What's it take
These days

To write a poem

That makes the world go mad
That brings the crowds to their feet
That spreads like wildfire
Through a dry winter forest

Is it those excessively long words?
The ostentatiously loquacious
Platitudinous ramblings
Of an insecure mind aspiring
To authentic intellect?

Is it perhaps...
     the "creativity"
               of      varied      spacing
  or...    could it be..... the lack
                              of capitalization
               the loathsome little letters
               screaming out
                         hey, look at us!
         ... or maybe it's
               the punctuation marks,
     littered, haphazardly
          through the text
                    (whether used correctly)
               or, theyre not?!
     despite worrds mispeled
          and a grammar might is broken
   can these gimmicks increase interest
        though miswritten or misspoken?

Is the trick alliteration
Whose bite brightly bids us
To center on the snappy sounds?
Although all along
     unvoiced underneath
Ideas idle in the isles
   (or perhaps the aisles)
Of the mind
To meld and craft and bind
Our thorough thoughts
And worthy words
Into lines
Which
Heard by herds
Raise the
                  Praise for which we
                  Privately, desperately
                  Pray

Maybe it's a magical mix
Of splendid in-your-head rhythm
Marvelous meter that perfectly clicks
Flowing smoothly without schism

Well-spaced stanzas
Well-used time
Well-crafted phrases
Well-thought-out rhymes

Well, maybe not...
     those gems are often ignored
     cast-aside, unread, even abhorred

Why?

Because the modern world
doesn't need your rules
your restrictions
your regulations
your misguided boundaries
your oppression
your antiquated ideas
   of "the right way"
   to write
   to speak
   to act
   to live
   to (fill in the blank)

No, what the modern world needs
is
Negation!
Contradiction!
Resistance!
Revolt!

And poetry whose words
Say the same thing
Repeat the same meaning
Echo the same lyrics
Rephrase the same thoughts
But in an ever-so-slightly
Different
Varied
Altered
Adjusted
Changed up way

Line
After line
Of synonyms
          over
               and
                    over
                         and
                              over
                                   again

-----

What's it take
These days

To not give in
To narcissism's spiral?

But more importantly:
What's it take

To make my poem go viral?

To all the adventures I'll never go on:

If there was a way become someone else, believe me, I'd make the change.
I'd happily enter a different world where I can watch magic shape a mountain range,
If I could leave this life of paper and pencils and meaningless words behind,
I could be important, meet heroes and uncover how our fates intertwine.
I'd collect stories to exchange
Over bottles of royal wine.

No one has adventures in this world, everyone lives the same as their neighbors.
No one and everyone are in no one and everyone's favors.
We go to school and gain knowledge that's sat still for so long it's stale.
Isn't it wrong that everyone is excited to stop learning for a day when it hails?
The stories we tell are of government traitors
And explosives sent through the mail.

If only there was a way to be more than myself.
To be rich with life instead of with wealth.
To know love exists not just between pages
But also through the pulsing hearts in rib cages.

From: someone who wants to want to go on.

A flower for you to keep you in good spirits
Because we don't really want to live life like we're misfits
For you, a bouquet tied with a thousand threads
Because even sunflowers droop under the weight of their heads

This isn't appraisal, and I'm not one to condemn
But if things don't go our way we'll pretend

That the flowers are wilting
And our mothers are weeping
And hopefully someone is willing
To lend us a hand

It was before time
And it will be after time.
These days we'd rather it be never (present)
Because these days it is always (present)

Do we fear it?
Yes, we do.

Have we reason to fear it?
No, we don't.

It does not rage
Or obstruct
Or consume
Or destroy.
It accepts what it is given.
It envelops, and it kisses, and it hugs,
And it wipes away the tears it's caused.
We'd be wise to let it do so
Because if all we ever knew was darkness
What would we ever have to fear?

What tears would we cry
What hugs would we receive
We'd see no troubles from the outside
So What Would We Need?

There is more than one sun.

The hot sun
The summer sun that beats down on our shoulders and paints our cheeks
The no school sun that brings life to our eyes and asks what we seek

The cold sun
The winter sun that hides behind the sky and blankets her light
The snow tracked sun that shows us our breath and lengthens the night

There is more than one sun.

The passion of two young lovers is enough to ignite a star.

They trust,
despite the uncertainty of their world.

They care,
despite the apathy of their world.

They love,
despite the fact that they are only words.

I crown you king
So long live thee
Rule with pride
And hold the key

Be wise and bold
Don't lose your court
Heed your people
And don't fall short

Raise well your heir
Invite the lords
Joust to marry
So sharpen the swords

Battle to live
Number the lost
Be sure the war
Was worth the cost

Now it is time
To say goodbye
Join the stars
Above the skies