Art: Cocoon by Aimea Saul
When you do nice things to me
all heavenly industry shuts down
~ Yehuda Amichai
Sexuality is a basic human need.
Without another body’s warmth it doesn’t go well with anybody.
Sex is multi-faceted: it is lust, it’s love, it’s money, it’s physical, it’s emotional, it’s spiritual; it’s life and it’s death; it’s power, it’s art, it’s pornography, it’s surrender, it’s conquest, it’s fantasy, it’s divine, it’s dirty, it’s dream and it’s real. It is water and it is fire; it can destroy and it can create. Sometimes it’s quick and hot and hard. Sometimes it’s long and slow and intimate. Sometimes it’s fucking; sometimes it’s making love. Some respect it, some abuse it; for some it’s about mastery, technique and skill; for other’s it’s belonging, closeness and companionship; some do it because they love; for some it is love.
Lust isn’t all there is to sex. Sex isn’t all there is to love. But love is almost all there is to life (Eddie Cantor). Bertrand Russel said “civilized people cannot fully satisfy their sexual instinct without love”, and Dante, in the last line of his Davina Commedia, wrote it like this: “L’amor che move il sole l’altre stele – love that moves the sun and the other stars”.
In the intimate union between lovers the deepest sense of “intercourse” (physical intimacy) is carried by “outercourse” (emotional/spiritual intimacy) [Becker (2005]. Those who meet like this understands the language…. (Marthinus Nijhoff).
>>> For this contest we want poetry that speaks the language of sexuality that is both intercourse and “outercourse”. Can you “speak” and write it or is it a dying/foreign tongue?
- if you have no idea what I’m talking about, don’t enter!
- if your entire poem depends on the use of words like “fuck”, etc. – don’t enter.
(that does not mean you can’t use such words – give us real, authentic poetry-in-motion)
- poems only; no prose or acrostics
- left align and plain background
- no line or word limit, but no epics please
- apply poetic device
- I prefer free verse
Flowing inward, they move
toward each other
and when they finally meet,
melding together, cell by cell,
there is no explanation;
they know who they are.
I can almost hear them
yammering in strange tongues.
Lucille Day (Ostriker, 1989)
Please welcome grm as my co-judge.
Now, "yammer"......!
n & g
Contest is Over
- Contest was judged on June 1, 2008
- Rewards: Gold: 1750, Silver: 1450, Bronze: 1300, Honorable mention: 7 people
- Final notes: We knew right from the start that this contest was going to be difficult as we provided a very complex prompt. Therefore the judging was quite tough as we had to combine good poetry with a throrough understanding of the concept - and that was easier said than done. As always, the focus was on the quality of writing and the way quality combined with content.
Well, we've made our choices! We thought the gold trophy poem was one that showed not only a maturity of voice about the concept of "intercourse and outercourse" but she did so in a great metaphorical way too. The silver trophy showed us what it is NOT and the bronze trophy was a very different but creative take on the prompt. The HM's were the poems we thought came closest to showing us the essence of the contest concept.
Thank you to each and everyone for their entries. I throroughly enjoyed reading these "private" thoughts that ranged from the spiritual to the physical. Thank you for making the judging so very hard!!
You are all winners.....truly... Congratulations to you all.
Contest Winners
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by CarolDesjarlais 35 lines, 18 comments, on May 13 5:52 AM 2008. In Adult, Erotica
Gold trophy winner
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• Commented on by judge. [remove]
- Error: Unable to find finalist item 4223936, it seems to have been deleted :( [remove]
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::::::::::::::::::::::by NurseChilly 35 lines, 21 comments, on May 16 2:20 AM 2008. In Love, Life, Personal
Honorable mention
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and every time
a thousand shades of white• Commented on by judge. [remove] -
What time to choose?
Mornings, when I see you yawning• Commented on by judge. [remove] - Error: Unable to find finalist item 4231115, it seems to have been deleted :( [remove]
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Sitting atop an edifice of emotions
looking at me with limpid eyesby PageTurner 48 lines, 10 comments, on May 14 10:50 PM 2008. In Love, Sensuality, Spirituality, Imagery, Togetherness, Contest Honorable mention
• Commented on by judge. [remove]
Silver trophy winner
Entries [31]
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Stoic choice This motionless porch infuses• Commented on by judge.
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by Dalaney 38 lines, 35 comments, on May 12 9:54 PM 2008. In Contemporary, Lost in thought, My own style, My life, Adult, Love, Spiritual
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by Margaret Denham 70 lines, 12 comments, on May 13 5:32 AM 2008. In Thoughts, Love, Personal, Contest• Commented on by judge.
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wanting for you
wanting for me• Commented on by judge. -
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my palms slide along the contours of your psalms,by mimiagatha 48 lines, 4 comments, on May 15 6:46 AM 2008. In Love• Commented on by judge.
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Measuring each stroke through the river
each and every time• Commented on by judge. -
Indifferent In(distance)
the stars of your eyes may be distant...by SerenityNChains 46 lines, 7 comments, on May 20 5:43 PM 2008
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Love or sex?
Whatis more important?by Dragonheart1 23 lines, 4 comments, on May 23 4:32 AM 2008• Commented on by judge. -
Oh my love
deity has originated plenty of parsonagesby PrabhuDayal Khattar 14 lines, 8 comments, on May 24 9:44 AM 2008. In Spiritual, Thoughts, Life, Love
• Commented on by judge.
Add a comment
Comments
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Oooo, intriguing! Interesting picture too! Not sure what the the heck intercourse is anymore - let alone outercourse!
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LOLOLOL!!! yeah... you have a "point" there, Allyce
Now get writing girl...
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Bookmarked! I'll be back after I finish my pesky finals!
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Hope to see you back - and good luck on the finals!!
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Ohhh..I like this one
great contest - bookmarked!
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....goood!! We'll be waiting for you
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I wrote a poem once...it was about intercourse and outercourse...of course...It never made any sense
I never experienced sex on a golf course -
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lolol Mally!! Well, come to think of it, neither have I. But I'm sure you've been on the "green".
And i'm sure you can write it....
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Well, this time you are asking too much, lol... if you don't want me to write you a novel or to write you about 
I will see which way my muse will go. Well, I already know, but I am not sure if I want to share it with wide public.
~Sonja~ -
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You have the idea already, Sonja - and you don't have to share too much here. Every poem is a diary and it tells something (many people don't realize that, lol). It's the concept that I'm interested in.
You know that violin emoticon you have there....just like a bedspring - twang!!
I know you can do it, girl. YOU know how to write beautiful sensuality.
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I thought "outercourse" is intercourse where the guy has had too much to drink and is unable to perform, leading his next course to be out of the irritated woman's bedroom...
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that might be the other definition of it, Monte!!
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I thought it was that not held in by the 'corset'?
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lolol jaaa...that's a good one!! Some nice word play there...
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Wondering if I can actually do this one without tearing my heart out right now.
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Yeah... I know. I was actually thinking of you when i posted this contest.... But I hope you write the love...
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why, this this is a naughty one ... oops i mean intriguing ... and i don't mean maybe maybe .... yeah, i can see myself entering this one...
your pic up there could have been something by JUNG .. but then I would never consider such a picture as anything but beautiful, unlike Jung who yapped and yapped and yapped ...
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i think i shall not yap here ...
but but Jung wasn't an artist ... oh well ... and this isn't about Jung,
i had in mind a 1000 line heavily rhymed work, you know, hard hard sound rhymes ... but i always do and it always comes out wrong
... i mean different
beautiful idea ... i'll be there
bookmarked -
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Jung, lolol!!
Thanks, Danni - we're looking forward to your entry... I know you understand this
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this contest wows me...i'm not sure if i can reach deadline but it has definitely inspired me to write one. you always have those brilliant ideas Nicolette, which is so admirable about you.
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Hi Anna Lee - missed you around here. Would love an entry from you, you know that...
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definitely a contest that wakes up all the muse...i hope mine will be able to write something anytime soon.
bookmarked
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Looking forward to your entry, Hensley...
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I'm too young for sex
Well, it does remind me of one poem by Ezekiel which begins like "One cannot imagine elephants making love", lol. But its a real gorgeous poem!
Well, if this contest stays open for till-I-decide-to-or-miraculously-have-sex, I'll enter
- namita -
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Yep, i think you're still too young, lovely one....
but can you perhaps just give an indication of HOW long it is that we'd have to keep the contest open.... you know, till THAT day, Namita
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Good idea! 'm entering now
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Wonderful, my favorite subject. Although truth be told the baby is making it hard to find time to devote to exploring it. Sometimes I worry that I’m going to forget what it’s all about by the time I find time to spend on it. Maybe I can reach way down into my memory and find a little of that passion and turn it loose on a page for this one. Patti
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I hope you find the time - I know how a baby can keep one busy. I'm quite sure the lovemaking I'm talking about here is the one you too know - it always stays in the memory. Hope you can turn it loose on paper, Patti
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Excellent contest Nic and Guy! Love this. My muse has a rare head these days...but I'll tuck this away in my mind and see what comes of it.
~Lyrical
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Thanks, Robin. Lolol at the "rare-headed muse" - let him stick his head out, my friend!!
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Lovely
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Lust isn’t all there is to sex. Sex isn’t all there is to love. But love is almost all there is to life ...did Eddie Cantor really say that?
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oh sure.. finally something that would kick start my muse, and bam it's over..
lol
I am sure you are into some heavy reading, wishing you lots of luck..
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an old one for you
chume, chum, geselle min,
i am with you
your laugh is the magic of planets
silked in the nylon of night.
(sum presentialiter)
ih enbite harte din
flickered by midnight albedos;
the glow of so many old suns.
ecce gratum et optatum
de quo ludunt venti
& silence succumb to her sigh.
quidam indiscrete vivunt.
ex his quidam denudantur
statu variabilis
you undo me like the moon
in this, of course, in wonder
captus est libidine
that circles an orbit unbound.
tamquam rosula:
i bloom with the scent of your touch
as if in the flora of Eden;
multa sunt suspiria
that whir in this Hades of lust
heady to tempt & to need
but you are like strawberries:
you wear your seeds outside.
if this is
(la vita)
a crystal which wakes every stone
or color that carries the light
perhaps there is wisdom
(sì, tesoro)
perhaps there is wisdom in death. -
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Liza, i've always meant to come back to you about this poem, and lolol, never did
is it one of your own? I really loved this one and the foreign languages weaved into it just gives it a sense of timelessness (latin, i presume..lolol i took German at school, and of course Afrikaans and Dutch and English) - simply love other languages in poetry. The last stanza is so great...loved the way "la vita" and "death" are applied together here. The poem has a delightful "chant"-effect about it too!
Thank you again...do you still have it here on AP?
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Yes it's mine..
And the Latin is from the Carmina Burana, if you've got a copy of that, and the translation around somewhere you'll see what I did
You're welcome, and no, I pulled it over a year ago I think
glad you liked it.
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oops.. Latin AND that smatter of Italian at the end.
I meant to say, I also love foreign languages in poems.
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i'll definately look for a translation of the Carmina Burana
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Wooo hoooooo!! I'm so pleased with this - I actually worked really hard at it! Well done to everyone and thank youuuuu for my trophy!
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Oh, my, a gold from you is a great honor. Thank you so much and, truly, congratulations to all who met the challenge.
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Congratulations!
To all winners. Thanks a lot for granting me with a green.
~Sonja~ -
thanks darling lady
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ty for honoring me with the bronze ... and congrats to Silver winner and Gold winner ...
i read some kitti wisdom the other day
we iz fwiendz
when yuz cwy, i cwy
when yuz laffz, i laffz
when yuz hurtz, i hurtz
you go jump offn a bridge, gonna miss yer emails
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Thank you guys for the green trophy!!!
Although mine was a JFTJOI entry, I'm very happy to have made the HM's list.
Dank je lieve Nic en grm
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