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"leapt" poems
You are going to ask: and where are the lilacs? and the poppy-petalled metaphysics? and the rain repeatedly spattering its words and drilling them full of apertures and birds? I'll tell you all the news. I lived in a suburb, a suburb of Madrid, with bells, and clocks, and trees. From there you could look out over Castille's dry face: a leather ocean. My house was called the house of flowers, because in every cranny geraniums burst: it was a good-looking house with its dogs and children. Remember, Raul? Eh, Rafel? Federico, do you remember from under the ground my balconies on which the light of June drowned flowers in your mouth? Brother, my brother! Everything loud with big voices, the salt of merchandises, pile-ups of palpitating bread, the stalls of my suburb of Arguelles with its statue like a drained inkwell in a swirl of hake: oil flowed into spoons, a deep baying of feet and hands swelled in the streets, metres, litres, the sharp measure of life, stacked-up fish, the texture of roofs with a cold sun in which the weather vane falters, the fine, frenzied ivory of potatoes, wave on wave of tomatoes rolling down the sea. And one morning all that was burning, one morning the bonfires leapt out of the earth devouring human beings -- and from then on fire, gunpowder from then on, and from then on blood. Bandits with planes and Moors, bandits with finger-rings and duchesses, bandits with black friars spattering blessings came through the sky to **** children and the blood of children ran through the streets without fuss, like children's blood. Jackals that the jackals would despise, stones that the dry thistle would bite on and spit out, vipers that the vipers would abominate! Face to face with you I have seen the blood of Spain tower like a tide to drown you in one wave of pride and knives! Treacherous generals: see my dead house, look at broken Spain : from every house burning metal flows instead of flowers, from every socket of Spain Spain emerges and from every dead child a rifle with eyes, and from every crime bullets are born which will one day find the bull's eye of your hearts. And you'll ask: why doesn't his poetry speak of dreams and leaves and the great volcanoes of his native land? Come and see the blood in the streets. Come and see The blood in the streets. Come and see the blood In the streets!
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23.3k
I'm Explaining a Few Things
You are going to ask: and where are the lilacs? and the poppy-petalled metaphysics? and the rain repeatedly spattering its words and drilling them full of apertures and birds? I'll tell you all the news. I lived in a suburb, a suburb of Madrid, with bells, and clocks, and trees. From there you could look out over Castille's dry face: a leather ocean. My house was called the house of flowers, because in every cranny geraniums burst: it was a good-looking house with its dogs and children. Remember, Raul? Eh, Rafel? Federico, do you remember from under the ground my balconies on which the light of June drowned flowers in your mouth? Brother, my brother! Everything loud with big voices, the salt of merchandises, pile-ups of palpitating bread, the stalls of my suburb of Arguelles with its statue like a drained inkwell in a swirl of hake: oil flowed into spoons, a deep baying of feet and hands swelled in the streets, metres, litres, the sharp measure of life, stacked-up fish, the texture of roofs with a cold sun in which the weather vane falters, the fine, frenzied ivory of potatoes, wave on wave of tomatoes rolling down the sea. And one morning all that was burning, one morning the bonfires leapt out of the earth devouring human beings -- and from then on fire, gunpowder from then on, and from then on blood. Bandits with planes and Moors, bandits with finger-rings and duchesses, bandits with black friars spattering blessings came through the sky to **** children and the blood of children ran through the streets without fuss, like children's blood. Jackals that the jackals would despise, stones that the dry thistle would bite on and spit out, vipers that the vipers would abominate! Face to face with you I have seen the blood of Spain tower like a tide to drown you in one wave of pride and knives! Treacherous generals: see my dead house, look at broken Spain : from every house burning metal flows instead of flowers, from every socket of Spain Spain emerges and from every dead child a rifle with eyes, and from every crime bullets are born which will one day find the bull's eye of your hearts. And you'll ask: why doesn't his poetry speak of dreams and leaves and the great volcanoes of his native land? Come and see the blood in the streets. Come and see The blood in the streets. Come and see the blood In the streets!
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78
They said I cannot fly cannot grown wings and touch the sky I wanted to prove them wrong so I took to the sky and leapt.
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Oct 6, 2014
Oct 6, 2014 at 6:27 PM UTC
Fly
Perched quietly in the shadows of the night, Observing completely, using all her might, Untouched the landscape sat; she breathed a sigh, She leapt and began to fly She soared through the trees, dark and murky, Weaving in and out, the ride a little jerky, Until she reached the clearing, blooming and sprouting, Where she landed and began scouting She spotted a baby, small and alone, Hungry and confused, wanting to be shown, Flying over to the area in which it sat, She pulled some wisdom from her hat Unmoving and silent, she sat as an example, Showing her apprentice just a little sample, Teaching patience and perseverance was first on the list, She didn’t quit until it got the gist Next thing she knew, her student was growing, In no time, it was the one doing all the showing, She took a step back, gazing proudly at her work, While the child continued doing all the groundwork Rays peaked out across the horizon in all hues, Most of which consisted of reds and blues, She looked at the child, beckoning it to fly on home, Although she longed to stay and roam As the sun rose, slow and bright, She decided to turn and take off in flight, Twisting and turning through trees and brush, She flew on quickly, as if in a rush She spotted it then, modest and small, The place she longed to go most of all, Adventures are fun and she liked to roam, But there’s definitely no place quite like home.
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Jan 11, 2018
Jan 11, 2018 at 10:27 PM UTC
Wise Quiet One
I am alive by luck at this point. I wonder if the gun that will eventually take me has been made. Whose trigger will bury me. How many bullets, like a flock of sparrows, will come carry my life to its final bed. Today, I am alive but there is no law to thank. If not me, then someone else. Born into a game of chance we never asked for. Traded diplomas for obituaries. Traded graduation speeches for eulogies. Traded futures for an early grave. Forced to cash in their chips. We don’t want to play anymore. And this too is eulogy. And this too is prayer. And this too can resurrect the coffin wood back to a tree. Can sing back alive whatever parts of you died with them. Whatever leapt in your throat at yet another headline. Mourning until you, too, are a thing to mourn. But we will no longer be martyrs. We are the rude awakening to politicians who pawned out our safety, who bartered our lives for bribes. You say “gun reform is not the answer” but all I can see is a bullet rattling like a pinball in an innocent student’s jaw. You smell like gun smoke and I can see the AR15 you're holding behind your back and I guess it's easy to crack jokes about dodging bullets when you're the one firing them. Give teachers books not bullets: Kafka isn’t kevlar. Bronte isn’t bulletproof. And how sick is it that we must add school shootings to your list of proud american traditions. Throwing opinions like punches. How many more have to die before you decide your ego isn’t as important as you think it is? And I, too, am buried alive My soggy grave parting its greedy lips. To you, my bones, when ground into gunpowder and mixed into water, taste like champagne. My pulse, as thin as an obituary panting beneath sweaty palms, and sure We are “just kids,” But you are forgetting we are the next generation And you autopsy your fists. Call it reclamatory. Lately, when asked “how are you?” I respond with a name no longer living. And who knows if mine will be next
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Apr 14, 2018
Apr 14, 2018 at 10:32 PM UTC
Ammunition: a eulogy for parkland
I am alive by luck at this point. I wonder if the gun that will eventually take me has been made. Whose trigger will bury me. How many bullets, like a flock of sparrows, will come carry my life to its final bed. Today, I am alive but there is no law to thank. If not me, then someone else. Born into a game of chance we never asked for. Traded diplomas for obituaries. Traded graduation speeches for eulogies. Traded futures for an early grave. Forced to cash in their chips. We don’t want to play anymore. And this too is eulogy. And this too is prayer. And this too can resurrect the coffin wood back to a tree. Can sing back alive whatever parts of you died with them. Whatever leapt in your throat at yet another headline. Mourning until you, too, are a thing to mourn. But we will no longer be martyrs. We are the rude awakening to politicians who pawned out our safety, who bartered our lives for bribes. You say “gun reform is not the answer” but all I can see is a bullet rattling like a pinball in an innocent student’s jaw. You smell like gun smoke and I can see the AR15 you're holding behind your back and I guess it's easy to crack jokes about dodging bullets when you're the one firing them. Give teachers books not bullets: Kafka isn’t kevlar. Bronte isn’t bulletproof. And how sick is it that we must add school shootings to your list of proud american traditions. Throwing opinions like punches. How many more have to die before you decide your ego isn’t as important as you think it is? And I, too, am buried alive My soggy grave parting its greedy lips. To you, my bones, when ground into gunpowder and mixed into water, taste like champagne. My pulse, as thin as an obituary panting beneath sweaty palms, and sure We are “just kids,” But you are forgetting we are the next generation And you autopsy your fists. Call it reclamatory. Lately, when asked “how are you?” I respond with a name no longer living. And who knows if mine will be next
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31
-------------- Just bought a new back wheel For my tall and sturdy bike And riding back from a party I got hit by a big white truck I was cycling by the curb A truck came zooming up I had the space of a meter or more But quickly the space diminished Suddenly I felt it A crunching of the wheel I shouted in anglo-saxon Wehey! As I leapt from the speeding frame I fell into a running roll And stood straight up and turned around My bike was laying flat The back wheel sadly spinning. I wrung my hands and giggled And looked about in awe. The people that saw this happen Came up and shook their heads Are you alright? I cant believe what happened. I didn’t catch his number plate What a ******* crazy driver Are you sure you are alright? A gay irish man was there You uttured a cry he said And then flew from your bike Like a… like a… a ballerina I forced the wheel back into place So it was was sort of fit to roll The chain and gears were gnarled So I couldn’t exactly ride On the way two foreign drunks Looked and spoke about my bike Autobus smash, I said Ohhhhhh they said Finally arriving near finsbury A man who was cycling past Said do you need some help? I said yes please I got run over by a truck What I can do, said thomas from hungary Or what we can do Is take a length of chain out So at least you can get home Ok yes please I said And he bent down and used his little tools And got his hands all oily black And made me a fixed gear bike Now your bike is a fixie bike So im afraid you cant change the gears Like my fixie bike, he said Thanks hungarian dude
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Mar 20, 2012
Mar 20, 2012 at 8:36 PM UTC
Bike Smash Poem
-------------- Just bought a new back wheel For my tall and sturdy bike And riding back from a party I got hit by a big white truck I was cycling by the curb A truck came zooming up I had the space of a meter or more But quickly the space diminished Suddenly I felt it A crunching of the wheel I shouted in anglo-saxon Wehey! As I leapt from the speeding frame I fell into a running roll And stood straight up and turned around My bike was laying flat The back wheel sadly spinning. I wrung my hands and giggled And looked about in awe. The people that saw this happen Came up and shook their heads Are you alright? I cant believe what happened. I didn’t catch his number plate What a ******* crazy driver Are you sure you are alright? A gay irish man was there You uttured a cry he said And then flew from your bike Like a… like a… a ballerina I forced the wheel back into place So it was was sort of fit to roll The chain and gears were gnarled So I couldn’t exactly ride On the way two foreign drunks Looked and spoke about my bike Autobus smash, I said Ohhhhhh they said Finally arriving near finsbury A man who was cycling past Said do you need some help? I said yes please I got run over by a truck What I can do, said thomas from hungary Or what we can do Is take a length of chain out So at least you can get home Ok yes please I said And he bent down and used his little tools And got his hands all oily black And made me a fixed gear bike Now your bike is a fixie bike So im afraid you cant change the gears Like my fixie bike, he said Thanks hungarian dude
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53
Replaying a riff four times perfectly One missed fret and the entire day ends disastrously Replaying moments of kindness and warmth To overcome the feverish idea that I hold no heart Every fourth step, threes end in ****** Maimed images constantly creep This subconscious ludovico technique These thoughts come and go in no particular order A seat at the table and a serviette on my lap What if I leapt out my chair and suddenly attacked? What if I aimed the knife towards my hand? I constantly question if that’s who I am I will have a picnic with her today, all joy and cheer When these intrusive thoughts will inexplicably get near And terrorize my attitude as well as my image Disassociating with a perplexed and horrified visage I’m so incredibly tired of existing A cruel and ironic fate I’ve missed out on so many opportunities All because of this miserable headspace
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Sep 16, 2018
Sep 16, 2018 at 1:05 PM UTC
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Two ticks click through my ears fuego leapt from steel grasp to burn destroying as it flares across the valley Smoke billowed into the clutches of hard, purple plastic pressing in from all sides funneled into sacks of tendrils. They cringe grey swirls choking off pipes and blood lines Veins bursting with new chemicals Spewed out over the burnt plains But the valley is just a small groove on a burnt out, tired brain
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Nov 13, 2012
Nov 13, 2012 at 3:55 AM UTC
Stoner Poem
I leapt and dove into the depths of indigo Night spilled carelessly onto my sky Darkness smothered with tides of indigo I almost drowned and whimpered a cry Grappled with the vagueness of indigo Out of the blue, I'd emerge with a heavy sigh
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Mar 28, 2015
Mar 28, 2015 at 10:14 AM UTC
Spectrum Indigo
My heart shouldn’t have profusely bled I saw her face only once a moment’s crossing in a moment paid not meant for a second chance! The fire shouldn’t have leapt in me she was a doomed emotion trying to live in my penned poetry meant to be only a notion! My mind shouldn’t have imprisoned her caged her from one mere glance lived the phantom of an absurd affair spilled ink in a mad trance! I shouldn’t have sought her anymore searched in the wild her trace she couldn’t be my paramour I saw from the crowd her face!
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Jun 10, 2015
Jun 10, 2015 at 10:55 AM UTC
Notion of Love
We killed Hart Crane Though he leapt To his death A poet’s plan Or perhaps a whim We hold the blame We killed Freddie Mercury And stopped the music The callous political games Blocked possible gains In a needed cure We killed Harvey Milk We were the bullets And the metal frame Held the assassin’s hand We hold the shame We killed The blond burnt boy Encouraging The hate We killed the strung up Beautiful boys The hung up Beaten up Broken hearted Brothers and sons We are the progenitors Of the violence Through action And more often than not Through inaction Maybe a little more guilt Would serve us well
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Apr 23, 2015
Apr 23, 2015 at 4:59 PM UTC
Killing The Gay
Did you lay me down on a bed of nails and expect me to surrender my all ? I felt the waves wash over and they engulfed all that was good Dragging me down lower than I have ever fallen freely I wanted a lover But you entwined your darkness into my light No one heard the screams The midnight hour so haunting A chill lay in place of your heart You looked straight through me just before you leapt Head first into oblivion I just stood motionless for what seemed like a million years Then I turntable and left The memory is hollow But it is memory all the same I beckon you here But not so that I can surrender to your will But so that I can show you the truth in all things good You may shy away Hide in those self created shadows of misery But I will  lay waiting Just past midnight The chill and silence deafen my soul My love I beg I beg I'm falling I'm sitting within your oblivion Surrounded by creatures not of this world Demons reign and I fear the fall I turn I always turn You may leap into the hollowness of oblivion But I fear it's clutches I fear the hand of love So turn tail and return To the moment before midnight The moment just before The memory lingers And the strike of twelve is never heard
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May 14, 2017
May 14, 2017 at 5:19 PM UTC
Falling into Oblivion
The young and bold Sir Lancelot Had shunned the lady of Shalott And all the swooning maidens, dear. His heart belonged to Guinevere. And were she not to Arthur, wed, She'd have the heart-sick knight instead. But so it goes, such is the luck Of sad sir Lancelot du Lac. When first he came to Camelot The orphan knight, Sir Lancelot Did prove his worth to Arthur's Court In jousting, and such noble sport And with his charm and courtly grace, His confidence and handsome face, He won the heart of Guinevere, And so he found his heart's one fear. But so it goes, such is the luck Of sad Sir Lancelot du Lac. In tournaments and deeds of arms, He never fell to earthly harms. His Lady's scarf about his breast, He held aloft his knightly chest And for her honor always strove, And worshiped her with courtly love. But she is wed, such is the luck Of sad Sir Lancelot du Lac. Beneath a tree, the young knight slept And one day, four queens on him crept, The chief of them, Morgan Le Fay. With magic, they stole him away. A choice they begged of him to make, That one of them his heart should take. But love is strong. They had no luck In tempting Lancelot du Lac. When Melegans stole Guinevere A cart, Sir Lancelot did steer To reach the hold where she was kept, Then toward the treacherous knight he leapt. He bested him with slash and blow, But to Sir Lancelot's great woe His Lady simply laughed in jest And saw no honor in his quest, For he arrived upon a cart. Thus, broken was the young knight's heart, And in a rage he left the place. He longed just for his Lady's grace. But so it goes, such is the luck Of sad Sir Lancelot du Lac. The young and bold Sir Lancelot Had shunned the lady of Shalott And all the swooning maidens, dear. His heart belonged to Guinevere. And were she not to Arthur, wed, She'd have the heart-sick knight instead. But so it goes, such is the luck Of sad Sir Lancelot du Lac. So when he quested for the Grail He made a promise he would fail. He said he'd not love Guinevere, But as he spoke, he shed a tear. He knew one day their love would end The table round, and hurt their friends. So when this promise he did break The land of Camelot did quake. For Agrivan, King Arthur, told His wife did love Lancelot bold And Arthur sent her to the pyre To end her sinful love, in fire. But Lancelot, his queen, did save And Arthur fell into the grave And all the knights of Table Round Were torn apart, could not be bound. And thus the fall of Camelot Was caused by one Sir Lancelot. But so it goes, such is the luck Of bold Sir Lancelot du Lac.
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Nov 6, 2011
Nov 6, 2011 at 9:29 PM UTC
Sir Lancelot du Lac
The young and bold Sir Lancelot Had shunned the lady of Shalott And all the swooning maidens, dear. His heart belonged to Guinevere. And were she not to Arthur, wed, She'd have the heart-sick knight instead. But so it goes, such is the luck Of sad sir Lancelot du Lac. When first he came to Camelot The orphan knight, Sir Lancelot Did prove his worth to Arthur's Court In jousting, and such noble sport And with his charm and courtly grace, His confidence and handsome face, He won the heart of Guinevere, And so he found his heart's one fear. But so it goes, such is the luck Of sad Sir Lancelot du Lac. In tournaments and deeds of arms, He never fell to earthly harms. His Lady's scarf about his breast, He held aloft his knightly chest And for her honor always strove, And worshiped her with courtly love. But she is wed, such is the luck Of sad Sir Lancelot du Lac. Beneath a tree, the young knight slept And one day, four queens on him crept, The chief of them, Morgan Le Fay. With magic, they stole him away. A choice they begged of him to make, That one of them his heart should take. But love is strong. They had no luck In tempting Lancelot du Lac. When Melegans stole Guinevere A cart, Sir Lancelot did steer To reach the hold where she was kept, Then toward the treacherous knight he leapt. He bested him with slash and blow, But to Sir Lancelot's great woe His Lady simply laughed in jest And saw no honor in his quest, For he arrived upon a cart. Thus, broken was the young knight's heart, And in a rage he left the place. He longed just for his Lady's grace. But so it goes, such is the luck Of sad Sir Lancelot du Lac. The young and bold Sir Lancelot Had shunned the lady of Shalott And all the swooning maidens, dear. His heart belonged to Guinevere. And were she not to Arthur, wed, She'd have the heart-sick knight instead. But so it goes, such is the luck Of sad Sir Lancelot du Lac. So when he quested for the Grail He made a promise he would fail. He said he'd not love Guinevere, But as he spoke, he shed a tear. He knew one day their love would end The table round, and hurt their friends. So when this promise he did break The land of Camelot did quake. For Agrivan, King Arthur, told His wife did love Lancelot bold And Arthur sent her to the pyre To end her sinful love, in fire. But Lancelot, his queen, did save And Arthur fell into the grave And all the knights of Table Round Were torn apart, could not be bound. And thus the fall of Camelot Was caused by one Sir Lancelot. But so it goes, such is the luck Of bold Sir Lancelot du Lac.
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76
The owl was looking at the man with a noose Disturbed by the noise as he cooked his goose But before he leapt the owl did say Do you really want them to remember you this way? The pain is real but will go away The wise old owl was heard to say The man with the noose, stopped and thought He’s right, a lesson in patience I’ve just been taught So he walked through the woods stood on a track to ease his pain Then was killed by the 10.42 south bound train The owl was watching in the branches so high He is the only one who knew he did not want to die So the moral of his death is like sand in a cup When your time is up, your time is up
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Aug 27, 2018
Aug 27, 2018 at 4:03 PM UTC
The Wise Old Owl
I’d worked late the previous night, programing applications. When the alarm went off at four A.M. I hit snooze- no hesitation. Eventually my feet found floor, I stumbled to the shower. A routine usually done in ten took me a half an hour. I was running up the platform steps but my train just left the station. Great, I will be late for sure, I thought, in consternation. At least the day was perfect, Warm and clear, no threat of rain. I fished and found my ticket and took the next westbound train. The ”E” was fairly crowded When I boarded it at Penn I’d missed the first and I was glad Another quickly came. Beneath the streets of Gotham The subway lurched downtown. Above all hell was breaking loose as two large planes were down. I climbed the stairs up to the street And entered the inferno The sky now black from billowing smoke Bright day turning nocturnal. A Seven thirty Seven’s wheel- I heard a woman screaming I saw a body at my feet Were we at war or was I dreaming? I stared up at my window- where I worked the night before. Where flames and smoke leapt to the sky- where my co workers were no more. They’re jumping, someone shouted I saw black specks launch from on high. Better to die upon the street Than to suffocate or fry. I turn and ran, I am ashamed. No Hero’s tale to tell. I was a safe way away when the first tower fell. Had I not hit the button or dawdled in the shower. Had I caught my usual train I’d be dead in the tower. This is my shame and burden To live when others died. Preserved by fate and circumstance From terror from the sky.
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Jan 27, 2012
Jan 27, 2012 at 11:04 PM UTC
Survivor Guilt a poem of 9-11
I’d worked late the previous night, programing applications. When the alarm went off at four A.M. I hit snooze- no hesitation. Eventually my feet found floor, I stumbled to the shower. A routine usually done in ten took me a half an hour. I was running up the platform steps but my train just left the station. Great, I will be late for sure, I thought, in consternation. At least the day was perfect, Warm and clear, no threat of rain. I fished and found my ticket and took the next westbound train. The ”E” was fairly crowded When I boarded it at Penn I’d missed the first and I was glad Another quickly came. Beneath the streets of Gotham The subway lurched downtown. Above all hell was breaking loose as two large planes were down. I climbed the stairs up to the street And entered the inferno The sky now black from billowing smoke Bright day turning nocturnal. A Seven thirty Seven’s wheel- I heard a woman screaming I saw a body at my feet Were we at war or was I dreaming? I stared up at my window- where I worked the night before. Where flames and smoke leapt to the sky- where my co workers were no more. They’re jumping, someone shouted I saw black specks launch from on high. Better to die upon the street Than to suffocate or fry. I turn and ran, I am ashamed. No Hero’s tale to tell. I was a safe way away when the first tower fell. Had I not hit the button or dawdled in the shower. Had I caught my usual train I’d be dead in the tower. This is my shame and burden To live when others died. Preserved by fate and circumstance From terror from the sky.
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52
I met a girl with X-ray vision. She found herself quite smart. Yet despite Her fantastic sight She couldn't find my heart. There was an ***** that pumped blood But surely there was something more. So she climbed Into my mind And opened up a door. There she found Things somewhat profound, But they were not of any interest, So she rose And found the words I spoke In the chasms of my lungs. She saw debate and The arguments I fought She saw what I cared about But it was still not what she sought Then she leapt into my hands And saw all that I wrote She tried to find double meaning To the carefully chosen words But there was no leaning Or things of note. So she gave up But began to fall For when asked what I cared about My girl with "X-ray vision" Knew that she didn't know me at all
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Jul 14, 2018
Jul 14, 2018 at 10:33 PM UTC
My Supergirl
- by Ashley Capps Ophelia, when she died, lay in the water like the river’s bride, all pale and stark and beautiful against the somber rocks, her hair an endless golden ceremony. She made the water sing for her; it flowed over her folded arms. Not so my father’s sister Karen, swollen in a day-old tub of water when they found her, needle tucked into the fold of her arm, her last thing: a wing. So everything went as nameless as the men who lifted her naked from the tub, or those who rolled her into the mouth of the furnace, which is what you get when you don’t get a service, when your mother’s years of grief turn last to rage: I won’t pay for it. Leave me out of it. And even though they finally said it wasn’t suicide; a mistake— no one knew what to do with all of that anger, or in the end how not to blame her. Even now, in her unmarked container. * People once believed a deeper reason, some dark secret motivation to the way the lemmings threw themselves en masse into the sea. Were they weary of their lives; could they, too, despair? Or like those second-vessel swine when Jesus exorcised two babbling men of their demons, driving the demons through a pack of bewildered hogs— the way they plunged? The truth we know now: they leave when food is scarce, when they’ve grown too many; believe the roads they follow lead to new meadows, a place to start over. I think of Karen, feeding and feeding her veins, how it is possible she saw us all suddenly there—miraculous and festive on some bright and other shore, like the life she had been swimming toward all along, trying to get right. Like those sailors long ago, that tropical disease, calenture— when, far from everything they knew, men grew sometimes delirious and mistook the waving sea for green fields. Rejoicing, they leapt overboard, and so were lost forever, even though they thought it was real, though they thought they were going home. —by Ashley Capps
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Oct 20, 2012
Oct 20, 2012 at 11:49 PM UTC
Mistaking The Sea For Green Fields — by Ashley Capps
- by Ashley Capps Ophelia, when she died, lay in the water like the river’s bride, all pale and stark and beautiful against the somber rocks, her hair an endless golden ceremony. She made the water sing for her; it flowed over her folded arms. Not so my father’s sister Karen, swollen in a day-old tub of water when they found her, needle tucked into the fold of her arm, her last thing: a wing. So everything went as nameless as the men who lifted her naked from the tub, or those who rolled her into the mouth of the furnace, which is what you get when you don’t get a service, when your mother’s years of grief turn last to rage: I won’t pay for it. Leave me out of it. And even though they finally said it wasn’t suicide; a mistake— no one knew what to do with all of that anger, or in the end how not to blame her. Even now, in her unmarked container. * People once believed a deeper reason, some dark secret motivation to the way the lemmings threw themselves en masse into the sea. Were they weary of their lives; could they, too, despair? Or like those second-vessel swine when Jesus exorcised two babbling men of their demons, driving the demons through a pack of bewildered hogs— the way they plunged? The truth we know now: they leave when food is scarce, when they’ve grown too many; believe the roads they follow lead to new meadows, a place to start over. I think of Karen, feeding and feeding her veins, how it is possible she saw us all suddenly there—miraculous and festive on some bright and other shore, like the life she had been swimming toward all along, trying to get right. Like those sailors long ago, that tropical disease, calenture— when, far from everything they knew, men grew sometimes delirious and mistook the waving sea for green fields. Rejoicing, they leapt overboard, and so were lost forever, even though they thought it was real, though they thought they were going home. —by Ashley Capps
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56
Loudly it sounded, The horns message clear, The gods had been warned, The giants were near. From Jotunheim to Midgard To Asgard they came, Their intent was clear, Their purpose the same. Loudly they shouted, They yelled, and they raged, The gods and the giants Were battle engaged. Thor with his hammer and Vidar with shoe, One would think battle Was all that they knew. Tyr with one hand And Frey with no sword, They should have stayed back, But of their own accord Into battle they leapt, Into battle they ran, Against the giants To make their stand. The moon and the sun, Luna and Sol, Went into the bellies of Hati and Skoll. Tidal waves crashed all over the world, Out of the oceans came The serpent of Midgard. Thor ran at the beast, The great Fenrir Wolf, But he was soon In snakes coils engulfed. Thor pounded away, He hammered the snake, But he did no damage, No dent did he make. The great Fenrir Wolf Rushed at Odin, The god stabbed with his spear, But the great wolf did win. Vidar rushed at the beast With his big heavy shoe, Kicked in the jaw, The Fenrir Wolf flew Away from the battle, away from the fray, In the depths of space The Fenrir Wolf stays. The gods and the giants, The battle they fought, And in the end it was all for naught. They destroyed each other, Each and every one, And out of the darkness Came a new sun. In the sun’s warmth, A great green was spread, The great land had died, And was back from the dead. Two gods were left, The young sons of Thor, They were spared because they were good and pure. The gods met with two humans Who had lived through the strife, And together they planned a new and better life. And for this reason, The Norse people say, The gods stay in Asgard To this very day. But if in the future The giants attack, The gods will come to Midgard, And they will attack.
0
Aug 30, 2012
Aug 30, 2012 at 11:50 AM UTC
The Battle at Midgard
Loudly it sounded, The horns message clear, The gods had been warned, The giants were near. From Jotunheim to Midgard To Asgard they came, Their intent was clear, Their purpose the same. Loudly they shouted, They yelled, and they raged, The gods and the giants Were battle engaged. Thor with his hammer and Vidar with shoe, One would think battle Was all that they knew. Tyr with one hand And Frey with no sword, They should have stayed back, But of their own accord Into battle they leapt, Into battle they ran, Against the giants To make their stand. The moon and the sun, Luna and Sol, Went into the bellies of Hati and Skoll. Tidal waves crashed all over the world, Out of the oceans came The serpent of Midgard. Thor ran at the beast, The great Fenrir Wolf, But he was soon In snakes coils engulfed. Thor pounded away, He hammered the snake, But he did no damage, No dent did he make. The great Fenrir Wolf Rushed at Odin, The god stabbed with his spear, But the great wolf did win. Vidar rushed at the beast With his big heavy shoe, Kicked in the jaw, The Fenrir Wolf flew Away from the battle, away from the fray, In the depths of space The Fenrir Wolf stays. The gods and the giants, The battle they fought, And in the end it was all for naught. They destroyed each other, Each and every one, And out of the darkness Came a new sun. In the sun’s warmth, A great green was spread, The great land had died, And was back from the dead. Two gods were left, The young sons of Thor, They were spared because they were good and pure. The gods met with two humans Who had lived through the strife, And together they planned a new and better life. And for this reason, The Norse people say, The gods stay in Asgard To this very day. But if in the future The giants attack, The gods will come to Midgard, And they will attack.
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80
These 4 years drove your memories away, but i never knew you'll make me write someday. "Love at first sight" exists,i knew then, I reminisce,12th April at dehradun railway station. I hopped down the train, whining children,seperating lovers loving families,pleading beggars i saw, Searching for coolie,my eyes glued on a boy,leaning on a pole, An absolute treat to eyes casted a spell on heart of metal. shapely body,white skinned, curly hair,lips like petal. Yellow t-shirt on the skin of gold, dimple-dipped chuckles,widened his charm fourfold. unsure,if it's just my eyes or it was him who resembled the Greek Gods. Talking over the phone,he burst into laughter His playful,lively voice husky deep baritone, bringing my dead senses alive. Mindlessly,I pictured us,together laughing profusely on a riverside. He raised his hands for adjusting his hair. I felt his fingers brushing a strand of my hair behind my ear. The morbid roar of trains , turned into the symphony of my heart. abruptly, breaking my spell called a girl from behind, long haired,beautiful,leapt at him, no sooner he grabbed her tight in his embrace. Mad Lovers,my heart soliloquised. and here came all my wishful thinking to an end. I turned and walked away a little heartbroken before i could win him,he was taken . You gave me nothing but trust me for those minutes i wanted to be your everything I scrumpulously stole those seconds from your life which still make me skip a beat. I'll think about you again after a  few days, for now,enough of nostalgia. and which ***** said, Love at first sight saves time?
0
Dec 21, 2014
Dec 21, 2014 at 5:09 AM UTC
That somebody.
These 4 years drove your memories away, but i never knew you'll make me write someday. "Love at first sight" exists,i knew then, I reminisce,12th April at dehradun railway station. I hopped down the train, whining children,seperating lovers loving families,pleading beggars i saw, Searching for coolie,my eyes glued on a boy,leaning on a pole, An absolute treat to eyes casted a spell on heart of metal. shapely body,white skinned, curly hair,lips like petal. Yellow t-shirt on the skin of gold, dimple-dipped chuckles,widened his charm fourfold. unsure,if it's just my eyes or it was him who resembled the Greek Gods. Talking over the phone,he burst into laughter His playful,lively voice husky deep baritone, bringing my dead senses alive. Mindlessly,I pictured us,together laughing profusely on a riverside. He raised his hands for adjusting his hair. I felt his fingers brushing a strand of my hair behind my ear. The morbid roar of trains , turned into the symphony of my heart. abruptly, breaking my spell called a girl from behind, long haired,beautiful,leapt at him, no sooner he grabbed her tight in his embrace. Mad Lovers,my heart soliloquised. and here came all my wishful thinking to an end. I turned and walked away a little heartbroken before i could win him,he was taken . You gave me nothing but trust me for those minutes i wanted to be your everything I scrumpulously stole those seconds from your life which still make me skip a beat. I'll think about you again after a  few days, for now,enough of nostalgia. and which ***** said, Love at first sight saves time?
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44
There was an ancient gully there were skeletons, ocotillos strewn across the sand holy places creatures crawled out from cactus brittle, drying, lying dead Mirages leapt - spectrally ghost dancers, drunkards falling down again bloodshot eyes searching, shipwrecks, lost waters, the sea cool river floating past the trees, you drift crash and wake alone cow skulls haunt you death's sun bleached bones
0
Nov 3, 2012
Nov 3, 2012 at 10:11 AM UTC
Desert
The sky wept the sky wept the sky wept the sky wept while I leapt, while I leapt, well I leapt thru fire. Gasp sigh perspire. give me your tired huddled and heavy laden that loud light holds us up high in his left hand and will be ********* man. we'll be ********* man. Harvest moon incited madness granjero in a gas mask destined to manifest the liberation front. watch me kiss the sun. thirtytwo one, I am done. canvas demon, lower the lights &arise.; like who wouldn't wanna kiss the sky... Miss 'My,my,my' meet Major fleet week now yall dance and drink each other's blood doesn't that sound like fun isn't it so sweet wonder some praise the priest ***** mothers ******* sons, my lachrymose lack of passion weighs a **** fantastic ton, I wish someone would come & divvy me a dole of fresh faced inspiration and vintage faded soul... I am mobile homosapien. I am not your friend simply a lazy ally, I reside in the unfunny pages. Dated and bathed in flame, given back to the air where I came from. humdrum funk, under the ugly sun feelin lovely in the slums. Undone undone
0
Sep 19, 2015
Sep 19, 2015 at 12:46 AM UTC
Venus in the Sky.
The footsteps echoed on cobblestones When a chime rang ten of the clock, As a sailor making his way back home Was walking up from the dock, It was cold and dark for the lights were out And the street was wet with the rain, When he came to an old red telephone box At the side of a narrow lane. The clouds were black and they opened up So he stepped in out of the wet, Dropped his swag as it turned to hail And lit up a cigarette, The box was ancient, was George the Fifth And hadn’t been used for years, But stood in a lane that time forgot When the rot set in, and worse. For most of the houses were boarded up And the weeds had grown outside, Some had embarked for a tree-lined park And some of the others died, It was lonely there in the dark of night As the sailor waited, he sang, But stubbed his cigarette out in fright When the telephone next to him rang. He stared at it for a while before He raised it, stopping the bell, It had an echoing, ghostly sound Like you hear in a deep sea shell, The sound of sobbing came to his ear And he cried, ‘Who’s there, what’s wrong?’ ‘Oh God, I’ve waited forever my dear, I’m locked in the basement, Tom!’ The sailor said that he wasn’t Tom But she didn’t appear to hear, ‘He’s got an axe, attacking the door, Be quick or he’ll **** me, dear!’ The sailor didn’t know what to say But a chill ran up his spine, ‘Tell me, what’s your address,’ he said ‘Before you run out of time!’ ‘I’m straight across from the telephone box, You usually meet me here, He’s found us out, and he screams and shouts That he’ll **** you as well, my dear! He just came home from a spell at sea And called me a cheating ***** If you don’t come over and rescue me He’ll have smashed his way through the door.’ The sailor wanted to say, ‘Enough! It’s nothing to do with me,’ But flew on out of the telephone box, Leapt over a fallen tree, He raced right in through the open door And he called, ‘I’m here, just wait!’ Then made his way to the cellar door But all he could feel was hate. The door was shattered, he walked right in It was dark, there wasn’t a light, He felt around for a candle, lit And stared at the terrible sight. A man lay dead on the basement floor Where an axe had taken his life, And there with her throat like an open sore Was the body of his dear wife. He staggered, stopped, and fell to his knees And sobbed like a man insane, ‘Oh God, it’s true, I did this to you, But my mind’s been playing games. I thought if I went away to sea I’d return to find they were dreams…’ As he sliced a razor across his throat He thought, ‘Life’s not what it seems!’ David Lewis Paget
0
Dec 5, 2013
Dec 5, 2013 at 5:35 AM UTC
The Telephone Box
The footsteps echoed on cobblestones When a chime rang ten of the clock, As a sailor making his way back home Was walking up from the dock, It was cold and dark for the lights were out And the street was wet with the rain, When he came to an old red telephone box At the side of a narrow lane. The clouds were black and they opened up So he stepped in out of the wet, Dropped his swag as it turned to hail And lit up a cigarette, The box was ancient, was George the Fifth And hadn’t been used for years, But stood in a lane that time forgot When the rot set in, and worse. For most of the houses were boarded up And the weeds had grown outside, Some had embarked for a tree-lined park And some of the others died, It was lonely there in the dark of night As the sailor waited, he sang, But stubbed his cigarette out in fright When the telephone next to him rang. He stared at it for a while before He raised it, stopping the bell, It had an echoing, ghostly sound Like you hear in a deep sea shell, The sound of sobbing came to his ear And he cried, ‘Who’s there, what’s wrong?’ ‘Oh God, I’ve waited forever my dear, I’m locked in the basement, Tom!’ The sailor said that he wasn’t Tom But she didn’t appear to hear, ‘He’s got an axe, attacking the door, Be quick or he’ll **** me, dear!’ The sailor didn’t know what to say But a chill ran up his spine, ‘Tell me, what’s your address,’ he said ‘Before you run out of time!’ ‘I’m straight across from the telephone box, You usually meet me here, He’s found us out, and he screams and shouts That he’ll **** you as well, my dear! He just came home from a spell at sea And called me a cheating ***** If you don’t come over and rescue me He’ll have smashed his way through the door.’ The sailor wanted to say, ‘Enough! It’s nothing to do with me,’ But flew on out of the telephone box, Leapt over a fallen tree, He raced right in through the open door And he called, ‘I’m here, just wait!’ Then made his way to the cellar door But all he could feel was hate. The door was shattered, he walked right in It was dark, there wasn’t a light, He felt around for a candle, lit And stared at the terrible sight. A man lay dead on the basement floor Where an axe had taken his life, And there with her throat like an open sore Was the body of his dear wife. He staggered, stopped, and fell to his knees And sobbed like a man insane, ‘Oh God, it’s true, I did this to you, But my mind’s been playing games. I thought if I went away to sea I’d return to find they were dreams…’ As he sliced a razor across his throat He thought, ‘Life’s not what it seems!’ David Lewis Paget
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73
Elizabeth and God exist in a sunflower grave. Her mother and father slit her stomach open and watched the contents pour out like spaghetti confetti. Tommy, Elizabeth's boyfriend, rode his ocean blue Huffy, until the tread on his tires grew bald and until the grips were blanketed by dead skin. Looking for her, panoramic views of the horizon leapt beside him. Silhouettes of his legs, churned and kissed the orange and caramel dusk. With every tear in his hamstrings and calves, the **** in his sky grew and swallowed the memory of Elizabeth Mendenhall, Honor Student. Margot, Elizabeth's twelve year-old sister, was an idealistic soul. Taking a Sharpie, she wrote on her sister's wall, "Liz, there is no death greater than the loss of self, and no life greater than one where we continuously search for what self is." Margot struggled with concentrating and frying eggs - but focused on the sunflower garden, dangerously and perfectly. Hilary and Brendan were thirty-five and thirty-six years-old. They stabbed their daughter thirty-seven times. They don't know why they did it, they just couldn't think of a reason not to do it. She begged for her life. The yellow petals of the sunflowers caught blood-drops and, after enough struggle, floated down to kiss and lay on Elizabeth's slow-twitch body. Hilary looked at Brendan and said, "What does this mean?" Brendan shrugged and said, "This is new to me." The garden was an oven, and digging her grave was like pulling back on a cheap, plastic latch. Elizabeth had pale, pre-cooked pie crust skin. The slits in her stomach looked like peeks into a cherry stuffed filling. Crinkled lips looked indented by a stainless steel fork, back and forth, side to side. And the soil rained upon her like the reversal of hot vapor, returning home. Elizabeth and the Sunflower Garden.
0
May 21, 2015
May 21, 2015 at 5:37 AM UTC
Elizabeth and the Sunflower Garden
Elizabeth and God exist in a sunflower grave. Her mother and father slit her stomach open and watched the contents pour out like spaghetti confetti. Tommy, Elizabeth's boyfriend, rode his ocean blue Huffy, until the tread on his tires grew bald and until the grips were blanketed by dead skin. Looking for her, panoramic views of the horizon leapt beside him. Silhouettes of his legs, churned and kissed the orange and caramel dusk. With every tear in his hamstrings and calves, the **** in his sky grew and swallowed the memory of Elizabeth Mendenhall, Honor Student. Margot, Elizabeth's twelve year-old sister, was an idealistic soul. Taking a Sharpie, she wrote on her sister's wall, "Liz, there is no death greater than the loss of self, and no life greater than one where we continuously search for what self is." Margot struggled with concentrating and frying eggs - but focused on the sunflower garden, dangerously and perfectly. Hilary and Brendan were thirty-five and thirty-six years-old. They stabbed their daughter thirty-seven times. They don't know why they did it, they just couldn't think of a reason not to do it. She begged for her life. The yellow petals of the sunflowers caught blood-drops and, after enough struggle, floated down to kiss and lay on Elizabeth's slow-twitch body. Hilary looked at Brendan and said, "What does this mean?" Brendan shrugged and said, "This is new to me." The garden was an oven, and digging her grave was like pulling back on a cheap, plastic latch. Elizabeth had pale, pre-cooked pie crust skin. The slits in her stomach looked like peeks into a cherry stuffed filling. Crinkled lips looked indented by a stainless steel fork, back and forth, side to side. And the soil rained upon her like the reversal of hot vapor, returning home. Elizabeth and the Sunflower Garden.
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8
She's preparing her heart to be broken And why should she not? Is this not the norm? These beautiful words so softly spoken Or should she just let go and be reborn Too late into an unknown world she stepped The fear is still there but she can't care now Edge of the horizon, ready, she leapt It is too late with this she makes a vow To fight would be madness 'twould be a sin Regardless it is worth it to let go Finally feel the happiness within Take these four walls down and let the love grow Now despite her fear there's no turning back God forbid she's wrong, her heart may turn black
0
Nov 3, 2012
Nov 3, 2012 at 9:40 AM UTC
Afraid