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Joined: Oct 2010
Rules: Write a poem for national poetry month on the topic or form described. Each poem should appear as a separate reply to this thread. The goal is to, at the end of the month have written 30 poems for National Poetry Month.
Topic 8: Write a poem inspired by a set of instructions.
Form : any
Line requirements: 8 lines or more
Questions?
The secret of poetry is cruelty.--Jon Anderson
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Toast
Of course you could start with flour, water, sugar, salt and yeast, last
but by no means unimportant. Combine and leave to prove itself,
somewhere undisturbed, away from prying eyes - and know that
kneading may not be necessary - then turn it out into a tin, tub, trough,
take your pick, fold with care to form and fit then bake until it is the best,
hale and resoundingly hollow, that close to perfect. Then, once cool
to the touch, slice; to fit beneath the grill, into the slot, the proposed topping,
and bring it to the flame or fiery filament. Or, if you prefer, you might
take one prepared earlier, en masse, already cut, and simply do your best
not to burn it. Again.
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the end of history
the pastor claims we must take our trials with a smile, that we must become more than men. he gives, as examples, saint stephen, saint paul, and saint james. he gives, as an example, his life: the trials he faced when outside of the church, the trials he faced when within it. how the family home burned down, and his father died soon after; how he plowed through a kid while speeding, and the kid left the hospital scrapeless.
i stop listening -- how could i not? -- and open the book to job. i remember the madness of prophets. i remember the tears of our lord.
let the congregation scatter. let the church walls fall. let the holy book burn. let the holy relics crumble into dust. let the grass wither. let the flower perish. let the humble be humbled. let the rich be crowned in thorns.
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To be a poetic runt
then to force a fruitless hunt
through thick ideas. Verbose, blunt,
thought-provoking, draining. Bunt
this one, a homerun's a stunt
that's unlikely, makes me grunt
thinking about it, to punt
the word noggin everyday for a month.
Peanut butter honey banana sandwiches
just mercedes
Unregistered
Mythbusters: Elephant lofting
First catch your blue whale.
Keep it alive. Feed copious amounts
of krill, 2,000 tonnes per meal.
Carefully insert prepared
butt plug. Be prepared to wait
up to five years.
Meanwhile train your elephant
to stand while you custom-fit
a balloon made of cellulose fibre
and spider web to encompass it
entirely.
When whale flatus appears imminent
(a good cook will learn to recognise
the signs) attach neck of balloon
to butt plug. Timing is important
to avoid accidents.
Then take bets on whether the fart
will propel the balloon through
the ocean, break surface, and loft
the elephant into the sky.
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Final Instructions
7. Complete, examine each part of the action for damage.
A boy falls dead.
A gun which shot him,
carefully designed
for safety, effectiveness,
low price and mass production
functioned nominally.
A boy who aimed and triggered it
told he’s a man
(which is a bad thing)
but whose incorrigible
resentment and indiscipline
show, he’s told,
that he’s a victim
worthy of all he desires.
Authorities, his tellers
who felt well about
their progressive inactions.
His adoptive parents
who could not deal
with maladjustment so severe.
His parents
who died.
8. Reassemble in reverse order.
 Non-practicing atheist
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Unplanned
That night you told me
your hair sat on your shoulder
like a lazy cat;
your lips contorted, eyes squinted,
the same look you always had when nervous.
The night my mother explained how to change a diaper,
joy was too small a word to describe her smile,
her eyes were brighter than the surest stars
used to navigate a voyage.
Time is the best editor.
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Joined: Oct 2010
04-09-2018, 07:53 AM
(This post was last modified: 04-09-2018, 10:42 PM by Todd.)
On Swaddling the Baby
Your wife is in the bathroom crying;
she and the baby are finally in the same pitch.
Sleep is the light at the end of a dark tunnel,
wait that’s death, stupid cliched death—it’s all fuzzy
like the blanket you place under the baby. Your wife is sobbing
instructions through the door; you missed
step three again. You begin to fold the baby
like a fitted sheet into an origami crane. What
is step three? The baby is crying
and doesn’t look like a crane. He looks
like a burrito. You ask if your wife wants
Mexican, but the burrito isn’t staying together.
You’ll get beans all over the baby. You go
to the garage for a staple gun.
The secret of poetry is cruelty.--Jon Anderson
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Haines Manual
I have a scar on my right thumb
that sits in between,
unbolt and remove sprocket
and replace blood covered bushes.
It doesn’t say that the puckered skin
will smell of two stroke and wet leather
or make you think of motorcycle rides
when that fat thumb hovers over a poem.
If your undies fer you've been smoking through em, don't peg em out
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Joined: Oct 2010
(04-09-2018, 05:37 PM)Keith Wrote: Haines Manual
I have a scar on my right thumb
that sits in between,
unbolt and remove sprocket
and replace blood covered bushes.
It doesn’t say that the puckered skin
will smell of two stroke and wet leather
or make you think of motorcycle rides
when that fat thumb hovers over a poem.
Scars often become our instruction manuals. Glad you could join, Keith.
The secret of poetry is cruelty.--Jon Anderson
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Joined: May 2014
How To Chill
It was a socks-off
bras-off
get-into-our-sweats
kind of Friday afternoon.
We'd just picked up
a chunk of hash
and a bottle of port
to mix with mountain dew.
I let you talk
me into one of those chick-flicks
I'd pretend to endure
but secretly loved
and we dissolved into the couch.
We were both bawling
by the credits
and polished off the port
before making love on the stairs
like they did in the movie.
But it was really you,
and it was really me,
and it was really delicious.
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handle with care
this is a technically advanced product,
with an extraordinary range
and reliable, repeated ejection,
designed for soft targets.
please note that there are laws
impeding its sale
in zones of political instability.
see the foot notes
for explanation and contact us
directly for further information
on ways of evasion.
it is illegal to use the item
for crime.
its purpose is defense
and protection against the vast numbers
of other customers.
clean the product regularly, and keep the parts
away from infants younger than 36 months
who might suffocate by swallowing them.
do not dry any component in the microwave.
the backlash is considerable
and increases the probability of spilling...
therefore do not use it
while you drink hot coffee.
the product might be hazardous to health
and possibly lethal to humans,
even children above the age of 3.
we distance ourselves completely
from all kinds
of improper handling.
...
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Joined: Nov 2015
(04-10-2018, 12:24 AM)vagabond Wrote: handle with care
this is a technically advanced product,
with an extraordinary range
and reliable, repeated ejection,
designed for soft targets.
please note that there are laws
impeding its sale
in zones of political instability.
see the foot notes
for explanation and contact us
directly for further information
on ways of evasion.
it is illegal to use the item
for crime.
its purpose is defense
and protection against the vast numbers
of other customers.
clean the product regularly, and keep the parts
away from infants younger than 36 months
who might suffocate by swallowing them.
do not dry any component in the microwave.
the backlash is considerable
and increases the probability of spilling...
therefore do not use it
while you drink hot coffee.
the product might be hazardous to health
and possibly lethal to humans,
even children above the age of 3.
we distance ourselves completely
from all kinds
of improper handling.
No need to apologize - I submit these before reading any of the other entries in the thread, could as easily have happened to me. And may.
But on the subject of warnings - following a consent decree in the case of an idiot a person who succeeded in shooting himself with one of their fine products while attempting to holster it, every Ruger revolver is roll-stamped on the barrel with the following:
BEFORE USING GUN - READ WARNINGS IN INSTRUCTION MANUAL AVAILABLE FREE FROM
---------- STURM, RUGER & CO., INC. SOUTHPORT, CONN. U.S.A. ----------
(Had to get one out of the closet to make sure of the wording. The company has moved from Connecticut, this is from an old example.)
They say, if you've got a Ruger and run out of ammunition, you can at least sit down and read it. (Itallics in original.)
Non-practicing atheist
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Do not immerse in water, so it said
and I, a cynic, naturally read
this warning with a laugh and one raised brow --
a quirk I'd practised often -- anyhow
I plugged it in. The little light glowed red
like Mother's eyes before she'd deftly shred
our little sinner hides for filching bread
or speaking to the neighbour, Mr Chao:
do not immerse
Our worlds and theirs should never mix. They spread
disease. The tub is full, my clothing shed
like Chen's the day we kissed and made our vow
to love or leave the world. Well, Chen's gone now.
His father and my mother both were bred
to not immerse.
It could be worse
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