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The Pen is Mightier than the Sword

Challenging Myself


Tavarilyn

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-stretches-

 

Holy carp has it been so long? Geez. I mean, it wasn't like I posted here much to begin with but has it really been years...? -sheepish- So, perhaps, as penance (Pen-ance?) I shall throw myself on the mercy of a challenge and see what comes of it. -grinds off the rust- I haven't written a poem in years (are we seeing a theme here?) but I was driving home tonight and several thoughts hit me at once. I've been reading through Mardrax and James' posts, greatly impressed, so I thought "why not". And here I go.....

 

Cheers,

Tava

 

 

#1:

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

...safe, then sorry

 

cancer begone, i deny

you

such predawn revelation as is

buried

point oh six millimeters below

my

fingernails, gripping tender

soul

filaments, belladonna-laced thoughts

in

black cages of

ash

 

flakes... flakes... flake, i named

you

and your succor,

buried

beneath layers of pith,

my

nesting doll with no

soul

or hate, no love

in

word or deed, all

ash

 

cakes... cakes... caked on

you

yet somehow always clean,

buried

in plain sight of

my

eyes, ears, nose, lips, heart and

soul

yet somehow always hidden

in

between the sheets, the love poems made of

ash

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Here'S a re-write of the original (listed above). Unsure about it's completeness but time will tell:

 

...safe, then sorry

 

cancer begone

i deny you such predawn revelation

buried point oh six millimeters

below my fingernails

gripping tender soul filaments

belladonna-laced thoughts

in black cages of ash

 

flakes... flakes... flake

i named you and your succor

buried beneath layers of pith

my nesting doll with no soul or hate

no love in word or deed

all ash

 

cakes... cakes... caked on you

yet somehow always clean

buried in plain sight

of my eyes, ears, nose

lips, heart, soul

yet somehow always hidden

in between the sheets

the love poems made of ash

Edited by Tavarilyn
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Weellllll, O.K.!

 

You can join!

 

99 more WITHIN (see how I got that part right this time!?) the next 99 days (not counting today, of course) and you, YES YOU! can have a FREE MIGHTY PEN T-SHIRT!

 

So far, I said 3 shirts to the first three to complete the challenge and it looks like you are on your way to being number three!

 

I like this poem and look forward to MORE from you!

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#2:

 

He loves me... he loves me not...

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ruining roses

 

loose-leaf sheaves,

upon which your hand

writing

left lasting impressions,

expressions teasing

memory,

sit naked in my hand.

 

rote-scribed inscriptions,

humiliation writ

large

righted a wrong,

existentially noble

largess,

exist solely in my memory.

 

rough-hewn hues,

vermillion petals

annihilating

nihilistic desires,

peddling eternal

love,

reflect dazedly in my eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Oh! And thank you, Snypiuer. :} It's good to be back. Hopefully I'll be able to keep this up. Life is very... life-y... right now. As one might expect, that makes for some wonderful (<---pfft) interruptions to the creative process. ;)

 

Cheers,

Tav

Edited by Tavarilyn
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-grins- As motivation is my worst enemy (rather, lack thereof), I hope I can keep up with the pace. I'm already behind a day or two, hehe. Got ideas, but they don't want to materialize on their own. So we'll see. Thank you, though, for the encouragement. I've been writing poetry for a goodly long time but I'm rusty; it's been years.

 

Got a lot to live up to, with both of you lightin' up the forum daily. :)

 

Thxmuch,

Tava

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#3:

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

bottom of the bottle

 

the light dims

as black, bleak, brittle ripples

muzzy fuzziness

 

in the distortion of life's cracks

shallow breaths

concuss, reverberate

 

from their pressures

 

the earthquake shudders

pain-wracked limbs, lips, loves

slide out of space-time

 

into the gravity well

well before

the walls collapse, implode

 

from their lips

 

the lucid thoughts

dip, dive, drown out of reach

of hands grasping

 

in and out and in and out

through wall-eyed glass

only the tableau remains

 

from their fists

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Edited by Tavarilyn
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*Shrug* I haven't quite been managing daily myself, and James has had a few days of outage as well. Don't worry about it.

Either way, you've nothing to live up to. You're doing this for you, not us.

(And perhaps a t-shirt and drinks at the end ;))

 

And kudos for what you've been doing so far. Impressive. ^_^

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What they said! *points upwards*

 

I'm definitely impressed by your poetry. And I can imagine that doing this everyday should make it easier as you progress, once the familiar pathways in your brain are activated again ^_^

 

Keep up the good work :D

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks all! So many kind words and I've not even had a chance to leave comments for anyone else. -blush- Many apologies; I've been absent a few days. Life did it's "thing" again. Always gettin' in the way... suffice to say, the rest of this week is going to be eventful? -sighs- We'll see if I can dredge anything out of my brain.

 

~Tav

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  • 2 weeks later...

Quick and dirty... a lil more narrative this time, but no less introspective. Thank you for all the comments and patience and such. :}

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

interim

 

i haven't thought about you for days except

when motorcycles

ripped up the road at eight

when the doctor called

in anger at nine

when lawyers

wrote the custody papers at ten

when the internet

spread your news at eleven

when our daughter

had her birthday at twelve

when i

had my breakdown at

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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  • 3 weeks later...

Just one of those nights. Lyrical, hopefully still poetic.

 

~Tav

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

bending

 

flex me

this way

and that

watch

watch as i fold

against your will

against my will

yet....

 

want

i want, desire even

need

i need, hate even

 

toss me

this way

and that

turn

turn as i bleed

against your will

against my will

yet...

 

hate

i hate, loathe even

love

i love, desire even

 

fling me

this way

and that

burn

burn as i laugh

against your will

against my will

yet...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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  • 4 weeks later...

#6... this was an in-between-er...

 

~Tav

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

tired

 

I used t'think depression was..

a time of day thing.

But tears are like sweat,

showin' up when the hard work's done.

You rethink, rework,

but life's still the same.

An' I turn to my girl,

Honey...

You love me?

I love you, mama...

Good, good.

Cause your life's gonna change

come t'morrow.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Edited by Tavarilyn
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#7... Haven't posted much lately; feelin' a lil low...

 

~Tav

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

life in B minor

 

the antidepressants

always pressing in

destroy the bounds of my graph

asymptotic poison

to the wallet, to the mind

 

supposedly natural depression

cost a pretty penny to fix

fixed me

fixed my wallet

wrapping oblivion all shiny

 

static against the wooly walls

no highs

no lows

stuck on the median

stuck on the mean

 

steadily realizing

how average life spans

wane and wax

to the tune of pharmaceuticals

but so over the drug

 

my not-now drug

despising all drugs

despising myself

rising above the normal curve yet

wondering about a prescription alcohol plan

 

cursing forward thinking

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Good to see you writing again, sorry that you feel low though. Wish I could help,

All I can offer is an ear, and a pen..

That seems to have ran out of ink. :blushing:

How embarrassing,

sorry about that.

So just an ear is all I have,

but it is always open if you need it.

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  • 4 months later...

back in the saddle again? ... unsure.

the verdict on life is a hung jury.

i'm sure there's prose in there,

but here's another poem instead....

 

~tav

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

serendipity

 

like every forward,

every dedication,

in every book i've ever read

 

choke, how cliche,

on the tears, memories,

you and i

 

too many short lines,

not enough prose,

god, please

 

answer my calls,

my emails,

i love you

 

you love her

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  • 1 year later...

This is pure gold. Nice ending. Didn't think you would go for dramatic incompetent (begs the reading to complete) ending, which is why it works so well. Title could maybe be revised. No suggestions, just feels like something else could rest there too.

 

 

interim

 

i haven't thought about you for days except

when motorcycles

ripped up the road at eight

when the doctor called

in anger at nine

when lawyers

wrote the custody papers at ten

when the internet

spread your news at eleven

when our daughter

had her birthday at twelve

when i had my breakdown at (slight tweak)

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  • 4 years later...

*peeks in, trying to sneak by unnoticed* Well. Five years. Talk about a hiatus! I suppose this challenge is very very inactive by now, but maybe I'll keep going, nevertheless... I think I left off on #8. Here are three more. Maybe I can make up for lost time in bulk. ;)

#9 

Haunted

I miss the scent of newness,

The ache of growth,

Where passion meets reality

Where adolescence folds into adultery

The twisting of like minds, like bodies,

Twisting around taboos

Celebrated at every turn by bodies born of lust.

 

I miss the scent of night,

The pain of smiling,

At every little thing,

At the essence of debauchery

The forging of new bonds, new loves,

Forging old hopes

Into daydream fantasies of bodies born by faith.

 

#10 yadretsey

time rolled backwards yesterday,

tick-ticking the milliseconds slowly,

turning off the tumultuous torrent,

taming the lies, the loves,

tempering the deepest wishes,

terminating the turmoil tenderly,

tendering resignation,

til time stood still...

and we breathe again.

 

#11 Hearthburn

There's not enough medication

To undo the alcohol cravings

To pacify my longings

To make me forget you

 

I have only tears

Where joy was

Pathetic whispers of loss

Need buried deep in the marrow of my soul

 

A lodestone pulls me toward ruin

As I waste a way to nothingness

Dreaming of what could have been

Of what will never be.

 

Thanks for reading, folks. Life is, as always, a constant source of inspiration. Not always positive inspiration, but inspiration nonetheless. Until later...

~Tava

Edited by Tavarilyn
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  • 3 months later...

And, I'm back... at least for a short while. :) Here's #12....

#12 Home

burning bridges

never felt as sweet as it does

with you.

to replace that

would be a sin -

but -

I'd think about it

if it meant never being questioned 

again.

never again loathing tearing at my

breast.

making me hate you,

hate me,

wanting nothing more than

love,

love to rescue me...

from home.

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