So I just wrote my final poem for the 30 Day Poetry Challenge, and I thought that I would share some of my poems from this process with you. I was proud of myself for actually sticking with it and writing 30 poems in 30 days!
Free
She's the kind of girl no one really knows--dancing
alone at weddings with violets
in her hair.
She's everyone's friend
and no one's
as she presses a cigarette
to her chapped lips
and looks right through
all of them.
She's always a tourist, the permanent
visitor--collecting them all like souvenirs.
She keeps a shrine of red plastic cups
in her pick-up truck
to remember a life that was once hers.
All of the boys think they're in love with her,
but no one can be sure.
No one can be sure.
Untitled Limerick
There once was a man in MacCrackens,
Whose tact was severely lacking.
He sat on my knee,
And whispered to me,
“You’re hot, but you could use a smacking.”
Sleight of Hand
He flips through the deck of cards, flings his colored scarf.
I’m singing for absolution, getting lost in a Muse song.
He would know what this meant if he paid attention.
“Dream about me,” he whispers. My defenses are up.
I’m singing for absolution, getting lost in a Muse song.
He’s painting false visions in the air for his audience.
“Dream about me,” he whispers. My defenses are falling.
I see the white dove fly into the distance.
He’s painting false visions on a canvas. I am his audience.
They’ve tried to impress me before. I never fell for illusions.
I see the white dove fly into the distance.
I hold my breath, counting stars in the sky.
I know this is an illusion, but I can’t make myself see it.
The colors are changing, the shades are shifting.
I’m shutting my eyes tight, counting stars in my mind.
I’m getting dizzy. I can’t remain standing.
The shades are shifting, the colors are changing.
I would know the truth if I paid attention.
I’m getting dizzy, can’t remain standing.
Fling your colored scarf at me, let me pick a card.
Conversations With the Sky
The violet petals flew in the wind,
late into the day
when the sun was beginning
to make its way to the other
side of the world.
We are so egocentric, I thought.
In the silent mist of evening,
I sat on my porch, staring
at the overwhelming sky
in all of its spacious longing.
Wait for me, I thought. I can be
a little slow sometimes but I promise
to remain still if you help me
stay protected.
The teal sky faded into
tranquil darkness, the cautious stars
making an appearance, winking at me.
And for once, I was calm.
Carpe Diem
In a crowd of strangers,
you caught my eye.
I remember that now
even though it makes me
cringe to know how it
ends
Carpe diem
is being able to say
“I’ll do it anyway.”
Sparks
The Virgo lighter
sits on my coffee table
(even though I'm not a Virgo,
not even a little bit.)
It's running out of lighter
fluid. When I try to ignite
the flame, it half-heartedly
attempts to form sparks.
It looks like a normal
cigarette lighter that
you might hold up
during the epic hair band love song,
with your drunken arm
around your girl
pretending you'll still be together
when the song ends.
Once the flame was burning as brightly
as the power chords that played
while the lead singer wailed
with his wild hair in all different directions
smearing his eyeliner with beads of sweat.
But now, it's just a shell, a memory
that tries so hard to produce sparks
but can't.
Sundown
The sun sneaks out from behind feather clouds, shining shyly. Its radiance doesn't touch my skin and I pull my silver sweater over my chest. It's full of holes, I notice with a sigh. I hear the neighbors hiss at each other through hushed whispers on the patio and somehow I still miss someone, a stranger I've never known. When I close my eyes, I can still hear his voice speaking softly in a foreign tongue, whispering words of wisdom I can't yet understand. If I searched the smoky spring sky, damp with disappointment of half-hearted promises from the night before, would I find him sulking in the corner or shining with a vibrant spirit I've never seen before? The sun sinks down behind the feather clouds, dimly fading into a star-soaked evening, leaving me shivering, still searching.