Lapidary

Beyond the frozen diamond streaked
some chariots of vapor
defying the attraction at a cost
I analyzed the facts and squeaked
with laughter, for my caper
could not recoup the satisfaction lost,
so I forfeited that facet to the frost.

Cast Off

Within my keel an urge resides
vaster than the sea
stronger than the tides
that long to break upon the land
at last completely free
and wander past the sand
insouciantly.

But gravity pulls harder now
making surges ebb
furrowing my brow
with troughs much deeper every day
like spaces in the web
of rigging christened by the spray
across my grounded prow.

Failing

Can apathetic arrogance account for the attrition
of democratic dialogue demanding disposition
for economic errancy exploring erudition
with catatonic characters condoning their condition.

Provenance

High above the catacombs
a pearl upon a tether roams
beginning an adumbral phase
so nebulae, like chromosomes
can sparkle on atop the maze
emitting those ancestral rays
to grant the gazers in their domes
a glimpse into the nascent days.

Conduct

Your brassy tone
has been reduced
to just a mousy moan
a flush has shone
for you produced
discordance on your own,

you like to blow
without a mute
to dominate the show
but now you know
your latest toot
was pianissimo.


**Dedicated to Horatio.**

Divergence

As way leads on to way
we search for signs
that might display
a place to rest among the pines
that innocently sway

Will left turn out alright
or could a rut
become your plight?
Resist the urge to smugly strut
because your goal’s in sight.

The curious should stray
beyond the trail
of beaten clay
to find what wisdom will entail
as way leads on to way.

Dark Matter

I felt your touch
then watched you leave
I hurt so much
but cannot grieve;
the day drags on
though sunlight pales
I seek the dawn
as night prevails.

Discourse

I had a talk with life
in its rustic dialect
it was sharper than a knife
whose temper sings,
impatient to dissect
uncertain things.

It held me rapt for hours
with compelling repartee,
a cavalcade of characters
and yarns galore—
I didn’t know what to say
except for, more.

Drudge

How stirring or concise
can I make a wry device
with aspirations dwarfing aptitude?
This question though precise
has no answer to suffice
so I’ll simply simper here in servitude.

Shrugged

The extent of this vent
will render me spent
but I’ve pent up dissent
too intense to relent
so beware and prepare
for a very good scare
as I share my despair—
is there no one to care?

one of my favorite bloggers and a truly nice guy left a great poem in my comments inspired by this cheap whine so I had to post it below. Thanks Oz! My reply is above ;)

Blackened Skies

Like a chimney in a city of yore
I spew rage billowing black
Acrid bile from my burning core
Fuming from my gaping stack
To the skies
My anger flies
Obvious for the world to see
But countless chimneys rise
Rendering mine to obscurity

I Got You

Remembering those summer rows
of emerald razors long and lean
that slashed across a freckled nose
intent on sniffing out some foes
in which to drain a magazine.

With gnarly sticks we’d all convene
beside that farmer’s furrowed field
alive with furtive fronds of green
to camouflage a sly marine
determined not to meekly yield.

Our bloodlust couldn’t be concealed
so anxious to say, “BANG! You’re dead!”
no treaty would be signed or sealed
or higher court could be appealed
to stop the drops that must be shed.

But after the insurgents fled
we three would make our way back home
to eat then scurry off to bed
while playing back within our head
that conflict on the fertile loam.

As oldest, I was first to roam
forsaking sod to stalk the street
beset upon by steely chrome
and tenets of a vicious tome
embedded in the hard concrete.

The front became a cold retreat
from which I never traveled back
and though we siblings seldom meet
my self absorptions still compete
with pieces I refuse to lack,

and now they’ve shipped one to Iraq
beyond the land of beaten ploughs
I feel my heart about to crack
my troubled face morosely slack
remembering those summer rows.

Operation

Is educated the same as smart?
From what I’ve seen, not quite
reciting instructions by heart
doesn’t mean you can make it work right.

It takes someone somewhat adept
at wielding an unbiased knife
to excise the plainly inept
that demand understanding from life.

Unloading

Keys tap
emphatically
as weight repositions
to leave unblemished paper so
heavy.

Nowhereville

The coastline here is nondescript
with no inviting grottos,
the flag is pale and slightly ripped
devoid of any mottos;
each grain of sand is frankly coarse
too dull to share a glimmer
of the scintillating solar source
beneath which wants will simmer.

Shelved

Stagnation has subdued my pay
despite exertion every day—
if slow and steady wins the race
how come the empty trophy case?

No Shelley

No other droning orator
could ever be a bigger bore
it’s obvious that Silver
isn’t sterling anymore.

Dumb

Musty tomes
of precious poems
dog-eared at that special verse
surround a room
where dwells a gloom
more sinister than any curse,

which taints the air
with deep despair
that fosters an ungracious gripe—
will anyone
beneath the sun
attempt to fathom silent type?

Fare

What needs be fed
the heart or the head
and how should we know
where to find the best bread?

For the flashiest deal
advertised as a steal
will never deliver
a well-rounded meal.

Objective

Some crows cavort in cryptic quips
about a gothic spire
the biting winter banter whips
their rhetoric much higher—

a glint of opalescent flame
alerts me to the scythe
whose dark side lay devoid of blame
and infinitely blithe.

As chills assail my solitude
I scan the sky for signs
but verity is seldom viewed
within one’s own designs.

Plotting

In pursuit of a heavenly form
we forsake the advice of our peers
and the comfort that once kept us warm
in the promise of earlier years.

We are dazzled by stars out of reach
in pursuit of a heavenly form
but are anxious to learn what they teach
if it aids in outshining the norm.

From the stillness that follows a storm
we begin to see splendor revealed;
in pursuit of a heavenly form
the most prudent approach is to yield

to the cosmic concerto above
well beyond the insipient swarm—
there will never be unreturned love
like pursuing a heavenly form.

Open

Each drop more cherished
each sip less sweet
no proof can perish
the doubt we meet;
a vessel half empty
casts shadows full blown
where knowledge is plenty
but truth still unknown.

***Inspired by a challenge at Word Catalyst Writers Workshop- go on, give it a try!***