The Poetry Marathon

Meteors at Night

There’s something so fascinating
Watching the meteors at night
Shooting  ‘cross at lightning speed
A streak of the whitest light
I could lay on my back for hours
And watch the meteors streak past
The aura in this cosmic super show
Brings memories made to last
For many years, I lay on my back
Along the riverbed
And watched them streak across the black
Directly o’er my head
Each mid-August night, I stretched out mesmerized
By something close, but far away
If I’d the chance to do so again
I’d do so any day

For there’s still something iconic
About this great light show
That brings to mind how small our planet is
And how little we still know
About the universe in whole
How blurred the lines remain
Sometimes, we see only the earth
When there’s much we can’t explain

#16 Progress

Sixteen done

eight more to write

many done

in the darkness of night.

In a few hours

the sun will rise

if I can still see

before I close my eyes

Get up #24

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.

FINI

Alas, alas,

I bid you adieu,

’till next year,

with poetry a new,

we go our separate ways,

into our separate days,

alas, alas,

I bow to you!

 

Michellia Wilson 8/14/2016

 

7am again

It’s finally here

Morning

Time to sleep

Recover my dreams

In a tipsy topsy turvy world

Those who do not know the story

Don’t know what’s meant to be

Or understand

Strange reality.

The Beginning

The beginning is the starting point
A sign of things to come
Always filled with hopes and dreams
A future bright as morn
While beginnings can be scary
The future being ever uncertain
Without new beginnings, life cannot progress
And goals cannot be achieved
If you frame each new beginning
As a new chapter in life
Good or bad, right or wrong
You will have the chance to write your own destiny
No one can write your story for you
It is yours and yours alone
Your story begins with one  word
So grab a pen and make history!

Hour 24

Woo hoo I have made it
No one has done this before
My brilliance Rock
I did it again

Its like the stars
The sky is my limit
I can do what I want to do
I have greatness within me

I am free to soar like an Eagle
Spread my wings like a green bay tree
Sinking my roots deep below the surface
Reaching far beyond what eyes can see
I did it!

copyright 2016 Roxann A Harvey

Poem 21 — Letter to Shaunton the Poet

Dear LadyOfPoetry,

I know you are well. Sometimes when I observe you in privacy, I notice many things and you can probably tell. Like you didn’t smile and make eye contact with the gentleman who held the door for you. I noticed you waved and smiled at the cute, dreamy eyed little girl, too. Don’t you wish your dreamy eyes were mocked in a face as precious as that? Or did you stop having Barbie dreams the moment your struggles grew fat?

Life challenged you in a different direction I see. I hope you’re not mad and blaming me. Continue composing great thoughts and developing the writer you want to be. Don’t permit self to grow and regret life entirely. Thank you for being so sweet and sharing the courage to go on. So much has tested you. And you’re blessed not to be torn.

You are a role model
Many women don’t want to admit. Like how you help when you don’t have to, and care more than a little bit.

Everything will be all right, lady. God has greater plans in store if you care. Smile, love, and strive to succeed.
Every hour loses many seconds indeed.

Woodland Getaway

I’ve found a little hideaway
Nestled in the trees
A wayward, working Western ranch
Where one can feel at ease
From the second that I first arrive
I know my soul is home
As I stroll past the cows that come
To visit as I roam

Moving on, a hidden path
A cabin near a lake
Hidden deep within the woods
Heaven, each step I take
A winding path with trees each side
A gazebo with a swing
My heart feels happy and at peace
With all the future shall bring

One day this little hideaway
Will be where I change my name
Surrounded by family, the lakes and the cows
Simplicity, the name of the game
Combining my love for nature and him
This hideaway shall always be where this journey begins
For despite the hardship that led to the now
We’ll prove love always wins

Congratulations Poetry Marathoners!

You did it! Congratulations! I am very impressed! You wrote 24 poems in 24 hours. This is an achievement that few poets ever accomplish. Although if you are a returning marathoner, some of you might be accomplishing it for the second or third time!

Now you should probably go get some sleep.

After every marathon I have participated in I, have been filled with exhaustion but also a tremendous sense of achievement. I hope you have that too.

If you completed the marathon please send us an email in the next couple of days to poets@thepoetrymarathon.com with your full name, the details about what event you participated in (full or half marathon), a link to your marathon blog, and an email address in the body of the email. 

You will not receive a digital certificate if you do not follow those instructions and email poets@thepoetrymarathon.com by September second.

You should receive your digital certificate within two weeks of emailing us.

Also remember that this year we will be putting together a 2016 Poetry Marathon Anthology.

Submissions will open September 3rd and stay open till the 12th.

All submissions must include two poems, no more, no less. All submissions must be made via our email address (poets@thepoetrymarathon.com). The subject line of all emails must be Poetry Submission. Poems must be included in the body of the email.

All poems submitted must be written during the 2016 Poetry marathon. All poems should be completely edited and contain no major grammatical errors. You must indicate which hour each poem was written in. Only poets who completed the whole or half marathon will be eligible to submit.

There is no guarantee that by submitting your poem will be selected although the goal is to include one poem by everyone who submits.

Digital copies will be made available for free to any contributor. Print copies will be available for a reasonable price and any money that is made from them will go back into the marathon.

Want to know what the 2014 Poetry Marathon Anthology was like? Pick up your copy here.