OPEN MIC ENCORE
up-dated June 30, 2001

BROKEN DOLLS
Ruth Cheeseman

When, as a child, I, like a broken doll
Lay in whiskey pools and cigarette swirls
And blood streaked walls in a house of disarray...

When, as a girl, I, like a carousel
Spun through my years in ups and downs
With musical choruses of what tomorrows could bring...

When, as a teen, I, like a tender reed
Bruised at boys hands and battered
By winds of internal change and insecurities...

When, as a woman, I, like a dove
Peaceful and contented to the watchers eye
Yet, ever a lowly pigeon on the interior...

When, as a mother, I, like a lion
Protectively nurturing my offspring
Ready to devour any who would harm my kin...

So that they, as children, 
Never become broken dolls.

~@~

"Sorry...I Got No Change"
 Kevin Wilson

I look up through my broken glasses 
Hat brim dripping with bleach and rum 
I don't know where I'm going 
but I know who I am leaving behind me 
in that little leaky house 
Where everyone fights for the same blanket 

I walk past the glamour school 
not really caring that my shoes are ruined 
with developer fluid and tears of barbie dolls 
I'm trying to reach a warm house 
owned by my favorite colors 
But no one's there to open the door 

Finally, after 11 hours of knocking 
someone comes, wearing gold chains and a sneer 
"You want in? You owe me everything..." 
"...Including five thousand sense." 
And I look up, searching my ragged clothes 
Forced to look up and speak 
with my chapped lips 
with my bloodshot eyes 
"I don't have any change." 
~@~

Rose
Glenda R white

Rose's are a sweet smelling thing.
But honey buy them .
Instead of that diamond ring.
While a rose is but a simple thing.
Sometimes they can mean so much more.
So sending rose's is a simple thing.
Pick up the phone call in the order.
Not to send them would be a disgrace.
Go ahead put a smile on someone's face.
send them a rose today...

~@~

I stretch the morning thin as silk string 
and pluck 'till she makes like not to stay 
then moan and mumble shades of my dismay 
while my aim is toward the most concrete of things 

a transparency of 
brown hair and skin 

glazed and proud with lanolin, but not done 
with me today nor I with her, yet 
we'll treat the morning as an overture, and let 
these tones float us through the day 'till suns 

begin to fade 
and our bed 
is sweet, and made 

Christian

~@~

Invisable Ink
Pami Fowler Woolsey

This darned pen just won't write
My feelings hidden deep
Only dotted pages without words
Wake up mind - do not sleep!
There's so many words I have to say
So many feelings to express
Oh don't fail me please my pen
You're giving me distress!
I have an idea, I'll stroke the page
Lightly above the lines
This pen doesn't even have to touch the paper
I can write what's on my mind.
Oh there that feels so good I say
to release the words within
Paper, pen, and invisible ink
You've rescued me again...
~@~

Straining Silver
Child who brought my peace
Stephanie Silva

Washes me down
Holds me up to the sky
With eyes wide closed, it kisses me

A magical embrace, a winning tumble
Lights up the halls of Olympus and the dark woods of Tir-na-nog
No more danger, no more pain with it filling me
It bursts inside me, sky fluid dripping in the barrel

Straining Silver left after that night
Left me to scream at Eros and Aphrodite 
But the sky fluid grew in the barrel and planted a seed
And drew me to Demeter, let me cry at her lap

And now, I nurture the flower, my reason to live
Sings to me when the nightingale’s throat is dusty and cracked
And lets me forget about my Straining Silver
The savage bee that ravaged my flower, one moonless night. 

~@~

Good Enough
Katrina

I try and I try and I try so hard,
but my best is never good enough,
my best is never fine.
So I cry and I cry and I cry so hard,
but my tears just make it worse and worse,
my tears just bring me down.

I wanna fly and fly and fly away,
so to break free of the chains I have,
to break free of this ground.
But I'll die is I try and I cry to hard,
for I must accept the way I am,
I must accept my faults.

~@~

If God Were A Lobster... 
By Zombie Bird 

Taoist Maoist American Vet 
Speaking in gibberish words of paranoia and fret 
Expanding horizons through mutilation and scars 
tuning CBs to contact God up on Mars 
"Hello again, it's me, your old pal God 
here to inform you that I'm a lobster, both red and clawed 
and that you're the only one who with my message does concur 
It's really me saying this, and not just delusions of grandeur! 
Now you must go tell the masses! My divine message must be spread! 
And if people refuse to believe you, their lives you must end!" 
For now God is angry, and His fury is getting hotter 
because at his end of the CB, he's in a pot of boiling water.

~@~

By my bed every day I pray 
Please lord don't ever take her away 

She takes care of me 
In ways I can't see. 

She's an angel on earth 
She doesn't ever have to prove her worth. 

Lord I pray you'll let her stay 
She's all that I got 

Why wont you let the pain stop 
A thousand daggers screaming in my heart. 

One more breath and then she's gone 
God, why what did she do that was wrong. 

Then God himself came in that room. 
My child, he said, I couldn't move. 

She is one of mine, it was her time. 
I'll take her with me her life will become heavenly. 

Rest assured she was an angel on earth. 
All angels have to come home some time. 

Then in his arms he floated with her away. 
But God! Why must I stay.

Evan Rogers 

~@~

"Quietness"
Dedicated to my wife's grandfather...
Arnold Moeliker

Forgotten footsteps dance 
on the floor,
laughter once heard lingers 
no more,
Empty glasses touch 
lips of years gone by.

Happiness, good times
was had by all,
Now picture pages flip
as memories fall
like autumn leaves passing
time of years gone by.

Coughing, blood thinning,
skin shriveled and
weak, his hands are 
meek as we try to
hold onto thoughts we
don't want to forget ...
of years gone by.

~@~

A DAY IN BURNHAM PARK
squantoofbaguio

As I look to the foggy morn,
And as the lake moves beneath my eyes,
I remember you and how my heart was torn,
How, like a rose, love blossoms and, like the flower, it dies.

God gave you to me like a rushing wind,
So angered by life yet so free.
But it seemed to God I've sinned,
For you brought more misery than glee.

You made me cry and made me sing a lonely tune,
When we were together, you hurt me over and over.
But as the morning pass and in came noon,
I remember the pan was greater when you left and came back never.

I think of the lonely days and the sleepless nights after u left,
All the things I wanted to do with you and all the dates we've set.
Friends think I'm either blind or deaf,
For if they ask me something, a nod is all they get.

But as the noon passes and darkness covers the sky,
I remember the great life you had and the happy things we've done.
Now you've gone to a better place with a man whose love is forever and will never die,
I now understand that life with you has ended and a new one has begun.

~@~

NICU
Aldora Briggs

I sit, a sickly stillness envelopes the room. 
Not too early, not too small.
His cries go not unheard.
A quiet bustle in a room full of tubes, wires, cords.
Still, the tiny life withstands.
He is vigorous.
Part of him is covered, part of him is not. 
Warm feet peek out from under a blanket.
Little heel pricks observed.
I have hope; he will come home.
A year hence, this will not be forgotten.

~@~

To day
Christopher R. Harper

Worrisome souls wilt and wither wither without warning,
Carnivorously consumed by the constant precious pressures presented by the day to day
Finding fate fickle in morning, you yearn uselessly striving for that life liberty and pursuit of happiness,
Promised by paper presidents,
Picture perfect promises portrayed so artfully by torture twisted formless faces,
Who weep desperate soundless sobs over the persistent prostituting of their sacrifice,
This is a portrait of the world in which we live.
So now and then i'll drift away,
Lost, adrift upon vaporous vision of weird wondrous worlds,
Where justice has new eyes and a sympathetic ear,
Where fate has found forgiveness in the arms of a mother,
& Where life is a unique purpose in its self,
Sometimes so content i become in these worlds that i wish i mite lose my way while wondering home,

~@~

RAIN BATTERS HARD AGAINST THE GLASS
SET IN THE BROAD FACE OF THE BRIDGE
STARRING A PATTERN OF SMALL WORDS
A CURTAIN WALL OF WEATHER
BARRING US FROM THE REALITIES OUTSIDE

IN THE LATE AFTERNOON OF THE BIGHT,
I LOOK OUT AHEAD THROUGH WIDE WINDOWS 
AT WHITE CAPPED SEAS AS THE STORM MARCHES
WHERE THE WIND BLOWS COLD AND BLUSTERY FROM THE WEST

SLOW AHEAD WE GO PUNCHING IN TO THE WEATHER
A BLUDGEON OF STEEL SMASHING THROUGH
FORCE 8


FORCE 8 GALE- THE SEAS BATTERING US
OVER THE BOW AS THE SEAMEN STAGGER TO SAFETY

RAIN BATTERS HARD THROUGH THE MEMORY
TAKES ME BACK TO THE VOYAGES
AND THE DAYS OF GALES, SQUALLS OF LOVE,
WHEN I BATTENED DOWN THE BITTER WORDS
AND RAN FOR SHELTER FROM THE STORM

ONE COULD MEASURE THEM IN THOSE DAYS
LIKE THE GALES OF GREEN-FORCE SIX,SEVEN,EIGHT,
AND THEN ON TO HURRICANE
AND HER TONGUE THEN EQUAL TO THE
TEMPEST AT THE CENTER OF OUR LIVES

THE SOUR SPRAY OF HER WORDS BLEW
FROM THE PAST ACROSS MY WAVERING MIND
SHADOWING MEMORY LIKE THE DRIVEN CLOUDS
AS I HEAD FOR SYDNEY, SEEKING SHELTER
FROM THIS COLD WEATHER OF THE HEART
 plum

~@~

RHYTHM of WIND
Gynith Roberts

Restless, whispering breath
Heedless of the night.
Yesterday's stormy magic,
Tempting rhythm of wind.

Hush! Capture the scolding
Murmur of ghostly music
Over fields and meadows.
Fleeting rhythm of wind.

Wandering, swaying breeze
Impudent flight of nature
Nomad of the earth.
Dominant rhythm of wind.

~@~

I like cows
I like fish
I like everything, but I don't drink varnish.
I enjoy babies who can talk and figure out quantum physics
I don't like sadists and people who are pessimistic.
I like Chinese, Vietnamese and red-headed geese.
I like Jim Carrey and Jonathan Cleese.
I don't like atomic bombs,
I L O V E alphabet books and CD-ROMs.
I like bits of cheese and cookie crumbs,
I think French are rude and dumb.
I sleep all day and play Dreamcast all night
I like golfers like Jack Nichlaus and Tom Kite.
Jiminy Cricket used to scare the crap out of me.
He never wore pants so he didn't have to take them off when he had to pee.
It would be hard if I were blind;
but world domination would be on my mind
because nobody expects the blind guy!
They always expect the person who goes "Die, Germany! Die!"
They never figure on the nice kid,
they go "Who blew up the building?" and the reaction's always "The young punk did"
I like Rolaids
and Band-aids
I don't have AIDS
but I know first AID
Don't know CPR
not old enough to have a car
in love, I haven't gone too far
But I always clear out the salad bar!
I like catching fireflies in a jar
I like Conan O'Brien, but not Bill Mahr.
That's it! I'm done wasting all your time
mainly because I lost the skill to rhyme.


Æ¿«Âʨ´Œ÷ÊĨ´

~@~

GREEN CARD
Ven Moorthy

Before I came to America I knew something about Green card
It is about a permanent Visa and it comes in a card with green color
And it cost a lot of money to obtain, for the lawyer and all that

Here at last in the land of my dream determined a get a green card
Seven or so months passed since my arrival in the land my dream
One day I received a letter saying that just for $500 I get a Visa card
I thought get this Visa first then worry about the green card latter
So I send the required $ 500 and waited patiently for the Visa to arrive

It did come all right within a month or so and I was happy 
And settled down to open my first Visa leading to a green card
But to my surprise it had the color green, I could not believe

My first thoughts was I was lucky to get a Green card that cheap
So I decided to wait a while to inform my parents about this Card

A few months latter I was shopping with my friend in k-mart
I was surprised to find my friend used his Green card to buy things
So when we came out I asked my friend that I did not know until then
I can use my green Card to shopping in the k-mart

You can guess what a surprise it was for me to know that
All along the card I had was just credit card in color Green

~@~

Summer Cookouts
Jessi Gazin

Sausages sizzling on the grill
Freshly picked flowers on the plastic picnic table
More beautiful than the sunrise
Sound of a fly buzzing around your head
While you sit and read a book in the hot sunlight

Summer in Duxbury
Sitting outside, relaxing in the sun
Your hotdog is dark and firm
Telling you not to eat it
You do anyway and it is dry and delicious

Smells of smoke and flowers
Perfume and nail polish
You hear people talking and arguing
You laugh at your uncle
Snoring in the shade of the evergreen tree

~@~

UNcture
Paul Christopher Cote'

Unbellshed erythmic
blessed indignant
level logic
lozenge embolic

rethmus rendered
rickshaw splendored
ended esthmus
resplendent mendness

anarchic structure
the titled Uncture
galvanized puncture
duretic encumber

announced directive
superlative ended
directed, injected
endeavour respected

Engonic preception
preludes it's perplexion
in fact, insurrections
my only perception

tectonic plates
electronic fates
in theory relates
to chose is to wait

~@~

freeverse
Tony lee frost
Ghetto boyz making people blood in the street busing people up to
they head to they feet, them people went us to go deep to they feet
i willy wanna go deep not to your feet you know you wanna to be my "B"
lats go to the bathroom eat some peach and cream lat me put some cream on ya girl you know i really loue ya.
~@~

MY UNBORN CHILD
E-BONE

I MAY HAVE BEEN ONLY SIXTEEN WHEN I GOT PREGNANT WITH YOU
to my unborn child

YOUR WOULD HAVE BEEN FATHER DIDN'T WANT YOU UNTIL IT WAS TO LATE
to my unborn child

I HAVE NEVER FORGOTTEN YOU 
my unborn child

DUE TO THE PHYSICAL FIGHT I HAD WITH YOUR SOON TO BE GRAND MOTHER I LOST YOU
my unborn child

NOBODY WANTED YOU BUT ME, I WOULD HAVE GLADLY GIVEN MY LIFE FOR YOU ONLY TO SEE YOU A MOMENT DURING MY LAST BREATH
my unborn child 

UNEXPLAINABLE PAIN ON THAT COLD TABLE BEFORE THEY TOOK YOU OUT. THE ONLY THING I COULD THINK OF WAS GOD PLEASE LET MY CHILD LIVE.
never again will I have again 
a unborn child 
~@~

Black darkened forest,
Surrounded with wolves and us,
All in search of prey.
 Amanda Barney

~@~

GREEN REVOLUTION
Derek MacDougall 

Irony is a
Green garbage dumpster.
Oil slicks barrier
Of Birds.

Blue-green eyes.
The sky and her trees.
Flames reach high
In the desert.

Form a revolution.
Fight against pollution.
Write a constitution.
Thought police solution.

~@~

FEELINGS
 Jackie

People are everywhere
Some are light
Some are dark
Some have blue eyes
Others have green
Their appearance are so different from one another
People think everyone should be the same
They think that the way you dress
Or the color of your hair
Or even the way you live, is how your personality should work
People are put on earth for a reason
God didn't want us to hate or to judge
To look the same or to shut out each other
We all have different purposes why were here
We all have gifts to give
People seem to skip the part on how one another feel
The pain we all go through
The tears we shed
We all have feelings
We all care
And hurt
Maybe in different ways 
But we all are connected and we all have hearts
To look is not to know
To know is to feel
Is to share
Is to care 
To love 

~@~

Is it possible or plausible that I would someday die?
That I'd be decapitated and strumming harps in the sky?
Is it probable, impossible that I would bleed to death?
When I would be bedridden and take my terminal breath? 

I like trees and salamanders and finally pornos
OOOPS! I let that slip!
I meant Perry Como.

Sorry, I'll see you all later
psychological stimulators.

Joeoeoeoeoeoeoeol Ryan Fry

~@~

Dogwoods in tight buds
Have not joined those whose splendor
Lines spring streets with blooms
Jane Roland 

~@~

CONFESSION OF A EX-SMOKER
Andrea A. Anderson

Pollution of lung and air
What a filthy habit
Lets inhale carbon monoxide
Lets slowly commit suicide
Then litter by throwing the butt on the ground
What a selfish habit
What a sinful act

Inhale, exhale, pollute, litter
I don't care about the non-smokers
Or myself, not to mention the environment I live in
I tell myself that it relaxes me
What it really does is make my lung black, my fingers stink, my clothes, my home, and my car smell
My taste buds? Well, let's not take about taste

I am selfish when I exhale that means I don't care that you have to hold your breath when you are around me
Why should you breathe fresh air?
When I am done with it I wind down the window and throw out the butt; not caring where it will end up, and yes, its still lit most of the time

I tell myself I have to have it
I bum it; I take a drag off of others not knowing what germs I may get
I have spent my last dollar on it instead of food, I have counted my pennies to buy it
I smoke when I feel good, I smoke when I feel bad

What do I get from smoking? 
Yellow teeth and fingers, bad breath, bad smelling clothes, hair, home, and car. 
What are the benefits to smoking?
Lung cancer, wrinkles, and bad health. 

Why did I smoke?
Why would I want to self mutilate?
Why would I want to sabotage my health?
I don't know I guess I liked coughing up phlegm.

~@~

GOD'S ARMS
amanda harris

As my tears fall into the ocean
My heart like a sinking ship
You are with angels in Gods arms
Though you death has shut the door to your future
And everyone dwells
You are safe and happy with our father
I feel the warmth from your breath in the sun
Tears of your sorrow in the rain
The happiness in your heaven in the blue clear sky
I will remember always that you never went away

~@~

"Tick Tock"
Jonathan Malley

The clock rings for everyone, but me...
Waken by the bestialities of every day...
Jangled not by the monotonous ringing in my ears...
I've taken the time to see who you are,
Too bad, I don't like it...
Patrolled the depths of my subconscious,
never to find the real me,
A million lies surround me in the dark,
A thousand hints beneath my feet,
A hundred spectators gawk,
Ten emotions flow,
Tick-tock, tick-tock,
...Tick-tock...

~@~

BLUE-IS-COLOR-LIKE-NO-OTHER-BLUE-IS-HOPE-SO-PURE-MY-MIND-
MY-MIND-IS-ON-FIRE-FLESH-OF-A-PUPPET-CLOTH-AND-PLASTIC-
CALEDONIA-AND-BROADWAY-A-MAN-AND-A-CAT-EAT-CHERRIES-NOT-A-CAT-
A-CAT-WOULD-NOT-DO-THAT-RED-PLASTIC-IS-BEAUTIFUL-SANTA-CRUZ-
A-SWIMMING-POOL-ON-NOBLE-STREET-I-REMEMBER-A-CAT-FELL-IN-MY-FAULT-
I-SAVED-HIM-OR-HER-SO-VERY-WET-MY-GIRL-FRIEND-WAS-SO-SAD-
SO-MANY-DAYS-SHE-DRANK-ALCOHOL-TOO-MUCH-NO-MORE-OF-HER-
BLUE-IS-A-COLOR-YOU-KNEW-THAT-I-AM-TIRED-
RICK SIHLER

~@~

Love Her When She Soars
Isadora Snapp

I know she looks too pitiful to ever spare a glance.
I know she lies there crying with broken wings.
but please, mister, give her a second chance,
'cause man, you'll love her when she soars.

I know she looks too sunk in her feast of beer
to ever have to strength to let it go.
I know it looks too hard for her to get up and walk,
but please, sir, give her time to try,
'cause man, you should watch her dance.

I know her eyes are glassy, 
and her spirit is torn,
I know her skin is as white as milk, 
and her heart in a dozen pieces,
but please, God, let her dream,
'cause man, you oughta see her when she flies.

~@~

I have a great longing,
To free my soul,
To explore my world...
And the world around me.

In every hidden soul;
Of the man,
There lies a mystery...
Waiting to be discovered.

For the soul of the man;
Is likened to a flower...
It seems to be hidden;
The petals are close.

Watered by love,
Made strong by the storm...
The petals starts to open,
Making it a beauty in the garden of life.

Graziela Nequia

~@~

Smile
Francis O' Rogers

Whatever happened to the good old- argument?
When storms blew themselves out at sea.
Rage has become the instrument,
To settle triviality

I remember the spontaneous smile
that hung on people for a while,
The courtesy, and the excuse you me
Such a wonderful tome in history

Is it in the food we eat?
Leftovers from a harsh winter,
Maybe, not enough sleep
And the harvest of atomic power

Whatever.
Life can be such a fragrant flower
A warm embrace,
Hello- human race!

Smile,
It takes less muscles'
But also it turns the tide
Against tension wrapped in a bubble.
~@~

"What If I Just Ran Away?"
 Ashley Lovet

Slipping away to nothingness 
lost in a sea of emptiness 
Why don't I get noticed?
Ignored not by men but 
But by so-called-friends...
Why doesn't anyone see me?
Am I invisible?
Even I can't be seen by family...
Did I fall from my the branch in the family tree?
Why can't I be seen
Why can't I be heard...
Not even worthy of your love
Are my tears just whispers
not to be heard?
I used to be your queen, your dove
Now...Can you even hear me breathe?
What if I just disappeared?
...never came back...just left forever...
...Would I really be missed...?

~@~

Look at me now,
Miss thing, miss it.
Look at me now,
Aren't you glad I didn't quit!

Maybe someday you'll see,
Just how hard I try!
Sometimes I think I'm not good enough,
I just wish I could die!

I've got to go now,
Yes you know where.
But maybe someday,
I'll see you there!
austin

~@~

Sight of the Heart
By Matthew Timmons


As I look upon the world with wandering eyes, it is my heart that searches
beyond that of which I cannot see.

Searching for that which seeks to be found.

A lonely heart that floats amongst the stars, destined to be joined with
love along the way.

A lonely heart is never empty.
~@~

HIS STUPIDNESS
by Autumn

You are unquestionably stupid
Your germs are breathing in her
Now I feel dispirited
And positively bothered
That you will retire from my sight
I have shone up to you
I have made you my boon companion
All the while hoping we could be cool
as "more than this"
Not knowing that I have anticipated
For the impossible

You are unquestionably stupid
Your germs are breathing in her
Now I am anticipating
Your sad goodbye

~@~

SNOT
George Langley

 Stop hanging on me, I don't want you around
It seems like you just want to stick.
My friends now can see ,you keep clinging to me,
and you are making them sick. 
You're not welcome to stay, so please go away
I insist, you really must go

And the next time I sneeze ,I'm begging you please, 
to stay inside of my nose.

~@~

Lesson Well Learned
By Nicole Kleppinger

I convinced myself that you were different, so blinded with that innocent lust that quickly developed, turned on by 
your kisses  your caresses  your sweet, salty whispers in my ear.
I've never had an earlobe sucked quite like the way you do
(never had anyone suck my earlobe at all, sweetie)
But, DAMN...how much I ached, after you didn't call!
After all was said and done, and I was done and done for you
and time moved on and my mind kept returning to you, to those 
hours on the phone and those moments shared together
when we first met, innocently at a party
talking and flirting, and you saying
"Hey, I'm trying to hit on this girl here, but I'm out of cigarettes..."
all so I could hear you. But not the real you.

I waited for that awkward time, that first instance we'd run into each other again, and I even survived it with a bit of dignity and grace
which was my attempt at saving face, because I realized
you never really...never truly...wanted me.
The real me.
But the fact is, I know better now. I know how much it was all your loss
and not mine, so there is nothing for me to pine over
or whine. This is my release of you, of your fiery red hair 
and your coy smile that wrapped me up so tight. This is my song 
to sing, and my final note on the subject of you. 

~@~

Before my eyes
cbendix

My souls in restless,
my mind is numb;
thoughts escape concentration
like butterflies in the wind.

Work has no meaning,
pay doesn't justify the time,
in this sitting blue chair,
leaned back-hunched forward.

Worker bees, worker bees,
Buzzing softly in their cubes

Insert, play, remove;
cd's burn holes in my mind,
black tea, monitor,
tannin flavored work.

Drink a mug, scuttle lunch,
and belch a snack @ 3!

Awake but not conscious,
hands do the work, mind sleeps-awake,
not me but here I am,
day zombie.

Warden lets you leave at lunch,
never enough time to flee,
Pounce with tiger claws at break,
and curl like a kitten upon my return.

Enough, enough,
I've had it, I'm through;
Bills like chains hold me down,
time like rocks weighs me down.

In a bottle on the shelf,
my soul like a lava lamp,
twists and turns,
enough, enough I'm melting.
~@~

NAUGHTY
DEDICATED TO YOU BECAUSE YOU HAVE BECOME MY LIFE MY HEART AND MY SOUL
BY MUSARAT SHEHZADI

YOU have come into my life
Like a breeze
Surrounding my being...
Touching the depths
Of my soul
YOU have made a place 
In my heart
Loving my and
Making me love YOU
I open my arms
To hold YOU
Wanting to feel
Your touch
Making it 
Last forever...
I want to take away
Your pains and any tears
Which try to touch 
your eyes
We have found each other
We were meant to meet
We can
make it
last
forever...

~@~

Attraction is a strong emotion. It's not only able physically, but also mentally and emotionally. You can not be only attracted to a person's appearance, but it is possible to be attracted to one's personality; one's INSIDE self. There's just this "Connection" if you will. You feel like you "click" with someone. At times you'll feel like this is a good thing, but other times, you don't know exactly WHAT to think of it all. You don't necessarily know if it's the RIGHT thing to feel. you just want to constantly embrace this person, no matter where you are or what the time is. You have this uncontrollable desire to let them know. There's an overwhelming desire to always shower them with affection. But you're stuck at a certain point. This is simply because you don't know if its the right thing at that precise moment. So you'd rather play it by ear day to day to see how it pans out from there. You're just being cautious. Cautious of your emotions and feelings as well as the emotions and feelings of that one other person.
So, you patiently wait to see how it all turns out in the long run. Knowing that things will turn around for the better, and the way God intended for it to all happen.
To wait patiently is the best thing to do.
Jessica Smerge 

~@~

"Tropical"
M.L. Russo

Today was a good
day.
The sun rose 
in an eastern sky,
and set west of 
Pacific waves and 
tropical breezes.

The air is warming, with
pale flowers, set 
on juicy, green stems;
peeking petals and all, 
above a molten Earth,
that continues to burn
and burn.

~@~

Ode to the Moon
 Rachel Swindel

The Sun, my nemesis, glares down on me
on a day like today when I need mercy.
His constant overbearing weighs down on my back,
and urges my longing for the sweet, cool dark.
His conceited rays are held back by none,
nothing escapes the hot wrath of the Sun.
When I can take the rising heat no more,
He laughs and bobs closer shining more and more.
He delights in my weakness, and wishes to expose
those fears in my heart that no one else knows.
And just as my body he begins to consume,
I am saved by the will of the consoling moon.
Glorious moon! by whose light I am filled
with a quiet, melodic, peaceful solitude.
All life is beautiful under Her watchful glow-
all troubles eased for a time, even so,
Just as I feel I could float into heaven,
the Sun grabs a fiery had over the horizon.
And once again by his glare I am reminded,
I slept and did not leave my troubles behind me. 

~@~

REPUGNANCE
by GANESH DHOLE


Where are you leading me 
o Perishing Time?
When carnival is over,
Left overs remain,
starts canine roar.
Do not tell me
to be a part of
that sinister cry.

~@~

TWO VOTES FOR MEN IN AMERICA
TWO VOTES FOR THOSE WHO MAY GET DRAFTED
TWO VOTES FOR ALL MEN IN AMERICA
IF YOU DON'T WANT TO DRAFT WOMEN
THEN GIVE MEN TWO VOTES EACH
I DEMAND JUSTICE IF NOT EQUALITY 
JOHN ZACK

~@~

Lying in rest 'neath the smiling sun
Singing Stars ~ by Maria Abernathey

I listened to it's laughter
While cheerful beds of waving flowers
had me grinning at their chatter
For quite some time the dancing clouds
drew murals in the sky
While the fluttering wings of hummingbirds
Rode on remnants of a sigh
As nightfall came a crispy scent
drifted in on a delicate breeze
The glowing horizon stained with red
was highlighted behind the trees
The dusky sky held singing stars
while the sun took it's nighttime nap
I was cradled by their lullabies
when I heard the sandman's rap
A smile formed on my contented face
as I drifted off to sleep
For I could hear those singing stars
Praying for my soul to keep

~@~

All the Day i set alone watching friends play.
I wonder how it feels to play with a friend.
I see a no other kid just like me.
I hope he will see me.
But i'm to scared to make a friend.
 derick

~@~

i looked down the long and jagged road
wondering about the stories untold
the unfolded memories that linger there
just kept me hypnotized just let me stare
the long brush on the side of the path
pondering who could have been there last
should i go on down that road
or just let it sit as days come and go
i don't want to disturb its beautiful slumber
but i couldn't help but sit and wonder
wonder about the things its been through
wonder if it will become fresh and new
i turned my back on that old jagged road
i will never know the stories untold
Jami Whipps

~@~

KINDA SAD
Phill Ashwell

An old photo album
Sits - dumped in a bin
Reflections of lives
On the pages within
Well it seems kinda sad
That no one should care
About that old photo album
Discarded there
~@~

I'll wait for you the rest of my life
and then I'll wait a lifetime more
I'll wait for you for eternity plus eternity
starting from the beginning of time and before

I'm dedicating all that I am
patiently waiting for you
I'll wait for my very slim chance
that my life's dream may come true

Alone secluded in solitude
but without you I seek no other friend
you're worth the loneliness I have now
for the hope that we'll be together in the end
Josh Davis 

~@~

Noises in the Background
Lina

Am I forever destined to hear sounds 
Of squabble...and yet I cannot flee 
From voices arising from hell, 
The Despair laughing long with glee. 

Some people just never know when to stop, 
When to look up and regard the light; 
And just let bygones be bybones 
Instead of continuing a stupid fight. 

A fight fought out from ignorance, 
Lacking thought, using only a hand. 
Some simply plea for a bit of peace, 
For serenity to reign once again. 

Murmurs vibrate lightly in the background. 
Hopefully, warmth will sooth the cold 
So I can calm the waves of upwelling passion 
From taking possession of my pitiful soul. 

I crave for the halcyon days, 
The days when no one felt anger 
Arising from one's bosom, 
And all was free from danger.
~@~

You have a hold of me
It's a way only you and I can see.
Around you I feel good inside
Yet the feelings I have to hide.
I patiently wait
For that time of fate.
As stone by stone the wall will break
As love replaces every ache.
I want to be with you
Even if it's a lot to go through.
Yet when your not here
I have the fear.
Maybe you're with another
Kissing and holding each other.
It's a terrible vision
It puts me in a cold and dark prison.
Maybe one day you'll understand how I feel 
It's a feeling so real.
We've had some intense nights
It was all going so right.
I'll never forget 
Yet you seem to regret.
You tell me you'd never lead someone on
But your never near your always gone.
You give yourself the blame
And that you are ashamed.
But no matter how it turns out
I'll love you somehow without a doubt.
 Amber Young

~@~

I FORGOT TO SAY I LOVE YOU
Paul Royce Smith

There was one, then there were two,
I thanked the stars, they sent me you.
And life was good, at least for me,
But there were things, I didn't see.

There were two, then there were three,
And life was good, at least for me.
I blessed the stars, that shone above you,
But, I forgot, to say "I love you."

There were three, then there were four,
A girl, a boy, who needed more?
And life was good, at least for me,
But there were things, I didn't see.

Then I awoke, and you were gone,
Now, once again, I was alone.
And life was bad, at least for me,
For their were things, I couldn't see.

There were four, now, there is one,
The dream is gone, the deed is done.
The stars are gone, That shone above you,
Yes, I forgot to say "I love you."

~@~

My love poem
 Amber Kerr

I love the way I feel
When I'm with you
A feeling none can steel
Because my love is forever true.

No matter where we go
I know where my heart may be 
Because you have taught me to grow
And showed me how to be me.

So remember when you are
wandering alone
Do not complain or despair
for you're never really 
on your own
Because in my heart I will
always be there.

I love you with all my heart
And will never let go to the end 
I pray we'll never be apart 
Because you are the 
love of my life!!
~@~

THIS IS ME
Troy Edison Tiu Yaw 

I'm a handsome guy who reads Harry Potter
I'm bound to become more popular than William Shatner
A hobby of mine is playing Starcraft on my pc
I wouldn't reject the challenge of playing 1-on-1 basketball with me

My favorite movies are Star Wars, The Matrix, and Grease
Only great people and things could have me pleased
Excellence in everything is what I envision
With me, stupid people get no competition

Are there facts that you still want to know about me?
If you know my e-mail add, please do e-mail me
People who understand me are who I admire
They make my life easy and preserve my fire!
~@~

With tears in my eyes I whisper low
“God bless you darling, I love you so “
Although I can not be with you
You’re with me night and day 
For this love I have for you no one can take away.

They say it’s a beautiful journey from the Old World to the new
Someday I hope to take it
Just to be with you

michelle wilson 

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