The Poetry Marathon

I wrote this haiku

Because I needed a break

Hey, can you blame me?

Crawl
with legs so small
like pins and needles
pricking, sticking
quickly flicking up my spine
skitter, scuttle
scattering sensation
over skin
erupting into pimples as you pass
tracing fast
you scrape, you skip
you scroll from side to side
you creep, you slip
slow and sneaky
streaking
as you pick your pinprick patterns
on my hide

(Kinda sorta in response to the spider prompt. Blatantly ignoring the no rhyming instruction ((insofar as internal rhyming goes)) and using spidery imagery while not exactly being about a spider per se.)

(working title)

As you walk beside the waters
Caution, daughters
Kelpies beckon
Men in horseskin

When sailing off to distant shores
Keep to your oars
You must stay strong
To siren song

If dipping toes into the lake
Mind you your wake
Undine pull down
To make you drown

The crows keep pecking
Picking at the carrion
Of my lost childhood

The corpse keeps twitching
Restless still
But rotted within

Cartilage and bone
May be enough to stand on
If not for the crows

Feathers like petrol
Let them burn
An ink black pyre

Their supper paid for
Claw for flesh and beak for bone
Now carrion feasts

the black beady eye of midnight
blinks a thousand times over
gaping in wonderment at this
the day

Ginger, brunette, blonde
Three girls laughing and playing
Shadows and echoes

High above we lowly maggots
Dykes and faggots
Working classes
Unwashed masses

So high that we cannot reach you
Cannot teach you
We beseech you
We beneath you

The higher the harder the fall
You had the gall
We’ll force your hand
No leg to stand

wind watch, turn key
count the seconds, watch the sand
coil spring, charge cell
check for ticking, move the hand

hurry! hurry!
busy keeping
faster! faster!
never sleeping

set the timer, sound alarm
time is money, all things pass
press reminder, heed the bell
see the children grow like grass

urgent! urgent!
no attention
danger! danger!
no prevention

rock cradle, dig grave
seize the heathen, let us pray
push forward, knock back
break tradition, seize the day

hold up! hold up!
stop the madness
too late! too late!
end in sadness

mark planner, tap foot
time is money, all things pass
grab hold, lose touch
bleached white bones and dry brown grass

urgent! urgent!
relegated
act now! act now!
delegated

Winter blooms in crystalline clouds
like mold on wasted bread
And here am I

breathing shallow gales of ice
which freeze my lungs in place
And here am I, alone

Spring comes on, that lying harlot
like paint on rotted wood
And here am I

choking on her putrid perfume
which closes up my throat
And here am I, again

Summer festers, moist and burning
like sepsis in some fevered flesh
And here am I

suffering with dizzy sickness
which robs my mind of sense
And here am I, afraid

Autumn pools like clotted blood
a wound of changing colours
And here am I

stagnant, stale, and scabbing over
sealing shut my lips
And here am I, again, again

Alone, afraid, again

(A 4-stanza 5-7-5)

crack open mountains
hot red rock or cool water
drink until it’s dry

tear through the heavens
lightning quick and thunder loud
grumble as they cry

pour into the sea
sick black slicks and plastic dreams
salt turned acid stings

burn bright, breathe blackly
dragon’s breath for dragon’s hoard
reap what summer brings

In response to the 1st hourly prompt: “Write a a poem in which the four elements (Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water) play an important part. Contributed by Bhasha Dwivedi.”