Spoken Word
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Unplanned poetry makes my day
Witness what the poet must say
Public word play that delights
Forget the subject’s relevance
Verse rhyme scheme or elegance
Simple eloquence unites
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Permanent Bloom
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In a garden full of real blooms
I’m drawn to the metal flowers
On the gates of the garden rooms
*
Lasting eons instead of hours
Never bothered by garden pests
Patinaed by weather’s power
*
Within may still find insect nests
Though not a perfect habitat
Upon it you’ll find a bird rests
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(An Enclosed Triplet Poem)
Natural Art
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As intricate as the patterns on a quilt
Subtle color, fine beauty beyond belief
Like an old stained glass window complete with gilt
Fascinating as a headdress on a chief
As complicated as the new building built
Textured like mosaic or bas relief
Reflecting sunlight like a jewelry box spilt
How can anyone think this is just a leaf?
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(An Italian Octave)
Smells so Good… If I Remember
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My favorite fragrance bloomed today
But I forgot to smell it
Took its picture every which way
But I forgot to smell it
Posted the photos on all those public spaces
But I didn’t take time to smell it
Noticed it blooming in other places
But I didn’t take time to smell it
About life and flowers, how goes that phrase?
You have to take time to smell them
Thank goodness I have a few more days
To take time to stop and smell them
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(A Chant Poem)
Plucky
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Tiny seed settles in a crack
Dormant during the winter storms
Emerging from the dark tarmac
As the cold solid soil warms
*
Strongly choosing not to conform
Tiny seed settles in a crack
Seemingly bucking all the norms
Some folks may be taken aback
*
Of course there are a few drawbacks
But tradition doesn’t inform
Tiny seed settles in a crack
Persistently the plant performs
*
Through every season she transforms
For success she has quite the knack
While refusing to be uniform
Tiny seed settles in a crack.
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(A Empat Empat Poem)
Dipsacus fullonum
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With a purple tutu
Covering those sharp spines
Simultaneously
Attracting, repelling
Roadside weed, food for bees
*
Glistens with summer dew
Used to comb wool so fine
Grows spontaneously
Endlessly compelling
Now here from overseas
*
Armored dangerously
Growing and excelling
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Bug of Courage
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Spotted a flower
Spotted a bug
Bug off
Bug out
Out and about
Out of the blue
Blue-eyed girl
Blue in the face
Face to face
Face value
Value judgement
Value of hard work
Work both ways
Works like a dream
Dream on
Dream come true
True blue
True love
Love is blind
Love of my life
Life of the party
Life is good
Good to go
Good and plenty
Plenty of fish
Plenty of exercise
Exercise caution
Exercise daily
Daily meditation
Daily grind
Grind your gears
Grind to a halt
Halt production
Halt in my tracks
Tracks down
Tracks in the snow
Snow on the mountain
Snow White
White knuckle
White magic
Magic bullet
Magic moment
Moment in time
Moment of truth
Truth hurts
Truth is courage
Courage to love
Courage to trust
Trust
Love
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(A Blitz Poem)
Religion
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Marbled sunset is my stained glass
I have faith in the sassafras
my parish is the biomass
*
to the orthodoxy of nature I am beholden
humbled by the buzzing bee in the sunflower golden
the feisty spirit of the small chipmunk does embolden
*
Eternity I find
in rocky shore line
and how stars align
*
Nature’s dogma guides
her rules I abide
through each moon and tide
*
Scripture in leaf veins
bright bird song ordains
cathedral in rains
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Art at the Tire Shop
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I found art in the local tire store
While waiting for four new wheels and rear brakes
I have to wait, what more can I ask for?
*
What’s hidden inside is a mystery
It’s original form is history
*
Now a focal piece and a chair no more
Was the start of this a small mistake?
Or has the creator done this before?
*
You can find art in the strangest places
Beyond museums and display spaces
*
What artwork do I miss as I explore
Gathering groceries, addressing toothaches
Adding some excitement to what may bore
*
I need to live with my eyes open wide
Just never knowing where beauty does hide
*
Art is a lump covered in labels galore
At flea markets and on grocery store cakes
Or the dark doodles on a bathroom door
*
The art you see is in your state of mind
To what you call art others may be blind
*
It is of you reader I do implore
Remember in art there is no mistake
A happy accident someone will adore
*
Art is more than purchases from the store
It’s stickers and stencils and meter breaks
It’s more than home furnishing decor
It can be a chair at the tire store.
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Mid-life Career Change
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I’d like to drive a race car
Earn a living driving fast
Drive fast today and I might
Pay speeding tickets
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I’ve always had a lead foot
Here’s a way to make money
Making a living and I
Don’t have to slow down
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The environmentalist
In me knows this is a waste
But my inner speed demon
Wants to race a car
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(A few Dodoitsu Poems)
A Picture and a Poem 