DailyWritingTips

DWT Poetry Competition: Fourth Round

dwt-poetry-competitionWelcome to the fourth round of our poetry competition. We’ll have 16 qualifying rounds, two semi-finals, and then the final, where the winner will be elected.

The prize for the winner is a $100 Amazon gift card, and the three runners-up will get a free license for the Fanurio time tracking software (a sponsor of our blog).

Now to the poems!

1. Untitled by Jeremy Tracy

The misty mountain, majestic air
Above which the sun began to peek
we set up camp, in the dewey lair
hopeful words did we speak

dripping honey, beautiful, fair
You can find yet you must seek
Face the truth! Lay your burdens bare!
Trudge in the valley, step light on the peak

I urge you to trust because he does care
come to the water, those who are meek
Inherit that which is beyond compare
Hold to his strength while you are weak

2. My Best Friend Forever by Patricia A. Smith

I looked for You in strangers faces.
I looked for You unknown places.
I looked for You but to no avail
Then when all else did fail
I looked for You within my heart
And there found You carved
Not with sculptor tools; chisel and hammer
But with love; oh, so quietly without clamor.

3. Charybdis and Scylla by James Cosentino

This page of stars that flies at night
And sheets of wind on which I write
And all my small attempts to love
Aim sadly low with you above

The wind is warm that breezes by
Invites my gaze toward the sky
The night is calm, the stars are set
To bed, to sleep with dreams unmet

Among these stars, I see your face
Your eyes, your lips I long to trace
The subtle curve of countless smiles
Your cheek, your laugh that e’er beguiles

And on this night, I breathe your name
Unworthy, e’en, to mouth in shame
The hint of prayer, my vulgar voice
Arrested, gagged, denied of choice

Beyond this breath, I turn away
From you, my sky, this night my day
I turn in shame, to keep you bless’d
Untainted by my crass caress

But then, your word breathes by my ear
Your whispered plea enchants me near
And witness full your holy face
Behold the glory of your grace.

Humbled, slow, comes my reply
Without a thought of reasons why
One like you might call me near
Why me, with such a loathsome fear

“You can’t mean me in your appeal
You must mean one perhaps concealed
One, perhaps, more worthy than I
More worthy of you, with nobler eye.”

“No,” speak you with tend’rest breath
“Upon my life, until my death
‘Tis you, my love, I ever call
For only you my dance enthralls.”

And then, as if my heart’s delight
Could ne’er burst more before your light
My wand’ring step obeys your voice
My tongue now free, sings out rejoice

And from this night, for all my days
You are my church wherein I pray
The holy grail that guides my fire
That lights my path, that stokes desire

4. More Than a Memory by Sarah Chinavare

Dead, buried, gone
Now just a faded memory
Your chair sits empty
Your closet is untouched
Emotions stay bottled inside
I know she misses you
Even if she met someone else
It’s hard to forget your presence
The bushy, gray beard
The twinkle in your wide eyes
The aroma of smoke and coffee all around
I miss it all and I know she does, too
The big belly that hung over your pants
The painted toe nails you let me do
You were very special and dear to me
I miss you
Your dead, buried, gone
But I miss you
And to me you’re more than a faded memory

5. Ode to a Sailor by Sheila Blair

Yours is the moon that stirs my seas
to rise and flow ever toward you
Yours is the wind that with every kind breath
lifts me like a bird on the wing
Mine is the wellspring drenched with love
to quench you when you drink me in
My hearth your safe harbor
My breast your refuge
When love whispers you home
you will find me

6. What Can Be More? by Anita Baruwa

Sometimes mystic mountains
Someday in clouds I roam
A day wet in the rains
And then the long ride home.

Sometimes in deep sea
Someday ashore
A day in luscious lea
What can be more?

A star to gaze
Bit of the sky
My song to follow
And my craze
A sun up high
Good ground below
Ah my trees galore
What can be more?

Sometimes mystic mountains
Someday in clouds I roam
A day wet in the rains
And then the long ride home.

7. Once Again by Elizabeth D. Cook

once again i felt the emptiness
once again i prayed for comfort
once again, God reminded me
that He brought him back home…
home away from all the craziness…once again.

my young years have seen much death
my heart has endured much pain
but I wasn’t prepared for it
to hurt this deeply once again.

we never know and we cannot guess
when it is our time, our destiny
to lay our earthly bodies down
for lasting, eternal rest.

my heart is somewhat confused & very melancholy
remembering all that he was & is to me
nevertheless, my soul knows that he
is no longer burdened, depressed, or in misery.

he exists where angels and birds fly…
he can forever dance on an endless blue sky
his spirit is now at a restful peace
he relaxes with the Saints on a lovely royal seat

the angels, cherubims, and seraphims
rejoice with all the Heavenly host
that he is finally back home…
once again.

8. Mountain Morn by Glenn Smith

The mountain stirs early; swallows take to the air
foraging nervously for nourishment, and
trees swing in the breeze
to a silent aria.
The log cabins begin to take shape,
ram-shackled, dingy, and redolent of mold.
The stream glistening
in this first light.

The cedars are reflected
in the pellucid water that is
brimming with multicolored carp.
Nearby, a tanuki pokes its head
out of its concealment.
Believing the calmness.
Deceived by the lively forest.

9. His Green Space Chick by Teresa Bossino

She first turned up in Star Trek
I’m reliably informed,
And, once she shares her lips with you
You’ll be permanently warmed.

I am his Green Space Chick
Of that there can be no doubt.
I’ve kissed him almost everywhere,
Including on the mouth!

I am his Green Space Chick
I’ve stolen his big heart
There is no way on planet Earth that we
Could ever be apart.

I am his Green Space Chick
My love for him is true,
He makes me feel such happiness
in everything I do.

I am his Green Space Chick
and he’s made the World agree,
that I can now be part of it
Until eternity.

No longer am I alien
No longer am I strange,
We’ve undergone some sort of
photochemical exchange.

So, I’ll look after him forever
And love him tenderly,
For I am his Green Space Chick
From Star Trek on TV

10. Little Old Me by David Rissik

When I was young and decent
(Extroverted my mother would say)
The world lay before me
Like a field of dreams

Then people started hitting on me
I withdrew, dislocated, and hung out
With those who believed life
Had tossed them a bum deal

Art and the weed became
My constant companions
I cosseted them and they put their warm arms around me
And we still try to love one another to this day

Anyway, I persevered, somehow
Maintaining a semblance of balance
Between those upright citizens
And my bohemian ways

Surprisingly, to me and those around me,
In my fourth decade
I let my biological mission take control
And brought a beautiful baby girl into this world

Now I am thinking about taking the next step
And putting some other demons to rest
I am thinking about taking the next step
I am thinking about taking the next step

Stop making those embarrassing mistakes! Subscribe to Daily Writing Tips today!

You will improve your English in only 5 minutes per day, guaranteed!

Each newsletter contains a writing tip, word of the day, and exercise!

You'll also get three bonus ebooks completely free!

6 thoughts on “DWT Poetry Competition: Fourth Round”

  1. Nice to read so many tributes to God’s handiwork this time.

    “My Best Friend Forever” It reminds me that true friendship remains no matter what or where or when. I like the image of ‘carved on my heart.’ Nice work, Patricia. BTW ~ it is a wonderful poem to recite aloud.

  2. tmg,

    Thanks for the kind words, and if I don’t get past the first round, I’ll always treasure your words of encouragement. It’s something new for me to share my poems, and it’s scary at times.

    P

  3. Hello, I am having a Dickens of a time figuring out how to enter a poem into this contest. Might you direct me please?

    THanks, John Gil

  4. Lots of great poems–it made picking just one very tough. In the end, I really loved “Mountain Morn.”

Leave a Comment