Poetry Forms

. I Can’t Be Bought I can’t be bought. They always pan my poems and they have a plan to pay me if I will agree to stop composing poetry. They say I am an also-ran. Who cares if they are not a fan! My trek as poet just began....

. I’ll Keep My Truck I’ll keep my truck.  I won’t revise my thinking as gas prices rise. My son-in-law berates and blames my truck.  It drinks too much, he claims. He loves to spout and moralize. He says the long-term answer lies in hybrid cars of smaller size. The...

. Fallen Hummingbird A formal-verse remake of a free-verse poem of the same name written by my mother on October 16, 2000, in memory of my grandmother Your hands, dear mother, on my mind have been— Your calm and comfort-giving hands, so thin And bruised, impossible to recognize, From where...

. Saint Sebastianus Sebastianus, soldier, pinioned, bleeding, Stands at his lonely and forgotten post Unperceived—no, even unsuspected— By the diseased and ulcerated world. Stomachs swollen with dyspeptic lust, Crisscrossing arrows of sharp competition, The noise and energy of the inane— All pass by him without a nod or glance. But...

. Without a Dad Without a Dad, you are not sure, And never know you could endure The many doubts that blur your sight, Or fears that stalk you every night; If he’s not present, there’s no cure. And then there is the world’s allure That offers all that is...

. Kintsugi  There is an ancient practice in Japan--- Chipped and broken vessels, dear to hearts, Are mended with a striking golden blend. These cracked ceramics, kissed with artistry, Have former glory honorably restored. Each gleaming seam adds meaning to their worth. This emphasis of imperfection shows The wonder of destruction and rebirth--- The value of life’s scuffs and...

. A Prayerful Pantoum for the Perpetually Pessimistic  "We'll take a cup of kindness yet, for auld lang syne."  ---Robert Burns For bellyachers belching bile this year For sourpusses (huffish and offended) I’ll pray for spines of steel and hearts of cheer--- A splendid year where rifts are swiftly mended. For sourpusses (huffish and offended) For...

. Woke Christmas We dream of Christmas like we used to know, With Santa Claus and sleigh rides in the snow, Big families all together, super-sized, But leftist thinking has metastasized And each says, “Season’s Greetings,” like a parrot, And Frosty’s a snow-“woman” with a carrot. School bullies are excused...

. Mythological Limericks on Defloration . Venus and Adonis Adonis was cute as a berry And Venus was sexy and merry— __The boy said “No dice” __But without thinking twice She jumped him and popped the kid’s cherry. . Hades and Persephone Hades was hot for a missus And longed...

. They Have Our Genes They have our genes; they’re human beings, Our fifteen frozen embryos. Regardless of your disagreeings, They have our genes; they’re human beings. They must be born, by God’s decreeings, Be hugged, and play where water flows. They have our genes; they’re human beings, Our fifteen...

. I Know Them Well Don't preach to me of heaven and of hell expecting me to tremble and to cower. They're here on Earth, and yes, I know them well. I do not need to hear your church bell knell from high atop some dominating tower. Don't preach to...

. https://youtu.be/MZLhwCyQLcs . Read the complete translated text of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight here. . . Andrew Benson Brown has had poems and reviews published in a few journals. His epic-in-progress, Legends of Liberty, will chronicle the major events of the American Revolution if he lives to complete...

. What’s Left to Say? a rhupunt  When women’s plans Are like a man’s, So they act trans, What’s left to say? When folks believe That to conceive Is cause to grieve, What’s left to say? When Mother’s womb Is a place of doom, The trash the tomb, What’s left...

. Limericks for Lame Cowboys A cowboy who came from Seattle, Had a habit of disturbing cattle. __The horse made a jump. __He fell on his rump, And now he can't ride in the saddle. The cowboy was brave and had pluck. The rodeo horse could sure buck. __The cowboy...

. Yet Another Year The birthday bells reverberate __Through haunted towns That lead you to an ancient gate __Beside which clowns Laugh aloud and break down in tears; __They stand and wait, Resembling dreams of former years __That've died to fate Or choice or both. The torches shine __Upon the...

. Insouciance When circumstances wear you down Consider this important fact: It’s easier to smile than frown. When autumn leaves have all turned brown, Your borders breached, your cities sacked, And circumstances wear you down, Go find yourself another town To capture what you’ve always lacked: A cause to smile...

. Tampering with Permanence  a Seattle pantoum __Here where I live, a cloud looks like a mountain; mountains float. Like love, illusions laugh out loud. We’re stuck in nature’s drunken boat: looks like a mountain; mountains float and fade to air, though made of rock— we’re stuck in nature’s drunken...

. A 2023 Survival Villanelle for Potentially Contentious Thanksgiving Gatherings Keep dinner chatter chirrupy and perky. Don’t prod the pachyderm that plods the room. Thank your candied yams you’re not a turkey. Stay cool when you hear tosh that’s crass and quirky, Like blokes lactate and fellas have a womb....

. Glow Brave little candle, shining bright! You send out rays of hope all night. Within your heart you hold a flame, A yellow flame, with loving aim, A flame that banishes the dark, Dispels despair and lights a spark Of faith and hope in every heart. Ignites a love...

. Beyond the Shadows  The light from above may be blinding And cause us to shelter our eyes, But promises God makes are binding, For laggards as well as the wise. At last we get used to the brightness, Descrying a path up ahead That leads to a place where uptightness...

. Paths —Inspired by “Is Mod Se Jaate Hain” (see below) by Gulzar from the film: Aandhi, 1975 Sheer multitudes of paths diverge from here— Some are jet setters, some meander slowly— Which one among these paths should I draw near? Promising fame and fortune, some paths steer Me towards...

. Word Witch She’ll tease and tempt with mystic words, __This foxy sorceress. Her syntax soars like sun-bound birds--- __This wizard poetess Casts slick linguistic spells that sing __Of Cupid’s carnal kiss. Her saucy muse is sure to bring A red, red rose and diamond ring, __But cannot conjure bliss. She’ll thrill and spill the sweetest sea __Of honey...

. The Word “Let there be light,” He said and light there was. The seething chaos split to day and night And space and time were brightly set abuzz. From atom unto Adam, highest heights To deepest depths His mystery did unfold Although we still don’t understand it quite: Among...

. The Truth about Fall Colors  I am October’s most submissive bitch, And just when I believed I’d struck it rich, The gold that hovered overhead was blown Away before I’d claimed it for my own. And now the maples turning scarlet red Will shed their leaves on every flower...

. Trump in Asia the carp glows in dark waters, remembering the time that Trump fed him . . White House Advent Melania walks in her orchard of glass fruits her Christmas forest . . Monika Cooper is an American family woman.

. Not Alexa's President a pantoum on the news story here “The real risk with AI isn't malice but competence.”  —Stephen Hawking Alexa says election fraud took place. She says the 2020 vote was stolen. Alexa’s cyber eye upon the case Found numbers bungled, skewed and spun and swollen. She says the...

. The Idealist Who Became an Ideologue a rondeau redoublé To heal the world he treasured this ideal: Unite the many into one great whole. He preached the view that truth is what you feel, Convinced he played a messianic role. He’d speak of virtue. Then he would extol World...

. Wood a pantoum It’s only furniture. But that’s both truth and lie. To find Mom’s treasured things a loving new address is near impossible, no matter what I try. Her home’s impending sale exacerbates the stress of finding treasured things a loving new address. The size and weight of...

. The 23 Best Haiku of 2023 Winner and Runners-up of the Society of Classical Poets 2023 Haiku Competition Judged by J. Thomas Rimer and Margaret Coats (see their remarks below) See all entrants here. . COMPETITION WINNER . . . Swallow, an arrow bursts across the burnished blue I cannot...

. The Golden Calf a rondeau The golden calf draws shouts of awe From wanton men who bray and caw. The fevered crowd ignites a fire Then cheers as flame on flame grows higher And fuels the lusts of groin and jaw. Some dress to kill, some words are raw;...

. Cantankerous Limericks on Good English Prose I love a complexly wrought sentence With phrases and colons that went thence __To make concise points __With their well-dovetailed joints And gave one no cause for repentance. Your prose should be sharp as a razor And cut through all crap like a...

. Younger Selves I have you leaning up against my side, Our boys and girls around us on the couch. Below the window, watching from outside, Our younger selves, age twelve, crawl up and crouch. The boy and girl each took a time machine, The dial set to travel here...

. Excuse My Excuse An excuse—that’s a word to excuse at those times when I need a good ruse __which I’ll put to good use __while I find some excuse which will not leave folks singing the blues. If the words I misuse are obtuse, as they cruise, they’ll be...

. Crossing the Swamp After about an hour hiking the swamp, I knew. A week’s rains flooded out the trail. Tall sameness of pines stood round me. Stagnant water, coffee dark, spread before me. My new boots stamped sucking cleats to nowhere on red mud. I knew! But first, denial....

. Deep in the Heat of Texas a rhupunt One hundred one, a scorching sun that I should shun. I shed no tear. Sun blazing down, the grass is brown, I do not frown I’m in good cheer. The soil on fire as we perspire in all attire. I am...

. Pick-up Truck Dude This dude in his old pick-up truck Sped recklessly, riding his luck. __He swerved ‘round the bend, __Lost control in the end, And got his truck stuck in the muck. . . Sleeping Kitten The kitten slept, feeling quite smug, As snug as a bug in...

. Two Summer Villanelles . l. Lone Star Sear The burn and boil is grim for some. I’m red of neck and flushed of cheek. I’m roasting under summer’s thumb. Cicadas thrum and twang and strum Their shrill and tinny, eerie shriek. The burn and boil is grim for some....

. To a Sand Gazelle You must believe the light will carry you, Across the Rub al Khali of your life. Let happy times light up your whole life through. Green oases are scattered through the dunes, It’s true, the empty quarter nurtures life. You must believe the light will...

. The Blame Game a kyrielle They rile. They gall. They know it all. These irksome jerks in folly’s thrall Are perilously cretinous. __It’s always Them. It’s never Us.   They grouse and groan. They mope and moan. With spines of sponge and souls of stone These gutless gripers cuss and fuss. __It’s always Them. It’s never Us.  They’re dull of head. Their wits have fled. Their loony lips are spewing dread--- The...

. WHO Anyone in the world, of any age or background, may participate. Among members of the Society of Classical Poets, everyone including Advisory Board members may participate, if not involved in judging the contest. The winner, if not a U.S. resident, must have a PayPal account or a bank...