Poetry Game, Anyone?

[scullars]

I'm taking this idea from my stint at Ancient World's Tenth Muse, where a word is given, and the next poster has to create a poem based on that word. Then taking from the theme of the poem, the poster provides the next subject word.

Example, one of the words previously given me at AW was "Animal" and I wrote the following poem (a bit of cheating, I know):


What Animals Know About Humans
Throughout the annals of history and time
they have watched, pondered, wondered and mimed
those of us who stand haughty and tall
and claim possession of everything and all.
And the watchers whisper amongst themselves -
“For all the learning on all the bookshelves,
human still will animal be…
no more better than you and me.”
And the animals smirk and wink their eyes
and smile at the humans’ self-deluding lies
that tell themselves they are masters of this Earth
yet can deny another’s worth.



Next theme word: "time"

Anyone game?

[JAlpha]

It's About Time

to make the time
to take the time
to find the time
to time and time again
realize it's only a matter of time
before the time
when the time comes
and time runs out

next theme word: prioritizing

[whitehound]

When we were young and not yet full of care
we had the time to stop and stare
where now we scurry, endlessly,
to earn our bread.
Yet when man was young and work was too
standing and staring was the way to go:
poised on the moment, waiting
all the heat-hazy afternoon
for the ripple to become a fish
for the song to become a bird
for the word to become a poem

Next word: tribal

[scullars]

Aspier, you skipped...the next word was "tribal"...

[aspier]

No I didn't! When I posted the word was 'time'. We probably posted all three at the same time. But anyway, the piece I posted, I am still working on it and last night I dreamed of it and thought afterwards that I actually didn't know what I had wanted to say with it, etc. You know the feeling? So: I'll give 'tribal' a thought AND I'll do some editing to 'small time' ... maybe call it 'half-time' 'or time lapse between GMT and EMT' or something. Did you know when you talk to me here, you are actually talking to me yesterday?

[aspier]

The woman of the age of dream


'Night, twilight, a great light: A cluster of trees, sky-like, rising red as the sun'
Quote from a ceremonial song sung in Central Australian Arunda circumcision rituals, since time immemorial, which was recorded in 1959
Joseph Campbell, The Masks of God, Primitive Mythology


Let she - Homunculus - not see you
The woman of the Age of Dream
Let she - Detrudo: Thanatos - not see the flood
Let she - Libido: Eros - not see your subincision
Wound
Or taste the coagulated form,
The forbidden food
Nor the blood nor taste the amniotic fluid
- Night, twilight, a great light:
A cluster of trees, sky-like, rising red as the sun -

Let she - Homunculus - not hear you
The woman of the Age of Dream
Let she - Unmerciful - not hear the cry
The pain - Infantile Arouse - of your re-
Awakening
Or feel the sweet salt of your manhood
Taste your skin
Your soft new body
Nor feel the concomitant
Or hear the utterance of your perishing past
Let she kiss your renewal, rejoice in your birth
- Night, twilight, a great light:
A cluster of trees, sky-like, rising red as the sun -


Next word = mime

[scullars]

Aspier, graphic, disturbing, and thought-provoking. In other words, it works like it's supposed to do.

Here's my 'mime' poem, for better or worse...


Like Mommy

The child stares
at the shadow
‘round Mommy’s right eye.
Or is it the left?
She’s confused,
not sure which
is which;
she’s only just learned
the letter Z.
Mommy mumbles,
swipes at a tear
as she clears the table,
then shouts “Go upstairs!”

The child slinks
quietly
from her chair,
drags Sable
‘cross a jam stained floor,
stumbles on the headless
Barbie splayed naked
on the stairs.
DJ has knocked
its head off again
and she can’t find it.
Upstairs, she
stops at Mommy’s
bedroom door,
sees the
treasure chest.

Daddy’s singing
in the shower...
the shouting is
over for now.
She sneaks in,
listenin’ out for
Mommy, DJ.
She loves these
stolen moments.

She opens the
box of powders…
searches the lipsticks.
finds the blood red,
dots the color
across Sable’s
cheeks, lips,
just below the nose,
Sees
the eye shadow,
black,
cakes it around
Sable’s right…
or is it the left?....
eye.

She smiles
at her handiwork,
adorns herself
with Mommy’s
familiar colors…
red, black, blue…
Stands back from the mirror,
smiles wider.

Yes, just like Mommy...


Next word: Mirror

[aspier]

My god you are good! here is 'mirror' poem with title '71. POEM THREE'



she sits in front of herself 'oh I am so old'
she said 'old as wrinkled leaves crunched

falling fall leaves falling from trees
winter trees Hilvarenbeek trees

and oh where is the fire you were talking
about

a couple of poems ago?
Where is the gardener who sings in the rain?'




It has references to other poems in the sequence, etc. Next word 'after'

[oneovu]

I see the answer
So clear
A proper introduction
With bells and bulbs
So clear

Always so clear

After the stumbling
After the damage
After the point of no return

I see it
Too late
A painful goodbye
With tears and regrets
Too late

Always too late



Next word: hindsight

[scullars]

Rummaging
through
the hazed
gin-wine-vermouth
bottled years
of his existence,
on occasion
fortified
with
lines of
white,
(anything
to mute the
silences, but
Lethe
is elusive these
days)
his
will to forget
crumbles
beneath
the weight
of damnable
regret,
and in
sorrowful
hindsight
retraces
paths forsaken,
never taken,
and finds
her there
waiting.



Next word: paths

[wurdwise]

I came to the crossroad
I knew was my last
three paths to choose from
but I was stuck in the past.

My vision was cloudy
My heart filled with pain
and broken and angry
I cried, "not again!"

Three paths I could choose from
Though two I'd been down
So I took the third one
To the bright side of town

I tell you this story
just so you will know
when you come to the crossroad
Take things mighty slow

For the paths you decide on
Are you're destiny
they build you or break you
Or kill you like me.

Next word. Destiny.

[JAlpha]

This haibun poem was just published by Literary Mama at the end of last year/04. I was stunned to see this thread's theme now lead right to the title of my poem . . .


The Goddess of Destiny

She hugs me from behind
my face in the mist
of a mirror

While standing beside fertile pots of yellow daises and forget-me-nots, my neighbor Betsy and I boasted about our bulging bellies and ballooning breasts.

We labored in adjacent stork-bordered hospital rooms as
amber leaves swirled to the ground. I toted my daughter home in a gingham-lined basket; her baby was buried in a brass-hinged casket.

The following winter, through icy window panes, I watched a moving van haul a hollow crib away beside the lawn where my daughter's soggy mittens had whooshed angel wings into the downy snow that fell that day.

Now, as I light 18 candles on my daughter's flickering cake, I add one more in memory of forget-me-nots and fate.


The first line of this reverse haibun poem is excerpted from Rod Wilmot's original haibun poem, Ribs of Dragonfly.

[scullars]

Jalpha, what's the next theme word?

[JAlpha]

Ooops. Sorry about that. Next theme word is . . . fate

[Alphabet]

Put quite complex
Or simply,
Fate
Is what it was
And will be.


The theme word is.... simplicity

[Paint]

I sat on a gate
sighing
Pondering the world.

No vision did I see
looking
No answer to my prayer.

Tiny bird landed with me
twittering
Sweet song lifting my soul.

"Simplicity is the keynote"
hearing
Voice inside quietly said.


word: song

[KTC]

Song

Wet off of lips
Words float through the smoky haze.
Piano keys tinkle across the abyss
Dividing me from you.
The words,
Forming the song,
Hit me like dew
In the crowded room.
I sit and listen
To your song.

Next word: Forever

[Paint]

Awesome KTC!! And so fast! :D

[brokenfingers]

Like suddenly caught at the edge:

the abatement of breath
as the moment expands
and your mind stretches out
and all is focused
and your body tenses,

as it awaits
the decision
of what’s
to
come...

Such was my freedom


Next:

Discovery

[Paint]

Restlessly
Pursuing
Breathing

Hardly
Waiting
Patiently

Visualizing
Tempting
Leaning

Kissing
Tasting
Smiling


word:Breathing

[KTC]

Sucking in the sea's mist,
Walking aimlessly along the broken shore,
Winter-cut paths of drift wood blocking my way,
I breath, remembering Vancouver.

Breathing touches mountains,
As memory walks back past my path
Into the flat lands of Manitoba
Where crop circles still mystify the masses.

Breathing eases, relaxes into familiarity
As I cross the border into my land,
Yours to Discover
license plate preachers exhale
As I stop the car to inhale.



Next word: Watch

[T42]

Watch as the strength of the figure before me pierced my heart as I thought about the hands that created it.
The secrets hidden between the lines form a solid message.
That of pain, happiness or even unrest..
The silence of the picture stirs the dust of the prairie
filling my eyes and the calm of my soul like the stillness of the sea fills my mind.
The broken jaw, the imperfections, the rough edges mastered
by it's Creator tells its own story.
The shadow gives into the strong, illuminated steel, and the head of the bull brings into light the image of my friend.

Next word: secrets

[WhisperingBard]

Secrets

No, don't tell me.
Let them sit on the wind.
Let them rise with the breeze,
then float away.

We're better this way.
You, whispering to the wind,
and me,
listening only to the rustle
of autumn leaves.


Next word: silence

[wurdwise]

They keep telling me
I will find the answer
in the silence

That if I will be still
and listen
a voice will whisper

In my ear
I hear roaring only
Like the sound

of an angry ocean
the rain falling on it
the tears of mankind.

Still, I wait
in the silence
believing

Next word: Believing

[T42]

You have repelled me from your life so often,
that now it is only a common feeling.
I no longer soak my pillow with tears of yesterday
or thoughts of tomorrow.
No more anticipation of seeing you
or waiting for the phone to ring.
Believing that the unity of our hearts has
become a fleeting thought;
as the love you have had for me.
Your obscurity has led me in the safe
dwelling of myself.
And there I will stay....
Unbound
Word: Fleeting

[KTC]

Just a touch away,
This memory that eludes me.
Just the scent from a secret river,
A slice of sunlight on a rockface,
Will bring it back to me.
Just a fleeting moment in time,
Lost forever,
If not for the stones on which I tread
And that particular sound they make
As they are crushed beneath my feet.



Next word: HAIR

[oneovu]

Just a touch away,
This memory that eludes me.
Just the scent from a secret river,
A slice of sunlight on a rockface,
Will bring it back to me.
Just a fleeting moment in time,
Lost forever,
If not for the stones on which I tread
And that particular sound they make
As they are crushed beneath my feet.


The whole thing was worth repeating. Beautiful, KTC! I am so there.


Ode to my Hair

I put you under heat
Yeah
Scapegoat found
Blown away, homebound

It doesn’t stop there
No
I sear with metals
Strangle with chemicals

Then, it gets bad
Oh!
Patches bare
How salty fingers twist and tear

The torment you suffer
Why?
Can’t I be kind
To the one I hide behind




Next word: Hide

[KTC]

Hide the sadness of my heart
Within the folds of years behind me.
Hide the laughter of the moon
Within the darkness in which it shrouds me.
Hide the anger of growing older
Within the child inside my heart.
Hide the madness of approaching lunacy
Within the veil of normalcy I wrap around my smile.


Next word: Ice

[wurdwise]

KTC, I loved that.


When you touched my bare shoulder
your hand like ice
your face dripping sweat

Then I knew.

But I let it pass as just an oddity
an ice cold hand
on a warm spring day.

Touch me again on my bare shoulder
and I promise
this time I'll feel you.

For I know.

[KTC]

Thanks Word...liked yours too!

What's the next word?

[oneovu]

My feet are cold
My nipples rock
Cold my thoughts
Weak my walk


Icy spirit
Frozen dart
Form ugly words
From wounded heart



Next word: Removed

Whoops. That's what I get for composing in the reply box. Sorry, guys.

Edit again, use wurdwise's word.

[wurdwise]

Sorry about that. The next word is healing.

Well, oops. I guess the next person can just pick one of the two.

[KTC]

Healing wanders across my scar-covered body,
Teasing with its hint at perfection.
Healing threatens to cleanse the blood of our mothers,
Bringing them back to existence.
Healing tricks us into believing
We will never, never die,
While whispering to our hearts
the passage of time.

Next word: Heart

[Paint]

You stepped on it
Let it lie
When you broke it
said good bye

Ripped out by raw strings
Let it lie
When you broke it
said good bye

Walked out, away, no return
Let it lie
when you broke it
said good bye

I came back to life
Let it lie
When you broke it
said good bye.

word: strings

[KTC]

The strings that hold me to the world
Puppet mobility make me dance
Float up to the face of the moon
and laugh.
The strings that bind me to your moods
beat me with the ripeness of your anger.
The strings that play along
with the harmonic aria
break the darkness of my heart...
and cause me to sing.


Next word: Tree

[BattleChaser]

The Living Trees


I like the way
the Trees stand;
tall and proud
on their precious land.
As I stand by
the tall brother,
we both understand
that we support one another.
The oxygen we need
releases by its power;
so that I can live
to blossom like a flower;
and my carbon dioxide
keeps the green flowing,
so that they can live
to keep everything going.
So just remember when you
chop down that living tree-
for you’ll be actually
killing me!



next word=life

[T42]

Deep in the inner part of my spirit I always feel your needs...
Sometimes I take hold of your pain and it becomes my life.
The restlessness that keeps your mind turning and your heart
beating is always with me.
I see it well and know it well, for I am a part of this existence.
Rather it be light or dark...I always see me, in the heart of you
and I see your eyes searching mine but I have no answers.
Take what we have had and let it be a memory so that we
can both move on.
I am not you and you cannot be me so let our love blow through
the hole in the wind and set me free.

word: misplaced

[wurdwise]

I left my heart behind
misplaced it I suppose
tucked it away when you left me
behind my fancy new clothes

It's been hidden so long now,
I've forgotten where it is
Misplaced, I quess, forever
or drowned in my tears.

Next word, fancy

[KTC]

Fancy fingers falling
across the wet surface of my lower back
We are languid
within the warm water
of the tropic waterfall.

Your caress, touch, tease
sends me to places
even warmer
than this paradise.

Fancy heart in Eutopia,
My Eros, my morning Goddess...
tempt me with your fingers,
with your slightest touch.


Next word: today

[T42]

And over the sea of reality you must face your greatest fears and truths.
And in the water you feel you are relaxed and your mind is soothed.
Your eyes close and your mind drifts to a place where you soon wish to be.
Standing over the water, looking down and laughing at the raging sea.
And under your feet rests a place of fantasy and reminds you of future times.
When time is strange and mortal life seems to be an unchanging rhyme.
With your mind still open you continue to float on water of monotone.
And dreaming of a place where violet skies and blowing winds
carry the sunlight shone.
The swaying surface does not frighten your spirit or feeling of peace.
But, today you still scream.

Word:Mortal

[KTC]

Banging on my chest
I scream
I am mortal
I will live forever
in the place beyond the here.
I am mortal
I will die in bed
after the torment
of lengthy illness.
I am mortal
I will see the sun rise
on another day
and I will gasp.
I am mortal,
forgetful of the ultimate voyage.
I am mortal
closing my eyes to reality,
falling from the karmic wheel
and landing
just long enough
to see the demise
of this body.
I am mortal.


Next word: Earth

[BattleChaser]

The Future


Up into the sky,
deep into space,
lies a small planet
with a human race.
They called the place Earth,
for a long, long time;
until all their problems
exploded in its prime.
Soon the deaths
took there toll,
and everyone began,
to lose their soul.
They prayed to the Lord,
Jesus Christ;
for art thou willed,
thee ultimate tryst.
Whatever happened then
is not very certain;
so it became time
to draw the curtain.
For we are a people,
many light-years away;
and soon our people
will be there some day.











next word=aliens

[KTC]

Aliens on the highway's edge
Awaiting sanctuary
Rides to the other side.
Nirvana, it is rumoured,
Though one never knows.
That great America...
Whore of lost dreamers.
But still,
To get in there...
What a dream it would be!



Next word: HIDE

[Paint]

I hide my little alien
Deep in my side pocket.

It only comes out late at night
To eat my popcorn and my fudge.

Its beady eyes and questing antennae
Peek out to see earth and night time sky.

It wants to date my sister
She said no to "alien three-eyes!"

I guess I'll keep my alien
Till the mother ship returns.

No staying on this planet
No little sister to love.

word: popcorn

[KTC]

The darkened aisles cause my tripping,
Blind in the dark, I am.
My dreams are about to take life
On the screen...
something about a writer
and wine tasting...
and drinking
and getting sh*tfaced in hotel rooms.
I finally find my seat
After falling, tripping, stomping and pushing.
I sit back,
Relax
Await with great anticipation
While I dip,
first one finger (to test the buttery stickiness)
and then my hand, three knuckles deep...
Into my vat, my bucket, my main vein
of creamy, high colesteral
Popcorn...

next word: Challenge

[wurdwise]

The Illusion of Perfection



Never entertain
the Illusion of Perfection.
Don't even invite her in
for one drink.
The fine clothes she's wearing
she bought at a thrift store.
That cigarette she's smoking,
in its fine ivory holder?
It came from a carton
bought for ten bucks,
in a scam run by a crook
at the end of her street.
And that ivory holder
you covet so much?
It’s plastic,
sold at the dollar store
on that same corner,
where Illusion is a regular
and buys them in threes.

Better to befriend
Fault, bring her right in
open some wine.
She's honest
and forthright,
we all know her well.
The clothes on her back
are the best that she owns.
She bought them
brand new.
Scrimping and saving,
till they were marked down,
though it took her last dime.
And that contented look
she wears on her face.
The one Illusion is missing?
Fault paid for by being challenged,
each struggle a victory
so her heart's filled with pride.

So sorry. The next word is pride.

[T42]

What's the next word?

[wurdwise]

Pride! Pride! Where did ya'll go, I'm sorry, I have my head up my butt, don't run off. The next word is

Pride!

[scullars]

Hey, this game is moving right along with some wonderful entries!

Here's my next - "Pride"

Soul…jaundiced
but mask's in place,
jewelled, gold-filagreed.
Heart…breaking,
still skin swathed
in silk, satin,
laced with Chanel.
Solitude…onerous,
yet steps are a
child’s prance.
Bed…lonely,
save for the
soothing reach,
the seductive succor
of her pride.


Next word: solitude

[KTC]

Solitude
Emptiness of others.
Thinking alone
with only yourself to disagree.
Shake off the loneliness,
Smile at the what ifs
And agree with the voices in your head.
Solitude,
the gift
that whispers
your deepest thoughts.
Listen...be loud
allowed to be
yourself
Alone.


Next word: chair

[Paint]

I have become a chair.
For others to sit upon.

Where is what I want to do?
Where is what I want to be?

I am tired of playing games
I long to be free.

No more an invisible unit,
But a person with identity.


word: invisible

[rich]

Seeing is our life

One sense grabbing all senses

In the scheme of us

[Paint]

Hey Rich! What's your word?

[rich]

Crematoria

[KTC]

Billowing smoke,
white,
flecked with menacing greys
escapes the stack
crookedly erected
atop the blackened crematoria.



Next word: silence

[wurdwise]

Craving it, sustenance
for my weary heart
to hide
from the madness,
people
Silence
is all I need.

A cigarette,
a glass of iced tea,
and thee.

[brokenfingers]

Next word is....

[wurdwise]

Dang it! I do that every time! Sorry, again. The next word is weary

[Alphabet]

Dawn Fear

Staring at my ever retreating horizons;
Watching, as the colours fade back into grey;
Can I pack my bag any better
Now that I know where I am going?
Am I any more likely to succeed
For being older, and more tired?

Another day fades into dusk's waiting shades.
Should I mourn the death of another dream?
Another weary child finds sleep has no answer
To the merciless sneaking and creeping of memories.

And I am waiting for the sun
To lift my spirits, with the hem of night.
Waiting for a new day
To convince me that this world could be alright.

Staring, at my ever retreating horizons;
Watching as the colours fade back into grey;
Am I really more likely to succeed,
Being older, and more tired,
Than the heady impetuousness
Of a young child.


Next word: Success

[WhisperingBard]

Success to a frog
is finding the perfect snack
within a tongue's reach. :D


Next word: pond

[BattleChaser]

Pool of Profoundness

Peering from the pier,
perpetually present;
a pond to ponder

Next word: Depth

[KTC]

Depth of the sea glass
helps seer to see the dawn
In vivid colour.


Next word: blood

[Alphabet]

You only feel the blood pulsing when you press.
You only see the blood pulsing when you cut.
You only know the blood is pulsing when you live.

Edit--------------------
I've thought of an improvement for this one (yeah, well, there was lots to improve!)

The Blood Pulsing

You only feel it when you press.
You only see it when you cut.
You only know it when you live.

End Edit----------------

Next word: Knowledge.

[KTC]

Knowledge,
Some have it.
Some pretend to have it.
Some don't know they have it.
Some can't even spell it.
Knowledge. What's your take?


Next word: never

[BattleChaser]

Never a Dull Moment

In the darkness,
I am not afraid
when I feel your caress.

My love for you grows strong,
because I love you dear;
pure love comes from my heart.

I’ll never be sad and lonely,
even when you’re not with me,
but I will remember you always.

Your name will be in my memory,
and when I think of it,
I’ll smile and feel happier.

I hope that you are
forever true to yourself,
and the man that you love.

On my dying bed,
you will come to mind;
I will be afraid.

My love in my soul
will pour out into the heavens,
and you will be touched.

For then, I will be with you;
my heart will never stop
its love for you.

The above poem was pulled from the shoebox of unforgotten poems.

Next word: Passion

[wurdwise]

A force so powerful
mountains are moved
cities are built
worlds are destroyed
people die
hearts are consumed
by passion.

The lust for a lover
cannot compare
to the passion
of an artist
a dreamer
or a terrorist
with a cause.

Passionate about life
passionate even in death
are those who believe
strongly enough.
I feel for the ones
who have never known
real passion.

Next word: Anger

[T42]

Heart burning with pain, desire full of anguish.

Not knowing, not wanting to hurt or be hurt.

Frustration overwhelming the mind.

Insanity inviting itself in, wanting, but not wanting.

Fear giving into anger. Sometimes love into hate.

Needing, but afraid to want, not being able to

say yes and never wanting to say no.

Dying to a new beginning, always afraid of ones inner self.

Fragmented life, Fragmented poem…

“Always Tormented”

word: Telephone

[wurdwise]

Ring, sucker, ring!
I need to hear
the sound
of a human voice.

How quickly that changed
up until ten days ago
I let the machine
take my telephone calls.

[Alphabet]

Ahem! Ahem!

The next word, missing:
How can poets continue
Without use of words?

Next word: missing

[wurdwise]

Yeah, what see said.

[KTC]

Missing mandibles
Cause look of shock
Agape smiles
Silly shadows on bathroom walls.


Next word: knee

[BattleChaser]

Buckled

As I lap the track,
legging that round stage in vain,
with both knees in pain-
the circuit of existence
parts memory at the knee.


Next word: Disabled

[chancewryter]

the mangled frame
is nothing
but mind
not soul
a request
challenged
yet not forgotten
in the words of others
so hard to play the game
when you are
disabled.

[chancewryter]

self

[chancewryter]

here i land in open sky
naked
to this world
self
alone
yet knowing
i walk alone
making the path
you want to follow....

[chancewryter]

i can play...just want to know i am not here alone..next word.............vernal

[KTC]

In the sky,
Hot night,
whorelike passage,
the vernal equinox
rounding out the heat
with a glimmer of promise
summer and leaves
threatening to burst.



Next word: time

[Albedo of Zero]

years to go and a quarter to noon
fly, run, try
shoestrings trip on feet too big
bend, squat, tie
new is news but old ain't olds
grow, stop, cry
take my dirt and pray too deep
live, love, die


next word: trip

[Paint]

In the seventies
It was a trip, man.

People were happy
They forgot why.

Music was trippy
Pink Floyd a must.

Platform shoes and flowers
Long fuzzy hair

Now we are boomers
fighting for Medicare.

Paint
(Hey! At least we get Social Security!)
The word is: Pink

[KTC]

Wind blowing out of town
Candy Apples eaten
Bloated field mice pick their teeth
with forgotten straws.

The fair grounds barren,
no more lights,
teddy bear game scams
or ferris wheel vomit.

Nothing
but the sticky pink
waste
of cotton candy dreams

Next word: Yellow

[Albedo of Zero]

Tabby eyes, meanpretty -slink
through jonquil blooms -smell
nothing of finch birds -fly
past scattered seeds, wary -dart
beyond bumblebees -buzz
news of pollen factories -sneeze
mucous shades wet -wipe
with pastel cotton -throw
in wicker basket -tip
with retriever puppy paws -hide
in fear or find another yellow in the sun

new word: nothing

[Paint]

Sitting at my flimsy desk
Thinking I might scream.
Who would hear my noisy plight?

Would any kind soul turn to ask,
"Hear that wretched sound?"
The other replies "It's nothing."


new word: wretched

[scullars]

The wretched sound
of your heart closing,
of the explosive silence
of "I love you"
just left hanging,
dangling for life,
falling and
wailing
into
the
abyss
below.

Next word: abyss

[Albedo of Zero]

Rotisserie, Earth
spins under a sun until it is done, well
into the abyss, blue-clear
and black with holes, time
and temperature mean nothing, infinity
and stars season the meal, tasty.

or

Abyss, dismal
grey matters not in the sink
to swim out of the waves, frothy
spittle corners the lips
of a man falling
-falling
up out of the hell hole
of taxed work and life
into a box
then sent to heaven

[Albedo of Zero]

oops next word: tasty

[KTC]

Lean,
the memory of men
on deathbeds, bleeding.

Mean,
the memory of men
on manic trips, reeling.

Tasty,
the memory of men
in love affairs, stealing.

Next word: anger

[BattleChaser]

The fury of animosity

Anger strikes this civil mind
as my mentality rages from within.
Sometimes I rant and rave
about people that cause this aggravation.
This results in my brainpower producing
a story that you may read.
For those nerves of rubber develops
into hostility and aggression.
Wind me up with irritation and revulsion
and you will bake resentment.

This frustration is a reflection of annoyance,
which drives me mad.
And getting on my nerves equates
to you controlling my life on earth.
This hatred, which I produced,
must be banished before hostility sets in.
Yet a brick that fell from the sky
landed on my head with no sympathy.
Since you have drawn blood from this body,
I shall break your bones.


next word: aftermath

[Sarita]

Aftermath:

cold slap stings her face
steamy hatred boils over
aftermath ensues

Next word: influence

[Albedo of Zero]

Ence flew out the window
his wings were filled with voice
and all across the bird's eye view
he squawked of change -of choice.
In the sky he saw some gold,
the sun -the sight did blind him
but this is just what I've been told
that changed his fancy-flight whim

I still look up to the sky clear blue
his sight may come back perchance
Today when I opened the window
in flew Ence.


next word: blind

[BattleChaser]

Beholder of truth

When he’s awake as if asleep,
in his own world he cannot share.
For the darkness that he lives in
clouds his conscious with his tears.
Yet in his sleep there is a sight
that grasps his mind’s eye.
He doesn’t know what beauty is
as one would see it in its flesh.
But only knows of what he feels
inside his sweetness of sorrow.
His hands are all he ever had
to paint an image in his mind.
Idealism is what he weaves,
yet within it, there is a noise-
Perceiving continuous sounds
has kept him at bay in his fears.
Beauty is truth, seen by no eyes,
as he walks and taps with a cane.

next word: beauty

[Paint]

THE BEHOLDER


Where some see lines,
Calling it age-

A painter sees beauty
A poet writes a page.




Next word: calling

[Albedo of Zero]

Calling

Holy answering machine
-message beyond the clouds
-in my head
-from pages that make no sense

Jealous am I
that others get replies

Anal, banal,
(why isn't canal pronounced this way?)
ritualistic walkways
and no real directions
but to keep my nose clean

I walk within the footprints
-deeper
-fatter
-crunching dung beetles
but I know they have a reason

Jealous am I
that they know their calling.

next word: direction

[KTC]

I Travel

The last known theory
of my destinations
Insipid,
Tiring, trying.
Unknown arrivals,
departures.
Tired, sleepless nights in lounges
Cocktail glass shatters
with the loosening of my dreams
My thoughts,
Wandering in every direction,
Forbid me my sleep.
And still, I travel.


Next word: mother

[BattleChaser]

Metamorphous of Grass

In the vein of reality, positioned
with thoughts, taking nature’s
train to tranquility station,
a scheme urbanized
by lifeless bodies embedded
in our mother, in the light of space,
where an eye can blink and hope reigns
hereafter; phasing rifts as time shifts-
the template alters an era.


Two arms are spread, feet pointed;
encircled to exemplify one life
to represent all life’s equality,
perpetuity progresses in regress.

next word: revelation

[alanna]

revelation

Water trickles down my naked body
and I swear that the world stares
while I open and find in myself
what I swore I would never see.
I close my eyes,
and grieve.

next word: shoreline

[Albedo of Zero]

BREACH



Water asunder, a schism, plunder
of walls crumbling to be loved
but for the hatred of scree.


Then lathered, ocean-clean to burning
sun dry, she melts into focus
in his eyes...
In his eyes, a world,
buoyant with the tide
yet running with sand covered feet,
away.


Like sails salt-wet from storm
as they snap past hurts to wood and sea,
her thoughts too, favor the wind
and billow with salvation.

next word: plunder

[brokenfingers]

It was the sun, it blinded my eyes -
covering the deadly swift descent
of your swooping strike.

And the wind, yes the wind
that boxed my ears and deafened me
to the gist of your words.

And the alcohol, my fatal nemesis,
that dulled my senses and clouded my mind -
melding fantasy and reality.

But worse, yes by far the worse -
it was my own heart that betrayed me
and convinced me to lower the gates.

Next word: Spring

[Sarita]

a mountain pass wet with dew
light filtering through trees
musty earth fills the air
sweet spring fills my lungs

Next word: smoke

[alanna]

smoke

filthy smog clogs my lungs
i shake my fist
at the factory.

next word: reflection

[wurdwise]

My love of mirrors
dims
as the wrinkles on my face
mutliply

Who's reflection
is that I see?

Surely not me
I am young and vital
Nothing has changed
Thief!

Mirror! Give
myself back to me.

Next word should

[Brainerd T.]

Should

Lips trembling, arms twitching
I reach for the sensuous taste of forbidden fruit
It's been so long
My mouth waters as I close my eyes
imagine the anticipation
of delicious joy etched into my being
I asked my mother if I Could.
She said I'd been a good boy
And I certainly Should.

Gum never tasted so good
As when it was the last stick my mother had.

Next word:
Desperation

[KTC]

No time left,
shallow breathing
the last gasp of life eminent.

In the mind,
crawling backwards
over a waisted life.

The sound of glass breaking
Whiskey fumes filling the air
Chairs falling backwards
the report of a spent shot

Still...
clawing in desperation,
to be a part
of the merry-go-round existence
That started
with such sweet innocence.



NEXT WORD: NEGLECT

[amidsummerswrite]

Not a big fan of posting(self-conscious)...but I love games!!

The hand it comes
to touch all things
The hand it loves
the hurt it brings

Leaves us cold
but doesn't care
Leaves us old
alone somewhere

The hand we want
to leave us be
The hand it haunts
all the lonely

But if it left
could you really say
The hand of neglect
has gone away?

Maybe that's right
I hope that it's true
But, maybe the hand
is neglecting you


NEXT WORD: HAND

[Albedo of Zero]

SHELL GAME
(slight of hand)

A magician's coin in a black shell sky-
You've disappeared in a game.
the silver halos your silhouette
beneath the tree
Beneath the tree
a half shell man
in a misdirection of light.
is making change from the moon.

My love is changing direction
There you are-
it's no illusion
and the magician shows a black shell sky
with no quarter.





next word: silhouette

[KTC]

Burned umber by the harvest moon,
Silhouette of manikin stillness
Hiding behind billowing curtains,
The nocturnal visitor stands in repose.

Breathing hitches,
Bedclothes bury the frightened child
Holding court with daytime's demons.
Slivers of moonlight
Filter through,
Outlining the silhouette
Against the shivering curtain mask.
And then anger
For imagination's fist-tight grip.

NEXT WORD: STRANGER

[Paint]

Who are you?
When
Did this happen?

I no longer
know
Your heart,
love,
dreams,
tears,
pain.

Who is this?
Stranger
Who claims me?


next word: claims

[Albedo of Zero]

49'ers rush

glinted eyes
of foolish dreams
land claims bought
of blood and greed
west or north
in sun or snow
land claims taught
there's no quid pro quo

(hahaha i reeeeeally stretched for a rhyme there)

next word: greed

[alanna]

greed

His hands are sweaty from the friction
created when he wrings them miserly.
He places another chip on the table.
Two thousand just isn't enough.

next word: dance

[scullars]

The Two-Step

I move in,
just a step or two,
but you evade,
as you often do.
I lean forward, sway
in your direction.
You move back, turn away,
an execution of perfection.
Then we change the tune
and you pursue
and on and on
we continue to do
this endless dance,
this two-step
anew.

Next: Perfection

[Albedo of Zero]

STEVIE RAY



Steel strings, teakwood and smooth fingers,
you invoke perfection to heat the heart
only to make it bleed.
Lips closed, tongue out and eyes shut,
you chant the air blue, heavy
with magical notes.

You sorcerer, you god, you demon,
you send powers to the wind
and live beyond your time.

Hearing one song only, I die.




next word: magic

[Brainerd T.]

She loved me with nothing less.
Her arms, her lips, her loving caress

She encircled me with nothing more
Than swirling dreams of whirlwind

She left and my head still spins
I know I have been touched by

Magic

Next word: beauty

[chelle21]

My heart is feel with sadness as
I stirr into the mirror knowing
there's no beauty here.
How can I complain when
all I do is cry.

[wurdwise]

Chelle, you need to say what the next word is.

[chelle21]

the next word is home

[KTC]

Some of the poetry in this thread is just so great to look at. Been reading my way up and enjoying! Keep up the good work poets!

[wurdwise]

They say that home
is where the heart is
but I'm not so sure that is true

My fences aren't mended
my flowers unattended
For I spend every hour
just thinking of you.

[KTC]

Spread out like seeds in the wind
We no longer celebrate the past
The memories of home haunt me still,
Like the faint memory of crab apple red
as it slathered the walls of my youth.
Looking far into a distance
Now covered with purposeful loss
I cannot but push aside the webs
and peek inside.
This room within my ancient womb
How it hides from me my pride.
I will forget with the will of spiders
The long past demons that touch
That brilliant place encased with shame.
I will wander one day,
When I no longer remember to forget
To the place I will once again
Call home.


NEXT WORD: FRAIL

[poetinahat]

translucent, crumbling,
life absent after nine years:
frail cicada shell


Next word: maturity

[chelle21]

translucent, crumbling,

life absent after nine years:
frail cicada shell


Next word: maturity


I cannot wasted my time on be maturity but I can grow from it but taking an apple from the tree is like taking candy from a baby.

the next word is fairytale

[wurdwise]

I don't believe
a fairy tale
can ever compare

To the joy I feel
when I see you
in your underwear

Next word: funny

[chelle21]

playing these games as a child I cannot help but to cry when growing up makes it so funny, playing hide go seek around the cornor.


Well i tried writers please let me know if that makes since.


the next word is glory

[alanna]

I feel your eyes on me and I look back
to see your smile.
I glory in that
I am the cause.

next word: leave

[Albedo of Zero]

Aged, gray, gnarled,
heavy with weather-worry and color,
the oak stands tall under it all
like only mothers do.

Acorns, courted by wind and squirrels,
leave only after some prodding
by nature.

My kids, yes they are nuts,
aren't taking the hint.


next word: nature

[William Haskins]

.

[wurdwise]

During these dark days
when my gut
wrenches from crying
Suddenly!
The sweet twitter
of a bird
through the open window
catches my ear
Nature reaching out
pulling me away
once again
from the edge
of the abyss.

Next word : Hungry

[KTC]

Sweating with the realization
Of not having you.
Profuse energy
exerted in wanting
what is unattainable.
Hungry for the life
We could have had.


Next word: Empty

[Paint]

Empty eyes,
Empty smile-

She's living other's lives again.

Chaos addict,
Endless martyr-

Always in a spin.



next word: addict

[KTC]

Needs a fix
he hyperventilates
longing tender punctures
on his bruised and swollen veins.
Needs a fix
he self-annihilates
longing for normalcy
in a life mixed by chaos and fear.
Needs a fix
He super-imposes
the death he must achieve
to save him from the addict
alive in the corpuscules
of his thriving, hungry body.


NEXT WORD: Forget

[wurdwise]

You need me to do what?
Forget about it!
You want me to go where?
Forget about it.
You tell me I can
Forget about it.
Are you nuts?

Next word: want

[Brainerd T.]

repetitive motions
feelings and desires

Emotions swirling, curling
Paroxysms of paranoia
Engulfing reason beoyond control

Love abandoned
Love left
the addict

((terrible)) Hey! next word: terrible

[Brainerd T.]

OOps! Someone posted minutes before I did and I didn't know it.
I'm up to it, though:

Want

Unfulfilled desires
cresting upwards to the psyche
Visions of rapture
culminating in pleasure

Next word: enchantment

[KTC]

Magic takes me,
holds my trachea,
Gains control of my senses,
and shakes me awake.
Makes me believe
in the doors to worlds
I know to be there.
Makes me want to raise
my wings
and fly.
Magic tells me
I can do it,
Shuck aside my leaden feet
and tramp across the billowing
clouds above.
I can reach
these scattered
dreams
through the enchantment
of magic...
as it hold me tight
within its crooked
grip.


NEXT WORD: Star

[Paint]

Be the star of your own life-
Lit from within.

Rise to the joyous moment-
Awaken from sleep.

Listen to the good about you-
Ignore the bad.

Be true to your inner voice-
A loyal guide.

Always reach for the top-
You deserve it.


next word: guide

[chelle21]

I cannot guide you through the storm because I can't go home
No one knows who I am and it tearing my life apart, if I guide
you through the storm who's going to guide me home.

My heart is too empty now to cry these sorrow tears as my
faith cannot heal




next word: Faith

[Paint]

Faith is the absence of fear I am told.
I still have fear.

Fear of heights and mountain lions,
Financial insecurity,
mad dogs
good looking men
sleepy snakes
growing old
being alone
perverts
taking
my
child.

Faith is the absence of fear
I am afraid-
Does this make me unfaithful?


next word: unfaithful

[chelle21]

If every guy I meet is unfaithful how can I find true love?
When my world is ungrateful. I sit and think about the bad
days when I use to think you didn't love me now and days
when I see you, you act like a snob when the only thing
I did was try to befriend you.

You wait until I'm gone and talk about me like I'm a dog
but never knowing how truely I felt for you when you
sick the police on me saying you didn't want anything
to do with me.

You may hurt me in the past but you will never hurt
me again. I wonder why I felt for you knowing the
love wasn't true it was just an excuse to get
back at your old girlfriend accept you wasn't a
man at all you was a filthy dog. Now you got
me thinking who's going to love me? If I tried
to love again I'm afraid I might get hurt again.


Never knowing who I am is somewhere and the
past I felt to realize you where my past maybe
you where my first boyfriend but you will never
be again it took almost a year to get over you
but now I know I can move on.


Next word sorrow

[alanna]

sorrow

willowy sighs tear from my soul
as i gaze out the window
and remember.

next word: hypocrite

[KTC]

You told me it would last,
that we would watch the gloaming
in the autumn evenings.
You told me it would live forever,
the love we started in our youth.
That was before I saw
behind the veil,
Before I woke up
next to a stranger...
a hypocrite in flowery pajamas
and flaxen hair
spread out perfectly
upon a lumpy pillow
I came to know so well.


Next word: miles

[wurdwise]

If I had to measure my life
in miles instead of years
It would be the longest highway
to the nicest rest stop.

Next word. Rest

[Angel-Lija]

My heart beating
Pounding up my chest
Sweat dripping
Memories replaying
I can not rest
I can not sleep
The hells of the past
Are still haunting me
I close my eyes
And count to 3
The sweet surrender
As I fall asleep
I can finally rest
In piece

Next: memory

[chelle21]

Let me love you until the time has come. My love for you has
painted a memory and my heart that will last forever since the
last time I saw you, our heart was at one, our love was to
strong to let go because all this time my image of you was
a painted memory. A memory I once knew, a memory that
got me wating on you until we meet again.

Let me love you until the day I die, until the sun has
come up again. Let me love you from the buttom of
my broken heart because this is me, because this is
who I am. You ask me how can I free myself from
you? But I will never free myself from you because
you where truly a angel sent from up above.

I ask God everyday what did I do to deserve this
kind of love? When my life hasn't been good or
when my childhood memory's has haunt me so?

My world was filled with anger inside but when
you brought this angel from up above. I knew
it must been love. My memory's of true love
is turning into slow motion because I'm
afraid to leave now.

I knew your love was going to be mind because
what we have is good loving. The love that makes
you sing in the rain, the love that keeps a painted
memory and your soul forever. Let me love you
until the day I die.

Next word: defind

[KTC]

It reaches to the blackened night
Stretching its limbs to the moonless sky
Sycamore, mounting the stratosphere
with the promise of its phosperous leaves
growing to the edges of reason.


Next word: redeem

[alanna]

i'm returning my thoughts
my words my actions
in the hopes that you'll give me back the
five hesitations
ten answers no
fifteen shyings
value for value
so we can start anew.

next word: abandon

[wurdwise]

There are groups of us
we humans
who share a certain
common denominator
of pain.

And only those people
know how a particular emotion
truly feels
I belong to several groups
One is Abandon.

I can't tell you how it feels
to be abandoned
Or to adandon another
Only one of my own
can understand.

Next word. Understand

[Cassie88]

Understand



birth, food, love, hate, money, god, loss, death

I
don't
understand

any of it


Next word: SEARCHER

[KTC]

I am the searcher of truths,
Come to de-conceal the beauty
of horses,
The intake of breath
at the sight of a buttercup.
I am the searcher of light
at the end of the darkened tunnel,
Come to touch the acrid
aroma of the burning
funeral pyre,
and laugh at the beauty
made by the ashes
as they dance into
the brilliantly lit
star-strewn sky.


Next word: black

[alanna]

a color of mystery
moonlight
shadow.
a color of beauty
sorrow
joy.
a color of life

that is worn to a ritual
wake
funeral
play

of a tragedy
romance
comedy

of life.



next word: ritual

[Cabria]

skin scales
scrubbed
red and raw
bleeding life

a ritual
of imprisonment
battering
of brain

epidermis emptying
down a dark drain
swirling, sucking
start over
again


Next Word: Compulsion

[wurdwise]

The incessant
beating of the wings
of an evil butterlfly
in my brain.

The constant
poking of the fingers
of an wicked taskmaster
in my heart.

The compulsion
driving me with the need
of a madwoman
I am whole.

Next word: Constant

[chelle21]

my mind is made up on the night that shine when you went away
how can my mind be made up with the constant reminder of you?
I felt to realize who you where isn't anymore that you constant
keep reminder me that, that love isn't here anymore. My memories
of you is a fainted memory.

next word: realize


http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_1_62.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZCxdm342YYUS)

[Unique]

When you realize
That only you can decide
How to play the cards
You've been dealt
That winning isn't in the cards,
but
In the decisions
You begin to see then
With your
Real Eyes.

Next Word: succinct

[Cabria]

Please realize this
you're full of s**t
your mouth spews words
with nowhere to fit
you paint an image
of greatness and knowing
when really your picture
was yesterday's showing


Next word: arrogance

[wurdwise]

I guess I'll use arrogance since I can't think of a thing that i consider succinct at the moment! I guess I can make that the next word after my poem

The arrogance you display
as if only your way
is the path
to enlightenment

Well, let me tell you
that just won't do
I seek all my wisdom
In fortune cookies!

Next word succinct.

[Cabria]

Oopsey! Sorry Unique - we must have been posting at same time. Anybody reading this, go with Unique's word of succinct as she posted before me!

Thanks,
Debbie :rolleyes: So Next Word: succinct

[Eveningsdawn]

i'll make this
succinct,
as short and sweet
as i can
(but even i
-the romantic-
know
that the sweetness
is long gone
and won't
be coming back),
i loved you,
once upon a time,
long, long ago...

next word - forsight

[Unique]

Hindsight, foresight
foreplay, wordplay.
It was all a game
for you and I
being the loser
Refuse to play
Another round.



Next word: 0023
.(that's not really it; my cat left that)
Next word: Renounce

[alanna]

Funeral of the Past

Dancing flames
scorch silver dreams
that once were life-
and I watch,
uncaring,
as they turn to ash.

next word: until

[chelle21]

until we meet again this is our time to say goodbye,
our time to let go of the past we once had.
this is the night I will let you go,
until we meet again


Next Word: lost


chelle21 http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/10/10_16_2.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZCxdm342YYUS)

[Cassie88]

I lost the opportunity
to tell you I was sorry
I lost the words
somewhere between
my hurt feelings
and my belief
I had done nothing wrong
I lost the oldest friend
I ever had
Remember in kindergarten
You looked up the skirt
of my uniform
on the jungle gym
I lost my footing
and twisted my ankle
You laughed about that
for fifty years
Now, you may be dying
They tell me
you didn't open my card
They tell me
not to visit
I've lost my respect for you
But not
No I have not
Lost my love for you.



Next word: Regret

[Unique]

Regret is guilt in fancy clothes
We deny our guilt yet we
Wallow in our regret.
Woulda, shoulda, coulda
becomes a mantra or a fancy hat
leaving furrows in our brow
from the weight.
Tight shoes pinch our toes
but we refuse to take them off.
Woulda, shoulda, coulda
sweeps in wearing chiffon
tickling our senses.
We revel in the pain of
our lost possibilities.
Woulda, shoulda, coulda
a tight collar, choking.
Guilt has lost the power
to enslave us but
Woulda, shoulda, coulda
takes its place in disguise.
Regret becomes a costume
that we wear to cover
the hairshirt leaving scars
upon our soul.

Next word: Creation

[KTC]

I tried the lie
pretended not to see
the difference between
you and I.

I reached back
beyond the hands of time,
pulled rainbows through the liquid sky.
Still you would not see
The way you differ from me.

I took careful steps
along the milky way,
hopscotching my way across
the opening galaxy,
wondering why you feared
that first step
you never took
to follow me.

The difference
between you and I,
That I believe
I make creation in my path,
and you, always cautious
are afraid to follow it.


Next word: saints

[Paint]

They look upon us
Weeping
All the Saints in Heaven.

We ignore their pleading
Blind in our pain.

Longing for love
Yet turning from its grace
We struggle on
Searching
Praying
Bleeding
Hating.

I lift up my tearstained face
Remembering you
Smiling
At peace
Alive with
Love.


next word: ignore

[alanna]

Few things are as easy to ignore

as a polar bear in a blizzard.

(sorry-it's short. but i just had to, lol)

next word: timeless

[chelle21]

timeless held the greatest skies as heaven begin to cry
his sorrow eyes. why I'm I crying I say? I'm I alone that
I can't think or sleep! What happen to you yesterday
when you want away?

Timeless held the greatest skies as heaven begins to cry
his sorrow eyes. As time stand still, as morning turn dark
and the wind begins to howl.


next word: heartbreak http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/10/10_9_137.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZNxdm801YYUS)

[Cabria]

the heartbreak she endures
through her oceans and forests
deserts and mountains
pristine and pure
to be soiled and dirtied
disregarded and disrespected
by a race too arrogant and self-centered
to appreciate the beauty
exquisitely moulded
by her Creator


Next Word: sculpt

[Kim Gogo]

Alone, she would sit rocking in her chair
Out of the window, she'd often stare
Wondering where her family went.

Throughout her days, she would sit and talk
On the phone with me, and she would rock
And her words replenished my soul.

When I'd find her there and to her, draw near
She'd smile at me and say, hello dear
And her smile would erase all my tears.

Her embrace and her strength would comfort me
And I would give anything for her face, to see
But she's gone and my soul weeps.

I think of her often and tears again rise
She was tender and loving, her words always wise
And I thank God for knowing her love.

And when I am scared and don't know what to do
I think of her love and the blessing I knew
In my grandmother.

by Kim Gogo-Melvin
In honour of my grandmother, Emily Gogo, who passed from this world to the next on July 2, 2003.

Next word: HOPE

[Kim Gogo]

It appears I found a comfortable 'chair' to sit on but I was in the wrong line-up. Sorry, folks! :Smack:

Don't mind me and my delusions.

Continue on with sculpt.

[Kim Gogo]

Shape me, sculpt me
To be who you want
That I might please you
And you will
Want me

Who are you to judge me?
With your meaningless measurements
You are a fool if you think I would
Want you

by Kim Gogo-Melvin

next word: HOPE

[chelle21]

I wonder what does it mean to cry? when all I did was endure sorrow
how can I hope for a new tomorrow when my world is shatter like ice?
I feel so empty now like I'm about to cry. I done nothing wrong but
love him. Tell me why do I feel like I'm about to cry when he walked
out the door and he never said goodbye?

Tell me what have I done to deserve this kind of pain? When all I did
was trust him. I wonder is there a new day for me? A new beginning
for a new day. I wonder what does it mean to cry? when all i did was
endure sorrow.



Next word: Endure http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/16/16_14_14.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZNxdm801YYUS)

[KTC]

Too many words
to throw at nothing.
Wasted arguments
vastly ignored.
Hatred simmers
in rooms unvisited.
Love unrequited
hard to swallow.
Still I endure,
hoping against hope.



Next word: Tuesday

[Cabria]

Tuesday, today
I get up at dawn
shower and shave
then mow the lawn

Gobble down breakfast
brush my great teeth
kiss the kids good-bye
the carpool I meet

Quiet and lifeless
we sit in our seats
cars racing by
faces in fleet

Get to the office
settle in quick
behind on the "Benz File"
boss is a b**ch

Coffee, pop, coffee
caffeine, aspartame
file is now flying
on top of my game

Glance at the clock
quarter to five
fifteen more minutes
I'm out of this dive

Gather together
car pool of four
race to the elevator
out the front door

Home to my family
kisses and hugs
dinner smells good
"Dad, kill that green bug!"

Work, I can do it!
anything I will take
for this life I have here
for my family's sake



Next Word: commitment

[Paint]

Looking at a tiny kitten
yellow with fuzzy paws.

Do I want this comitment?
I wonder as I smile and pat.

Home I go with my yowler
Disengaging needle sharp claws.

Curling up in chilly sheets
A purring motor tucked nearby.

Commitment was good this time
As we drop off to sleep together.

next word: claws

[Cabria]

Claws on paws
cutting raw
like a saw
into my flaw
now I thaw


Next Word: Frozen

[Unique]

Frozen peas in the check out line
Used to cost a dollar
Now a dollar and a dime.
Prices going higher
day after day.
can't stop crying
there went all my
pay.


Next word: carmine

[Paint]

Carmine Lips
Chocolate eyes
Black hair
Mocha skin
In love
Breathless now
Kiss quick
Kiss slower
Feeling dizzy
Warm inside
Follow home
Forget me.

next word: chocolate

[Cassie88]

You keep the music
You keep the books
You keep the shouting
and smoldering looks
You keep the dishes
You keep the mugs
You keep the towels
and cheap dirty rugs
You keep the eggs
You keep the cheese
You keep the ice cream
and old frozen peas
You keep the wine
You keep the beer
You keep the silver
and glass chandelier
You keep the pies
You keep the fries
You keep the lies
and ugly torn ties
You keep the bread
You keep the thread
You keep the bed
and every "I said"
I'll keep my pride
and oh, one more thing
I'll keep the very last
Chocolate ring ding


Next word: Goodbye

[chelle21]

My love for you is way to strong to say goodbye when all I did was
cry. How can we say goodbye when there's noone to say goodbye
too? I can't stop the hungry for your love but yet you ask me the
same questions over and over again.

My love for you is way to strong to say goodbye when all I did was
cry. I ask myself over and over again who's going to love me when
I'm gone. It seen like I can't fight the moonlight to your love as my
love for you hasn't gone. Too many bad memories haunts my soul
as I can't bring myself to say goodbye.

No one knows who I am because I'm nobody special just a girl who's
here in the world, the world she once knew as her home. But the
world turn there back on her when she ask for help as she begin to
live alone.

My love for you is way to strong to say goodbye when all I did was
cry. I ask myself over and over again who's going to love me when
I'm gone. It seen like I can't fight the moonlight to your love as my
love for you hasn't gone.

My heart is too week to feel love as my scatter memories haunts me
so, so I ask you to spare my life even though its feel with pain, pain
that want go away, pain that's been there since I was a child, not
knowing what's love feel like, not knowing who I am anymore.

so you take back your love you had for me, the love we once had,
the love we use to have. I have loved you from the moment I laid
my eyes on you, the moment your soft lips touch mind. But now
I know I can move on as I write this poem you hurt me once but
you will never hurt me again you old dirty dog.

next word: weakness


http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_1_62.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZNxdm801YYUS)

[Eveningsdawn]

my one weakness
is my desire
to fly
my one problem
is my lack
of wings

next word: butterfly/butterflies

[Cabria]

Butterfly shrimp
and butter flying
tossed from the pan
from where they were frying

Next Word: seafood

[chelle21]

butterflies across the sky,
butterflies in my room can
you tell me where can I
find you?




next word: strawberry/ or strawberries

[chelle21]

Butterfly shrimp
and butter flying
tossed from the pan
from where they were frying

Next Word: seafood

wow miss up here I guess we where posting at the same time I'm sorry I'll do your word first then mind

[chelle21]

seafood shrimps is what I love
I cannot tell you how much I
adore seafood shrimps




Next word: strawberries, or strawberry

[Cabria]

Red birthmark on her knee
shape of a strawberry
"oooh you got popsicle on you
wipe it off with this tissue"

how she hated when people said that


Next Word: stick

[chelle21]

stick in stone may break my bones but words never hurt me.
I use to say that all the time but as a child words did hurt me.


next word: heaven
http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/10/10_16_2.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZNxdm801YYUS)

[sgtsdaughter]

Heaven and its maker,
Through divine intervention have,
Created a world of heavenly state
That mere mortals dream
About to date.
The heaven of Dixie is said to compare,
And the heaven of laughter is said to overtake.
But the Heaven of her auburn hair, green eyes, and
Jingle bell laugh
Will overtake the mind and
Understate the soul
To create a portal in the mind
That leads to neither heaven on earth or
Heaven in hell.
The heaven of hell
With its firey brew
Will hold you in and steal your touch,
While begging for more
And promising less.
Thus, releasing you once
The stench has worn off
To let you back home
To touch the heaven of the earth
And heaven of loss.



Next word: muster

[Unique]

Woodsmoke and wind
so cold
Uniforms ragged and thin
so old
Far from home
hearts numb
Stars grow dim
voice of the drum
Another day starts
the wounded cry out
Moving again
sargeants shout
Traces and chains
horses blow
Hard tack and tea
skies spitting snow
Thinking of you
gazing within
They call it war
I call it sin.


Next word: war

[KTC]

Lillies still flutter
Amid the muck and clutter
Ugly fact of war


Next word: burden

[Paint]

The burden of my addictions
Weigh me down sometimes...

Sweets, carbs, fast food
Band-aids of spending money.

Smart, unavailable men
Myself compulsively looking good.

Life is simpler without these,
But never as much fun.


next word: money

[Cabria]

Root of evil
that buys bad
that buys wrong
that buys people
that buys the world

Root of power
that buys good


Next Word: devil

[Albedo of Zero]

The devil lived in Canton, Ohio,
in a field, behind the new allotment.
Claws and fangs, fur and hiss
was its religion.

Rats tried to convert the demon,
tried to escape the demon,
tried to bite the demon.

The devil consumed their soles,
their paws, their ugly scaly tails
and hacked hairballs of retribution.


next word: escape

[Paint]

Whirling, swirling dust devil
Winter leaves at your feet.

Tumbleweeds held captive
Gritty gravel in my teeth.

Sandblasting every vehicle
Nothing left to keep.

Winding down to tiny gasp
Curling into wind now sleep.


next word: feet

[Paint]

Opps! Sorry...

[Paint]

Escape

Caught in a poetry game,
There is no escape.
No barbed wire to crawl over,
No barred windows to relate.
Checking every lunch hour,
Fast poems through my break.
Two days off I'm peeking,
Trying hard to resist.
What's the word I'm asking?
Caught
Writing poetry again.

next word: barbed wire

[Cabria]

Your feet stink!
your toes have crud
between each one
as thick as mud!

Take them away!
from my poor face
so I can breathe
in sterile space

You need socks
with freshener spray
that shoots a mist
ten times a day!

Your feet stink
so take a hike
good bye, so long
and take your Nikes!!

Next Word: shoes

[alanna]

shoes:

Dead animal skin encases my feet
combined with synthetic fabrics
that are supposed to look cool.

I don't like it.

I prefer going barefoot,
the grass between my toes
that curl luxuriously...

except in australia.

There the blue-ringed octopus waits
to zap all unsuspecting barefoot waders
with it's poison that kills in ten steps.
next word: tread

[Cassie88]

He's slipping, sliding
through this day,
and can't get out
of his own way.
He lost Mom's keys
and scraped his knees.
He threw his frisbee
in the trees
His hot dog
fell out of the roll
He rammed his head
into a pole
His sister called
him rotten names
No one would play
his race car games
He's slipping, sliding
through this day
and can't get out
of his own way
His sneaks are down
to one thin tread
He might as well
go back to bed



Next word: DRAT

[Vipersniper]

:banana: Oh drat that cat,
Makes me want to reach for the bat.
But the wet mat is flat so I will,
Forget about that
Besides that drat cat is fat,
Did the Tom do that?

Next word melody

[Eveningsdawn]

the melodies of silence,
too much ignored,
too seldom heard,
and very rarely appreciated -
i listen,
as i work at the barn,
hearing the songs
that fill the silence

Next word: mountain

[chelle21]

How can I climb when I'm already down? When the world seen ok
as I climb the mountain one last time. This use to be my glory
waking up to the fresh smell of mountain breeze as heaven
begin to call my name. But I'll tell him I can't go now.

I can't miss my child first footsteps or when she speaks her first
word. How can I climb when I'm already down? When the world
seen ok as I climb the mountain one last time. I got to tell you
this is the wisdom to my soul that dies a little everyday knowing
I can't stay so give her a hug for me in tell her why I had to go.



Next Word: Climb http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_1_62.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZNxdm801YYUS)

[Paint]

Babies climb before they walk
Hanging on the edge of the table.

Crowing to all in their achievement
How quickly we forget that lesson.

Climb up out of the pit of negativity
Climb up and reach for the star of life.

No more feeling sorry for yourself
No more self centered anguish or pain.

Sing! Sing for your life.
For some it is a joy just to breathe.

next word: hanging

[KTC]

Caught in the billowing breeze,
Barefoot and finally at ease,
He swung.
Crows circling above,
Waiting for the trees to cease
their ardent orchestra
with the angry wind.
Pretty flowers
growing up
to meet
the hanging corpse.


Next word: SUNLIGHT

[Cassie88]

We thought the sunlight
Bleached our souls

The sands of time
so long ago

Arms and legs
Stretched and turned
Bronze and gold

But he,
He burned.

We didn't know
We would've screamed

Or is that just
a mourner's dream?




Next word: death

[Unique]

I count the lonely hours
Stifling pits of hell
picking bits of mortar
From the walls within my cell

Locked away inside
alone these twenty years
Mixing bits of mortar
With the salt of fallen tears

I could lie and say
I didn't mean to kill
But I took the time to bury
My child beneath the hill

They said that I went crazy
Howling at the moon
The truth was closer to this
My mind was in a swoon

The pressure drove me mad
The worry day by day
And soon we'll be together
When they take my life away.

Next word: mad

[scullars]

Don't mean to interrupt the flow, but I'm reading some great, powerful stuff here. Keep up the work!

[Paint]

Witches and warlocks
Great hairy beasts
Vampires and dragons
Sleeping at feasts.

Holographic skies
Volcanos great blast
Haunted ships
With broken mast.

Kittens and puppies
with distorted eyes
Children throw thunder
Battles are lies.

Am I in a dream?
Or am I just mad
Only his trading cards
O I'm so glad.

next word: mast

[Albedo of Zero]

Men who climbed to see the land
announced with exclamation
"Storms begone from this mast's sight
tomorrow we are coming!"

Tomorrow came into the storm
sails flapped in anger
accusing gods of ocean core,
malicious wet behavior.


next word: climb

[chelle21]

someone one told me if I can climb the highest seas, climb the highes mountain I can be brave just like him. If I can brave why can't I? If I can be love, why can't I? If I can brave then tell me why I'm I so miserable.






Next Word: Why http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_22_11.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZNxdm801YYUS)

[KTC]

The river bends
around familiar territory.
Rock facings, etched with the musings
of past generations,
asking questions
still asked today.
Only now the heirogyths
scrawled next to the ancient musings
seem more precise,
more vainly articulate.
Still,
they both ask
one question.
Why?


Next Word: Worry

[Brainerd T.]

oops!

[Cabria]

Because I worry
I hurry
with a scurry
and a flurry
into scenes of my life
that are blurry
instead of clear

Next Word: rushing

[Cabria]

Oops...simultaneous post again. Go with Brainerd T's next word: Oasis

[Brainerd T.]

footnote: This exercise is a lot of fun. This thread is so popular I'm always bumping into people tyring to post to it.

[Albedo of Zero]

Dry red eyes
wake with a sound
of hacking smoke deprived lungs
only to direct numb legs
to water on water
on water on hands
-dress, put on a face
of compliance and routine
-drive, white knuckled
rushing for focus
past brick on mortar
on mortar
on blacktop
on earth
-turn the radio
over and over till its done
-blink consciousness,
think about the end of the day,
the bed, the pillow

and I fall into
an oasis of dreams

(edited to include both words)
(almost forgot) next word: radio

[Unique]

Rock, Shock, classical jazz

Alone in the car I sit on my aspirations <<<concession to Jenna's filter

Driving, darting, changing lanes

I envy the others using their brains

Only commuting - time sorely wasted

Wondering how life feels if it's tasted

Always the last to arrive at the station

Vacuum increases - the size of our nation

Education a siren calls out to me

Save this wretch from commute's misery.


Next word: Alone

[Cabria]

I sit alone
with people all around me
strangers who could be friends
or enemies
I feel scared
anxious
as the faces close in
and make my heart race
in palpitations

I'd rather be alone
with no one around me
than alone
with people around me

Next word: suffocate

[alanna]

the wall of rock looms above-
just a few thousand feet-then he'll rest.

the lactic acid burns as he pulls himself up-
just a few hundred feet-then he'll rest.

his head aches from the height-
just a few dozen feet- then he'll rest.

at the top now he glances-
surveys the world below.

his head gives one sharp throb-
and he rests.


next word: high

[chelle21]

Reaching for the top is more than I can do but hoping for glory isn't true.
My mind is made up. I can't go back down but reaching for the moutain
top isn't that high.






Next world: Reaching http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_11_11.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZNxdm801YYUS)

[William Haskins]

'round curiosity and intellect
the chains of ambition clasp
(a dangerous situation for those
whose reach exceeds their grasp.)

next word: expectation

[KTC]

Expectation grips me
And I am none the wiser
That I cannot reach my goal.


Next word: Hyper

[Eveningsdawn]

r eally,
truly,
im not us-
ually this hyper
and
disjoint-
ed.

but you try runnin'
on two hours
sleep
three cups
coffee
and too much
sugar

and see how hyper
you get

EDIT: next word - breathe

[Cabria]

Breathe
fog-clinging air
dampening
humid-clad air
choking
icicle-spiked air
constricting
dry, hot air
searing
polluted, fumed air
poisoning
green, forest air
cleansing
mountain rich air
invigorating

whatever the air
we must breathe


Next word: oxygen

[Albedo of Zero]

you may think im a doxy,
genuinely breathless
in your throes of detoxy,
gentle dreams shake my
skin by proxy
-gentleman, excuse me when i think to curse you
for calling me foxy;
gender means nothing
when the oxy-
gen is gone


(repeat after me)next word next word next word: skin

[Eveningsdawn]

my skin
scars easily -
it always has.
and so,
i can see my past
--my falls,
my scrapes
(from climbing trees),
even papercuts
from work--
written on the
living parchment
of my body.

would that my future
was this clear

bugger! EDIT: next word - blood (extra points if it's non-morbid!)

[Lucky Penny]

Blood, the liquid of life

blood propelled by the heart
love contained in the heart
pain shattered the heart
blood's value lost

next word: indifferent

[Cabria]

at first
my feelings were hostile
bitter
raging
unforgiving
but as time passed
so did the storm
now my feelings
are simply
indifferent

Next Word: forgive

[Sarashay]

What was
only lives
if I
breathe life
into it

I choose
to hold
my breath







next word: breathing

[Cassie88]

We took on the rhythm
of her breathing

Exhaling
When
She
Breathed
in

Breathing
in
when
she
exhaled

The beauty of her soul
The goodness of her heart

a
part
of
every
breath


STILL



Next word: mommy

[chelle21]

mommy is someone who wash your cloths, come your hair, in make you breakfest in the morning. Mommy is about being a mother to your child
loving that child when she or he does something great in there life.

Mommy is someone who wash your cloths, come your hair, in make you
breakfest in the morning. I am not a mommy but I have help raised four
children in now they all grown up because they look to me as they
mommy.



Next Word: Being ok http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/10/10_1_124.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZNxdm801YYUS)

[Paint]

I'm okay
I'm just fine.
Secret words
Hiding truth.
Wearing masks
Smile for the camera
Averting eyes
Stuffing feelings.
Being okay
for all to see
Hard on the heart
Politics reign.

next word: politics

[Eveningsdawn]

politics
break friendships
break families
break relationships
and then don't do enough
to heal them.

Next word - healing

[Cassie88]

Healings

da da da da

Healings

da da da da

HEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALINGS

whoa, whoa, whoa

HEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALINGS



(Sorry, just wanted to move the post back near the top)

NEXT WORD: JOKE

[Lucky Penny]

I'm a joke
You're a joke
Make a joke
Hooray

He's a joke
She's a joke
Tell a joke
Goo'day

(I'll apologize too...cassie made me feel SILLY)
Next word:
laughter

[Paint]

Cruising the range of emotions
Laughter surely taking lead.

Up from the belly erupting
Shaking and coughing as need.

Eyes tearing, water profusely
Spittle flys through the air.

Howls insane on floor
Pulling, tugging the hair.

Gasping and finally subsiding
Wiping my face from the mess

Feeling lighter still smiling
Best medicine is my guess.

[Paint]

opps!! next word: cruising

[Godfather]

i went soaring through blue skies
swimming in roaring waters
ran across meadows
climbed high trees
drove along on a harley
listening to natures music
but i never moved from my writing table

NEW WORD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!






...muse

[Albedo of Zero]

Poets think they have the itchiest hairshirts
some are plaid

It's the muse
who tells you what to do
or how

whether it be right hand on blue
or left cheek on green

and she only does this
because she needs
a scratch


next word: itch

[Eveningsdawn]

the itch to write
is a hard one to scratch
forcing you into positions
a contortionist
would envy
twisting and stretching
every muscle, even
the ones in your mind
as you strive
to write away
the itch

next word: synesthesia

please do look this word up first. it's something that can either be natural (it is for my friend) or learned (I'm in the process) but not taught.

[Cassie88]

Since I couldn't look it up



If you commit a syn, Esthesia,
You will go to hell.
Don't commit a syn, Esthesia,
Or if you do, don't tell.



Next Word: Let's try synesthesia
Again

[Unique]

Culinary Art - A Concerto


I taste music in the preparation
Tomato's fine flute balanced by
the bass note of molasses
A sauce worth its salt encompasses
the entire orchestra
A meal of melody only
strikes a hollow chord
The tongue knows the oboe
is missing.


Next word: harmony

[Albedo of Zero]

Wheels



diaphanous life

in a round of



row, row,
row your boat

turning, spurning change



gently down the stream
merrily, merrily, merrily
in a harmony of spoke-
style interests
life is

ever turning back.
life is but a dream





next word: style

[Godfather]

i got the style
let me smile
aall the while

summertime
let me rhyme
i'm doing fine

inpiration
decantation
look at it all flow.


next word - summer

[WordSoup]

Little pink toes
burrow into warm
brown sand

Down the beach
two blonde sisters
walk hand-in-hand

Their heads are filled
with wave-song
bodies summer-tanned

The crystal wind
whispers to them
of Ocean's great command

next word: burrow

[alanna]

Burrowing

no sight this far below the surface-
no sound comes to the ear.

no one has dared to follow-
there's nothing living here.

surrounded and trapped arms claw one more foot-
then the ground cracks and drops.

she lands within a musty cave
with heavy laden plops.

there's water here, and fish to eat-
she decides to stay.

after all, who will miss her?
and she'll be far away.



next word: coax

[sgtsdaughter]

(Quite possibly the corniest piece I have ever written, did get the mind churning though).



Without condoms and rubbers
He tried to coax me out of the car and
Into his bed,
For a trip down that road
That would lead to loneliness and regret.


I fought,
I begged,
But he coaxed me too hard.
Falling, I knew that I couldn’t stop
What was to be
And what was not.


He coaxed me to stay.
I coaxed him to leave.
Neither worked,
Neither ended the pain.
Eventually I laid there while he coaxed me along.
I tried not to cry.


The doctor said it’s all done now.
He coaxed me to get up,
But I just laid their thinking of another night.
The night he convinced me stay
Without a rubber and without a condom.



A.B. 2005



next word: Ineptitude

[Eveningsdawn]

"Her ineptness in this matter
is inarguable and obvious,"
says the man in the suit
of the girl at the table
"It is her employer's fault
for setting her a task
at which she was sure to fail.
Are you surprised
that she would lash out?"
The girl stays silent
(she doesn't say much),
there is nothing in her demenor
to suggest her desire
to have hit even harder.

Edit: Bugger! Next word, tenderness

[Cassie88]

I miss
The tenderness,
A lover's simple touch.

I wish
The tenderness
Didn't cost so much.

I must
Learn to listen,
For words will have to do.

A friend
Can give me tenderness,
Like you,
So often,
Do.



Next word: touch

[alanna]

A light caress of silk
on the cheek
as I close my eyes
reminds me of you-
just so would you touch me
with the same light smoothness
as the cool breeze
now blowing from the sea.

The scratch of marsh grass
against my ankles
reminds me of you-
just so did you cling to life,
lightly,
yet hard enough to cause you pain.

the grey ebbing tides
sloshing in my ears
remind me of you-
just so would you speak
if I could hear you.


next word: almost

[Cassie88]

We were grown up,
Almost,
Trusting
Diligent
Hearts.
Believing
Dependable
Stars.
We loved each other,
Almost,
Fading
Darkened
Eyes.
Abandoned
Scarred
Dreams.
We said goodbye,
Almost.



Next word: Innocent

[black winged fighter]

We've all had them -
the dreams where
we fall...

And - just in time -
we wake to a sense
of having touched upon a deeper truth
and almost known it -

But then we are back in the flat world.


***Oops! Two posts! I swear it wasn't there when I started...I'll just delete my word.

[KTC]

They said he was innocent,
fawn-like, doe-eyed.
Tragic circumstances
left him hanging
in an orchard,
keds slipped off,
gathering the offal
of his decomposing corpse.
The wind makes pretty pirouettes
of his slightly mangled toes,
suggesting some of that lost innocence.


Next Word: freedom