The Poetry Marathon

Self – Expression

We are different people
Me, my self, and I
Each face each different problem
With different faces on display
Seen with separate visions,
Some are more fragile than others
And while I am on display
We keep the walls between myself
And me, hiding how we feel
Shattering the shells if we aren’t careful
We try to keep in mind
I, myself, and me are not the only shells
There’s you and him, and she
Different shades and different sizes
A world apart but for the shells which hide us

The splash of rain on pavement
As many head to work
Black on black umbrellas
Suits and shoes and Briefcases
And colorless sedans
Crowd a heavy street
There on the bleak street corner
Is the friend I’ll meet

A splash of color in the black
Red Umbrella and white shoes.

The photo is lovely,

Pristine white sheets in a field of blooms
Palms outstretched overhead
But the hassle of the framing
Puts me far from the mood
To enjoy such a perfect photo framing

Imagine if a bird flew over
Or the ants in the flower beds
Decided you smelled like food
The date’d be ruined and take forever
To clean
And that’s just not worth the hassle.

The Woman with the Top Hat

She stood outside Buck’s Cafe
Rain or shine she stood every day
The woman with the Top Hat
What stood out about her was not her hat
Fashion is as fashion wants
But the fact that she never stopped
Holding it,
That woman with the top hat
Ne’er was it upon her head
Nor on the bench or table
Ne’er did she let it go
Nor did she seem able
To understand the offer given
By an innocent hatbox maker
For her,
The woman with the top hat
To put it inside a box
And protect it from the elements
There she stood, rain and shine alike
Ne’er moving with Watchers in sight
The Woman with the Top Hat
Til last Friday when a man
Took it from her and put it on.
The woman sighed with some relief
And went about her day
And the man turned round and left
Normalcy returned
To Buck’s Cafe

Penny for my thoughts you say
A  penny ain’t enough
You say you love me for my mind
But now it seems you’re stuck.

See I’ve seen you smoking
Though you swore you quit
And while I don’t mind lying
I just can’t get over this.
Did you think I’d miss you?
As you hid downtown?
I visited my brother there
The weekend that I found
Out about your trysts and secrets
Your unfaithful bliss
Yeah I don’t mind lying
But what secret life shit is this?
I don’t want to hear it.
I don’t want your excuse
Just pack and leave okay?
And take your stupid flute.
Before I break something
That you really need
Or shove that instrument somewhere
That will make you bleed.

Welcome to San Luno, run by Señor Bruno
We sleep during your day light
Within this city we keep desert hours
We come awake at night
Buildings made of mesa, stone and pueblo cliffs
The inhabitants are happy
Though there’s lots we miss.

Like there is no glass here, nor trees to offer shade
We keep things simple and simplistic
For we were desert made.
And while Agave and cacti serve us well in time
The limits of the desert increase as population climbs
We import lots of goods and struggle with our water
But we’ll be fine some time
As long as Bruno marries Coyote’s Daughter

Bienvenido Santa Sola, run by San Miguel
Our priest is lovely, our father treats us well
Our land is by the cliff-side, above an ocean blue
And we thrive on fish trade, and we sell pearls too
Buildings by the seaside may be strange to see
But the inhabitants are happy
The ocean makes us free.

Like we can go out in the sun, though burning is a risk
And church is plenty fun, our Father brings us bliss
For we are seaside made
And while the fish seem fine
It’s been a while since we’ve seen San Miguel outside
He makes up rules that make less sense
Than surfing at low tide
But promises that Coyote will
Give San Miguel his Bride

This Wealth Means Death

To some this orange hue is welcome
A lovely bloom in spring
A confident orange blossom
That wealth and happiness does bring
But to me this bloom means death
The stamen causes allergies
As fierce as tiger’s claws
The petals poison those I care for
A cat’s worst enemy
For though it smells like love
And brings your family blessings
Lily spells death for furry friends
Who chew upon its head
So do not gift me lilies
Despite your best intents
In this house it’s unwelcome
Here your wealth means death

The First Kitten

She had been expecting
For quite a while
And told me as much loudly
That she was with child
At first I could not know
I’d never seen a queen
But then it was obvious
And nearly too late to be seen
So I set up spaces
The future mother could rest
I didn’t not know what I was doing
And trusted momma knew best.

She grew wide, as did the father
A chonky duo, proud as otters
Then the day in question came
Much to my surprise
February 18th
At just 6 am
Contractions made her bolt from
The nest in which she sleeps.
And on the ground plopped the first
A silver tabby kitten
We spent that day together
But at the first I was smitten.

5 more were born of course
But I was just so proud
That while momma cat was birthing
She had sought me out.
I stood guard, to the queen
I helped them out,
She groomed them clean
And all was well 10 hours later.

Oh, what’s this?
Visitors beneath the mountain?
Through still waters, they approach
Don’t they know whose territory they encroach?
Hm, bipedal, but no matter,
They will crawl in time. What alien creatures
They may be, I will make them mine.

The scientist had warned them, the door was locked with purpose
But did militants listen? No, they broke the surface.
They tore open a dormant seal, and drilled through ancient rock
In search of precious gems they dug, despite the local’s shock.
The scans showed metals, diamonds, gems, luxuries previously afforded them
Before they destroyed our own homeland with greed and blood condemned.

It took centuries to reach a planet
That suited the last mankind. And here they planned to ruin it
Those lessons left behind. The scientists had warned them,
And locals fought them off. The military released it
The great and mighty Geoff

Yes, a god is what they called me
In times of old I had a title
But now the humans come
And at my face do bridle
So I’ll win their favor, appeal to baser things
They can have the jewels, some can live like kings

But with their lust, a price is paid
As they live within my domain
They become crawling ones
Worms and snakes again
The fools can flee, but it’s too late
Their military sealed their fate
If only someone had warned man
Not to open up my gate.

Creature with a mane, front claws that maim
Cloven hoofed hind legs, goat stomach but not head
A fire brews within it, its tail is scaled and hisses
The original, the monstrous maven, the chimera craven

None could fight it save its brother, a beast born just as foul
Wing of bat and segmented tail, venomous as well
With bod of lion and face of man, the manticore could spy on
Any fiend who dared approach from a skull tipped mountain

The two were born in enmity, raised to end each other
But despite their wicket propensity, their violence found another
The scaly wyrm, a beast of legend, with wings and flame alike
Impenetrable metal hide, and horrid toxic bite

Monsters united to slay the dragon, and ended a lifelong feud
For both agreed that left unchecked, the lizard  sucked, my dude
It destroyed what it did not eat, and it ate a lot. So Manticore
Called to Chimera, and they began to plot.

“It likes Maidens, and heroes encased in iron,” spoke the man-faced lion
“We set a trap, a juicy girl chained upon a rock, we tell the dragon it’s for
Him, gifted from man-kind’s lot. Then fill a hero’s blood with venom
And give the hero rot. Drop him outside its lair, he’ll eat it without thought.”

They laid it out and planned so well, the chimera worked a magic spell,
While the drake laid out too ill to fight the monsters, they tore it to shreds
And scattered scales among us. The diamond rocks now seed the earth
In places full of poison. The remains of dragon and its greed, which left mankind unburdened..