Endless Summers – 25th October 2024

Shared with No Theme Thursday picture prompt and The Sunday Whirl Wordle #675
(wordlist: witchcraft metamorphosis garden whirl woods fly siren sign breath stone circle why)

Strong Cap – 19th October 2024

October 19, 2024October 19, 2024 ~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 12 Comments

Vacuous thoughts rise
– then becoming prosaic
Never surrender!
Clarity comes with coffee
– so life has meaning again

Shared with Tanka Tuesday using synonyms for mindless and humdrum and reflecting the struggle to write before coffee and the ability to conjure words after coffee!

A Light Sentence – 18th October 2024

October 18, 2024 ~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 18 Comments

Until the end of my days
I’m fighting to finish this life sentence

It may be 25 years or longer
The key is here somewhere

It’s solitary confinement
No escaping the prison of my mind

Resigned to my fate
The end of the tunnel

Shared with dVerse Quadrille #210 – light

You Are The Key – 17th October 2024

October 17, 2024August 26, 2024 ~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 5 Comments

Cultivate your garden
On the revelations of loss
A flower to push on through
The weeds you’ll come across

Are you terrified of the rain
Or love rolling around in mud?
Either way, stand up again
To see roses made from blood

There always was a before
And there will be an after
For every tear spilt
Endless hours of laughter

You can hold onto your pain
Keep it safely in a box
Remind yourself now and again
Of this healthy paradox

Inspired and paraphrased from this post at Spinning Visions

The Captain’s Heart – 16th October 2024

October 16, 2024December 14, 2024 ~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 6 Comments

In the desire to impose order and ritual
Where do you find yourself at end of the day?
Ahead lies the veiled valley
To walk in the everyday world
With promise, a heart full of hope
To be humbled by the universe

Receiving truth in fragments – parts
Colliding, collapsing, pulling & pushing as if
They change every night and pull you along with them
Its dark edges are still dissolving
The captain’s heart, a compass true and fierce
Brings souls together

A cento – 12 lines from 12 other poems. Each line is linked back to the original full poem.

And so it must be repeated…

…when the cat scratches at the door wanting to be let income, come

And so it must be repeated…

…when screeches of missiles fly overheadrun, run

And so it must be repeated…

…when Mama’s voice soothes the frayed edgesthere, there

And so it must be repeated…

…when the fringe comes to the centrewin, win

And so it must be repeated…

…when the image of the devil is hailed as a heropraise, praise

And so it must be repeated…

…when all the signs of dying breaths disappeargone, gone

And so it must be repeated…

…when the locks are bolted after sunsettight, tight

And so it must be repeated…

…when shiny ribbons emerge from the dustcuriouser and curiouser

And so it must be repeated…

…when the tide rises to overwhelm the bloodied sandsrush, rush

And so it must be repeated…

…when the swarm of flies search for new fleshbuzz buzz

And so it must be repeated…

…when the ghoulish fiends build castles on the haunted beachhigher and higher

And so it must be repeated…

…when the night breaks so does the heartbeat

beat

beat

Dear me. Yes, you!Recall that time you made a fool of yourself?Your so-called friends, laughing and pointingYou grew stronger with every struggleAnd maybe now, you don’t even recallYou are still here and where are they now?

Vacuous thoughts rise – then becoming prosaicNever surrender!Clarity comes with coffee – so life has meaning again

Until the end of my daysI’m fighting to finish this life sentenceIt may be 25 years or longerThe key is here somewhereIt’s solitary confinementNo escaping the prison of my mindResigned to my fateThe end of the tunnel

…when the cat scratches at the door wanting to be let in
come, come

…when screeches of missiles fly overhead
run, run

…when Mama’s voice soothes the frayed edges
there, there

…when the fringe comes to the centre
win, win

…when the image of the devil is hailed as a hero
praise, praise

…when all the signs of dying breaths disappear
gone, gone

…when the locks are bolted after sunset
tight, tight

…when shiny ribbons emerge from the dust
curiouser and curiouser

…when the tide rises to overwhelm the bloodied sands
rush, rush

…when the swarm of flies search for new flesh
buzz buzz

…when the ghoulish fiends build castles on the haunted beach
higher and higher

…when the night breaks so does the heart
beat

Dear me. Yes, you!

Recall that time you made a fool of yourself?
Your so-called friends, laughing and pointing

You grew stronger with every struggle
And maybe now, you don’t even recall
You are still here and where are they now?

Vacuous thoughts rise
– then becoming prosaic
Never surrender!
Clarity comes with coffee
– so life has meaning again

Until the end of my days
I’m fighting to finish this life sentence

It may be 25 years or longer
The key is here somewhere

It’s solitary confinement
No escaping the prison of my mind

Resigned to my fate
The end of the tunnel