The Poetry Marathon

There is a smile on her face

as she plays hopscotch

and then she falls, scrapping a knee

but the most important thing is that

she gets back up.

There’s a room in my house

I’ve never been in before

I am not afraid of it

And to prove this

I write a cinquain.

The Great Wall of Chocolate,

not far from ‘natural wonder’ status,

resides in my home,

the making of a six-year-old.

When my colleagues found out,

they insisted I invited them home,

and when I declined them politely,

they invited themselves over anyway.

What is this Great Wall? you ask,

well, it happened that my daughter,

had a curious habit of sneaking chocolate,

from the refrigerator as soon as she learnt to walk.

Of course I didn’t find out until,

one day the babysitter called at work,

and reported that there was a “huge monstrous chocolate maze”

in my basement.

Fearing for the mentality of my babysitter,

and the safety of my daughter,

I rushed over to be greeted by a cunning daughter,

and a slightly dazed baby sitter, who insisted I terminate her services.

Of course, my daughter is all grown up,

and in college now, but the tale of the Great Wall of Chocolate,

(which my daughter says was built by a tribe of aliens as a religious monument),

still lives on.

Dear Neighbour,

Please do stop stealing my paper,

it is quite a crime you commit,

and I do not appreciate such cheeky wit!

And please do stop feeding,

my poor Oscar shredded paper,

dear God, I’m pleading,

he keeps throwing up on my expensive wallpaper!

And while I’m at it, also,

stop letting, your cat into my house, pronto!

For there’s fur all over my bedding!

It’s really, terribly upsetting!

Lots of love,

Your Neighbour from the floor above 🙂

Have I ever told you,

the truth behind Mason,

How he ventured to Waterloo,

and washed his hands in a basin?

I think I have not,

so gather around,

and I’ll tell you what

Mason did while he was still sound.

Mason was a tired old man,

who loved black shoelaces,

and lived in a big, bulky white van,

which doubled as multiple workplaces.

One day, he decided,

that he’d travel to Waterloo,

rather unguided,

and brought with him two black leather shoes.

Of course, he told us,

he’d like to buy a washbasin,

and believed nothing finer than Waterloo would rust,

and so he traveled to Waterloo, and ate nothing but raisins!

And so now, we come,

to the truth behind Mason,

he had a rather green thumb!

And so he purchased a field,

planted good vine,

and waited for what it would yield!

I live under the sky,

I consider this my home,

of course I share this with strangers by,

as I continue to roam.

When I was young,

lived with my brother, did I?

I no longer remember the tales he sung,

but he told me, we lived under the sky.

I believe my true abode,

belongs with dear brother mine,

but upon him the inheritance bestowed,

and with him I could no longer dine.

And so we spoke no longer,

of our days together,

he seemed to get younger,

and spent his time without his brother.

And people ask me,

would I like to hear,

‘Welcome home’ from he?

quite not, my dear.

I live under the sky,

I consider this my home,

of course I share this with strangers by,

and need no ‘Welcome home’.

Dressed in a king’s attire,

under the mask of lies,

convincing as a con man,

the country slowly dies.

Blood as coffee stains,

wounds are gaping holes,

the Royal eyes are closed,

as life, the Angels stole.

Adrenalin, a marathon runner,

pumping through their veins,

as they drop their arms in surrender,

crimson in showers of rain.

Running for their life,

fleeing their own land,

perhaps a better future,

their oaths a strong band.

Long time ago,

in a castle on a hill,

there lived a princess,

who never really existed.

Hi, hello, how are you?

Pardon me, excuse me, let me get through!

Ma! Ma! Why is the sky blue?

Ah! No, no, no, stop stepping on my shoes!

My battery is dead!

James, stop biting on the pencil’s lead!

Those two are newly weds!

Look at all those people’s heads!

Oh! Look! Free coupons!

Oh dear, I think I left the oven on!

What are protons and neutrons?

I think I just saw a trumpeter swan!

Why are all these people talking?

I think I just saw one guy sleep walking?

Look at the childish kid mocking!

How many hours am I clocking!

There’s a rhythm in my chest,

beating out a tune, one of my best,

it’s the closest beat to me, it keeps me alive,

(even when I’ve never took it for a test drive).

I was a born with a heart,

not just to drive me to Walmart,

(even when the reckless drivers

have made numerous people heart attack survivors).

Frankenstein didn’t have a heart,

(someone probably had to give him a kick start),

but I do, and I don’t know what I’d do without it,

I’ll have to admit.

My heart is my closest beat,

and it didn’t come with an iTunes receipt,

so there’s really no downside,

to having a heart. Unsatisfied?