# Inspired by the poetry thread..submit your own poetry! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 26, 2003, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879 "2003-09-26T01:35:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![80sHairMetalMaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/8/ed655f/32.png) [@80sHairMetalMaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/80sHairMetalMaven)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2003, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/1 "2003-09-26T01:35:58Z")
Inspired by one of my favorite books, _Redwall_ by Brian Jacques **I Am That Is** In The Throes of Madness by Pixiekitten Location: Your Imagination Age: 25 Sex : F previous entry : Stalked by a Hottie next entry: Sex * * * I Am That Is…Mathias The Warrior of Redwall 6/2/2002 I am that is,proclaimed Martin the warrior I am that is,shouted Mathias the warrior Died,with blood on the sword that proclaimed I am that is, Martin defended Redwall Abbey,his holy home Mathias escaped a genocide to make Redwall his holy home Chosen by Martin to defend those scarlet stone walls Mathias is what shall be Defending the great stone house from all who seek to enter its gates with evil on their minds Befriended by a hare,the shrews and the black-capped sparrows Mathias is the defender of Redwall,with his lovely mouseling bride Cornflower,standing behind him with grace,courage and pride His son,Mattimeo,shall carry on the legacy of he who is The Defender of Redwall Abbey Not a churchmouse nor an abbot or brother monk is he,cloaked in a deepest robe of brown,the habit of those who give their life in service to He Who Is Mathias,warrior of Redwall,standing proud and true till that day shall come when he shall annoint his young song Mattimeo with the sword that proclaims I Am That Is and Mattimeo,taking up the sword,shall call out “REDWALL” as his battle cry and defend his holy home for Redwall,for Martin and Mathias his father Redwall Holy redstone house **Lights are on, but nobody’s home** You stare into her eyes and they are like the eyes of a dead fish,cold,empty The lights are on but nobody’s home The harsh highs and Death Valley lows have stripped her of her soul Of everything that used to be a part of her Her mind is gone,fried beyond recognizing She can’t think but of one thing…her next fix It’s all about getting that fix and getting to feel that euphoria again,like riding a rollercoaster blindfolded in the dark But when it’s all over,she’s alone again,trembling in the shadows,shivering as though a Montana winter wind is whipping her body raw She’ll do anything to get that fix…to feel that pinch of a needle puncturing her already-scarred and tortured veins again Injecting that sweet warmth that floods her body like a chemical orgasm The lights are on…but nobody’s home Nobody can save her from herself and there she’ll be,alone again without a prayer Without a friend Without a life THe lights are on…but not for long Because there isn’t anybody home MetalMaven ---
**Author:** ![80sHairMetalMaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/8/ed655f/32.png) [@80sHairMetalMaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/80sHairMetalMaven)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2003, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/2 "2003-09-26T01:37:08Z")
Dammit, preview is my friend! :smack: MetalMaven ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2003, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/3 "2003-09-26T12:11:40Z")
Ass is where it’s at. Asses wear its hat. Asshat. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2003, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/4 "2003-09-26T12:14:38Z")
**Sonnet written to a doner kebab** \* Oh choicest cut of fresh-roast new-born lamb Plucked from gambolling in the springtime field, Thy juices sweet as honey that fed Adam In Eden. Firm, and yet thy flesh doth yield. Thy pitta, sweet as manna that did fall On Israelites in desert exodus, Like lover’s lips that parted in a thrall Of passion, glistening with flecks of lust: Shows em’rald lettuce; crimson tomato sliced, Carressed by chilli and garlic mayonnaise Rustic cabbage, pickled peppers diced, Thy aroma like a prayer our Lord to praise. Thou art a ransom more than kings may earn. So why then makest thou my bottom burn? \*That’s “gyro” to you yank-types. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2003, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/5 "2003-09-26T15:08:34Z")
**On the occasion of my father’s stroke** I’m writing speeches for my father’s wake, deciding how I’ll hold my hands and head while speaking calmly of the newly dead. Enunciating grief without mistakes. I will not pull away if strangers break my spine in crushing hugs, attempt to thread their fingers through my own. I will not dread their platitudes or pity, and will make myself a smiling puppet. Casseroles will bring me solace. I will never cry in public, nor permit my hands to tremble, nor fuss when dripping calla lily bowls leave lasting rings on the piano. I will be as still as that man I resemble. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2003, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/6 "2003-09-26T21:16:00Z")
That’s lovely, JS. Thanks for sharing it. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/7 "2003-09-27T04:25:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Libertarian \* > \*\*That’s lovely, JS. Thanks for sharing it. \*\* Thanks. I think I killed the thread, though. Ack. Julie ---
**Author:** ![Sanscour](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f475e1/32.png) [@Sanscour](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sanscour)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/8 "2003-09-27T04:36:40Z")
Why Compete? I often say I’m no Yeats or Eliot or Emerson. Of course I’m not. The paths I travel Are already well worn by their trampling feet. Every day Yeats bellows from Ireland, screaming at me About my misuse of youth while he shows off How well he wears time. Eliot grabs my hair And thrusts my face in the muddy ash of his Wasteland, While Emerson raves in my ear about his dream Of the dead city. They are too strong. I can’t match their fortitude. Their niches are carved of alabaster, Their places in time guaranteed by the worship Of the aged professor. I could try to steal their beauty, try to take what was Theirs even before my bloody entrance on the stage, But I would will only succeed in burying myself Beneath the rubble of a second Troy. Instead I shall carve my own image in the stone with My iron will. I will take what they couldn’t And build myself a place in the desert High above the standing trunks of Ozymandias. I will baffle the professor with its complexity, Confuse the scholars with its imagery, And dumbfound the engineer with its architecture. The symbolic maelstrom will unleash itself Upon their ancient constructions, And I will laugh from on high as Emerson’s dead city Crumbles, snicker as Eliot sinks to his death in his Self-made Armageddon, and mock Yeats As he runs madly through the desert, naked and old, Vainly attempting to embrace the loving mirage Of a young Maud Gonne. ``` In Memory of John Coltraine (1926-1967) ``` The day is still young and tired; Not too loud Johnny, the city is still asleep. His jazz is sweet to me As I stare at The Yankee Candle matchbox, His saxophone singing Of better days; Of coffee shops And shoe shines For a quarter. The piano echoes his sympathies. The ivory keys whisper to me About standing on a busy street corner In the rain Waiting for Gypsy Rose To step out of a black cab In a white dress, Asking if I’ve waited long. The cymbals set the stage, Reminding me of a day When the musician ruled the earth. I never met Mr. Coltraine; I would have loved to have been the one To shine his shoes. ``` Paint Ball ``` I walked off the battlefield Having been shot in the face, Purple blood marring my skin Like a badge given for failure. Comrades soon followed. Head wound back wound Face wound head wound “Fucking ‘A’ I was shot in the ear!” Our flag was taken, The cheer of victory Blinding observers From the sights and sounds of war: The retorts of gun fire The buzzing of flies And the lamentation for the dead. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/9 "2003-09-27T04:39:03Z")
I’d contribute, but I haven’t completed any poems since the last time a poetry posting thread came up. Of course, I’ve almost finished my first draft of a long, long poem, but first drafts don’t count 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![okielady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/fbc32d/32.png) [@okielady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/okielady)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/10 "2003-09-27T04:49:45Z")
I always feel inferior when posting to threads such as these, but I’ll go ahead and give it a try. Heroes You fought the fight for so many years Jumped the hurdles and faced your fears You lived a life to be reviewed with pride Stayed the course and took it in stride You tried to veil your strength with humility But became the ideal illustration of stability You did so many things I wished I could do I couldn’t hide my admiration for you When I said you were my hero you laughed a bit And shook your head, not believing it You couldn’t imagine you’d done anything great Just played the cards dealt to you by fate I only revealed what I knew to be true You inspired me, I looked up to you I had a question before your time came to go Just one simple thing I’d always wanted to know Who could someone of your regard admire What impressive attributes must you require So when I asked you who your hero could be Imagine my surprise when you said it was me ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/11 "2003-09-27T06:35:19Z")
Why I Watch for the Whales off Cape Disappointment 1. My reasons are as simple as weight. Simply fear relative to size. But I won’t talk equations And I will not echo the Humpbacks’ long death song. That is too easy a grief. Instead I’ll show you a black shadow skimming, the need to kill or be swallowed, a truth carved like scrimshaw in the baleen bone between my breasts. 1. Call me Jonah instead. I have walked the wide rib of the whale and emerged on this haunted curve, this other coast. Yes, I have known continents their names rise on the waves like anthems: Finback, Sei, Great Blue. I have slid back into the the sea, split by scalloped flukes, the krill clinging to my hair. It’s a small story now. I sit on the grey lip of the shore, chart the blind migrations in my own life. I am, after all, a woman swallowed whole, She, whose obsession can be soothed by the answering chord of his deep blues. She who, guided here, drags these elegies, these whale poems, like huge grey bones to an empty beach. - koeeoaddi ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/12 "2003-09-27T10:25:25Z")
**JSGoddess** , your poem brought tears to my eyes. Beautiful. Everyone else’s are cool, too, but that one really moved me. ---
**Author:** ![80sHairMetalMaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/8/ed655f/32.png) [@80sHairMetalMaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/80sHairMetalMaven)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/13 "2003-09-27T13:57:01Z")
Wow…good one JS.🙂 **Every Child is Broken** \*Every child is broken We cannot be made whole Our spirit crushed,turned to mush,what are we supposed to do? Unable to cope with the outside world Unwilling to deal with the world within Inwardly scared,outwardly defiant The embers are smouldering,but dying in the soul The fire has gone out of the eyes The soul unable to fight,unstable like a three-legged chair Thrust into a world we do not yet understand Longing for the childhood we were denied Looking for the missing pieces Still searching for salvation Every child is broken And cannot be made whole Still we seek a fullness that cannot be measured or attained with wealth and material goods We seek that which is unknowable,unreachable,unable to be fulfilled A secret desire…to be made whole once more \* MetalMaven ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/14 "2003-09-27T15:25:13Z")
Metal, Koe, good ones! * * * Gorilla gorilla gorilla tie you up bash your old man to a pillar jungle love maybe kill your baby hairiest motherfucker savage ass killer. Pulling eighty g’s in a cube box wife and kids in a circle around me like a clock doin time for my man synergistic elan software architecture plans to make the colosseum look like rocks. Chimp flinging punks and serfs with turds Holding the password from programmers and eunuchs nerds Light of the Lord we pay our dues not holy enough yet in performance reviews He’s got my back he’s the shepherd of the herd. Hot sluts in my bed commence to praise me If it wasn’t for my man she’d be pushing up daisies Trollin’ in his cave till all the cops’ feet are raw Hackin and stayin one step ahead of the cyber-law Hip hop saint the press and the punks think he’s crazy. Sing the song motherfucker for this one red cent Welcome back, play again like we taught you it pays the rent Machine growing bigger and bigger Camera eye watching you like a trigger But it’ll never scope my heart’s anarchistic intent. ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/15 "2003-09-27T16:06:37Z")
Writing poetry is something you should stop before the age of 25. At that point you should burn all the evidence. Here’s one that escaped that fate, kind of florid … When a sullen sun devours the sky And sets aflame an Earth boiled dry When all life’s lived and surely dead Man’s breathed his last and said all’s said I might suppose, but who can say My love will die, will die that day When the clock chimes at this time’s end No time to spare, no time to spend If years wipe clean and start anew Nothing’s achieved and all’s to do I might suppose, but who can say I’ll love again, again that day If all skies turn and all fall down The street’s a shatter and raze the town If silence falls on closing eyes Life’s leaving hush on wings and flies I might suppose, but who can say My love goes on despite that day. ---
**Author:** ![Frankenbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c0e974/32.png) [@Frankenbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frankenbear)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/16 "2003-09-27T18:48:33Z")
_Gone_ The world lost someone special tonight Gone is the light Her love brought Gone is the laughter That danced in her eyes Gone is the smile That hid her pain Gone is the kindness She showed to others Gone is the sound of her voice That bestowed words of support Gone is my friend Whom I loved But I will never forget The times we shared When we giggled and whispered Secrets and dreams galore Times of laughter Times of tears Times of joy Times of fear All will be remembered Gone will never be My memories of her She is gone But not forgotten ```auto I debated on whether or not I wanted to post anything I wrote here but decided to take the plunge. This one was written after a friend of 15 years died of cancer. ``` ---
**Author:** ![80sHairMetalMaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/8/ed655f/32.png) [@80sHairMetalMaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/80sHairMetalMaven)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/17 "2003-09-27T21:30:49Z")
Wow Ludo…not sure what yours is about but I like it…I think. Ela–way to write from the heart. That’s what poetry is all about, after all. You write what you know. **Asian Slut** Asian slut,that’s what you are A husband-stealing little whore We’re not good enough,so cut us out of his life His wife was in the way,not that it mattered to you You fucked him and had his half-white baby,who’s better than all of us You told him to murder his wife…so what if she had cancer anyway? You told him to pull the plug,or maybe he did it on his own So he’d be free to marry you Elitist That’s what you are,learn to speak the language for Chrissakes! I can’t understand you through your mushmouth half-English with that damn dialect You and your stupid kids…treat us like dirt or garbage Which is what we are to you,poverty stricken as we are We don’t wear clothes once then toss them out the way you do We know the value of a dollar We don’t think Cambodian culture is the best in the world Though I know you do We aren’t garbage,we aren’t trash,we aren’t as bad as you seem to think we are Husbandstealing slut,little asian whore That’s what you are At least I have pride and dignity and respect for marriage vows I wish you had what I had What I lack in money and possesions I make up for in spirit and character,you stupid asian whore That one was written shortly after his death, something I almost printed out and stuck in his casket for Wifey #2 to find. I am really glad I didn’t, because it would’ve really upset her to know I felt that way about her at that time. **Turn the radio UP!** Barry Manilow Golden god of Adult Contemporary Music Turn the radio up,it’s “Weekends in New England” The melody’s playing all over town,no blues comin’ round I hear the harmony and I sing along,singing at the top of my lungs Every time I hear your voice,my blues just drift Cannot stay no more when you begin to shift and shift Into “Copacabana” or “I Sing the Songs(That make the whole world sing)” You can brighten my day with just one note,don’tcha know Oh Barry I think I’m in love (Sssh…don’t tell my husband…he’ll get jealous.:)) Turn the radio up It looks like we made it,all these years you’ve carried me through WHen I was down,you brought me up When I was sad you made me glad So sing on,golden boy,and play that piano right Don’t turn t he radio off,turn the radio up Barry’s on! Yes…alright…I confess. I think Barry Manilow is a hottie.😃 MetalMaven ---
**Author:** ![Frankenbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c0e974/32.png) [@Frankenbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frankenbear)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/18 "2003-09-27T22:15:20Z")
Thanks, Maven, and I agree whole-heartedly. I never make a conscious effort to sit down and write poetry. It either flows out on it’s own or it doesn’t. I have others. Some sappy, some strange, some disturbing and one that is definitely not appropriate to post here. I think writing is a great way to release pent up emotions. ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/19 "2003-09-28T01:44:17Z")
I fell overboard today. I float here in the sea. I watch the clouds go drifting by and wish they’d carry me. ---
**Author:** ![auntnut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f6c823/32.png) [@auntnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/auntnut)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879/20 "2003-09-28T02:09:48Z")
OH, INNER CHILD Oh, inner child, where are you now? Why can’t I find you? Please show me how. If I look into my mind, and go back in time, will you be there, waiting for me? Are you sitting on the curb, with your chin in your hand? Are you waiting for me…to show you the plan? _How do we do it?_ I’ll show you the way. _Where are we going? Is it somewhere to play?_ Yes, we can laugh and play and watch clouds go by… and, if something hurts us, it’s ok to cry. We’re allowed to be children, and have hopeful dreams… No fear, and no beatings…or pain till you scream. I can’t stop the pain that you used to go through, But, I can keep ANYONE from ever hurting you. I will hold you, and love you like you never had, and, I’ll tell you you’re good, and that I’m so glad… that you’re coming with me…HURRY !! Let’s pack… you can take all you want to…I’ve got a big sack. Let’s take hope and laughter, and oh, don’t forget! All the joy that you wanted…and never did get. Put them all in together, and now, we should go… we have a long journey, and the start might be slow. But, I’m in no hurry, take all the time you need, there’s really no rush, we dont need to speed. Let’s journey together, and leave this sad place… let’s go back to our future… _Hey!! Wanna race??_ Jeanette K /1991 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inspired-by-the-poetry-thread-submit-your-own-poetry/203879.md?page=2)