I stopped them. I had a fit and I made them stop. Everyday my nightgown is damp with tears, but at night I have comfort. I know you're with me then.
Already there is talk of moving on. It's been a whole year, they say. I need to Let Go, Move On, but I'm making plans of moving in. They tire of me day after day; not dressing, hardly eating
Let Go Hold OnLet Go Hold On in Free Verse More Like This
Everything that matters or should matter let it go
Every person that ever loved you or will love you let them go
Every dream or wish you've ever had let them all go
Every wrong you never corrected just let go
Every hurt you ever felt or will know let them go
Every joy you may bring to others that brought joy to you let them all…go
Giving up is easy
But holding onto all that is dear to you or that you'll ever care for
Is what sets us apart from those that just give up and those that refuse to walk away
My Life In a NutshellMy Life In a Nutshell in Free Verse More Like This
My Life In a Nutshell
I (That's just another word for me.)
I tried to reason with myself today.
I lost.
Reason won.
I didn't give you a fair chance to run before you fell in love with me.
By the way, why did you fall in love with me?
Or did you trip over the last heart you broke and land in my arms?
I saw the truth today.
It wasn't pretty.
Ditto.
Yesterday I had a dream.
You lost me.
I found me.
The world use to look so dim.
Oh wait, there's the light switch.
Damn, the light just burned out!
The future looks so bright.
No wait, that's just car headlights.
I think I died and went to...
Ah crap!
Not you again.
Weren't you
A Love Like This A Love Like YouA Love Like This A Love Like You in Free Verse More Like This
What if I held you like you were made of glass
And out of my dreams you would never pass
I'd like to think you'd know just what love is and was
Because in my arms I'd show how to really love and be loved
My world would be complete
If I could just lay at your feet
And tell you all that you mean to me
Oh how my heart and soul would be so free
I think a love like this would stand a chance
And be more than just a simple little romance
I would take you and hold and never let you go
I would never let this love grow cold if you'd only say so
My heart feels like a fire is waking from a dark cold slumber
And if you touched my chest you wo
Them That's Got Shall GetThem That's Got Shall Get in Traditional Fixed Forms More Like This
Every day I still talk to them
We talk and laugh of times past
Every day I set the table for them
Making sure to give them the right cup to drink from
I sit at the table and watch them
I spread my butter and I spread my jam
And we talk of great times and a smile cracks on my face
We sit and listen to the radio
And recall our dog Candy
And every single night, I still leave a space for them adjacent
And I kiss them goodnight
But I find air and I am alone.
I know she will never come back
Not even after forty-four years
And every night, I rest my head in my hands,
And I cry
Downtown AngelDowntown Angel in General Fiction More Like This
Downtown Angel
I walked through the door of my Manhattan apartment, one that had not been entered in the last four months. Closing the door behind me, I flicked on the lights revealing a place still in the exact way that I had left it, frozen in time. I dropped my luggage and proceeded to check if the rest of my place was still in order. I was itching to call my friends up to tell them about what happened. The press surely did not know about it yet. It was my first discovery, which could quite possibly be the most prominent find of the twenty-first century, I was very eager to tell everyone.
After a childhood which was a daily struggle, m
NeuroticaWhat'd you sayNeurotica in Free Verse More Like This
Neurotica?
I felt it
Through a mist
I saw it
Through a mirror
I held it close
Like a woman
Like a shield
Like a blanket
Like a sword
A machine gun
In my fists
To defend me
From myself
From a hard world
From my heartbreak
From a lasso
Trying to snare me
To ensnare me
In myself
With myself
In my dreams
In my passions
With my feelings
Dark and lonely
From my past
Like an echo
From my future
Like an arrow
Hold my shield up
My neurosis
To protect me
But it's a woman
And now she's bleeding
From an arrow
Through her heart
copyright J. Shidler 1999-12-06
Fear as FaithYou may not marry outside the faith.Fear as Faith in Traditional Fixed Forms More Like This
Your life becomes forfeit
We hold it null.
We will not have our name despoiled,
Our control shown weak
And god's name besmirched.
We fear the will of prying eyes,
Our hard work void,
Our standing gone.
We fear the others not like us,
The lure of freedom
Too much to bear.
We fear that all our young will go
And be like them,
Free to worship in a different way.
So in god's wisdom
Defilement of your face
So no bright warrior will want you now.
Here is the ending of your life
As we sweep you out of your room
Under the rug.
Our honour held as we honour god,
In his wisdom so we hold our peac
We Will Never Be the Samethose of earth with musky skin shall eat the soil and live on land. those of sky pure and white will be graceful. the clouds leave them feathery, light. those of earth shall be grounded and never see sky. their eyes will dim without the light of the sky people. blindly they will follow long hollowed tunnels forever shrouded by night.and day will glow for those of sky however they shall learn nothing.they will not see past the soil for they know no better and can only look up at themselves.We Will Never Be the Same in Free Verse More Like This
M my words always come out jumbledM in Free Verse More Like This
and oh i hope you read this
for i have fumbled
our friendship
and im sorry
we were conjoined at the hip
and i ruined it
i miss you
youre my best friend
and im not letting you fall again
just waiting for you
to hear me say
please forgive me
for one more day
i was angry
and having a bad time
now im fine
and we're not talking
so ill keep walking
away
until you hear me say
im sorry M.
The Burdened Prayer*The Burdened Prayer* in Free Verse More Like This
Father...
I come to thee baring nothing...
Empty hands and a heavy heart are all that are contained,
For I hold no reasons for my actions...
Here lies no excuse in my sins...
I hath prayed time and time again,
Out of both faith and desperation even...
I am burdened O'Lord
Burdened by my own impulses......
By the struggling curiosity of my mind...
By the nature that has become mine...
My insomniatic nostalgia drives me to close mine eyes...
mine eyes so full of icey tears at times of being alone....
Be it my past the holds me back
Or my future that yanks me forward by force...
Or perhaps the present that seems so true in form
Once more, Here and Now.Once more, Here and Now. in Free Verse More Like This
I go by the dying beat of my heart,
with every breath now to be my last...
the music to my life's finale,
with a withering sound.
As tears rush from my eyes,
like the joy through my veins...
Your flesh to mine,
and my lips to yours.
Farewell to you Darling,
are my only lying words to you,
as you will only be blind to me
I shall tell you of my love...
Embrace me once more,
and kiss me with forced elation,
the inspired yet sorrowed passion...
Once more, here and now...
With a withering sound,
and my lips to yours
and I shall tell you of my love...
Once more, here and now...
I go by the dying beat of my heart...
As tears rus
A Mere GoodbyeA Mere Goodbye in Free Verse More Like This
If all your words are,
Just a mere goodbye,
Please,
Say no more.
To you goodbye,
May be just a new beginning,
But to me Goodbye,
Is but a sad ending,
Waiting to be forgotten.
I do not wish for loss,
I do not wish for goodbyes,
But I wish for a world
Without such empty regrets.
If this is how it must be,
Then please say no more,
Because those words are empty,
Empty like the sunset,
That bids farewell to the day.
I do not wish for you, Anymore,
I do not wish for another you,
But I do not wish to hear,
Such empty words of disappointment.
If all your words are,
Just a mere goodbye,
Please,
Say no more.
If You and IIf You and I in Free Verse More Like This
If you and I,
Were to live another day,
Known as tomorrow,
Would I be able to accept,
Such a sorrow.
If you and I,
Were to live another moment,
Could I,
Relive that moment,
Because I wouldn't,
Be able to get enough,
Of that,
Unreachable moment.
If you and I,
Could be together,
Forever,
Would that be enough time,
For me to show you all the love,
That I may hold for you?
If you and I,
Were to leave each other,
At this moment,
Would you forget me?
Never think about me,
Ever again.
Even if it was just another moment?
If you and I,
Could live another night,
Would you be sleepless,
Right beside me,
In this sleeple
Sta.sh
