"onlookers" poems
Is that what we wake up to every day?
Fast food and gas stations are forever stamped in the corners of my eyes as they are looking through the glass of minimum wage to the red flashing lights of a man hoping to get back to his children safely.
Is life is a pointed dagger then my blade is rusted and dull when I wonder why I even try some days.
Do I dare defend my pride and still demand something more than this? Is this a call for engines in the air or wings made of wax? Death would be more alive than waking up to another day of shampoo commercials and microwave dinners.
You are always whispering in my ear though dear and telling me that you're more than just a particle flown into my imagination from a world so oh very different than ours.
Are your eyes as bright as I imagine? Will the glare from them blind me from the tax collectors whip and will your laughter drown out the screams of onlookers who are throwing peanuts through the bars at my feet?
Will your kiss melt me and cause me to fall into wind like leaves in a storm, a tornado of color and beauty..?
I lay in bed and my eyes close tightly, my breathing slows and thoughts drip into pits men drown themselves in, the murky waters of nihilistic cynicism...
Though my hand will still not be closed around yours when the sun rises, the whisper lets me know you are still awake and searching for me too...
Nov 15, 2012
Nov 15, 2012 at 2:23 PM UTC
the sky looked very low today
the slate clouds hardly parted
to blue sky at all
and while onlookers
became downcast
i thought to myself
of how maybe
the one true desire
of a cloud
is to reach down
to strain to kiss
this cold hard earth.
May 5, 2014
May 5, 2014 at 11:13 PM UTC
Off to Heaven tonight
Drifting in a beam of light
Rising up to the clouds on high
Upon golden wings I fly
I was dead from the very start
With panic did my eyes dart
I watched with heavenly agony
As your arrow pierced my heart
Melting away, my mind does flow
Taking with it your hand to hold
You didn't even give the onlookers a show
When love struck me down in one swift blow
Feb 7, 2012
Feb 7, 2012 at 12:00 AM UTC
Ten tall trees
Surrounding the stony path.
Nine familiar faces
Onlooking the happenings.
Eight rough rocks
Lining the rugged road.
Seven small points of nature's creation,
Frogs and dogs and birds and logs.
Six strong scents
That nature breathes.
Five fingers
Fumbling to find safety.
Four stable wheels
Lying under the board.
Three friendly hands for confident comfort
Deceitful yet calm.
Two arms for balance
A lonely truth of real care.
One blue bruise
From the lies of onlookers and the deceit of a skateboard.
May 24, 2015
May 24, 2015 at 8:38 AM UTC
My emotions are more alive than usual.
Butterflies in my stomach, anticipating
That feeling I thought I had left behind.
That fluttering is becoming frantic,
Just like our love did.
That fine line between love and hate,
My butterflies fly over, every time.
•
I was your wildflower,
Your daisy in the dark.
But that’s not what I needed,
At least that’s what I thought
She was your magnificent rose bush
Her petals were pristine.
Perhaps you think she’ll enhance your bouquet,
But her thorns will ***** you one day.
•
I must want you to be happy.
What would I be if I didn’t?
Maybe it’s because she was the friend who hurt me?
Or is this all your doing?
All I need from you,
Is your permission to grow.
Wildflowers don’t need watering,
Hurry back to your darling rose.
•
We once grew together,
Our stems intertwined.
But u saw my petals had grown crooked,
So you bloomed in another direction,
That change of interest was apparent,
Even when hidden from the light.
Your onlookers are impressed by roses,
After all, I am just a wildflower ****
Apr 9, 2019
Apr 9, 2019 at 12:03 PM UTC
Of distressing note
Is never finding out
How to keep
An audience beguiled
They consume mockery
With more than a voracious appetite
They judge an act
With mouths open and eyes closed
What a pity
What a shame
What an ordeal
For the somber actor
b.
Sep 20, 2013
Sep 20, 2013 at 5:04 AM UTC
When you're falling,
the wind is like an accomplice
that will tell onlookers that you're only crying
because it's battering your eyes.
Jan 5, 2015
Jan 5, 2015 at 1:40 AM UTC
My nails are a mess,
but not a mess like a 2 week perfect manicure 'mess',
a mess like chipped old blue nail varnish
where I have picked away at it.
A mess like peeling skin
when anxiety from deep within
has resulted in me absentmindedly scratching
until I am awoken by crimson blood,
pooling on pale flesh.
I grab a cloth and sigh,
as I realise I will now have to hide
my hands from onlookers,
who will probably tut disprovingly
because I'm a girl you see,
and it's my duty to present myself beautifully.
To be perfect on the outside, but how can that be?
You see my hands bear the scars that are inside of me.
You can't just paint over scars and expect to be free.
Jul 10, 2015
Jul 10, 2015 at 7:10 AM UTC
From beginning to end
she kept a straight face.
If she didn't, she would just explode.
The white, silk polka-dots
surrounded her, billowing
like an ivory cloud.
She grasped his finger tightly,
Her manicured hands sweating, feet throbbing.
The ring touched her head.
She had not promised herself to another.
She kept a straight face.
If she smiled, she would just burst.
On their heads were glorious crowns
of laurels and satin,
and they danced the ancient dance of Isaiah.
She kept a straight face,
if she didn't watch where she was going
she would fall, but he would catch her.
*May you be as loving as Isaac and Rebecca,
as fruitful as Jacob and Rachel.*
Another squeeze of his pinky, and a twitch of her cheek.
God grant many years!
Chant onlookers.
Her eyes flooded and washed away
her straight face.
Catching her soiled tears,
Papa's paisley black handkerchief.
She was still his little Tzeitel.
Jun 26, 2010
Jun 26, 2010 at 6:09 PM UTC
There are bloggers and selfie-takers,
Know the difference.
There are noisemakers and peacemakers,
I can show you the evidence.
There are admirers and haters.
Be especially mindful.
There are well-wishers and supporters.
Be very careful
The are naysayers and yeasayers
Always be aware.
There are brothers and brother's keeper,
Always ready to take care.
There are destroyers and fixers,
Separate them.
There are mixers and blenders,
We need them.
There are writers and publishers,
They need each other.
There are readers and proofreader.
Both read for different reasons.
There are bystanders and onlookers.
Both will be watching.
There are movers and shakers,
One of them has the edge.
There are dreams snatches and vision busters,
Be on the lookout.
There are ghost whisperers and Ghostbusters,
Both have connection to a ghost.
There are buyers and sellers,
Each one benefits.
There are singers and there are dancers.
Everyone provides some entertainment.
©IvanBrooksPoetry
21/8/2018
Aug 21, 2018
Aug 21, 2018 at 1:59 PM UTC
Do you think it is
the sun that loves the moon?
shining shyly, seductively,
enticing and craving
its constant adoration
and undivided attention?
Or perhaps it is the moon
that so desperately desires the sun?
whilst in orbit, always hoping to catch
a glimpse of its radiant beauty,
enthralled by its passion, its strong
and irresistible magnetic pull?
I wonder if their love is challenged by the stars?
striking, dazzling, beautiful,
infinite onlookers, ever-watchful in the sky,
twinkling dangerously, a flirtatious third party,
competing with the sun
or trying to outshine the moon?
Despite their temptation,
the stars fail to weaken or change
the lovers, the moon and sun,
and eventually fade into insignificance.
Jun 7, 2014
Jun 7, 2014 at 11:57 AM UTC
Kingfisher flits and waits
a small twig on an overgrowing willow
Flash of Blue Stardust Feathers
The stickleback fish the prize
that Kingfisher master of the river
fisher supreme
Those cobalt volcanic flutters
capture the eye of all onlookers
Sep 3, 2015
Sep 3, 2015 at 9:09 PM UTC
The acoustic guitar plays softly, in the background of a critiqued ball room as he made his entrance. The attention of the audience fell upon him; As he walked readily towards the dance floor, The melody of the flute and the rhythm of the bass guitar, Dramatized his beauty. The spectators in fear, but his passion so real, As I stared into his eyes, that made beauty felt unreal everything else that surrounded me disappeared. He focused his eyes on the dance floor they began to whisper; Who will he choose? Who has to leave now? He flashed his eyes upon the viewers that were once in shock, now in terror, but their ****** expression in awe. The apothegm states that he continually seeks for the one that would heal his disease but bound to the power of the earth’s forces, his determined, stunning eyes will never be able to reveal, the secret one that can heal. The bass drums play wildly as he shows the crowd his fury. The once stunned viewers now begin to panic, but I draw myself closer. Before I could reach him someone else got in the way. “I would like to die” was the words I know her to repeatedly say. He gently pushed himself away in anger. He looked around the ball room, and observed the reaction of the audience to his response. They’re now in astonishment. He then stopped and his focal point was clear. The piano and the cello played softly to become one with his voice. He said to me “let us dance.” I’m frightened, the majority of the onlookers left in a daze. My vision weakened before our dance began. He smiled, and as he looked upon my face all the instruments faded away. He said to me is this your last dance? Will you leave us tonight? I’m the kiss of death will you close your eyes forever or will you leave me in delight?”
Nov 19, 2009
Nov 19, 2009 at 9:39 AM UTC
{Body}I stand tall
straight-backed, head high
on high heels, bright and sharp
sophisticated
smiling gaily at passing people
meeting their eyes with sunglasses
so that they might never meet mine.
a politician's smile
{Mind}I crouch low
doubled over, head bent
on concrete, cold and hard
meekly
looking up at onlookers
that they might see that
my eyes, bared to the world,
hold tears.
a dreamer's heart
{Soul}I run wildly
arms wide, head back
on soft grass, lush and vibrant
free
laughing with the world
in my bare feet.
May 29, 2013
May 29, 2013 at 8:06 PM UTC
A leaf spirals downward,
Over covered heads and uncovered cars,
Children sleeping in grass
Drool dripping from their gums,
A football field seeing practice
Where someone's leg
Was recently snapped in half,
Overflowing sewer grates,
Dilapidated septic tanks,
Wastewater disposal facilities
With a runoff into
A river filled with needles and rocks
And bodies,
And it hits the ground with a silent explosion,
Until the wind sends it off and sets it somewhere out of sight.
Like when a glass bottle
Shatters on a bar top and
Sends shards soaring
Into the eyes
Of onlookers,
Everybody knows what's next.
Did you hear?
Fall is here.
The boy who starves so that he may be warm
And the girl who freezes so she may not starve
Have a chance encounter
And bask in mutual despondency.
They share their warmth,
And they share their food,
And neither has enough of either.
But even at their demise,
The sun still goes up and down
On the horizon,
Painting a scene of ignorance
Or apathy,
And lying.
The heat will dissipate soon,
What with Winter coming,
But it does not matter:
Everything is already frozen.
Dec 27, 2011
Dec 27, 2011 at 6:49 PM UTC
Good times...right?
then surprise
darkness surrounds
flashes and fighting
strength g o n e
strapped down
engine roar
environment of light
teary onlookers
racked with pain
hazy recollection
questions abounding
cause, drugs? no!
Tests..Tsets..Tetss..Tests
unwelcomed results
Tests..Tsets..Tetss..Tests
solution, drugs? i guess
life ruined
secret, hidden
flash and smash
secret, well, revealed
best
year
ever?
. . . . .
Right?
But doesn't life go on?
Feb 10, 2010
Feb 10, 2010 at 7:32 PM UTC
Blinded by the sunlight that shines so brightly,
it proceeds to massage my spectacles,
rinsing the grime away from my eyes,
there lived mankind, buildings, plants, and animals,
but where was I, unaware of the planet I saunter,
I look in amazement, unborn to what to forecast,
but then I distinguished the dark side, somber and bleak,
impoverished skeletons walking hunchbacked, desperately
scrambling for silver, as so to purchase a bottle of liquor and a burger to indulge his vacancy that absents him,
as I trek my way further into this metropolis,
I hear a sudden commotion arising from the right direction,
it begins to steer me that way, luring me in deeply there was a mass of onlookers chanting on, of what seemed to be two individuals pummeling one another into a bloodbath, but then it escalated, the crowd began to all partake in the beating and it caused a mayhem, that was uncontrolled, I bolted the scene, protecting my mask from getting dismantled, as suddenly I hear a very deafening noise, it was a four wheeler wagon, that speedily amtrac it's way towards the locus in which we was in, everyone scattered the scene, as the people who dressed in uniform annihilated the scene, putting an outright stop to the madness that occurred, forestalling future procreation from the participants, my heart shriveled and I gasped for air, I ran aimlessly into a town that was lively and sunny, as I saw mankind playing sports, clubbing, riding nice convertibles, homes were futuristic, plants were vegetated, smiles and giggles were infectious, everyone was cheerful and amused enjoying this utopian I discovered, it was care-free, as folks walked in suit and ties, formal dresses, luggages entering and exiting, dialect as clear as caribbean sea, friendly animals chaperoned by their owner, "where am I?", "what was this strange but yet interesting soil I embark on?", ..... I don't know, but it closes me in like a maze and I'm forced to live as they.
Aug 25, 2018
Aug 25, 2018 at 4:12 PM UTC
He was lost in the spirited flow of a river,
Later found himself in this lady's boudoir,
The circumstances to onlookers are little unclar,
But suffice to tell, in water things were quite fluid,
The boudoir was hectic, he was more or less stuck.
Don't think he had any serious complaint about it,
Only hoped, this strange fact be better explained.
Her kind of explanation was rather queer, he felt!
"There is nothing to be astonished, my dear
I'm an ace swimmer, and was present there
At the time of the incident, nothing more"
She mysteriously smiled, adding a dainty twist.
Well, a rescue mission, as we know is higly humanitarian,
There are more than what meets the eyes, in this situation.
He was of two minds, to remain there and to break loose,
Life in her boudoir, he feared would make him a libertine!
Apr 18, 2019
Apr 18, 2019 at 1:44 AM UTC
Our trajectory is unknowable, you tell me: the planet
corkscrews around the Sun, sure,
but the Sun corkscrews around a black hole at
the heart of the Milky Way,
and our whole galaxy travels on some mysterious,
incalculable vector. But sister, I saw a photograph
in which two whale sharks were brought to
heel by men in simple reed boats just
off the coast of the Philippines. All that they had
to do was often feed
the sharks many gallons of grocery-store frozen
shrimp, poured from plastic garbage bags into
their yawning six-foot maws to portside.
Gargantuan, sure, but still
as obedient and eager for food as backyard
squirrels. I remembered a grainy
internet video—I saw it probably seven or
eight years back—in which
a captured whale shark was winched
ashore in Madagascar, or
maybe it was the Philippines again—no matter—
the thing still had life left
in it and struggled to breathe while a crowd of
people gathered around—there were
women carrying babies, girls holding baskets atop
their heads—and then the
men came with a long slender blade and sliced clean
through the whale’s spine, vivisected it
right there on the dock, and the onlookers stood there quite
unfazed—I remember
being shocked at the effortlessness of the cut,
the pinkness of the whale’s blood,
and the boredom in the onlookers’ eyes. Our father
took us down to San Antonio
on one of his business trips there when we were five
or six—I think
you were probably too young to
remember it—
it was when you and I saw the ocean for the first
time. We drove down to the Gulf
of Mexico, and we saw waves breaking
out near the horizon in pale
sunlight. I kept scanning for a dorsal
fin off beyond
the breakers, thinking that I might spot one—
sandy brown, mottled with
cream spots and glistening—so that I might be able to
say to you, pointing, “look,
sister, there is a whale shark!” Years
later we would learn
that he traveled down to San Antonio so
frequently because he was a philanderer. As
a child I believed that whale sharks
crisscrossed the ocean following
paths that we couldn’t fathom, that
their concerns were somehow
beyond our comprehension, but then
Keppler pinned down
the shape of the Earth’s orbit over four
hundred years ago,
and the lives of ancient sea
titans are sundered
effortlessly
by men with indifferent faces.
Sep 22, 2023
Sep 22, 2023 at 2:27 AM UTC
Passing through thick and thin, only
To be brought back to a far-off cry.
Don’t worry, this shall pass with time.
It flies fast with life’s distractions nearby.
Taking flight on tattered wings—
How sweet, the angels sing in harmony.
Their songs we will never know, so pure.
Untarnished in their world untouched.
Disconnected, wires and airwaves on fire.
A teardrop now unknown to cold souls,
It is easy to succumb to the robotic routine,
Life’s expectations drill us to our cores, unseen.
The touch of a hand is becoming
A cumbersome and time-consuming task,
A soft kiss no longer holds much meaning
In this plastic, pornographic societal wet dream,
We live in.
One day, will true love be a myth as
Onlookers sit and view a big screen
Unable to comprehend what it means?
To hold someone close, hearts beating deep.
Curtains close, black-sky-lined entertainment,
As they drive home to all the world’s last diamonds,
Embedded stones and gold of the earth,
Resources completely depleted.
Synthetic. Material. Superficial. Pasted. Plastered.
Artificial. Numb. Cold. Materialistic. Empty.
Words whisper throughout the day,
As if a shield and armor bringing about
A spiritual message through a voyage
Speaking to a place that feels so real,
Untouched like a firefly let go from
A glass jar meant to climb high to heaven.
Jul 23, 2018
Jul 23, 2018 at 12:36 AM UTC
Bluebell Lucy danced in fantastic flames, taught by shamanic figures
when the winter nights grew tiresome
and lonely boys ran passionately in village streets
She stood on ancient structures and sang her song with uttermost vigor
even after mild paranoia sets in, she stands statuesque
breathing harmonic, listening intently to the cloud's chatter
Her cobalt lashes flickered adroitly when she scanned the sky atop her locks
and let the coming rains wash through that azure mane
until the kiss of eternal gratitude arrived from a stray bird
On cobble stone paving, her heels were worn and dampened, she nimbly strides
how beautiful it is to see a spirit so free
and the obstinate world yields to her alone
Loosely, Lucy with a cerulean aura, gathers the injured and feral in alabaster arms
she is yagé and the world hallucinates because of her
a subtle enlightenment she gives to onlookers and thieves
Camu Camu sprouting from the wells she digs with bare hands in midnight moonlight
her compatriots, the beasts of lost tribes, look onwards
and she wails a verse on hemerocallis singular sensation
The flower that she is, a wild one that grows sporadically to enhance the beauty of existence
and everybody incomprehensible in thoughts when she speaks
because she is love when love had died so many suns ago
Dec 12, 2013
Dec 12, 2013 at 3:35 PM UTC
The poets became the underwear sale men
They tried to sell their poems to the optimist
Whereas an Queen of African Pop singer exposes her body on stage
While belting out loud outrageous lyrics, because she was a crowd pleaser
Long poems, short poems
Old century poets, modern contemporary poets
We all have the right to sermonize your words into magical dust,
The contemporary poets stood on the balcony reciting,
Some onlookers’ claps and some Jarred
Today’s youth is being waste away faster than their elders
Chanting, raving ranting rapping lyrics from the balcony
making a mockery of the old century poetic poets
The poets became the underwear sale men
as they tried to sell their poems to the optimist
Apr 20, 2015
Apr 20, 2015 at 7:12 AM UTC
Bare feet scuttle around on marbled floors
Painting muddy footprints on the white canvas.
Onlookers walk by in disgust, their noses in
The air as they click their heels in an effort
To avoid the unbecoming scene before them.
The feet are callused and shred, imprints of
Pebbles forever etched into the raw flesh
Of their nakedness. Was it worth it?
Yes. It should be.
It will be.
The gritty pavement is as hot as the
Sun, a burning star, a supernova lifetimes
Away. Their yellowed teeth are clenched tightly;
They are determined to stand despite the furious
Pain slowly eating its way into the
Soles of their feet.
Many scars and scratches from roads they have
Traveled are scattered across the bareness;
They are proud, for it is their art,
That is the measurement
Of their life.
At last, the final goodbye from the scorching day
Kisses their heads in a bittersweet farewell
And You see them smiling in the dark,
Blue eyes glowing with a brilliance You have
Never seen before. They are eager to
Run with their bare, misshapen feet
And jump with all their strength into the
Watery depths below.
You look around.
They are splashing in the waves,
The cool ocean soothing the pains
Of the day.
The corner of Your lip upturns with
A hint of a smile.
This is how they live.
And this is who they are.
Who then are you going to be?
Apr 10, 2014
Apr 10, 2014 at 4:31 PM UTC
Applied rouge on the cheeks
Tied a glittering necklace round the neck
Putting heavy makeup,
Over the stubble on her shaven chin,
She looked into the mirror
Through its cracks, saw a million bits of her/him
Those images sneering at each other
She felt trapped in a wrong body,
With its contours n’ longings mismatched
“Where do I belong”?
“Where do I fit”?
These questions plague her incessant
A rough stone with sharp edges
Too hard to be chipped down
Cast aside by the mason
That can never go into the making of a Cathedral
She walks around in haze
Life seems a twisted maze
Each time she tries to claw her way
She sees only walls that hems her in
Before her lingers the stygian mist
Phantoms of darkness surround her
The winds of change swiftly blow
Seasons come and go
But she is tied down in her chains
An anomaly of creation
A curse and a taboo
Swallowing stigma and abuse
Each day waking up with a start
Knowing that she is neither a woman nor a man
But a non binary... an accursed TRANSGENDER
Inviting snide looks
And sniggers from onlookers
People call her a ******
One divided between the selves
A hapless denizen of an inhospitable world
Disowned even by parents
Though flawed and far from perfect
She is human, one of a kind
And needs to be seen through the eyes of God!
Dec 1, 2018
Dec 1, 2018 at 9:03 AM UTC