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Some Skin in the Game

 

 

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COTTONMOUTH COUNTRY
by Louise Gluck


Fish bones walked the waves off Hatteras.
And there were other signs
That Death wooed us, by water, wooed us
By land: among the pines
An uncurled cottonmouth that rolled on moss
Reared in the polluted air.
Birth, not death, is the hard loss.
I know. I also left a skin there.

 

 

 

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LATE SELF-PORTRAIT BY REMBRANDT  
by Jane Hirshfield

The dog, dead for years, keeps coming back in the dream.
We look at each other there with the old joy.
It was always her gift to bring me into the present—

 

Which sleeps, changes, awakens, dresses, leaves.

 

Happiness and unhappiness
differ as a bucket hammered from gold differs from one of pressed tin,
this painting proposes.

 

Each carries the same water, it says.

 

 

 

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NO MORE CLICHES
 by Octavio Paz

 

 

 

 Beautiful face
That like a daisy opens its petals to the sun
So do you
Open your face to me as I turn the page.

Enchanting smile
Any man would be under your spell,
Oh, beauty of a magazine.

How many poems have been written to you?
How many Dantes have written to you, Beatrice?
To your obsessive illusion
To you manufacture fantasy.

But today I won't make one more Cliché
And write this poem to you.
No, no more clichés.

This poem is dedicated to those women
Whose beauty is in their charm,
In their intelligence,
In their character,
Not on their fabricated looks.

This poem is to you women,
That like a Shahrazade wake up
Everyday with a new story to tell,
A story that sings for change
That hopes for battles:
Battles for the love of the united flesh
Battles for passions aroused by a new day
Battle for the neglected rights
Or just battles to survive one more night.

Yes, to you women in a world of pain
To you, bright star in this ever-spending universe
To you, fighter of a thousand-and-one fights
To you, friend of my heart.

From now on, my head won't look down to a magazine
Rather, it will contemplate the night
And its bright stars,
And so, no more clichés.




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POPPIES IN OCTOBER
by Sylvia Plath

Even the sun-clouds this morning cannot manage such skirts.
Nor the woman in the ambulance
Whose red heart blooms through her coat so astoundingly --

A gift, a love gift
Utterly unasked for
By a sky

Palely and flamily
Igniting its carbon monoxides, by eyes
Dulled to a halt under bowlers.

O my God, what am I
That these late mouths should cry open
In a forest of frost, in a dawn of cornflowers.

 

 

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Important Guidelines - Please Read Before You Enter:

 

- please make the poem meaningful i.e. possess integral value
- no pictures
- left justified text only
- solid backgrounds
- no line limit
- example poems are for guidance and inspiration
- theme is life, love and relative surrealism
- free verse narrative with a strong metaphor is preferred but all styles are welcome
- marry thought, vision and feeling in some sort of holy trinity

- use all six senses
- no preaching or self righteousness
- no kvetching or chronic complaining
- contradict yourself at least once
- use the full name of something or someone
- show us the experience, the feeling, the mood
- don't answer all the questions
- be a late bloomer


art by: http://www.redbubble.com/people/paulgrand/art/2159396-3-french-surreal-lighthouse

Contest is Over

  • Contest was judged on June 19
  • Rewards: Gold: 1000, Silver: 700, Bronze: 500
  • Final notes:

    It is clear to me after reading all of the entries in this contest that most of the writers pushed themselves to put out a really fresh piece of work. It made reading the poems easier than I expected.

    There was a lot of variety, plus interesting and perplexing works in this contest. I found some new favorites and discovered that some old favorites have reached new levels of writing.

    All in all there could have been several honorable mentions, so I hope you will take the time to check out the poems in this contest. You know I would love to honor everyone for their art because I find the gems in every poem, even though sometimes I am criticized for that trait, so I hope you will know that while your poem might not have been strong enough (in my subjective humble opinion) that does not mean it was lacking in its own glory. The top three are so strong they are just stellar and hard to match with their skill and wit. I was blown away by the quality of work over all by the whole contest, so thank you!

    Congratulations to all the entrants. Great poetry!

    Thank you for entering the contest and sharing your poetry with the circle.

    Zayra

Contest Winners

  1. curtain call
    by onerios13 72 lines, 12 comments, on Jun 11 3:34 AM. In Adult, Society, Thoughts
    Gold trophy winner
    • Commented on by judge. [remove]
  2. Error: Unable to find finalist item 5388157, it seems to have been deleted :( [remove]
  3. Howard Braner's Bible
    I have Howard Braner's Bible...
    by DogFish 83 lines, 15 comments, on Jun 11 8:09 PM. In Israel, Texas, Longhorns, Cormorants, the Bible, Books
    Bronze trophy winner
    • Commented on by judge. [remove]

Entries [15]

1 - 15 of 15

Add a comment

    : Comment:

Comments

1 - 16 of 16

  • just rob gold member
    May 29
    Edit | Reply

    Excellent

    This will take awhile. I'll let it perk over the weekend.


  • Cat gold member
    May 30
    Edit | Reply
    i thought when i woke up .. i want to write
    but i am empty... then i went looking for a source
    you are the source.
    thank you.

    mary


  • NoIQ gold member
    May 30
    Edit | Reply
    Well, it's been a year since I last produced anything for AP. Maybe this will end the drought.


    • Heart Sutra
      May 31
      Edit | Reply
      apparently the news is just getting better...I hope to see you bloom.


  • Nicolette gold member
    May 31
    Edit | Reply
    beautiful, meaningful contest, Zayra. i would have to let this one brew a bit...

    ~ Nicolette


  • AngelSeeker silver member
    June 1
    Edit | Reply
    Don't think I can do this one justice. Of course I can always hope I'm mistaken.


    • Heart Sutra
      June 6
      Edit | Reply
      It is just about writing...I am sure you can give it plenty of justice.

  • grm
    June 4
    Edit | Reply
    woof!



  • DogFish silver member
    June 5
    Edit | Reply
    This is all very stimulting...but I feel your still going to make us work very hard!


  • Night Hope gold member
    June 19
    Edit | Reply

    Thank you for hosting, Zayra. This was certainly an inspiring contest. Congratulations to Darcy, Guy, DogFish & all the other great entrants. I enjoyed reading them all. Be well, Poets & Scribes.

  • grm
    June 19
    Edit | Reply
    me am pleased as punch, and completely surprised!

    muchas gracias!

    congrats to all!



  • Sonja
    June 19
    Edit | Reply

    Congratulations...

    ... to all winners and thanks for this so inspirational contest.
    ~Sonja~


  • onerios13
    June 19
    Edit | Reply


    Wow...I'm astonished and deeply humbled by the nod. Thank you so very much. As always, you host an awesome contest, and with the qualities of the entries entered here, I am doubly impressed and thrilled by the acknowledgment. Congrats to everyone!

1 - 16 of 16