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Chris Behrens Feb 2013
Once, in thirty summers past,
I walked in shadows, moonlit cast
And broke my daylong journey's fast
with sausage, honeymead and bread.

Then in among the piney trees
A sounding crash my nerves did seize
And set my rushing blood to freeze
A sounding crash to wake the dead

I stood at once and looked around
For what had made that terror-sound
and peering through the branches found
An old man working, felling trees.

Carefully, I wandered to
and brought the man back into view:
An ancient woodsman dressed in blue
with woodsmoke drifting on the breeze.

Silently, I stood there, lurking,
For a time, and watched him working
Then I hailed him, with that irking
He met me with an icy stare

He loosed his tongue and dropped his axe:
"beneath the stone and craggy cracks
slept the dragon Cathagorax
Grown old in years beyond his share."

Young Cantabridge the brave and fair
left his father's bedside care
And called to all who gathered there,
Who'll put their courage to the test?"

He cried to them, "I have a plan,
to **** this creature if I can,"
No other, single, mortal man
Would join him on his foolish quest.

And on his way, the young man going
the creature then, in dark ways knowing
Awaken-ed, his hatred growing
prepared his evil darkling cast.

Darkling words and phrases chanting
Screaming, shrieking, raving, ranting
And finally completed, panting
Settled to the ground at last.

Cantabridge stepped in the cave
his face afear-ed, grim and grave
A final warning cry he gave
among the icy water floes.

"Worm my father couldn't fell
******* steel and fly to hell!
Its ring will be your funeral bell
and bring your seasons to a close!"

Wings swept down and armor flashed
Claws rent flesh and hammers crashed
Contending sinews groaned and smashed
And formed a hymn of battle-cries.

Falling down, dank and muddy
Bodies broken, torn and ******
Each warrior turned to study
Each other's watchful, waiting, eyes.

Cantabridge, with strength afleeting
By darkling magic, heart un-beating
Realizing and retreating
His victory had turned to death.

He thrashed about, his body lying
Struggling and vainly trying
Against the magic, finally dying
and with that breathed his final breath.

And in my bed, awake and dreaming
I saw a vision of him, seeming
Like a ghost with armor gleaming
Lying dead and in the sun.

So here upon this piney tree
I hammered, ere I talked with thee,
And in the valley, I could see
The fun'ral pyre for his son

In the moonlight, by the river
I searched and in the night air shivered
and for the woodsman's son delivered
a single, wild, yellow rose.

So on that night, I stood and turned
and watched them while the pyre burned
For the warrior boy who'd learned
The darkling magic a dragon knows.
DieingEmbers Mar 2012
Yet by nights celestial light
when stars arrest in lovers heart,
and lungs made lead afear to breathe
and souls unwhole are torn apart.

The waters edge tinged by tears
salt upon salt a plaintiff squall,
as buzzards circle mocking me
as or' our lives shadows fall.

Whilst given time alone to think
my ev'ry thought returns to you,
and moments spent in shaded glen
doing the things lovers do.

So hear my pain and heal my heart
just promise my dark won't our souls part.
I'm a depressive romantic sometimes their an hard mixture, takes a special kind of love to live in the shadow of depression
Molantwa Mmele Jun 2016
Afear not the prison of the felons
But the prison of the spirit and soul
The heaviness of emptiness
In men’s lives
Suffocates the illumination of elation

Even around human beings
It is rare to find a circle of humanity
Only the centre of silence too loud
We never care

Silence built sturdily amongst mankind
To restrain and strangle the mind in solitude
And fading its peace away

Thus void be called my hearth
Till I embrace the shadows of death
Alone and alone the angels of hollow
Shall cuddle my soul cold
And drag me to the grave

Sing no song of sympathy
Nor thy cold condolences
When I’m gone
For thou shall forget of liberty
And venerate divinities of lonesomeness

When silence sighs alive amongst your souls
Let it not breed
And defeat humanity
Relent not to that kind of wicked war
Let it ebb afar from thy generation
And construct love and care strongly
For my children

For unity is the reliable strength of society
Let it be a custom to keep it firm
Since it takes society to raise a child
Raise them warriors
And patriots of humanity
And thou shall breathe happiness eternally
And love be spread to my people
The ocean is your love,
Not what you think at all,
And you’re an animal,
To choose to fly or fall.

A dove, so born, you be,
Safe in a nest well built,
No lean, nor slant, nor tilt,
The branches, leaves, all stiff,
Precarious on  - a cliff.

As far as you can see,
The ocean stretches out,
You might be one to doubt,
To jump into the wind,
And trust your fate destined.

Yet the farther now
You’re from ocean low
Deeper into love
Destined fall will prove.

Some learn to fly and glide,
Above the waters fierce,
Above the waves so soft,
Above the rising tide.

Yet should a storm loom near,
Its rain so sharp to pierce,
Even your wings aloft,
Would succumb to the fall you fear.

And as you fall, you think,
Why did I ever fear
To fall this dreaded fall
The wind does snear and leer,
But it does not hurt at all.

Indeed it feels, you think,
As though you have begun,
With heaven wings now new
A journey much more fast and fun.

And as the blue wide sea,
Comes flying fast at you,
You think that it must be,
All you’ve wished for too.

Sometimes the fall is different,
And starts with just a tumble down,
As though it weren’t first sight,
The accident of – a clown.

But in the end you splash,
And lunge, and plunge, and crash,
Into the water deep,
To hide the tears you weep,
Of joy and sorrow too,
For love has come to you.

You sink and watch the sea,
A fish of gold is there,
And asks you quietly,
To swim, oh, would you care?

And should you say “I do”
A bird no more you be,
To swim without air you,
In love, a fish must be!

From there you may not fall,
But that is what love is,
If there you cannot swim,
Things are not right at all.

The sorry sorry bird,
The tells the gold fish “Nay”,
Must struggle straggled up,
And climb up from a bay.

Onto land and back to life,
Of bird and gill-less soul,
You could not take the strife,
Of swimming in that blue sea bowl.

But hope is not yet lost,
You might fall down into
The sea once more again,
To feel the thrill of being two,
And losing wings is little cost.

You might afear the sea,
And climb up far above,
But high as you may be,
If once you miss a step and fall
You will fall deeper into love,
Then hadn’t you climbed at all.

But love is not the fall,
No – no – not at all,
The ocean is your love,
Are you a fish, or dove?
Gemini pen Jun 2020
STRIDA APRIL POETRY CONTEST
Theme: Commentaries
Sub theme: Corona Virus

Oh,  virus
Terror that terrorizes the land
Ye who plagued us
******* our bone dry out of its marrow

sliding into our greasy walls
like an ant working
to build its Anthill
We thrive so hard
Yet,  you disrupt our defense
Leaving us lifeless

Cities turn graveyard
Dead ones left-
Without fitting confinement
Lumps in the throat
Now cause for afear

What more could be done
Than to strengthen our hold
On medics, also faces,
To be be covered with masks
And hands,  frequently gloved

Running from crowds
Engaging social distance
Ye virus!
Doom is decreed on you
We surely will flourish over thou

Penned by Gemini Art
A stoic writer

— The End —