Blessed were the angels

                                                                            Author: DFID - UK Department
                                                                            for International Development
Image: Refugee camp population
queuing for assistance and food (here)

3WW given words:
taut underestimate vigorous

Poets United Midweek Motif
 ~ The Kindness of Strangers

The kindness of strangers
Never to underestimate the
hallmark of human goodness
where one least expected it

Blessed were the angels that
recognized such distressed souls
to direct help to the displaced
caught in taut situations

Volunteers, strangers to the scene
were the first to be led by Providence
to areas of conflicts to extend those
caught in a harrowing cross-fire
with some semblance of hope

It was expected that their vigorous
experiences were made more bearable

Thomg's 3WW #523
Susan's at PU's Midweek Motif

a boon to detractors

                                                                                            Author: Joe Shlabotnik
Image: A Distinctive back View (here)

11 of 12 given words:

delusion (removed them reality)
relish revenge bruise beast brims blanks
boon (something beneficial to a specific cause)
peeling story flash

with delusions of grandeur
to relish against 'friends' and foes
slick and slippery
more of a revenge stance
expounded at hastily mustered
press conference
bruised ego brought out
the beasts in the human mind

lately a twitter war ensued
skimmed the brims of the surface
and shooting blanks unwittingly

a boon to detractors
who thrived in making fun
peeling off  layers upon layers
of unkind stories
laughing off even absurd episodes
of a displaced mop of toupee

Would it ever be a flash in the pan
A temporary occupier or what?

Brenda's Sunday Whirl Wordle #290
Kerry's at Real Toad's -  the tuesday platform

to recoil back on life's woes

                                                                     Authors: London, Jack, 1876-1916 
                                                                                      Frank Tirro Collection
Image: Under Extreme threat (here)

The Shadorma a stanza of six lines
(sestet) with syllabic count of  3/5/3/3/7/5.
with no set rhyme scheme.

stunned red-eyed
horror of horrors
never had
been long while
through the senses when it came
stuck in memory

seemed unreal
dripping bloodstained teeth
scary bit
no shuteye
imagine having such dreams
for full-grown adults

what went wrong
were spirits disturbed?
warning signs
bad feng shui
to recoil back on life's woes
make amends and reap rewards

Bastet at MLMM's Saturday's Mix
-  horror 
Mary's at PU's Poetry Pantry #344

Dorian Gray was he?

                                                                                            Author: Ericxpenner
Image: The Book (here)

Pursued by many
Grabbing wildly unperturbed
Dorian Gray was he?
Let portrait age by itself
For him the fountain of youth

For Chev's Carpe Diem #1170  -  fountain

the jailer in him cringed at the slightest noise

                 Author:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.

                                                                                       Reproduction Number: LC-USZ6-2067

Image:  Elvis in Jailhouse Rock (here)

MLMM's 11 of 12 given words:
exotic ledge crescent jailer 
cringe noise filter emerald stew
longanimity ((n.) patient endurance of hardship, injuries, or offense)
afflatus ((n.) inspiration; a mental force acting from within.)

3WW given words
painful
raspy (hoarse or harsh)
shifty (devious, evasive)

Shifty elements were out to
inflict painful endeavors on
their unsuspecting victims

Those 'exotic beings' lodged on a
ledge of hope in the crescent of
mercy felt restless and threatened
They were used to harassment
from time to time and resented it

With raspy sounding voices
of reason they were staging on
a fight back mindful though of
frightful consequences

The jailer in him cringed at  the
slightest noise reminiscent of
how the last jail-break started

Providence was generous
this time around
The longanimity of purpose
for the day diffused the
afflatus of attitude
It helped in deflecting
the stalemate

It conveniently formed a filter
to prevent the 'emeralds' from getting
embedded in a stew of troubles
It saved the day!

Amber at MLMM's Wordle #145
Thomg's 3WW #522
Marian's at Real Toad's - the tuesday platform

immersion of melody

                                                                            Photo: Tore Sætre / Wikimedia
Image: Billy Meier at the Oslo Jazz Festival
in Norway on August 19, 2016 (here)

whiff on the flute as
a slight rustle of leaves in
idyllic setting
immersion of melody
impetuously unique sounds

For Chev's Carpe Diem #1168 - flute

There was no sense of purpose

                                                                                       Author: 2Lt Stan Paregien

Image: The Running Track (here)

the 12 given words

bits eye flat sense miss smoke leaks 
swing temple track saw words

In bits and pieces
At eye level flat unto streaks
of utter destruction

There was no sense of purpose
One would not miss the
mushrooming of smoke and flames
further away arising from leaks
of gas on flammable materials

The temple was miraculously spared
The line followed by the twister
was way off a little
It somehow missed the densely
populated areas by a chance
though the running tracks
saw the full impact
It took the brunt of the disaster

The swing of fortunes for the
community would have
been devastating
It would have been beyond
words otherwise!

Brenda's Sunday's Whirl Wordle #289

Waiting on transit

                             
                                                                                                  Artist: Samy Charnine
Image: On Transit to Nowhere (here)

At stroke of midnight
Dreams sets had a re-thinking
Waiting on transit
For a new  place to call home
Unsettling and confused

Bekkie's Saturday's Image Write #5
Mary's at PU's Poetry Pantry #342

It reeked of cheap whiskey and breathing heavily

                                                                                                  Attribution: ©Lorraine
Image: Quaint Little Station (here)

Clementine anxiously waited for the 5:40 out of the city, 
wondering if he would be on board.

Fear gripped her imagination.
For the past week.
Someone was shadowing her
Stalkers could be violent she reasoned
Yes, was he on board?
She stepped in gingerly.
The coach was empty.
She seated herself, still wondering.

Suddenly there was a rush from behind her.
They passed by her.
Half a dozen or so.
Whew! It was the uniformed teenagers
They were so well-behaved
at the end of the platform earlier.
It further bothered her.
A calming situation or a quiet person could
turn out to be the opposite the next minute!

A jolt, and the train started to move on slowly.
'This is going to be a pleasant journey,"
she smiled to herself
No sooner had she felt easy,
when she heard faint steps from
behind advancing slowly,
then seated directly behind her.
It reeked of cheap whiskey and
breathing heavily - she dared not look back.
she said a silent prayer....
(150 words - not including the 
given opening lines in italics)

MLMM's Finish off Fridays #9
Frank's at d'Verse MTB - prose poetry

Fighting shy to go beyond

                                                                                            Author:Bob Peterson
Image: A Moonflower (here)
(Moonflower is one of the larger native morning glory species
They bloom at night and tend to wilt with the first direct morning
sunlight  - Jacopo Werther)

Like young innocents
They do make an appearance
But are rarely seen
Fighting shy to go beyond
Night angels abhor daylight

Chev's Carpe Diem #1166 Nightflower

You may not have to squirm - A Quadrille

                                                                                             Attribution: can pekdemir

Image: When Under a Spell (here)
(Nekneeraj's Photo Challenge)

                                                        Author: Javier Ignacio Acuña Ditzel
Image: Untouched (here)

A tussle of significance
To maintain my appearance
For I am a pelican
You may not have to squirm

I may look wild now
It is not my normal
Because I am under a spell
Oh, what the hell

Just so do not giggle
(44 words)

Nekneeraj's at MLMM's Photo Challenge #154
De's at d'Verse's Quadrille #27
and to include the word -  giggle

A blot on good governance a clot in the system

                                        Authors: National Committee of the Audubon Societies of America
Image: On Friendly Terms (here)

the 24 given words:

laugh cat choose friends feathered jinx cult leads 
planet fiction deep follow shallow spin bleed earth 
decide sigh sit news them us clot Yakult 

What a laugh a cat chooses to be friends
With a feathered jinx cult member who
leads with a choice strange on this planet
It is more of fiction than fact

How do you explain a deep seated desire
To follow a shallow spin to bleed the earth
To decide a turbaned soul is up to no good

- sigh - sit tight for he exhausts himself
Shooting at shadows taking pot-shots
Creating unsavory news on relatively petty
items with tweets after tweets of them against us

A blot on good governance a clot in the system
Reminiscent of a call to avoid the Yakult drink
Though feeding your gut with good bacteria
in the form of probiotics makes perfect sense

While petty issues and personal rebuttals take center
stage Matters of Foreign Affairs, Economic Well-being,
Welfare for all citizens and other reins of government
seems to be put to the back burner such that the
'big picture' is very much left by the wayside

Luxury of time will certainly provide a remedy
Though hopefully inexperience may not have
exacted its toll in the interim.

Brenda's Sunday Whirl Wordle #288
Mary's at PU's Poetry Pantry #342

Mie Prefecture's pride

                                                                                                   Author: Tawashi2006
Image: Sunrise at the Wedded-Rocks (here)

Mie Prefecture's pride
Famed son, rice-fields, wedded rocks
Mount Fuji smiled wide
Ever since the 'frog-pond' days
Basho had never looked back

Confronting the sea
Hand in hand in wedded bliss
A strong show of force

Sentiments wrought smiles

Sensed beauty of bygone days

Lined petal strewn paths

Chev's Carpe Diem #1162 Ueno Iga
Province, birthplace of Basho

Ordinarily a one-point perspective

                                              Attribution: Gene Blevins—Reuters 

Image: A double rainbow appears
after a heavy storm - Phil Bicker (here)

Note:
A drawing has one-point perspective when it 
contains only one vanishing point on the horizon 
line. This type of perspective is typically used 
for images of roads, railway tracks or buildings 
It is used to create an illusion of space and depth 
on a flat surface - wiki 

Just a simple scenery
But nonplussed at its beauty
Viewed from that particular
spot at the center
Ordinarily a one-point perspective

How it creates a sensation
Of that enhanced 3-dimensional
effect of its depth

Framed by the unique presence
of an enveloping double rainbow
Scintillating in its brilliance
Fleeting thoughts at that moment

Lucky me to be allowed
to witness such a beauty
that nature offers - gratis!

Grace's at d'Verse's OLN #190
Bekkie's Saturday's Image Write #4
Sanaa's Prompt Nights #42

Leaned on impish tendencies

                                                                                                     Author: Rmdc72
Image: Playful kitten (here)

10 of 11 given words:
kicked bloated bathed leaned 
stuffed poems noon moon
alabaster (pale mineral for carving of statues and vases)
ambled (leisurely, pleasurable walk)

3WW given words:
high-pitched impish 
languid (relaxed, unhurried,leisurely)

Midweek Motif  -  nostalgia

It was a nostalgia of sorts
Had as yet not kicked a bother
Bloated with ideas set for release
Bathed in unpretentious garb
But seemed to be wrought with sins

Leaned on impish tendencies
Playful got stuffed at times
Traumatic but a trite too languid

How he wished for a high-pitched
entry not unlike an alabaster's but
soft enough just as much

Toying with poems at noon
at a moon's pace of progress
he ambled along
He had wished for a semblance
of order and fullness of purpose
Sadly though what transpired
was just a pittance

Thomg's 3WW week #520
Sumana's at PU's Midweek Motif
MMT's Sunday's Whirligig #100

Bright flowers engulfed the slopes

                                                                                                    Author : Alpsdake
Image; Mount Haku from Ookura Ridge
(Hakusan from Ookuraone) (here)

                                                                    Attribution: Alvesgaspar
Image: Colorful Morning Glory (here)

Mount Haku stood strong
Bright flowers engulfed the slopes
Asked for consideration
Morning glory sought refuge
Happy to be among friends

Retention of life
Birth place of famed Chiyo-ni
Set for nature's best

Lavender colored
Rapport with fencing support
Striving for the sky

Note: Famed female haiku poet Chiyo-Ni was 
most known for her haiku on Morning Glory

Chev's Carpe Diem #1159 Matto,
birthplace of Chiyo-Ni
Marian's at Real Toad's -  the tuesday platform

How to stomach a plethora of unlikely bore

                                                                                           Attribution:Wellcome Images
Image: The Sign of the Times (here)
(A Political Cartoon)

Inspired by Charles Bukowski's .
"And the Moon and the Stars and the World"
in not more than 10 lines

In rapt concentration he looked up to the skies
Twitching his eyes knowing it was worth fighting for
At the pinnacle of his power accused of telling lies
How to stomach a plethora of unlikely bore

Detractors took pleasure in testing the waters
Pushed him to the wall questioning his every move
Opened himself to all the moon and stars in the world
In extended numbers more than he could chew

In his own swashbuckling ways fighting back smiling
A month down the road it was just only the beginning

Kerry's at Real Toads's Micro Poetry - and the moon

Only Alcatraz had that unsavory reputation

                                                                                                 Attribution: Unknown
Image: He sprung into action (here)
(Bekkie's Image as provided)

the 11 of 12 given words:
line hope marooned sign deny 
seem deal sky stream swing fill

He lined up his hopes of making a getaway
To be marooned on this island prison doing
nothing was a sure sign of a defeatist's attitude

Only Alcatraz had that unsavory reputation
to deny him the freedom so precious

What seemed to be a raw deal was to be
addressed as he was just a small fry
His bosses got away scot-free leaving him
to face the rap languishing in jail alone
Unfinished business in the offing so he
decided and he was unstoppable

When the sky had darkened with streams
of menacing red colors he would swing
into action -  to fill the cravings to be free and
to right the wrong he so desperately yearned

Brenda's Sunday's Whirl Wordle #287
Bekkie's Saturday's Image Write #3
Mary's at PU's Poetry Pantry #341

Why must I be subjected to such creation

                                                                        Artist: Juan Gris (1887–1927)
Image: The Smoker (here)

Note:
Expressionism was initially in poetry and painting 
Its typical trait is to present the world solely from 
a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for 
emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas 
Expressionist artists sought to express the meaning 
of emotional experience rather than physical reality.

Why must I be subjected to such creation
Distorted by design than by choice of angst
Of traumatic proportions much maligned

Why must I be tendered as an exhibit
Desensitized without trite of conscience
Holding the ford for a generation of artists
Wrought to non-conforming traits and tendencies
Not aligned to straight lines nor realities of
perspectives to space and distances

I am to carry the flag of so-called modern art
devoid of semblance of physical likeness
but rather to account for subjective emotions
that elicited curiosity initially but later of wonder

Of how graphically emotions in stark contrasts
were presented without batting an eye-lid

In the process I am now typically seen and
savored as a masterpiece worth millions

For Bjorn's at d'Verse's  -  MTB with expressionism

Had he the strength to overcome?

                                                                                             Author: Pingz Man
Image: Sad looking Soul (here)

3WW given words:
decaying ember fragrant

Midweek Motif  -  love

Prophetic of his fear in those
dying moments of regret he could
only lament pulsating embers
decaying in his senses

Clamoring tenaciously for a hold
it sustained soft whiffs of fragrant
thoughts of love that ran
through in his hurting heart

Had he the strength to overcome
Had he the resolve to sink his pride?
It could not be a moment better!

He must muster his strength to
rekindle the heat of the past few days
still simmering of Happy Valentine

Have a heart!
He could discern the faint insistence

Thomg's 3WW #319
Susan's at PU's Midweek Motif
Lillian's at d'Verse's  -  have-a-heart

He had wished for more like-minded Trudeaus

                                                                             Attribution: Alex Guibord
Image: Matured beyond (Good) Looks (here)

the 12 given words:
madly scream blackbird voluminous
crack chain morsel narrow fallen settle
overmorrow (the day after tomorrow)
zenosyne (the sense that time is going faster)

Madly remorseful he could scream murder
Blackmailed by a blackbird in voluminous ire
so he felt so he pondered his future

At the crack of dawn he would gather
in a chain with others looking for morsels
Along that narrow passage were those fallen
to bad times grouped together not of their own
choosing but with others facing a similar fate

He had wished for more like-minded Trudeaus
Enhancing humanitarian efforts to help settle
his brethren caught in the line of Syrian cross-fire
Overmorrow he hoped to see his fortunes change
for the better too and not to be still struggling in the
refugee camp where the zenosyne was troubling

MLMM's Wordle #142
Kerry's at Real Toad's  - the tuesday platform

Scant attention is all it gets - A Quadrille

                                                                         Attribution: AdiJapan
Image: Been through so many minds (here)

Not given a ghost of a chance
How so cruel this world that fits the bill
Elusive in its make-up more just in passing
Scant attention is all it gets
Much to the consternation of those
who in the background sacrificed
time and money
(44 words)

Kim's at d'Verse's Quadrille #26
and to include the word  -  ghost

His love back home left to fend for itself

                                                                                               Attribution: Newone
Image: A Valentine's Kiss (here)

Inspired by Sanaa's
Love’s a night-song sweet sung by
the tender strokes of wind – Valentine’s Day Special

13 given words:
bled body doors dreamed carved soldiers prayers 
fingernails fire body papers stone brown

His heart bled and his body caved in
owing to constant pressure
Doors to his soul were readily opened ajar
He dreamed of the sanctity of love carved out
pouring in not surreptitiously but in droves

Just as soldiers out at the front
Who could only hope their longings
Wrought with desires fears and prayers
were rightly brought home windswept
through storms hail and snow

He pressed his fingernails deep into his skin
To accentuate the fire burning hot in his body

Even if papers were to turn to stone
Brown with heat from his unrelenting quests
He could not hide his frustrations fighting for
someone else without knowing the reasons
His love back home left to fend for itself
sadly on this Valentine's Day

Brenda's Sunday's Whirligig Wordle #286
Sanaa's Prompt Nights - Valentine’s Day Special

He stuck to his guns

                                                                                            Attribution: Jane Long 
Image: Look Ma, no hands! (here)
(a show-stealer meant for bigger things)

11 given phrases:
pink thistle, cane fields, self-propelled , business districts
Black Oyster Bar, satchel of notebooks, salt domes
ghost-dancing,  cinder and salt deposits
honky-tonk (bar that provides country music)
three persons in one (Holy Trinity)

He stuck to his guns
Would have loved the colorful pink thistle clumps
But ended up in the expanse of drab cane fields
Very much like wanting to be a self propelled
professional in a business district but found
himself thrown into the Black Oyster Bar
a honky-tonk outfit belting out not just
Randy Travis numbers but even
three persons in one gospel music

With a satchel of notebooks
that jutted up like a salt dome
Ghost-dancing like a skilled Indian brave of old
It was no cinder and deposits sort of movements
but trappings of ballroom dancing
cool and collected

This was no mean feat
Mastered through years of dedication
A refined show-stealer!

Stacy's Word List Wednesdays #10
Bekkie's Saturday's Image Write #2
Mary's at PU's Poetry Pantry #340

The Wall yes, the Wall!

                                                                                      Attribution: Airunp
Image: The Great Wall (here)

The Wall yes, the Wall
Defensive and customs posts
Jerico, Hadrian's
China's and Berlin's all in
the past but now a new Wall?
.
Marian's at Real Toad's  -  walls
Grace's at d'Verse's OLN #189

He ought to be forgiven he thought

                                                                                 Attribution: Andreas Eichler
Image: A male Common Blue butterfly (here)

12 given words:
bread butter ferocity gray feed 
home hidden holiness forgiven gutted
burlap (coarse jute fabric)
grained (of textures that are rough to the touch)

3WW given words:
bare crave
asymmetrical (has two sides that don't match - it's uneven)

Midweek Motif  -  space

Bread and butter issues with such
ferocity raced through his gray matter
It's to feed home a crave bare with
emotions but hidden from the likes of
his holiness' guidance that he sought

He ought to be forgiven he thought
He needed space to think clear of grained
ideas already gutted to be best stored
in a burlap now drained of energy

He was still troubled by his asymmetrical
brain that went in many directions and he
was literally stumped for good answers

Thomg's 3WW week #318
Sumana's at PU's Midweek Motif  -  space
MMT's Sunday's Whiligig #98

Shaken he stirred sour faced.

                                                                                                   Author: Corwinhee
Image: Locked in Combat (here)

Two offerings:

Shaken he stirred sour faced. 

Got straight up a twist of his head

and back on his feet

His marriage on the rocks

but nothing kamikaze

Must find a tonic to make up

(33 words)

Name your poison let's have a duel
It is a kamikaze tie, one on liquid courage
Twist straight up as it may be the last call
Prove your elixir of youth is intact
(33 words)

De's at d'Verse's Poetics  -  muse mixology

What's more, I have likeness of one!

                                                                                                      Author: Tbachner
Image:  Orang Utan a Distant Cousin (here)

the 12 given words:
polite drown escape
exulansis (n.wandering restlessly in the fog)
diabolist (devilish or fiendish)
seethe soften fanfare accelerate mess likeness
adroit (nimble in the use of the hands or body.)

I don't wish to be impolite
But I'm utterly crushed
Tried to drown my sorrows
To escape from this exulansis
A diabolist a throwback on my
very existence

Seething with frustration
More than just in anger
I just cannot soften my stand
A fanfare ought to do it
Must accelerate my resolve
Got to get the mess out of this

I'm even better, see!
Adroit and ambidextrous
What's more, I have likeness of one
Why can't I be more human than just looks

For Amber's MLMM's Wordle #141
Marian's at Real Toad's  the tuesday platform

On a silver platter in unusual fashion

                                                                                         Attribution: Bekkie Sanchez
Image: What a Dish! (here)

Best choice as of the waters' token
Array of offerings to test with relish
On a silver platter in unusual fashion
An angler's delight, what a dish!

A dash of lime a clove of garlic
Whet the appetite in simple measures
Nothing spectacular just a wayward chick
Dreams of a quick fix for a connoisseur

(55 words)

Bekkie's  Saturday's Image Write #1
Mary's at PU's Poetry Pantry #339
Kerry's at Real Toad's  -  flash 55 plus

With a rhythmic gait an alluring eyeful

                                                             Author: Edmund H. Garrett (1853-1929)
Image: Silky Tresses Trailing (here)

An idyllic setting is not a requisite
To ignite an avalanche of loving care
Largesse of feelings bubbling inside
All that is lucrative to be laid bare

For oft, when on my couch I lie 
In vacant or in pensive mood, 
They flash upon that inward eye 
Which is the bliss of solitude

Lissom being elegant and beautiful
Silky tresses trailing in the winds
A rhythmic gait an alluring eyeful
Playfully in memory none to rescind

Lavishly listless outwardly a constraint
Emptiness often beside my lonely self
You have gone without time to explain
Cruelty to a soul a sacrilege to assess

Note: To write inspired by the Bard of Rydal
Mount – William Wordsworth. In italics is part
of the 4th stanza of William 's 'I Wandered
Lonely as a Cloud'

For Sanaa's Prompt Nights – Writing is both
mask and unveiling. (Battle of the Bards) – [40]