The latest poems on Hello Poetry

Mark C 2d

Assembly

my boyfriend blocks me for four days
because I won’t give him the chair he wants.
I’m left scrolling through IKEA listings,
pretending the algorithm knows my waiting.

outside, neighbors drag out plastic stools
for another birthday party. balloons
tied to the wrong wrist, a dog howling
like it knows who gets the last seat.

on day three, I start naming the chairs
in my apartment: recliner as prophet,
barstool as witness. I kneel before
the ottoman, bargaining like a priest.

when he unblocks me, it feels
less like forgiveness, more like return policy:
no receipt, box dented, parts missing.
we drag it inside together, silent, already exhausted.

what I wanted to say was:
I would’ve sat on the floor
if it meant staying.

#relationships #ikea #furniture #lgbt #gay #mlm #queer

Ryan Geoffrey Hayward 2d

Falling In Love With.....Novel Characters

I kinda wish to soar
with her through the pages,
flicking to an almighty roar
past the deaf ears of sages,
Is is really quint as funnels,
through comics or novels?

We come to love
the illustrated
in our minds
or visual manga
or DC wonder
heroes...
heroines....

We love in our minds
but is it true we are AI?
So falling for what's
written in black ink,
may our hands sink,
and finally our bodies
into this fantasy,
live on in the sequels
and never be erased
but flourish as a couple.

Dedicated to Maggie. To hell with the detractors, just be happy!

om4r 2d

Doo-Doo

a strange feeling of emptiness,
all I asked for was your tenderness,
your gentleness,
not for you to send me into a spiral of loneliness,
not a human, just a collection of messiness,
messy memories, messy emotions, messy life,
you got me thinking about that knife,
I'm just empty of life,
should've had love, but all we have is a strife,
once upon a time, our love was rife,
why didn't we work out, we should have,
a second chance, all I crave,
I should already be in my grave,
but somehow you managed to save,
a soul that wanted out,
days of your time, for me to spout,
all you did was make me a lout,
our love, meant to be stout,
yet without a doubt,
it all jumped off of a mount,
I hate you, I love you, I want you,
we were supposed to be "too good to be true",
yet I'm left with a pile of your doo-doo.

#hate #love

Mark Toney 2d

Poets and Cephalopods - Oh Octopi

You may consider it extremely odd
I’m so easily influenced by a cephalopod
Eight arms, three hearts, blue blood, nine brains
All unique, yet something else remains
The most important fact on which to think?
Cephalopods, like poets, possess special ink

Oh Octopi

Oh Octopi up in the sky
I wonder why you are so high
Don’t mean to pry but please reply
I have to try to reason why
Why are you shy? Why can you fly?
Please tell me why and do not lie

     We're Octopi. On us you spy?
      Imply we're shy? Imply we lie?
       Don't wonder why we’re in the sky
        Do not defy and do not pry
         Do not decry — That’s our reply
           Quickly comply! We do not lie

Oh my, oh my, I'll never pry
I'll not decry nor you defy
I will comply, on me rely
Oh, Octopi up in the sky
You do not lie! So high you fly!
To you I bid adieu — Bye-bye!

© 2024 Mark Toney

Rhyme and Monorhyme. © 2024 Mark Toney. Rhyme (first stanza) — Eight arms, three hearts, blue blood, nine brains, and special ink. If that doesn’t describe a poet I don’t know what does! ;-)
Monorhyme (Oh Octopi) — Octopuses have eight limbs, of which six are used as “arms,” so I’ve written the Oh Octopi portion with six-line stanzas of eight-syllable lines. Method to my madness? You betcha!
Notes: Originally published 10/24/2024 on PoetrySoup. Linguistically speaking, I acknowledge that the preferred plural of octopus when speaking and writing in English is octopuses. I chose to use octopi since it works better with my monorhyme. Octopi ocassionally appears in published works, but it's seldom used. Mirriam-Webster says, "The -i ending comes from the belief that words of Latin origin should have Latin endings in English (while octopus may ultimately come from Greek it had a stay in New Latin before arriving here) ..."

#flying #imagination #metaphor #octopuses

Anwar Ghani 2d

I WANT TO WRITE TO YOU

I WANT TO WRITE TO YOU

This is how I want to rest a little, to get away from everything and everyone. I feel like I want to rest a little, and write only to you. Your beautiful presence is enough for me.
In the midst of my silence and this vast space, I find myself knowing nothing, wanting nothing, or searching for anything other than you.
I feel like I need to write to you. I will spend long hours writing to you, long days writing to you, and long years writing to you. This is a covenant and a celebration.

#anwer #ghani