Amazing Squares

Wow...this morning I logged on, only to find I'd been nominated for an award!

It would appear that I'm a versatile blogger!  Really? Who knew?

So here it is...my amazing (green) square. Thank you Lolamouse for the nomination.

So, in honour of my amazing square (blogger award)

I wrote a square stanza called...Amazing Squares (duh!)


AMAZING SQUARES

(this poem reads the same horizontally and vertically)

wander   around,     this        way        and          that

around,    every       turn,       too       complex    seems

   this        turn,          is         simple,     not         quite

   way        too        simple       to           be       puzzling!

   and     complex      not          be          in           you

   that       seems      quite    puzzling!    you      amazed?

Now as a condition of my nomination...I have to tell you 7 things about me that you probably don't want to know, but are now obliged to read :-

1. I find it really hard to write free verse.

2. My two sons and I all have the initial E for our first names.
    Collectively we're known as the 3 E's

3. I like most sweet/salt combinations, peanuts & raisins etc...

4. I'll love to  watch Hannah Montana sans children

5. My English accent is still very strong, despite living in Canada for 20 years

6. I probably own more pairs of pyjamas than anyone on this planet.

7. I'm a (very slow) long distance runner...about to do my 3rd Half Marathon




Oh....and I also have to nominate 15 others. I'm working on that. Stay tuned!

Firstly I'd like to nominate:-

1. Charlie Parant over at Appetite for Words, he's an "Amazing" wordsmith.
2. Happygirl over at Being Happy, has an "Amazing" way of making me smile.
3. Check out Lightverse. RJ Clarken, is quite simply "Amazing"
4. You're sure to be Inspired by Lisa, I find she's pretty "Amazing"
5. Please stop by Reflections, some "Amazing" stuff to see there.

Well

My unbalanced theology,
And casual methodology,
Has left this pious Pharisee,
Free falling in a...

It's dark in here, I cannot see,
I'm looking up, can You see me?
So far from where I need to be,
And calling from the...

I know a spring that readily,
Brings living water here to me,
Abundant grace which flows so free,
Can draw me from this..

And back in Your reality
Forgiving arms embracing me,
I'm here with You and You're with me,
I know that all is...
                          ...Well.

Control Freak

Maybe loud can be persuasive
So you yell and shriek

Maybe controlling the riches
Makes you less weak

Maybe go check out the mirror
Take a quick peak

Maybe you'll see what I'm seeing
A control freak


Posted for Three Word Wednesday loud, persuasive, riches
And for One Shot Wednesday

Underneath That Smile

Since everybody wants to know

What lies beneath my smile
I'm finally going to tell you
What's been secret for a while

The eggs I had for breakfast
They have given me some gas
I know it will be toxic
So I'm hoping it might pass

My underwire push-up bra
To make my chest seem higher
Is sticking in my armpit
And it feels like it's on fire

I'm wearing a new corset
With a scratchy woolen sash
I think that I'm allergic
'Cause it's giving me a rash

I dressed in such a hurry
There's a layer I may have missed
And now I have a wedgie
Got my knickers in a twist

The fastenings on my undies
Have got such an awkward catch
They're tickly and itchy
How I'd love to take a scratch

And there is also one more thing
I think that you should know
I have a tiny bladder
And I really have to go

What's private is now public
You now know what lies beneath
And each and every reason that
I smile and grit my teeth


Posted for Magpie Tales
For my other Magpie, click here

Amusing

A"muse"ing
Amusing?
Crowds clamour at your gate

Protected
Reflected
Enigmatic portrait

Beguiling
This smiling
For centuries we debate

Compelling
Not telling?
A secret worth the wait.





Posted for Magpie Tales
For my other Magpie, click here

Square Stanza

step        across           this         page,        and           I'll
down        and          vertical        yes         you're      write
 this     horizontal        row,           it's           just         you
page,        yes              it's          cubed        O            my
 and        you're            just             O            so         square
  I'll           write             you            my        square    stanza




I first saw this poetic form yesterday. It's called
a Square Stanza. In its true form it will read alike
both horizontally and vertically. Mine has a few
minor variations!

Duel

Duel

Beloved, how oft dost thou slay me

Upon a bed of wanton splendour?

How oft art thou kisses fierce, yet tender?

I shrink not from thine advance, but 

Hold stance in surrender

Take up thy sword for again we will duel

In retreat, I am felled o'er silken sheets

Locked in combat,  we trade blow for blow

Mine eyes disarm, thine arms disrobe

And whispered words caress a lobe

Shield me with the scent of thy skin

Leave me contorted and quivering

 Under thy tumoultuous touch

Thy beating heart muting the sound

Of our battle cries. As we rise...

 Come thou, release unto me

 The raging fuel of thy fire

 Extinguish my eternal flame, 'til I lay

Parched and drenched, spent,

At the sweet exchange

Full moonlight surveys a carnage

Of twisted limbs ensnared in an embrace

We arise, only to crown each other

 Victorious. This was war

And love conquered

Posted for Magpie Tales and One Shot Wednesday

For my other Magpie click here

Goliath

His was a quiet courage

The purple heart of the boy-man beating

Wildly within an armourless chest

Surrounded by emeritus gladiators who had gathered with

Heroes and champions, each wearing their

Trophies of mutilated flesh

Stories, mightier than egos, relished and

Embellished at every telling

Were suddenly hushed

Into deafening silence

 He bore no sword 

 Shielded only by the faith of his forefathers

 Trusting a God who loomed larger in his heart

 Than the towering Titan before him

His weapons: a slingshot, five smooth stones

And a mustard seed of faith

Taking aim, he found an achilles on Goliath's forehead
And felled the Philistine Giant

Rising as a legend

And a King



Midnight Mad(Hatter)ness

Illustration by Fernando Falcone

Tiptoe through the trees by the silver moonlight

The Mad Hatters' party is happening tonight

Come straight to the table and pull up a chair

Some interesting people are going to be there

The Rabbit, the Dormouse the Cheshire Cat

Alice and the Hatter, wearing his new hat

You wont fall asleep for there's too much to see

With "Eat Me" cupcakes and some "Drink Me" sweet tea

There's magic and mystery and curious suspense

There's giggling and folly and lots of nonsense

Bring imagination for this special date

It's starting at midnight and please don't be late!

Posted for Mondays Child

Love, Life & Death in Japan

I felt a light breeze across a chasm.

 A tickle.

It stirred the very core of me

 The winds of change brought love, like

 A tsunami and washed us ashore

Together

 Mellow and aging

I felt a tremor within my chasm
A heartbeat
It moved the very core of me
The winds of change brought life, like
A tsunami and washed us ashore
Together
Parent and child

I felt an earthquake across a chasm.

 An 8.9

It shook the very core of me

The winds of change brought death, with

 A tsunami and washed us ashore

Together

Dead and buried

Posted for Three Word Wednesday prompt "breeze, tickle and mellow"
And for One Shot Wednesday

Before & After: A Duet

Before...

For a time
I was yours and you were mine
And we shined
Like a myriad diamonds mined
Intertwined
Every border undefined
And all I can remember
Is what I can't forget
Just you and I, a love song
A Duet

After...

What remains?
A gaping canyon in the plains
Uncontained
Are the tears that flow again
Nothing gained
But the wisdom from this pain
And all I will remember
Is what I won't forget
That you and I, we once were
A Duet

Luck O' The Irish



Fair Emerald Isle
Where green eyes smile
May rainbows grant
Three clovered wish

Upon this life
No blight or strife
But favoured Luck
O' The Irish


Posted for Magpie Tales

Surprise

Some flowers for my Grandma
To brighten up her day
I hang them on the doorknob
Then knock and run away
Hiding behind the oak tree
I cover up my eyes
But when I hear the creaky door
I'll shout a big "SURPRISE"








Posted for Mondays Child

from HATE to LOVE

it's such a big word   HATE  and to remove hate from this world
       you will need to  HAVE  a force much bigger and stronger. so look up

        higher, above   HOVE  from "hova" the hebrew word for Jehovah, who is God.

                      God is  LOVE  and pure agape love is much bigger than hate could ever be.

* this is a Doublet: a word is changed one letter at a time,

into another and arranged vertically in the poem.*

Posted for Sunday Scribblings word prompt "big"

The Right Track

He
a successful failure
in a bespoke tailored
Suit

She
not quite high school pretty
but with make-up could be
Cute

They
stationed, eyes engage
upon the rush hour
Commute

Now
share a married journey
and still travel the same
Route

Me Of Many Words

I am me of many words
There's so much I must convey
Pairing rhythm with some rhyme
In a marriage of wordplay

I am me of many words
Seeing language everywhere
Playing up a verb or noun
Just to lay it down with flair

I am me of many words
Writing poetry and prose
I'm selective with adjectives
Which I place in lines and rows

I am me of many words
With a message to engage
Praying secret silent thoughts
Echo loudly from the page


Yet the me of many words
Finds that there are oh so few
That can fully tell the mystery
And majesty of You

Crying out for mercy

I'm head and body, hands and feet
in all this wholeness, incomplete
I fall before Your Holy seat
just crying out for mercy

I'm skin and muscle, flesh and spine
preportionately packaged fine
the human image of Divine
yet crying out for mercy

I'm soul and spirit, heart and mind
my inner being intertwined
But from within, somehow I find,
I'm crying out for mercy

Now take a closer look at me
whole, or in pieces you will see
I always was, always will be
just crying out for mercy



Posted for imperfect prose

how facebook killed my closest friend

(a ballad)

come listen to a tragic tale

your ears I hope you'll lend

how facebook crept into my life

and killed my closest friend

now facebook did not wield a knife

or use a gun to shoot her

it simply by osmosis

sucked her into the computer

way back in the beginning

we were both joined at the hip

we had a lot in common

such a great relationship

she clicked "like"on some pages

and her friendlist grew and grew

It got up to the 1000's

'til she knew not what to do

I gazed in awe and wonder

at her popularity

she had so many friends now

that she had no time for me

quite often, almost daily  

we engaged in facebook chat

but one day she went offline

and that put an end to that

then very slowly over time

in subtle ways so small

was less communication

and less writing on the wall

at first I didn't notice

there was no cause for alarm

we still had games of scrabble

and grew stuff upon our farm

the messages in my inbox

well, they soon began to fail

'til I was just a number

in a really mass email

and then upon the grapevine

I received the latest scoop

that my name was omitted

from the mass emailing loop

I still tried not to worry

for there was no need for doubt

I knew outside of facebook

we'd still spend time hanging out

but when I tried to make some plans

you know what happened next?

she didn't call my cellphone

or send message via text 

I wanted to address this

but she shrugged me off to say

"oh let's just meet on facebook

'cause we're on here everyday"

I still "see" her on facebook

I will not lie or pretend

she may be on my friendlist

but I cannot call her friend

now I have lost my closest friend

she's virtually deceased

with no communication

you could say she "rests in peace"

  

 so, if anti-social networking

begins consuming you

I pray proceed with caution

lest it kill your best friend too.

    Here lies the remains of a

    "One-Sided Friendship"

    Once a close friend.

Sadly you will (not) be missed.

   R.I.P

In lieu of spending money on flowers

I will be spending more quality time on

                  my own, which I was doing anyway.                     

The "friend" in this poem is fictitious. Any resemblence to persons living or dead is purely coincidental.

Jekyll and Hyde

Dr Jekyll, Mr Hyde
How come so bad and good inside?
Enticed away by fullest flavor
Culinary cuisine, I'd love to savor
But friends say you're no good for me
That we should not keep company
I've tried disguise with herbs so fine
Why must our love be clandestine?
And so in secret I'll conspire
To bite you hard...I'm no vampire!








Posted for Magpie Tales

Some Bunny

Somebunny

Somebunny is yawning

And sneaking a look

Somebunny is falling

Asleep in a book

And Somebunny's eyelids

Are starting to drop

And Somebunny's big ears

Are starting to flop

So here's a soft pillow

For Somebunny's head

And I'll read Somebunny

A book before bed



Posted for Mondays Child

Curtain Call

She'd played every part
Every venue. Great and
small. Page two news and
five star reviews. Applause
flowers, final bow, encore
after encore. And now...

This was to be her finest
hour. An unexpected
illness would not upstage
her moment of glory.
So, she rehearsed the
final scene. An audience
of family and closest
friends would gather
by her beside. There'd
be all the drama. Tears
laughter. Right on cue.
And she would shine
centrestage as own her
spotlight was fading.
It would be memorable.
Magnificent.


But at her final curtain
call, she exited stage
left, at the bottom of the
stairs. Alone.



Posted for One Shoot Sunday

Raw

She fumbled the key in the lock, and it dropped noiselessly on the welcome mat. Removing her gloves, she tried to retrieve the key with her numb fingers. Her hands were cold. Sore. Raw. "Why do I keep doing this to myself?"

She was of course, referring to her habit. Her bad habit. Ringing her hands together over and over, until they were red raw and the blood bristled at the surface of her skin. Painful? yes, but life had dealt her far worse blows.

Back in the apartment, she trailblazed a new road of restlessness. Her anxiety disorder was wreaking havoc on the uneven traffic pile in the carpet.  But she was expecting a call. Now, the waiting game...

Her mind was on rewind, as she reviewed the interview. Wait, interrogation! A panel of five. Three men, two women, for an entry level position?  Really? That was unexpected. She really needed this job and hoped that her personality shone through. Not her hands.

It was tough. She felt like a raw carrot going through the smallest hole of the food grater. Such force, such pressure. Down to the knuckle. Questions quickly coming at her from every side. Over and over. Her past, her present, her future, her inability to keep a job for more than a few months. It was so hot in the room. And her hands were hot too. Burning hot. She was squeezing them.

She couldn't read them. But they read her well. Red raw.

More ringing. This time the phone. Even with the ringer setting on high, it barely registered above the noise of her thoughts. She answered it, completely out of breath, although the handset was well within arms reach. "Yes, this is Jill speaking..."

One of them went on to explain why they offered the job to someone else. To a more "suitable" candidate. She listened, not hearing,  then hung up the phone. "Great" she said. "Just great!"


Posted for Sunday Scribblings

Spring Collection

Spring Collection

Put away all the grey and the white - here's the reason
Those boring cold colours, are just so last season
Backstage, underground and waiting to be seen
Are fashionable flowers on runways of green

Sashaying in breeze and shining in light
Parading their colours both subtle and bright
Designer displays of pure petaled perfection
Look, God is unveiling His new Spring Collection



Posted for Friday Poetically

A New Day

Sometimes, dawn comes dancing
into my day as the song sparrow
serenades the sun. A light warm
breeze disturbs the morning dew,
releasing the sweet damp fragrance
of the earth and shakes the slumber
from my senses.
There is a windsong I hear.A tender
tune. A new familiar melody that
harmonizes above the cheerful chorus
of creation. It's a call to commence.
My heart resonates within, and I
waiting, give thanks for the unknown.

The Book

The Book

I see You dressed
in fine leather and
embossed in gold.
My fingers lightly
trace Your spine.
And when I hold
firmly this Truth I
know that You too
are mine.
My backbone and
my strength.

Wearing a layer
of dust today, the
telltale giveway
that I have gone
in search of other
authors with their
more updated
less antiquated
quick fix, readers
digestable versions.
But I find it hard
to draw meat
through a straw.
And I return.

A paradox? Some
would claim. And I
cannot deny, the
apparant contadictions
but my convictions
stand firm in the
belief that I have
found The Way
It is a road map,
and I will follow in
the footsteps of the
One who will lead
me through tears
and blood stained
red letters to the
X that marks the
spot. The Cross.

This mystery that is
Gods Autobiography
and my biography,
both a sword that
will pierce and
liberate my soul.
It is my history and
my future. I will read
the book, on and on
page after page,
losing myself and
finding the lost me
found in the
conclusion that when
You finally close the
book on Revelation, it
will be, my Genesis.


Posted for Theme Thursday and imperfect prose

Hurry

Hurry

limbs lock

hips rock

 Sumo fashion

red hot

g-spot

lightening passion

his greed

her need

5 minute ration

Thoughts

Yesterday I thought of You,
Again today I thought it too,
This thought tomorrow comes anew,
Yet here's the funny thing that's true,
Before I even thought of You,
That You were

T
H
I
N
K
I
N
G

Of me too.

Psalm 139 vs 13 - 16

(Who would've thought?)

It's Grace

No theory commend it,
No fact can up-end it,
And time can't suspend it,
This mystery called Grace.

No force apprehend it,
No lawyer defend it,
No judgement can bend it,
Love holds it in place.

Lord never amend it,
I'm grateful You send it,
Will I comprehend it,
When I see Your face?




( Gods' Grace... it's AMAZING!)