Post by Wille-Harlia on Jun 15, 2023 12:42:59 GMT -5
Welcome to the June Poet Laureate Contest, with poems centered on friendship. Below are the poems I received. Anyone may vote in this contest, and the poem with the most votes earns its author the title of Poet Laureate! Remember, you still should NOT share the authorship of any entry with anyone but Wille-Harlia until the contest is over. Voting will be open until 8 A.M. GMT on June 22.
Please give the poets their due courtesy and read over all the poems before voting.
Good luck to everyone, and may the best poem win!
Entry #1
Untitled
My best friend lives in Chicago
but that doesn't bother me.
She's always close by anyhow -
at least, to some degree.
We talk by text, or phone sometimes
whenever we have the need.
She worries for her family and
I stress about world greed.
We live so far away it seems
There's never time to meet.
But when we do I hug her hard
And then I feel complete.
My best friend lives in Chicago
but that doesn't bother me.
She's always close by anyhow -
at least, to some degree.
We talk by text, or phone sometimes
whenever we have the need.
She worries for her family and
I stress about world greed.
We live so far away it seems
There's never time to meet.
But when we do I hug her hard
And then I feel complete.
Entry #2
Peg & Rocky
I visited a two-bit zoo yesterday
Based north of Raleigh, it wasn’t much to behold
A gaggle of geese and a staunch stingray
Were all that greeted me as I walked to the place
Where their biggest boast—Rocky the Rhino—lay
Of course, the eager press had beaten me there
The click-clack of camera shutters filled my ears,
and the flashing lights produced a glass glare
As I shuffled to the front to see for myself,
his suburban Sahara—gnawingly bare
News of his passing was hardly a surprise
After all, Rocky had been nearly forty-five
No, it was the fine print that caught my eyes
How Rocky is survived by his friend and neighbor
A Little penguin whose heart outweighs her size
Rocky was twenty-five when he and Peg met
She was just a small chick so very far from home—
At first, he loathed the notice she beget
But Peg—she idolized Rocky, odd though he was,
And, soon, even he had warmed to the chickette
In time, the two—a strange pair—became like one
Peg’s curiosity matched Rocky’s love of life
She valued his wisdom—his age well won,
while Rocky enjoyed the attention she paid him—
Together, they treasured their days ‘neath the sun
One afternoon, Peg, pensive, looked up and frowned
She said, “Rocky, where does the Great Blue Canvas end?”
He gazed silently ahead, mind homebound,
With a heavy heart, he replied, “It never does”
Peg, thrown, asked, “But what could lie beyond our ground?”
Rocky had seen more than his fair share of life
His cracked horn testified to the scars of his past
To tell Peg of the world would cause her strife
But to leave it unknown would rob her of the truth
That the “real” she knows is but half of a life
With a deep sigh, Rocky told her tales of Earth
How the grand sky encompasses everything
—from African plains to the shores of Perth—
But they, in these cages, can see only closed doors
The shimmer of gold—that’s all their lives are worth
And so, Peg learned of hurt—but also of dreams
With hope in her heart, she told Rocky of her plan:
To escape under the full moon’s bright gleam
and follow the glittering night ‘till it burns out—
Together, they’d find the end of the Blue Stream
Peg said, “We will learn how to fly, you and me,”
“No matter that it’s never been done; we’ll succeed!”
Rocky, for Peg’s good, believed in her glee
And they planned their great escape for next Sunday eve
But, alas, their plans were never to be seen…
For today—was that very same Sunday eve
And Rocky, old and worn, had left poor Peg behind
—Still, she persists—in her odic belief
That she and Rocky will reunite in the sky
for she has, at last, learned how to fly—through grief
Just then, a cool breeze swept sweetly through the trees,
and in it, I heard the faint sound of beating wings—
I gazed up in awe at the vast black sea
—and I knew in my heart: Peg’s where she’s meant to be
With her best pal Rocky—now forever free
I visited a two-bit zoo yesterday
Based north of Raleigh, it wasn’t much to behold
A gaggle of geese and a staunch stingray
Were all that greeted me as I walked to the place
Where their biggest boast—Rocky the Rhino—lay
Of course, the eager press had beaten me there
The click-clack of camera shutters filled my ears,
and the flashing lights produced a glass glare
As I shuffled to the front to see for myself,
his suburban Sahara—gnawingly bare
News of his passing was hardly a surprise
After all, Rocky had been nearly forty-five
No, it was the fine print that caught my eyes
How Rocky is survived by his friend and neighbor
A Little penguin whose heart outweighs her size
Rocky was twenty-five when he and Peg met
She was just a small chick so very far from home—
At first, he loathed the notice she beget
But Peg—she idolized Rocky, odd though he was,
And, soon, even he had warmed to the chickette
In time, the two—a strange pair—became like one
Peg’s curiosity matched Rocky’s love of life
She valued his wisdom—his age well won,
while Rocky enjoyed the attention she paid him—
Together, they treasured their days ‘neath the sun
One afternoon, Peg, pensive, looked up and frowned
She said, “Rocky, where does the Great Blue Canvas end?”
He gazed silently ahead, mind homebound,
With a heavy heart, he replied, “It never does”
Peg, thrown, asked, “But what could lie beyond our ground?”
Rocky had seen more than his fair share of life
His cracked horn testified to the scars of his past
To tell Peg of the world would cause her strife
But to leave it unknown would rob her of the truth
That the “real” she knows is but half of a life
With a deep sigh, Rocky told her tales of Earth
How the grand sky encompasses everything
—from African plains to the shores of Perth—
But they, in these cages, can see only closed doors
The shimmer of gold—that’s all their lives are worth
And so, Peg learned of hurt—but also of dreams
With hope in her heart, she told Rocky of her plan:
To escape under the full moon’s bright gleam
and follow the glittering night ‘till it burns out—
Together, they’d find the end of the Blue Stream
Peg said, “We will learn how to fly, you and me,”
“No matter that it’s never been done; we’ll succeed!”
Rocky, for Peg’s good, believed in her glee
And they planned their great escape for next Sunday eve
But, alas, their plans were never to be seen…
For today—was that very same Sunday eve
And Rocky, old and worn, had left poor Peg behind
—Still, she persists—in her odic belief
That she and Rocky will reunite in the sky
for she has, at last, learned how to fly—through grief
Just then, a cool breeze swept sweetly through the trees,
and in it, I heard the faint sound of beating wings—
I gazed up in awe at the vast black sea
—and I knew in my heart: Peg’s where she’s meant to be
With her best pal Rocky—now forever free
Entry #3
Thank You Friends
I will always be thankful
My ship sailed to these Isles
Where the natives were friendly
And met me with their smiles
Penguin, Dragon and Vampire
Proud to call them my friends
Surfer, Butler and Camel
Bonds like ours know no ends
We’ll never meet face to face
Still, cherished in my heart
I try each day to repay
Each friendship that you start
I will always be thankful
My ship sailed to these Isles
Where the natives were friendly
And met me with their smiles
Penguin, Dragon and Vampire
Proud to call them my friends
Surfer, Butler and Camel
Bonds like ours know no ends
We’ll never meet face to face
Still, cherished in my heart
I try each day to repay
Each friendship that you start