Bleary-eyed drunks
stagger down the street;
Eyes drawn to
orbs of color,
Looking up,
the lanterns become
planets.
Spinning spheres of
vertiginousness
that send tipsy chappies
face first into terra firma.
Phantasm Avenue [Free Verse]
Reply
Tag Archives: Free Verse
Spark in the Dark [Free Verse]
Through the inky night,
flies an orange spark.
And then there's darkness
once more.
And then a spray of sparks
arc through the dark.
And then there's darkness
once more.
And then there is a flame,
and darkness is held at bay...
tentatively.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
A Close & Colorless Sea [Free Verse]
The ocean vast
closes in.
Clouds drop.
If the horizon still exists,
it's behind an approaching
wall of gray.
Whatever is closing down
the world has also
drained it of color.
The shadows are black.
The sea foam is white.
Everything else is
some dim, earthy tone.
The sea may have retained
a hint of green or blue,
but it's hard to tell --
so darkened &
gray-infused
are the waters.
I fear the world may shrink
to a dot, like an old timey TV
snapped off, a dot that's
bright white but cold.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
Bonsai Bluff [Free Verse]
green-topped granite.
a gnarled evergreen
clings to the side --
clings without clinging,
effortlessly jutting out
over the chasm
to feel the sun & wind.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
BOOKS: “Rangikura” by Tayi Tibble
Rangikura: Poems by Tayi TibbleMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Amazon.in Page
Release Date: April 9, 2024
This collection by New Zealander, Tayi Tibble, consists of free verse and prose poetry of an autobiographical nature (or presented as such.) It is playful in its use of language, especially in its use of slang and Maori language words, as it deals in a broad emotional landscape.
It has bursts of creative brilliance and evocativeness, but also periods where it’s like reading a teenager’s diary.
All in all, I enjoyed the collection and would recommend it for poetry readers.
View all my reviews
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
Stalking Tiger [Free Verse]
A giant tiger stalks,
baring teeth, tensing claws,
closing the distance
in deep shadows that exist
entirely within the man's mind.
While others, from safe distances,
can see the fearsome beast clearly.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
“A Noiseless Patient Spider” by Walt Whitman [w/ Audio]
A noiseless patient spider,
I mark'd where on a little promontory it stood isolated,
Mark'd how to explore the vacant vast surrounding,
It launch'd forth filament, filament, filament out of itself,
Ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them.
And you O my soul where you stand,
Surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space,
Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them,
Till the bridge you will need be form'd, till the ductile anchor hold,
Till the gossamer thread you fling catch somewhere, O my soul.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
BOOKS: “A Year of Last Things” by Michael Ondaatje
A Year of Last Things: Poems by Michael OndaatjeMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Amazon.in Page
Release Date: March 19, 2024
This collection consists of free verse and prose poems, largely of an autobiographical nature (or presented as such.) A number of these autobiographical poems are at once travel poems, tales from the author’s visits to various countries.
While Ondaatje is more well-known for his critically acclaimed novels (e.g. “The English Patient” and “Anil’s Ghost,”) he’s not new to the poetic artform. The poems in this volume are clever, readable, nicely paced, and interesting. I enjoyed reading this book and would highly recommend it for poetry readers.
View all my reviews
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
Riverly Staff [Free Verse]
Simplicity.
It flows.
It crashes.
It employs only
as much effort as
conditions dictate.
It does not rush
in a panic.
While straight,
its movements seem
whip-like.
When possible,
it moves straight,
But it rolls around or over
any obstacle.
If follows the course,
but also carves
the course.
Its movement, inexorable.
Share on Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.
Through the Gate, Gladly [Free Verse]
Gates remain
long after the walls
have fallen.
People pass through
when they could just
go around.
There's something to
treading the path
of ancestors,
Or maybe they just crave
the claustrophobic
squeeze.
Tiger Riding for Beginners 