The Poetry Marathon

Ain’t No Perfect Folks in Church

There I am, each Sunday morning,

underwired and high-healed hurting,

and it doesn’t matter to God a bit, at all.

just don’t flop, just don’t fall,

Don’t be human.

Don’t be small.

Don’t notice the whispers

that don’t whisper at all

about how short I’ll always be.

Never big enough for their decree–

But theirs ain’t the approval

that matters to me.

and for goodness sake,

don’t eat eggs in the morning

‘cause when you kneel for forgiveness,

then without warning,

your ‘silent prayer’ echoes

up to the rafters

And if you can’t laugh now,

they’ll all laugh after.

But God has heard it all.

Seen it too.

When you step from the shower,

He’s there with you.

Standard issue.

Standard parts.

All the same, down to burps and farts.

Don’t be so shocked.

God formed them all.

Views every soul naked—

dirty or clean.

There isn’t a bit

He hasn’t seen.

We fall face down

before God’s glory

so don’t bother repeatin’

my tired old story

that’s worse than yours,

with all my old behavior–

Ain’t none of us perfect;

that’s why there’s a Savior!

Hour 21: The running

Running away from her fears and responsibilities
She finds herself in a faraway land
Where nightingales sang delightfully
And the weather was always pleasant
Here everyone lived in harmony and no one needed to work
But as days flew by, she missed the pile of work
And the rush of adrenaline and the smell of fear
Her hands twitched and her legs itched
And picking up her billowing skirts, she took off from paradise
To embrace back her imperfect world
For now she had found her calling
She would excel in what she knew best; that was running!

Running (double nonet) – Hour 21, Prompt 21

Running, words jammed together in here

mind is jumbled, not very clear

four more poems, tangling hair

nouns thrown through morning air

fresh picked verbs, bulbs rare

one more poem done

bedtime, I

now need

run

except …

running will

never be done

three more times, more words

a million more puns, ones

my mind is afraid to wake

possible great mistake I make

in the end, I’m still writing, running.

 

– Sandra Johnson, 9-3-2023

“Running”

Hour Twenty-One

Text prompt: “Running” as first word and final word.

Running a store was once an aspiration, not interested now.

Running programs for kids was fun, maybe not now.

Much in the world today is so unnatural.

A dispute can become deadly, a misunderstanding a felony and who knows why this happens when no one is telling.

We ‘ve harmed Mother Nature so much, that fish are not spawning, they’re just running. DMW

Hour 21 – The Roar – Image Prompt

In the heart of the wild, where savannas sprawl

Stands a mighty lion, proud and tall

With mane like fire, a crown of gold

In the African plains, a story is told

 

His eyes aflame with a hunter’s desire

In the sun’s embrace, they gleam like fire

With muscles rippling, power untamed

In the circle of life, he’s forever named

 

Mouth wide open, a fearsome sight

Roaring thunder into the night

In the silence of the wilderness, he reigns

The king of the jungle, where courage remains

 

With every roar, he claims his domain

In the circle of life, he’ll forever reign

A symbol of strength, courage, and pride

The lion with mouth wide open, cannot hide.

©️ Divya Venkateswaran

U Back #2

 

 

We played phone tag over and again

And when we finally connected U couldn’t talk cuz the nurses were in the room

Nurses?

It seems that U had been tryn to let me know that U were in tthe hospital for pneumonia

And there  U tested positive while being vaxed up

U were pretty sick for a few days

Even  your asthma kicked in

Damnit U COVID, U back

 

I saw on our group text that she tested positive

I didn’t reply like the rest of our tight knit group

So I called  2C what was really going on

Her grandson, her daughter all had  it

Inspite of being vaxed up

And they weren’t mild

Damnit U COVID, U back

 

U were on my mind so I just called to say hi

U were in your car driving back home from the store

Getting soup for your son cuz he tested positive

Altho’ he was  vaxed up

He wasn’t really sick, just under the weather a lil bit

Thank God U were negative

Damnit COVID, U back

 

Calls, texts, kept coming in, even seeing it on FB

Ev’rybody vaxed up

Being precautious

Y’all still got COVID

We all waitn on that new booster next month

And startn back to wearn our masks

So even tho’ that Damn COVID iz back

We fighting back to get back

Us

Homecoming – Hour Twenty-One

Homecoming

As angelic lights summon me home
I am welcomed by those that I love
No more am I destined to roam
While my solace comes from above

I am welcomed by those that I love
Their warmth brings incredible ease
While my solace comes from above
My faith has me down on my knees

Their warmth brings incredible ease
No more am I destined to roam
My faith has me down to my knees
As angelic lights summon me home

Aftermath of a Fall (21)

Five firetrucks contending with Atlanta traffic

men inside sweating from the heat

but otherwise unbothered

it’s a violent city

 

Seven police cars blaring sirens

action movie driving stunts

up on sidewalks

yelling at peds to get going already

 

Two ambulances with EMTs

roused from a leisurely evening at Chipotle

finishing last minute tortilla chips

as they burn out of the parking lot

 

Millions of cars slowing down in a line

and her saying

‘I forgot the film,’ defeated

I’m glad, sure what she had planned was illegal

 

My phone reads these text messages out loud

‘No we didn’t see anything,’

‘Bummed that it’s on the complete other side,’

‘Thought of asking neighbors but hate them,’

 

Traffic is at a standstill a block away

flashing lights going on into the night

she’s asleep now, her head listing to the right

my phone is on silent, I read the message

‘We’re getting coffee, feel free to join,’

 

I put my blinker on

and start to merge into the left lane

away from the scene

toward some better direction.

Hour 21 image prompt

Yawning little tiger

Curled up by the pool

Starts to grr and rumble

Like kitty on a stool

Meanwhile a lion rawrs

Tired on its face

Matching me extensively

4 hours til it wakes

 

Hour 19: Different

My sisters and I grew up in the same state

The same town

The same house

But we had very different childhoods

 

We had the same brother

But he was 1 year older than me

10 years older than them

And liked a bit of fight with his afternoon delight

 

We had the same mother

But she raised me from birth

And I stayed home to raise them

For nearly a decade

 

We had the same father

Except he was my step-father

So when he got his own kids

Just call my Cinderella

 

When I turned 16

My mother bought me a car

So that I could drive “the girls”

Wherever they needed to go

 

When they turned 16

She bought them cars

So they could drive

For freedom’s sake

 

It used to be

Whenever my sisters and I

Spoke of our childhood

I couldn’t understand the disconnect

 

How I could feel such disdain

For the home that they loved

The brother they grieved

The parents they’d die for

 

And then I remember

 

My sisters and I grew up in the same state

The same town

The same house

But we had very different childhoods