The Poetry Marathon

(Hour 3 of 24) “Travels with my Aunt”

A whirlwind force of nature,

A raconteur of tall tales,

A sharer of far too many things personal,

And a possessor of the heartiest laughs.

An unerring nose for bargains,

An eagle eye for unique sights,

An instinct for always taking the road less trodden,

The very model of the intrepid rambler.

She fusses after me,

The better driver undoubtedly,

Making the decisions I am happy to delegate,

The very best travelling companion one could have.

My dearest Aunt,

You are my anchor in this uncertain world,

My fount of life’s wisdom,

Who will never steer me wrong.

Posted By rainmaker

Hour 13

Death

I only go to nice places for bad things

And bad places for bad things still

I will only be on beaches for blood and sorrow

And to shoot outs for gunshots

I will only see waterfalls for lost breath

And only see warzones for the losses

I will only be on cliff edges for missteps

And only be on highways for crashes

I will only fly through the air for falls

And to drug houses for ODs

More than Riches

Like the sand of the beach

They are adorable and comely

They are treasures

They are pleasures

They are worth more than the riches of this world

Children, you cannot have enough of them

Hour Seven ~ Nothing Normal ~

Text Prompt

Write a poem exploring the word normal.

Nothing Normal
All life came to a halt one day
but that has happened before
but this time it was not threat of
King Kong Dracula or Frankenstein-

Nor a bomb or missile attack
Nor was it a world war with guns
this time it was an unseen killer
from the other side of divine

Normal is a walk to the market
a drive in the car, going to school
with a smile,a luch box with books
a clean dress and joyful looks

normal is playing games
hugging and shaking hands
eating together, sitting close
uncovered is the nose-

All this was reversed
stay indoors wash hands
wear a mask and stay six
feet apart, or breath your last.

Posted By kathypon

Sitting with Family as Stars Come Out Over Tahoe

cricket soundtrack

light loses to darkness across every fir tip

summer’s dome opens to constellations

each mind’s eye meditates, grasps threads

light years, forests primeval, life eons before this moment

wilderness bewilderment

steel blue ripples muted, sierra monoliths

bow to celestial pageantry

June 26, 2021

Death

There was no bypassing or avoiding her-
This black, forbidding, shadowed figure,
She stood at the end of my narrow road,
Her arms outstretched, her dark head bowed.

I could not deviate, turn aside,
I had no precedent and nobody to guide
Or introduce me, or wish me cheer,
In my confused state of fear.

The light of a rainbow in the sky
Illumined her face, and i wondered why
I had been so afraid, unsure,
For her glowing face was calm and pure.

As i grasped her hand, i lost all fear,
And walked with her into a sphere
Of light– a higher plane of existence.

He comes to me sometimes.
Every now and then, a tap on my shoulder,
a whisper through the door.
I remember watching the light dim in a cat’s eyes,
smoothing his fur one last time, and turning to him.
“Did he feel pain? Does he forgive me?”
And he merely smiles, and turns away.
He always had the answers. I held all the questions.
I have given him gifts through the years,
blessed him with my children, cried with my flowers.
But in the end, though the children grew old in his arms,
and the flowers faded to dust in his hands,
in the end he received them all, tokens of my love
in the many small and broken things.
That life has always loved death, for the beauty of the temporary,
the mortal, and forgotten. In his arms, forever, eternal.

Posted By Virginia Carraway-Stark

Hound Dog Love

He barks at the window
He barks at the door
His nose goes to the ground
No one can escape him!
He’s a hound dog
He’s ever alert
Except when he’s asleep
Then he’s flatter than dirt
His ears hang low
His jowls tremble
When his hound brain takes over
His eyes separate
in each direction
His throat vibrates
The glasses shake windows vibrate
Hound dogs howl!
They howl with a growl
Than they bay and with
A gasping snarl, they’re off to
b
a
y
and
hooooooowwwwwlllll
He has no brain when he’s part of the pack
He’s the best guard dog I’ve ever had
He’ll kill rats and mice and even bugs dead
Keep the house safe from any ingress

When he comes back from the Baying time
He’s as soft as a puppy
He wants to cuddle and love
Never mind his claws are adamantium
Never mind he dropped a dead rat at my feet yesterday
He’s keeping the house safe
From the postman
From hornets
From rats
From flies
from the neighbor walking by with that little dog he hates
He’s a hound dog and his ears are velvet
his nose can smell out anything
He’s half dog and half machine
One hundred percent loving loyalty!

Posted By jdgbp