Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Nature

Image: 1 A sandy beach on the western coast south of Bandar Acheh. It was way south and not affected by the big tsunami

Image: 2 Inland, a free flowing river in the upper reaches.
Note: Hank was in Bandar Acheh twice in the early part of the year 

Serene and unblemished
Undisturbed, unashamed
In its natural state
A fervent hope of being discovered
Feigning a virgin in all its modesty

A sandy beach hidden
From marauders
Only a cool breeze
To keep company

Or pebbles laden river 
Blissfully gleaming
Sensuously flowing
In the upper reaches

Virtually untouched
Not a soul in sight
Uncharitable to intruders
All on their own, undeterred
Perceived home of spirits
Mysteriously alive
But meager in all others
Menacingly quiet
Excruciatingly quiet
Distraught and neglected
Only ripples gurgling
In the morning sun

An occasional deluge though

A rare tsunami rearing its ugly head
Devastating all in its path or

Curses of midnight showers
Flooding the surrounding vegetation

Otherwise virtuously
A maiden adorable in nature

Monday, October 29, 2012

Oblivious of the Wet


Image: Courtesy of Tess' Mag

There they are oblivious of the wet
Resolute in not wanting to regret
Clasped in the entanglements of love
A panacea of pain failing to observe

Sweetness belie feelings less of trivia
Turbulent in thoughts but standing on air
Tugging at the cold they don’t deserve
Let loose emotions that hazardous

Exudes warmness having to let
Can man incessant of feelings of guilt?
Obliquely avoiding words of despair
Headstrong pushing seemingly unfair

Twinkling eyes of the lady a respite
Not revealing the dumbness of plight
Softening the savage breast of the ardor
Kissing in the rain is an obvious splendor

Written for Tess' Magpie 141

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Flying

                                                                           Photo by Haliaeetus Vocifer
Image Sourced through Wikimedia Commons (here)

Gliding gracefully
Flying high within the clouds
Satiated feel

Bird’s right to be free
Natural phenomena
But some all caged up

Same injustice is
also inflicted by man
against fellow men

Written for Chev's CARPE DIEM #29 with prompt  -flying- and Real Toad's Open Link Monday

Peace


                                                                 Image by Christiaan Briggs
Image: Sourced through Wikimedia Commons (here)

Mundane in significance
Stellar make up, jubilant in feelings
Friendly beyond expectations
Good friends are rare beings

Amity an element so elusive
Rollicking and playing games
Exhibiting forms so passive
Takes efforts to stake a claim

Other times easy to come by
Relationships extending for life
Stimulant to good natured high
Not given to having to strive

Of friends, neighbors and countries
Among souls of various extractions
Of different creeds and calling that vary
Must there be untold conflagrations?

Submitted to Sandy's One Single Impression with prompt #244 –amity- and Poets United's Poetry Pantry# 121

Saturday, October 27, 2012

Self Portrait

                                                                  Image by Jermboytold3
Image sourced through Wikimedia Commons (here)

Moving in circles
That probably what happened
At some points of time

But where one should start
Events seemed to move too fast
Rickety bones ached

Senior citizens
Stricken with physical strains
Unduly worried

Trying times ahead
Choices were limited where
minders were unkind

Written for Fred, hosting at d'Verse's Poetics with prompt -self portrait-

Friday, October 26, 2012

Childhood

                                                          Adam Jones, Ph.D./Wikimedia Commons
Image: Cambodian Child Outside Angkor Wat
Image sourced through Wikimedia Commons  (here)
(more from Dr Adams at www.flickr.com/adam_jones/sets/)

A fleeting moment
Seemed like only yesterday
Apple of the eye

Cute and cuddly, given
to smothered kisses and hugs
Radiant and playful

Of infants and youth
Must it all end suddenly
Childhood wrested off!

Written for Chev's CARPE DIEM #27 with prompt -childhood-

Laughter

                                                                  Photo by Vera Kratochvil
Image: Sourced through Public Domain Pictures (here)

Infectious smile brings
laughter, the best medicine
Most welcomed by all

When one is happy
To think that laughter brings tears
Paradox?  But true!

One can die laughing
Depends how the funny-bone
gets stimulated

Wtitten for Chev's CARPE DIEM# 26 with prompt -laughter-

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Tears

                                                                                      Photo by RayNata
Image: Through Wikimedia Commons Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License (here)

Trying times last week
Slow on the uptake, a fair
share of irritants

Tears welled up. Warning
messages seen urging to
start back-up process

Problems with the hard
disk. A whiz kid worked on it
Installed CCleaner

Deleted hidden
temp files, cache and baggage
still lurking, unseen

9 gigs of ‘rubbish’
thrown out and done the back-up
Next, to format disk

Written for Chev’s CARPE DIEM #25 with prompt tears and Claudia's hosting at d'Verse's OpenLinkNights#67

Monday, October 22, 2012

Frenzy - Micro Fiction



Image: Courtesy of Grandma's Goulash

They seem so unsettled
What's eating them?
They seem to be bothered!
They are in such a frenzy!

You would when someone forgets
your lunch!

(140 characters)
As counted through Design 215 (here)


A Micro Fiction to be written not exceeding 140 characters based on the picture
provided above and the prompt -forget-

Written for Succinctly Yours week 83 of Grandma's Goulash.

Sunflower

                                                                               Picture by Marcin Szala
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons through Creative Commons licence (here)

Image in likeness
Moves in tandem to the sun’s
Flower of reason

For posterity
Van Gogh’s great admiration
Enhanced in colors

Written for Chev’s CARPE DIEM #22 Haiku blog with prompt – sunflower- and Real Toad's Open Link Monday

Sunday, October 21, 2012

First and Second Childhood


                                                      Seven Ages of Man by William Mulready, 1838
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ( courtesy of d'Verse)

All the world’s a stage of which are enacted
seven parts. Two parts are of uncanny similarity
but paradoxically different. The infant at the
beginning and the second childhood at the end

The infant is helpless, dependent on minders
for every need. But showered with love and affections
bubbly and cute is adored and cuddled in all innocence
Given to many material happiness and wants which are
enjoyed with relish and wanting more

The second childhood is just as dependent on minders
But that’s where it  ends. Exists in misery of dementia
where personal hygiene has gone asunder. Aged and spent
devoid of memory, dehumanized and degrading unkempt
to say the least. A pale shadow of the accomplished
and recognized of old. A planned obsolescence of the
human kind, sans everything!

Why is this so? Is it nature’s way  to ensure those with
debilitating afflictions are accorded the love and affections
due to them just as one is bubbly and cute? ( even though
they are a misery to themselves and their minders! )

May be so, it is so!
Providence is a fair Equalizer.
There is no denying!

Written for d’Verse hosted by Mary in Poetics: It's About Time - a tribute to the Bard's - All The World's a Stage and Poets United's Poetry Pantry #120

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Year End Sales


                                                                               Photo by Jim Champion
Image: Sales at a Chain Store
Image Source: From Wikimedia Commons through Creative Commons licence (here)

Victoria is hosting at dVerse. She has challenged us to create Steampunk Poetry. It is taking two contrasting topics and merging them in a poem. I’ve chosen  one, the Year End Sales and two, the impending year end exams ( in italics) Hoping I’m doing it correctly

Victoria also asked us to use enjambment. This is the literary practice of breaking up a unit of syntax ( a phrase or sentence) at the end of a line ( or even between two verses ) I've not tried it here!.

Y.E.S. The Year End Sales is in the offing
The heat is on, the year end exams are here too
Everyone’s all worked up anxiously waiting
Last minute preparations are keeping them busy
Clawing back on what is deemed necessary
Boys and girls are glued to their notes 
To supplement what’s left of the recent ones
Those who had been googling for answers before
Will know there are bargains on the cheap?
They are now struggling looking for whatever notes
Or is it just a ploy to get rid off of what’s left
Worst off are the cut-and-paste practitioners
But who cares! They are convenient
There are those who seem to just relax
One must be smart to pick out one's needs
They can well afford to do so for they were prepared
But the yuppies are more into the fun of it
They were busy from the beginning of the year
To make a kill, a real one at that
Now they are having fun, less pressure on themselves
It’ll be the conversation piece the next day
They yearn to get into it rightaway
Everyone would want to have a say
To get it over with, off their shoulders
The office will be real busy but work suffers
There are other more important things to do
Talking and comparing, showing offs
Songs and games, facebook and what have you
That is more fun and Y.E.S had only just begun
The so-called life of deprivation will soon be over

Written for d'Verse where Victoria is hosting

The Bridge


                                                                                    Photo by Lars Lentz
Image: The Mackinac Bridge
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons through Creative Commons licence (here)

THE 55th ANNUAL MACKINAC BRIDGE WALK was held on Sept 03, 2012
It has been an annual event on every Labor Day since 1958

A Michigan pride
Spanning Straits of Mackinac
The Mackinac Bridge

A suspension bridge
Connects  two peninsulas
The World’s third longest

Distance of five miles
Labour Day Annual event
Mackinac Bridge Walk

Written for Jenn’s Sensational Haiku Wednesday 173 with prompt –bridge-

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Shadows


                                                   Picture by Steve Partridge
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons licence (here)

He thought he could discern
glimpses of movements behind
Darting across chasms of emptiness
Playing tricks with his imagination
Even accompanied with sounds
Why were there rustling leaves?

Trudging through the evening sun
All alone through a minefield
Worst  yet, tall trees of stony silence
He had to endure the eerie feeling
For his house was at the far end
Why must he walk alone?

Aware of shadows lurking behind
He had to brave the quiet path
Idyllic in its structure he kept asking  
Moaning that he was subjected to all this
No choice was extended to him
What did he do wrong?

Written for Poetry Jam with prompt -shadows-

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

A Sabbatical


Image:1 Dr Alizi with spouse Fawzia ( extreme left) daughter Sophia, Shadah ( my loving wife) with the kids
Image:2 The good Dr with cute little Maisarah

My nephew, a lecturer at the IIU will be going for his sabbatical for 9 months at a university in Gloucestershire. Dr Alizi will be accompanied by his spouse Fawzia and their 5 children. They are expected to fly off tomorrow night.

The passing of Fall a spectacle of wonder
Of golden hues of Autumn leaves beginning
to give way to the impending cold just ahead
Inclement of a cold stream is new to the kids
They are used to cold showers, a heavy downpour
at worst but an experience of winter’s snow is a novelty
as yet to be seen. Stories of Santa and Christmas
they have heard told but fluffy snow flakes they can only
imagine. They will soon see and feel, it will be fun

A sojourn of a kind. The family we’ve been told
will be putting up at Cheltenham, a walking distance
to the University. The good Dr will be occupied with
a research stint for the duration of stay

The eldest girl Sophia had just sat for our local UPSR exam
here. She has the most to gain. At 12 years of age a window to
many new things are at her bidding in school as well as
outside the school environment. Two of the younger ones
are also expected to be in school being of mandatory
school age. But they may be a tad too little to feel
the impact of a school as yet.  

My friend Mo (here) now staying at his son’s in Birmingham
is about an hour’s drive away. It is hoped they will
get around together. It will be reassuring to be
with folks from back home when one is away overseas.

I would wish my nephew and his family the
very best and a wonderful stay away from home.

Written for OpenLinkNight week 66  at d'Verse

Monday, October 15, 2012

Chrysanthemums


                                                                       Photo by Stanislav Doronenko
Image Yellow chrysanthemums
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons through Creative Commons licence (here)

Chrysanthemums, a
flower of character in
Steinbeck’s short story

Elisa Allen
neglected by her husband
sought equality

Signs of the times in
fighting for women power
The beauty in strength

Written for Chev's CARPE DIEM #15 with prompt chrysanthemum and Real Toad's Open Link Monday

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Claustophobia

                                                                     Image by AIGA
Image: From Wikimedia Commons (here)

A sudden jolt, a springy effect and it stopped
There was silence and it was very quiet
Everyone looked ahead not saying anything
Only then I realized the sound was no more
On normal days one failed  to notice any sound
But when it did happen the faint sound of what
seemed like an exhaust fan was loudly missed 
It was longed for but none

There were 10 others sharing the same fate
It was not crowded but how much space could one share
The confines of an elevator suddenly appeared very small
We were stuck, the lift stopped in between floors

A baby started crying, only then it became apparent
It was beginning to get warm and sweaty
I felt nausea and my heart beat went faster
And I felt that same feeling of long ago

Two of us had scrambled into a near empty cupboard
We were playing hide-and-seek. I was smaller  and
shoved to the rear
The one in front insisted on being discovered
before he would push open  the door
I panicked, I hollered but not in this lift

After what seemed ages someone called out from outside
The door slowly opened but not fully
We could see the floor surface but we were close
to three feet below
The baby started crying again and was the first
to be handed over to those waiting outside
A lady then tried to get up but she just couldn’t
A young man put his shoulders below her rump
He slowly rose amidst giggles from the lady
but not from the others no one else dared
She was pulled up by many eager hands.
Eventually to our relief all got out safely

I had that claustrophobic streak in me
But I was glad I did not make a fool of myself

Note: This was a true experience. I still feel the jitters whenever I step into a lift even now
Stu hosting at d’Verse Poetics : POETCAPHOBIA had suggested writing on a ‘phobia’ and shared with  Poets United's Poetry Pantry #119

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Nightingale


                                                                   The Illustrated London News, 1855

The war took its toll, when God sent she came
The lady with the lamp
With no desire for fame
Sought to perform with one aim

Faced with strong objections, she went ahead
Wounded in uniforms
Appalled at the conditions
The hospital beds were thronged

Diseases caused  more deaths, not at the front
Worked her team to their best
Even nights without a rest
For honor and Queen no less

Gay is hosting at the pub. She introduced to us the ENGLYN a Welsh verse form. It comprised a 4-lined stanza where the 6th syllable of the first line rhymes with the other three. The syllable counts are 10, 6, 7, 7
               
Written for Gay’s hosting for Forms for All  at d”Verse

Wax


Image Source: Courtesy of Ella at Poets United

She looked at the flames
Gyrating in a slight draft
Tenaciously persisting
Anxiously wanting to illuminate
A candle light serves her needs
Enhancing the excitement
Of young lovers in the throes
Of romance over dinner

But alas! Just a wishful thought
The stark reality rears its ugly head
This is not in any fancy restaurant
How imaginations can paint a rosy picture
She’s just alone sitting at the kitchen table
The evening downpour was innately insane
A power outage so cruel in its quest
She could be sitting in the dark
This is no candlelight dinner
Not even the right kind of candle
The only ones available in the kitchen drawer
A citronella candle but it serves its purpose

The citronella candles can efficiently repel away various types of insects especially those pesky mosquitoes. The picture ( from Poets United ) may not necessarily be a citronella

Written for Ella’s at Poets United Wednesday #4 with prompt – Wax-

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Rainbow


                                                                                     Picture by Solipsist
Image: A unique double rainbow
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons licensed under Creative Commons (here)
Title: Special meaning to me being the title of my blog

Kaleidoscopic
The dispersal of colors
through rays of the sun

The colors exit
reflecting from raindrops to
create a rainbow

How to make sure one
remembers the sequence of
the rainbow colors

Say it, Richard Of
York Gaveup Battle In Vain
So now you have it!

The mnemonic ROYGBIV can be read as Richard Of York Gaveup Battle In Vain which stands for RED ORANGE YELLOW GREEN BLUE INDIGO and VIOLET in that order (Red having the longest wavelength at one end and Violet the shortest at the other)

Written for Chev's  Carpe Diem #10 with prompt Rainbow

Micro Fiction


                                                                               Photo by Pat and Jerry
Image: Courtesy of Grandma's Goulash

I need diamonds,a girl's best
friend! Not some cheap glass eye
or rocks! She greedily grabbed the
loot,pumped shots and left them for dead

(140 characters)
as counted through Design215

Grandma challenged us to write a Micro Fiction not exceeding 140 characters
using the photo and the word ‘greedy’

Written for Grandma’s Succinctly Yours New Week #81 and d”Verse's OpenLinkNight 65

Monday, October 8, 2012

Cumulonimbus


                                                                            Photo by Smackshellfreud
Image: Main field at Doon
(with dark clouds broiling in the background)
Source: Wikimedia Commons licensed through Creative Commons (here)

Darkening skies in the distance
A gathering storm shoved gleefully
Cumulonimbus in slow movements
Continuing to grow vertically
The sun in all shyness peeping
Stabs of rays sneaked through
But who has seen the wind?
Neither I or you

Pushing upwards in all arrogance
Dark clouds moved unfettered
A transformed skyline all vibrant
Building its selfish habitat
Triumphant in its pretext
Prone to heavy showers
That invariably follows next
None to have to bother
For who has seen the wind?
Neither I or you
It traversed the heavens unbending
In one fell swoop its due

Carry On Tuesday #176 suggested to include the following in our verse (Who has seen the wind? Neither I or you) as inspired through the works of Christina Rossetti.  Shared with Real Toad's Open Link Monday

Sunday, October 7, 2012

It's Basic!


                                                              Sick Woman, 1665, by Jan Steen
Image: Courtesy of Tess' Mag

It has always been
Nary a thought far from her
When he finds her sick

The vow solemnized
set responsibilities
for him to accept

When a spouse is sick
the man downs tool to focus
solely on his wife

He worries. His life
takes adjustments. He knows well
for that man is me

A haiku set written for Tess' Magpie 138

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Fragile

Abundance of sorts
Intruding into his mind
Paltry in substance

Tugged at his conscience
Recalcitrant in nature
Could he overcome?

Fragile and wrinkled
Fabric of feeble facade
A scarecrow of self

Sought  for divine help
Offered strength of character
Had hopes of success

Written for Chev's Carpe Diem #7 with prompt -fragile-  Poetry Pantry #118 and One Single Impression's #241-scarecrow-

Trying for a Cherry Souffle


Image: Hank's simple sketch in soft pastel
( a quickie effort)

Trying one’s hand at a Cherry Souffle
It would appear not that complicated
Going by the ingredients it should be easy
It’s just a matter of getting started

250 gms of fresh or canned cherries
Eggs sugar gelatin and whipped cream
As required toasted nuts to decorate
All set to whip up a dream

Get a 6” soufflé dish
brush and collar with oil
Deseed and chop the cherries
and leave a few for topping later
In a bowl place the sugar
and egg yolks mixture
Place over a pan of hot water
and whisk until creamy and thick
Place over gentle heat
The dissolved gelatin in water
Later cool all the mixture
throw in the nuts for good measure
Pour into the soufflé dish,
to set in the fridge
And to serve cold
It’s best we are  told

Note: Submitted for PFF on April 14,2017

Claudia is hosting at d’Verse for us to think
of food or a recipe in Poetics - Foodloose

Friday, October 5, 2012

The Moon


                                                                           Picture by Tomascastelazo
Image: Reaching for the Moon
Source: Wikimedia Commons licensed under Creative Commons licence ( here )

President Kennedy’s  impassioned
speech of May 25,1961 rang loud and clear
Gripped the nation’s attention
That ‘before this decade is out,
 of landing a man on the moon
and returning him safely to the earth’

President Nixon elated at the success
spoke to Astronauts Armstrong and Aldrin
on July 20, 1969, extolling the joy 
and pride of the nation of 
having achieved the goal

But as fast as it had happened as early
as the 1970’s itself, detractors claimed NASA
faked the landings spawning a slew of
‘conspiracy theories’ 

The Moon

It has always been
there. That‘s one small step for a
man. What a challenge!

Say what you may. One
giant leap for mankind..Could
not have been better

A dream achieved. A
nation’s goal met before the
end of the decade


'That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind'
(Words said when Armstrong first stepped onto the moon)

Anna in her first hosting had suggested a combination of a prose and a poem
Written for Anna's d'Verse Meeting the Bar: Postmodern (Prose) and Kris' Carpe Diem #5 with prompt -moon-

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Limericks 12

Madeleine Begun Kane provides the first line and we are to continue. These are my postings at the specific dates

kaykuala says:
September 23, 2012 at 6:56 am
A fellow who tended to whine…
Immaturity, insecurity his maligns
Every little matter
would make him stutter
His antics prompted others to decline

Hank


kaykuala says:
August 19, 2012 at 4:04 am
A fellow was very obsessed
A chosen one he was blessed
Frequent to outbursts
He was the greatest
Forgetting Ali was the best

Hank


kaykuala says:
July 8, 2012 at 4:47 am
A fellow was proud of his skill
A prowess so potent it could kill
Played easy
Nothing dirty
Likes of a lawman fitted the bill

Hank

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Tomato



Image:1  Hank's sketch of soft pastel on dark A4
size paper with the 'model' object next to it

Say it whichever
Tuh-MAY-toh or Tuh-MAH-to
Either way is right

Antioxidant
Lycopene bearing for health’s
succulent freshness

Versatility
Raw of salad’s choice or cooked
Brought wealth to Campbell’s

Written for d'Verse OpenLinkNight week 64 where Joy is hosting

Monday, October 1, 2012

Frustrated


                                            It Must Be Time For Lunch Now by Francesca Woodman
Image: Courtesy of Tess' Mag

He is exhausted
Had already done with six
He is frustrated

Tried his best as to
prise open is an option
It is not his fault

The cutlery
these days are not as
strong as they used to


Haiku set for Tess’ Magpie Tales 137 based on above prompt and Real Toad's Open Link Monday