Tombstone, Menu, or Menace - some poetic exploration and inspiration about genre.
Consider the aforementioned. Write about yourself or a someone you know very well. Decide if you are going to write about them in context of your/their life's accomplishments, your/their practicality or your/their deviance.
Use one form from the previous list of 50 forms to enhance your writing. Also incorporate poetic devices. Remember each stanza is a room or scene, build something beautiful.
Think about our discussions of "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" to inspire your exploration.
She is the most beautiful soul that I know
ReplyDeleteIn a crowd full of people she always stands out
She is so effortless
Her beauty is unmatched
Her heart is what I adore the most
She loves her people with all she has
Her love is so pure
The type of love you never want to miss out on
The type of love like you see in the movies
Butterflies
When she tells me she loves me I feel so loved
Nobody else can light up a room like her
That smile is so radiant
Like the lights on a Christmas tree
Bright and beaming with glee
She is so selfless
Yes, she is selfless indeed
Not one thing about her is selfish
Her way of life is so delicate
Always passing by with such ease
I want to be just like her one day
Hardworking and dedicated
She never lets me down
I love her so deeply
She makes me feel pure
Straight as an arrow, always directly to the point,
ReplyDeleteTo never beat around the bush,
Despite the context or the situation,
To always tell you how it is,
Honesty is something that is both beautiful and hideous,
As am I,
To push through times of struggle and to end up on top,
Or rather to struggle for nothing, for loss, for a waste,
To push through school only to end up somewhere I didn’t want to go,
To push through football and to make it to the championship,
To push through having lived in eleven houses and still likes the dorm the best,
To get through the passing of those around me just to feel more alone,
To push through all those hard tests and quizzes just for me never to be tested on them again,
Some things you push for and get
Others you just never stop pushing
Lucille.
ReplyDeleteGlasses in white hair.
Once a farmer, now frail.
Nimble fingers craft crosses to give.
Mommaw.
Don't go praying for me as tonight i'm prepared to die he said
ReplyDeleteFor tonight; tonight I will beat death himself.
one strike after another Death had the final blow.
One strike after another on this clean piece of marble.
I strike his name.
I strike His birthday.
I strike his life for the final time as he struck mine the first time.
For he is my best friend.
Here she lies, gone too soon.
ReplyDeleteShe was a breath of fresh air upon entering a room.
Her thoughts unknown before her fall,
was she scared or sad to leave us all?
Her presence gone, but her memory we will cherish.
We hope to see her again once we perish.
She is gone in human form,
but remains all around us transformed.
She is the wind that blows,
the sparkle in the snow,
the pink in the evening sky,
the cloud formations up high.
You were complex
ReplyDeleteAlways on to the next
You never sat still long enough to get comfortable
Yet that’s what made you so admired
That astonishing way that you were wired
How you were always making plans and tackling your goals
Success wasn’t everything to you, though
You deeply loved the people who helped you grow
Those who stood by you when your mom lost her battle
Even though tragedy always seemed to strike you
You never gave in to
Feeling sorry for yourself and instead turned the pain into
That of a lesson on how to help people going through it
Your jokes ended with lots of hollers and booms
And your smile lit up rooms
And you somehow turned your pain into light for others
Daughter and friend
ReplyDeleteOnly nineteen but with a life fully lived
With so much love given but so much left to give
Memories that she could treasure forever but got cut short
Touched the souls of dozens who are left behind to mourn
But she looks down wishing they would celebrate
Celebrate her life
Dance to her favorite songs
Toast in her name at the party
She never feared leaving, only being forgotten
So she lived her days trying to prevent it
But were the nineteen years long enough to last a lifetime
Or will her laugh fade away as her date remains frozen on that stone
Unknowingly connected
ReplyDeleteThe sweetest soul
I will cry if they leave me
She is my everything
My ride or die
Zoe Brewer
A little orange ball of defiance
ReplyDeleteA three legged tripod strutting her triumph
the focal point of my emotional reliance
My beloved furry companion,
Felicity
Gravestone poem
She never really wanted kids, but she had two exceptional daughters.
ReplyDeleteHer career was her third.
Promotion after promotion, she reached her pot at the end of the rainbow.
New Lexus. Gucci sunglasses. Chanel #5 perfume.
When she wasn't at the office, she took the office home.
There's leftover chili for the kids.
Conference at 12.
She climbed her way to the top.
Mom, friend, boss.
She took these titles to the grave.
The Lexus hasn't moved out of the garage in four years. The Chanel perfume is empty.
There's a new boss now.
The tomb reads
Mom, friend, boss.
Tombstone:
ReplyDeleteR.I.P.
Here lye Sancy Shaw, A woman that was for the children.
A woman who cared, for nothing else but helping those in need.
A genuine woman that found joy in the art of teaching.
A woman that portrayed leadership.
A woman that stared adversity in the face and told it off.
All of these undeniably charming qualities is what made Sancy so special.
May she forever live infamously in our hearts.
Without my sister,
ReplyDeleteThere would be no competition,
Without her and he numerous academic achievements, I would have nothing to strive for.
Without my sister,
I would have no sense of belonging and comfort.
Without her, I would question if I really should be in this family.
Without my sister,
I would have no drive to make a path of my own
Instead if flowing in her footsteps.
Without my sister,
I would be lost and hard to find.
In the flesh, you were a hard worker
ReplyDeleteBut you had demons.
Filled with sadness and confusion, you continued to live.
Cold as ice; yet warm with laughter.
Strong as a thousand men, you held it together.
When I try to remember your face, I picture your smile. A crooked smile, but you didn't care.
It was rare, but when you did, all of your despair flooded out of your body.
Pure joy. I hope you felt my love in your last days.
What were your last thoughts?
Did you think of me, how I think of you?
I never knew what the word beauty truly meant,
ReplyDeleteI thought it was a certain quality you could only attain if you looked a certain way.
But that’s until I met you.
You redefined the word beauty for me.
Not only is beauty an outward quality,
But it is on the inside too.
Your beauty is incomparable.
I’ve never seen anyone or anything as pure and as good as you.
you were always so nice
ReplyDeletebut there was times you weren't
sometimes filled with happiness
other times filled with hatred
sometimes you were strong and respectful
other times you were weak and rude
there were times i try to remember how nice you were
majority of the time i remembered
such a kind soul
He was beautiful in such a way
ReplyDeleteIt was hard for anyone to stray
He's gone now
And we are all alone
Heaven is brighter
Buried here is he and his favorite lighter
He was kind and such a hard one to find
His family misses him
His girlfriend wishes one more time she could kiss him
May he rest in peace
What an angel he has and always will be
She always loved angels
ReplyDeleteShe filled her home with them
She thought they were so beautiful
The idea of them brought her hope
They gave her a sense of peace
Especially in her final moments
Which came far too soon
She was never very religious
But she believed in the angels
Her heart was so beautiful
The most loving and caring person
You could have ever met
She always loved angels
And now she is one
Marked on my friend’s tombstone was:
ReplyDeleteFirst, his name
Second, “2003-2022”
Third, “Died doing what he loved”
Forth, an arrow pointing to the tombstone of Pope John XII, which lay beside his
Here I lie fading away
ReplyDeleteLooking back my glory days
Everyday I slayed
Sister
ReplyDelete2 drops - sunshine
4 cups- smile
1/2 tsp- Mario Cart champion
8 quarts- pre med devoted studier
1 ounce- love and care
13 tbsp- hardest worker ever
4 lbs- my best friend forever
He made me feel alive for the first time
ReplyDeleteLike I wasn't wasting away in a dark room
Consumed by loneliness, a beckon of hope arrived
Out of the blue, I didn't feel so blue
He makes being happy easy, like a Sunday morning
Like how always is always smiling, always ready to be awake
Always looking to talk to new people
Truly amazing what one can change a persons life
Does he think I am lazy?
I find it hard sometime to wake up
But he wants to see me so I awake
Sometimes I wish it were easier to be like him
To act, talk, present myself like him
But that will all come with time
Right now I am happy to be happy
With him showing the way
Le Soleil
ReplyDeleteMy, how you shine,
Feathered with lacy delicacies
Ringed with naive hope
Painted with the soft pink blush of the sunrise, a new day dawning for an old world
Named like a hymn, sung for Heaven to hear
My, how you beam,
Smiling for all to see, even when sorrow rains down
Blessing all those you touch with a kiss across the brow
Love pours out, spilling across the sky
Tainting the blues till they tinged yellow
Ain’t too proud to be the one sharing everything
A faithful child
She was someone who lived her life to the fullest
ReplyDeleteBrutally honest and didn't care much about what people thought
People loved her for her
Full of life but keeping to herself
Her beauty so natural
ReplyDeleteHer aura so bright
Her love so pure
All you want is her.
She filled any room she walked into with warmth
Her selfless behaviors make you want to be a better person.
When you get to be with her alone, things change.
She's arrogant, mean.
She looks at you with her eyebrows frowning and lips pierced.
Her voice raises towards you when you have done nothing wrong.
She isn't who you think she is.
Your rose filtered glasses vanishes as her true self exploits.
No matter where she went it was always the same
ReplyDeleteDoing the job and playing the game
What matter most is those left behind
But not forgotten in future times
Her legacy will live on forever
The woman who was strong and noble
Life is so fragile
ReplyDeleteYet so lovely and blissful
Nothing Matters Still
My
ReplyDeleteMom
Has also
Been my role
Model
She is hilarious
But means business
She knows there's always a time and place
But she also
Makes a time
And a place
For
Me
He is extremely stubborn
ReplyDeleteLoves to bury his bones
But he is my fluffy dog
Six years ago when my family adopted him
His name was Peekaboo, because of how timid he was
Of course once we brought him home the name was shortened
To Boo
Boo loves to hide under tables
And growl at any male who came near
He always walks behind you on walks
But not anymore
Eventually Boo became more comfortable
And forgot about his traumatizing past
Yes he still hides his bones
And always watches my dad for his next move
But now he leads the walk
Curious about everything
Laying down in any spot he finds fitting
To some people, "Here Lies..." means the end. But nothing is lost with the vastness of the creative mind.
ReplyDeleteHere lies courage to fight every day.
Here lies strength to raise a family, advance a career, and inspire kids like a father figure- showing them how to be a role model.
Here lies addiction, once beaten, but came back for revenge.
Here lies someone I based my morals around.
Here lies truth in every word, goofiness in every scene, and humbleness with every heartbeat.
Here lies someone who always wanted others to be better than himself, although he never wanted to lose.
The date may be the beginning and end of your life, but your words and actions inspire others even after your passing. You closed a divide in our rival schools and opened up a brotherhood that still lives today.
Your body may not live on, but your spirit will always live through us.
We have been together forever
ReplyDeleteWe are always hanging out with each other
She is my role model
She never fails to amaze me
We stick up for one another
We have been together forever
She is my sister
Tombstone:
ReplyDeleteHere it was gone too soon,
broken up before noon.
From the start you were good,
You were never misunderstood.
Never creating anything less than a smile,
Keeping us both laughing like a child.
Your warm touch created chills,
because your love always fulfilled.
always and forever was never a doubt,
until you brought pain throughout.
Pure sorrow,
How could I let you go tomorrow?
My only love,
Now leaving me unloved.
Grace
ReplyDeleteMy built in best friend
The person I will always beat in a race
My ride or die until the end
She can walk in a room
And take away all the doom and gloom
She is my sister
And she has no idea how much I miss her
Beautiful in her favorite outfit
ReplyDeleteEthereal in the way she lays
Reminds him of how she looked when he woke up next to her.
Killing him slowly,
Love now lost,
Everything about her was perfect.
Yet, she would never wake up next to him again, she would never even wake up again.
Here lies kindness herself
ReplyDeleteFriend to anyone and everyone
Always humble but as radiant as the sun
The kind of person who cannot be replicated
Gone too soon but always here in our hearts
Her presence is still here
She watches me and is in everything
She is the warm weather
She is the cardinal bird outside my window
She is the stranger who gave me a kind smile
I will always love you so deeply
I will never let you down and honor you forever
Cinquain:
ReplyDeleteLoving
Every part
Of the ride
The he got to call
His life
What’s on the menu?
ReplyDeleteOffering the only things we have
Slicing parts of us off like prime rib
But getting nothing in return
People will ask for an appetizer
Give them a few sentences
Enough for them to decide if you are worthy of their time
But not enough to make them feel guilty for wasting it
Hearts are always the main course
Naively offered on a silver platter
Skewered, butchered, burned, sliced in two
Are our hearts no better than a piece of meat?
For desert we offer our peace
Ordered off the menu, eaten in the blink of an eye
The rich taste of never ending what-ifs and how-comes
A perfect ending for the meal and of our sanity
It has always been you and me.
ReplyDeleteYou were bold and reckless.
I was wild and free.
Together we were an unstoppable duo.
The memories come pouring into my mind like the rushing water of a raging river.
My mind paints a picture that makes me smile.
But my heart breaks as you have been gone awhile.
Without you who will I be?
It has always been you and me.
it was always you
ReplyDeleteit will continue to be you
you were THE only person i trusted
i was THE only person you trusted
you made me happy
i made you happy
we had THE best memories
you were like a diamond to me
yet you still cheated