"musts" poems
"lie still and let it wash over you, the was and is and soon to be.
How frightening yet effervescent the next 24 hours. The lust, and musts of future days revert to the ancient past..."
patty m.
><
the irony!
when I am stilled,
the effervescence of me
unbounded, unleashed, and the torrential rain
of words fulfilling and departing from my interior
I am
a Grand Central Station
of trains labelled
"the was and is and soon to be''
all moving in an unscheduled mayhem,
but never crashing. never accidenting,
only accenting my racing against time,
my oldest and fiercest Super Villian,
and one just knows, never can you beat time,
time, that old rascally up his sleeve card magician,
who when shuffling the deck,
he knows
what was,
what is,
and here his red eyes gleam with satisfaction,
soon to be...
He and I,
old familiar adversaries
addicted to living.
never leave the table,
never leave a *** or
a poem on the felt,
and having always felt,
firm believed,
there will always be one more,
one more gamble, another day,
to write another poem
and turning my cards over
to reveal, to revel,
in my Royal Flush of creativity,
when time, smiling face,
with his
wild card,
**** time,
who trumps me for
it,
in possess of a Five-of-a-Kind(1)
~'
and the new players,
the young poets,
slap me on the back,
saying I had a great run,
but they don't know 'bout my
secret stash,
preprogrammed to appear,
long after these fingers
cease their tangled tango of tap dancing,
my dust,
my lusts and musts
will unstilled yet be
blowing, floating in the
soon to be
so ha!
nml
6:30am
Wed Sep 10
Twenty Twenty Five
Sep 10, 2025
Sep 10, 2025 at 8:42 AM UTC
Waves crashing into the sand
The light of the sun palpable throughout the land
Blades of grass whisper a song
Intimating it won't be long
Birds fly high high high
The afternoon musts be nigh
Listening quietly to the sounds
Although silence is more profound
Steps lead up through the gates
Saying "au revoir" where reality awaits
Aug 25, 2014
Aug 25, 2014 at 6:24 PM UTC
Straight-striving, a white
oak sapling bends
(it pretends) willingly
to the lapping of grey-
hound gusts. It knows
the musts of a thin-
skin (if and when,
it can endure) will loosen
some with thickening. Then,
well, the strength comes
to laugh at always
in the passing wind.
Dec 4, 2010
Dec 4, 2010 at 6:58 AM UTC
I can measure my life
in lists of things I
meant to do.
The bullets, the stars.
numbers, arrows.
Musts, maybes and
Laters.
All there in
the wobbly print
of my 9 year old
boy scrawl.
If I circled it
did it first,
Will this guarantee a
different fork?
Wil walk down
my to-do, to
Prosperity
If I accomplished
it all?
or
would I start
a new way
perhaps tattooed on
my arm
would I start , then
cllecting boxes
of regrets?
Every lists is
a promise I pretend
to make for
myself.
my Beautiful
False Paper Trail
for a productive life
assuredly.
not the one
that I lead,
At all.
Feb 22, 2011
Feb 22, 2011 at 10:39 PM UTC
From the life they all had planned
Because I can feel every small death
In the sounds of grains of sand
falling away
sigh
A ray of clarity lights up
from within a sky of meaningless clouds
Their moisture stiffened on my breath
elasticity melting on my hands
wholesome
real
If life is a concept
Then perhaps joy can be the incense to burn round it
The light up ball pit of consciousness can be
What I choose
Who I am
Which I lose
A jigsaw of emotion
Want, desire, controlled, due, debt
I needn't let anything control
I'd lose it all if I wished it
Because reality is a waste when filled with musts
Anxiety placed tenderly down to rust in the grave
of oppression and dependency
I have a tendency for un-calm
There's no need for alarm
Mistakes will always be forgotten
As will trophies
Love
Revenge
Everything must have it's end
So don't sweat the small stuff
You needn't have time for that ****
If you don't want it :)
Feb 28, 2015
Feb 28, 2015 at 7:13 PM UTC
Inner Musts Must Be Obeyed
Not partial to my voice,
Yet sing I must.
Poetry morose or grandiose,
Yet write I must.
No longer questioning,
I simply follow
Roads that hollow out a special path
Tattooed into gene’s DNA.
What can I say,
And what was it I said?
Inner musts must be obeyed.
Inner Musts Must Be Obeyed 7.21.2016
The Processes: Creative, Thinking, Meditative II, Nature Of & In Reality; Definitely Didactic;
Arlene Corwin
Jul 21, 2016
Jul 21, 2016 at 2:27 PM UTC
Am I everything I said I couldn't be,
To see is to see is to be,
Apparently,
In the circle of life, this cycle
A recycle of bicycle tries and left behinds
i stayed behind?
Why should I mind the carnal bind between sin and mankind?
From birth to death
Defect
Affected the infected
US
us?
US
FROM THE LUST TO THE MUSTS
THE MUTTS WE'RE ABOVE SUCH SAID 'EQUALITY OF'
THE RUST THAT REPLACED US,
DEFACED AND ERASED US
THEY CAN'T TAKE US
they can't take us?
did you forget what this about?
your doubt and your bout with your 'is this all I can think about'
and you call yourself a devout...
Apr 19, 2013
Apr 19, 2013 at 4:29 AM UTC
No Man is A Victim
Can it be, and do I mean it?
It’s a phrase that came to mind,
And so I looked it up.
One harmed or killed by so-called fluke;
One duped or tricked;
One who feels helpless faced with setback:
So I chose the last to help.
There’s truth in fate that causes earthquake,
And one’s sole concern’s escape.
That is a victim.
Then again,
One is alive, glad to survive.
Grounds to begin
Because one can!
But what about
The ones who feel useless in the face of sense,
Interpreting all happenings
With sadness, negativity and impotence,
Downhearted from the very start?
You’ve known a few. Me too.
Perhaps it’s you,
And what to do –
The problem philosophical, pragmatic, existential.
And, if one’s inclined, then spiritual.
Start a something, anything, for life’s a skill.
Good comes from bad, calm follows ruin;
Results come from what’s had or been;
And nothing lasts forever.
One’s endeavour is to strive,
For one’s alive.
Remember that you’re clever!
Act as if you have a choice
And make one – with your tiny voice.
Summon up your forces,
For of course, they’re many.
Do not hurry.
Lives are scurrying around you.
Do not worry,
For the ‘musts’ and ‘oughts’
Are values of society,
Not boo-choo, cry
Or future you.
No Man Is A Victim 9.30.2018 Our Times, Our Culture II;Nature In & Of Reality;Definitely Didactic II; Arlene Nover Corwin
Arlene Corwin Poetry.com
Sep 30, 2018
Sep 30, 2018 at 7:13 AM UTC
Soft flakes are held aloft while drifting down
to keep those splendid structures quite intact;
Then up from pavement–piling on firm ground–
they halt all urban bustle in its tracks;
Strong plows have tried their best to push snow back,
but once this weather starts I’ve lost control;
It’s time to settle in, hear branches crack
and with my quilts and ***** I'll fight the cold.
How odd that every day has such a hold,
hurling the musts and shoulds with all its might,
until those tiny flakes conspire to scold
nice days for their mad toil and grant respite:
Sometimes it takes the ice and slush outside
to truly feel the warmth from which I hide.
Jan 31, 2016
Jan 31, 2016 at 5:59 PM UTC
I wanna write a poem for TODAY
not an urge nor because of other “musts”
just wanna say it is The Anniversary of The Day
from long gone years of love in a most passionate way
i must confess now with heaviest pains-process
that Day was definitely our mutual YES
our hearts, minds and soul, I was his Princess
still innocent and filled with the greatest zest
a diligent type, “shy” but a hardworking man
an unimaginable male blend
so it be our marriage tree
grandest with equal alls, oft filled with earnest glee
for many years it could stand tall
the correct and perfect mutual choice
but also made my eyes oft moist
the jealousy kept peeping under his skin
he inherited an odd type of familiar sin
´t was there all the time under his skin
entered with the smallest blowing wind
to be honest this was never our mutual promise
let’s say our mutual choice was a perfect bliss
as kids born with an empty aura
he never accepts any pose of the smartest Femina
well that goes like that several decennia
my fierce belief in the Lord
kept me constantly going up aboard
it was his religion i have jumped into deeply
still, i acknowledge this fervently
due to my beloved Mum,
i as an evangelist-to-be
this humble me has gathered the Biblical wisdom
this is my witness and i must confess this is not only my utmost zest
these are true solemn mutual events of our best
through all the years of kindest process
indeed in a unique way, i am his princess
in abundance God's Bless....
solemnly created
© Sylvia Frances Chan
Copyright Protected
Dec 20, 2017
Dec 20, 2017 at 10:11 PM UTC
Lord, if you exist and have ears
(neither of which
proposition is entirely clear yet),
let’s make a deal.
(I know prayers ideally aren’t
supposed to involve bargaining,
but this is really a poem
so I’ve got some wiggle room to ******
Bring a little peace to these instruments
who call themselves your kids,
and I swear by all things you deem holy
(since you made everything,
I guess that’d be the whole shebang)
to give myself up to your wills and won’ts.
Of course you’ll have to clue me in
where there’s a Will,
(the won’ts are pretty well covered)
whether buried in endless musts
****** thus by musty books,
or hidden in plain-sighted laws
governing the broadest range of spirals
from when the first shoot knows
it’s time to poke its budding nose
above an earth that’s lost the frosty bite
to when our yellow dwarf explodes
and grows a giant with nebulous arms
stretching outward to catch its dying breath.
(I’d cast a vote for the latter,
but my still-small voice has long been
to the far reaches, outnumbered.)
Jan 23, 2011
Jan 23, 2011 at 8:05 AM UTC
"It always has to be about you,
Don't you ever think of anyone else?
You're so selfish, you're so stupid.
I've got to do this all again next year."
I'm the eldest child and growing up fast
University soon and you won't help.
You taunt and mock me
Tell me I can't make it,
Now you don't even want me to go but threaten me if I don't.
Struggling to find a way to manage my time,
School, cadets, open days, all the musts.
You tell me you won't help me get there,
I'll just go on my own that's fine.
But no I'm too selfish to be worth your time.
I'm not worth your time I know,
You often tell me that enough.
I'm selfish and don't realise you have other kids you say
I do realise that but I need your support too.
I'm not as strong as you presume I am.
"It always has to be about you,
Don't you ever think of anyone else?
You're so selfish, you're so stupid.
I've got to do this all again next year."
Jun 17, 2014
Jun 17, 2014 at 2:50 PM UTC
The question respirates
the acrylic aperture
behind the eardrum.
A responsive tongue to the palate
taps out the consonant.
But before the note descends
with musts in the glass-
The cathartic statue
refracts the
synapses stretching
continuums
to grant a
minuscule autocracy.
Already charting north,
fingers fluently gather
ego between the
sundered reverb of the vowel.
Already twisting key,
pressing restive feet
to acquiescent gasoline.
Mar 21, 2017
Mar 21, 2017 at 5:05 AM UTC
so many times I’ve stood alone
without friend or family
family or friend
although we’re all connected
like blocks in a Jenga tower
with fate’s choice pushing and pulling
after the collapse
we stand alone and rebuild
so many dictates in the re-invention
holing up for a while
caught up in ‘musts’ instead of ‘cans’
‘needs’ instead of ‘wants’
limited resources finding a new path
instead of creating one
the front door ajar
ideas breezing in coolness
a yellow porch light
illuminating the climbing tendrils
in my mind
manifesting the cosmos
with blue and red pizza boxes
brown rice and beans
tastes like chicken
communication holds many keys
but which one fits the lock?
so many unexpected turns
so many pieces in life’s puzzle
but I’m good at solving puzzles
every time I fall
I long for preparation H
to soothe my **** hurt
but sometimes when you think you’re drowning
you only need to stand up
and remember that you’re good
but that’s totally up to me
as it should be
although we’re all connected
we stand alone
we stand alone
although we’re all connected
so don’t leave me in my cave, baby
hit me back to the moon if you have to
hit me back to the moon
Jun 13, 2016
Jun 13, 2016 at 5:45 PM UTC
please take a wide look at this now
at the present where you could stay
and attention may just slow down
the time experienced by brains
find peace of mind within your self
on the way you could live your life
there's ups and downs, but there's no hell
if there's a way where you don't strive
for useless things that you don't need
for senseless meanings out of reach
believe in hidden ways that bleed
beyond your very deepest grief
but there's no guaranty for us
that there won't be another truth
where we stay lost to ***** lusts
we are still the ones that may lose
although it seems it's us that choose
still dreaming within unknown musts
and without any valid clues
driven by (so far) dialectic cues
but take a wide look at this now...
Aug 13, 2014
Aug 13, 2014 at 11:19 AM UTC
I've watched you countless nights and days.
Don't know your name but seen your face.
I've seen you cry and smile and laugh.
You are the One, my better half.
I know your likes your shoulds and wants.
Your musts, your wonts, your oughts and donts.
Your dreams and fears, your tears and hopes.
Your ups and downs, your slippy slopes.
I've heard you breathe, choke up and sigh.
Listed the things that make you cry.
I've watched you work, and rest and sleep.
I've felt your pain like bones deep.
To you I 'm not a that or this.
I won't be a thing you'll ever miss.
A mystery only is what I am.
For you I'm none I'm just a ****
May 10, 2020
May 10, 2020 at 10:02 AM UTC
A collaboration of
Lori Jones McCaffery & David Hewitt
Clouds of grey, forboding loom
Over hillsides cold and sere
I long for walks twixt summer bloom
Under skies turned blue and clear
Lightning cracks as thoughts return
I cannot leave them far behind
Scorched upon my mind you burn
With no escape that I can find
'Tis love I crave not solitude
But love is often hiding
I search beneath my smbre mood
To seek for one glad tiding
And grant the heart my life pursues
Should find in me a perfect mate
So cleanse me of my woeful blues
That I may earn a happy fate
Yet time musts ee me ride this storm
But I'm without my trusty steed
So here I bunker down till dawn
When I can better meet my need
Fissures of red stirs morning sky
Promising me a path to hope
Upon the clouds my wishes fly
For help to climb this rocky slope.
#
Feb 5, 2017
Feb 5, 2017 at 5:17 PM UTC
I must need only desire one release
But too many other musts and needs
Get in the way of my desired life
So my soul tips on the blade of a knife
Oh how sad the human condition
One big mess of love and perdition
Yet sadness drives us to change it all
To lose ourselves in Love’s faithful fall
We fall into that gentle embrace
Removing our mind from that sad place
Bringing us something new and unique
Not of the world, but what we truly seek
To repair our hearts and mend our minds
That needed release we desire to find
Nov 28, 2011
Nov 28, 2011 at 10:23 PM UTC
Pearly dusts
Crashed musts
Vengeance evocatives
Perpetual blasts !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!--!!!!!!!!!!!!!!***************!!!!!!=========#=!!÷!!!!!!!!!!!!!-!--------------- xx-yyyyyyyyyy¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥'¥°°¥°¥°°°°¥°°°°°°°¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥':'( :')
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<3{{>33333333}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}<3:')33333333
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€&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Jan 12, 2016
Jan 12, 2016 at 12:48 PM UTC
I looked in the mirror
I nodded at the inevitable of what I see
my skin stamped with judgements
my hair braided with musts
and my eyes glazed
with how comes
WHY?
Feb 10, 2016
Feb 10, 2016 at 11:49 AM UTC
Am I asleep in this pretty daydream?
Thine eyes, thy smile, thy laugh, each thing bout thee
Turns I complete and rejoice with the stars
Hard ’tis to believe we have love like ours
A brawling love, the people offered us
Tell thee lies who I never, ever was
They wanted to fill thee with loving hate
Declared, decided, them, our very fate
If the capulet would hate me for wealth
I tell thee one thing that wealth won’t buy;
Love! true and pure that from thee, I have met
Thou, who have shown me the love very right
Never fades away, that smile thou’ve entrust
Never separate, ever would we do
Ne’er would be tempted with the demon’s “musts”
Center, is the fearsome between us two
O Juliet, love, I’ve seen thy tragedy
Stand still, I do, trying my best for thee
But it seems I can’t wipe thy tears away
Thou’ve found someone who’s better, I would say.
Promised and swore, I, to only love thee
Now, seeing thou shatters me far apart
But It’s thou, my love, I’ll have to set free
'Tis not I, who’ll, in a hutch, keep thy heart
So before I go and say my “byes”
Just promise me so, in peace, I could die
For it’s not what my mind would only create
Please, wake me not from this dream I have made.
Oct 1, 2016
Oct 1, 2016 at 12:28 PM UTC
I just feel so small and everything else is so huge and it keeps piling up on me, smothering me, until all I can see and breath is this wall of musts and responsibility and endless tasks and emotions that won't stop pressing up in my throat and I can't cry, I just don't take the time to do it, everything else is too demanding that I can't even do that, and I don't remember anymore how to relax my shoulder or unclench my jaw and I just can't see any pause ahead, no oasis of breathing deeply again in the near future, no space for just me to be.
Mar 30, 2020
Mar 30, 2020 at 2:00 PM UTC
being seen from inside
your ice-green
eyes that started fires
in-between blinks, you looked to me
is something I admired
now whiskey brings
evening company
unfurling what's desired
what you left
still inside my chest
smoke signaled love & tired
tried to have your eyes simply-see
my love for you is breathing
haven't seen such colors as these
since sleep beneath your ceiling
lost in trust's muffled, rusted-musts
but lying there was easy
Aug 5, 2015
Aug 5, 2015 at 3:50 PM UTC
Here’s to rebels, misfits and outcasts
Here’s to those that never turn ‘shoulds’ into ‘musts’
Here’s to individuals; unafraid to tear off the masks-
That society dictates one must wear to make the cast.
Here’s to weirdos; those round pins in square holes
Here’s to the stand outs; pearls in pebbles
Here’s to those who break rules and test laws
Here’s to the black sheep in a people of no flaws
Here’s to the fearless and the brave souls
Here’s to those willing to dare and fall
Here’s to those not happy with the status quo
Here’s to friends of change and mediocrity’s foes.
Here’s to game changers; Forces that cause life-quakes
Here’s to those not raising glasses before they raise stakes
Here’s to those more afraid of reluctance than heartbreaks
Here’s to visionaries; dream chasers in a land where the ‘self’ never wakes
Here’s to you if you are tired of being on the wrong side of circumstance
Here’s to you if you decide to seize opportunities and fight for half a chance
Here’s to you if you choose to live while others settle for existence.
I’d raise my glass to you. But there’s more stakes to raise. Now get a stance!
Keep Smiling
Apr 10, 2017
Apr 10, 2017 at 2:13 PM UTC