Best Sojourned Poems
One summer eve and too fatigued to keep
from nodding off a moment longer, I
succumbed and drifted underneath a sky
of twinkling stars, and then when deep in sleep,
I knew without a doubt that I could fly!
I floated upward in a blissful flight
where all the universe was mine to see.
Ethereal I dreamed myself to be.
I sojourned with the moon and in a light
cast blue by seven sister stars near me!
How wondrous was the Heaven I saw inked
and all the earth so beautiful below
as downward, drifting downward, I did go.
I wakened. Orion above me winked,
and I was all awash in moon’s gold glow!
July 6, 2022/ Nature theme in three English Quatrain stanzas
for It's All About Three Q's Poetry Contest
Sponsor: Constance La France
Rain falls on the lonely water’s edge,
is it a tear of a forgotten woman?
Sojourned on the surface of the water forming a bubble
for a moment and sinking into a forgotten time to remain
an oblivion because the bubble is incapable of becoming
a swift current. It is moving alone.
Because the woman in rain wanted to shake off
lots of deep-rooted detestable memories and rancor
she rushed to the shore and flew in the air as a mist
after smashing into a break-water. She couldn’t get rid of
her life-long ill-will she carried because she held onto false reality
that caused her to stray farther away from the actuality.
For her heart’s rending cry and struggle echoes vainly,
the water’s edge’s monotonous rain is the forgotten woman’s ill-will.
The rain becomes harder and harder
for the weight of the dark cloud hangs over her head
that is too heavy to hold, the woman kneels down by the shore
her poor heart’s lost grudge hardened as a piece of wooden block
and drifts along the water with the current that will never return.
Wind-gathered winter leaves hide the worn
Inscription; the birth, the death the epitaph
On show for all who take this path
To know Sir John is buried here
Beneath his coat of arms.
This baronet, the eigth in line,
Esteemed to serve his king or queen,
A gentleman of East India's refined
Who sojourned and often richly dined
At home in Berkley Square
Now companion to the chafer, the cadys,
And the countless creeping crawling things,
While passers by have come and gone
Without admiring glances
Since eighteen thirty one.
To line the row beside sir John
Writ great and good in Portland stone
The largest slabs bear names long gone:
A Thomas and a William, an Elizabeth
And a James.
The births, the deaths and all the
Dear belovedness, now mossed
And mildewed, chafed by morning frost,
And slimed by creeping slugs across
Each cold grave table top.
But there by winter's Flowering Cherry
Near Purple Hazel and Norway's Maple
Beside the yew with scarlet berry,
Stands a smaller upright stone,
Beloved daughter to John and Mary.
Eliza Rose, just fourteen years of age:
'Early bright and transient,
Chaste as morning dew, she sparkled,
Was exhal'd and went her way to heaven',
To the saviour that she knew.
An unforgotten depth,
An unreached ground,
Answers haven’t been found,
A dim lamp stands in the corridor.
He sojourns with a vague understanding,
He seeks to know the reason for his troubles,
To find the path out of the gloomy bubbles,
He has searched the deep for a reap.
He has walked out of the night,
He has sojourned to the light,
The tendrils of the night still trail him,
He has seen its different sides
The book hasn’t answered all his questions,
The sages say it’s a purposed intention,
He still journeys to redemption,
Until time and age bring him completion.
Down the endless road I
Walk.
The road of life or you
May call it the road of
Torment-but know I the
Name.
Along I walk,the trees
Whistling as I journey on
With gentle breeze of the
East caressing my worn-
Out body.
Down I walk,meeting the
Hurdles of life.
I tarried,struggling and
Fighting my way;lo! Am
Stuck in despair and
Dissappointment.
Hoping for no hope to
pull Me thru.
Suddenly,I cried,then a
Saintly hand pulled me
Thru.
On the endless road I
Journey,I saw and heard
Shouts,sounds and smell
Of powder pervading the
Atmosphere:people
Running in confusion.
The sun turned red,the
Theatre bore death.
On my next turn,I heard
Moanings and sounds of
Pleasure,one beckoned
Me,icame I and took part
In the ecstasy-i realised a
Folly it was,went I on.
Passing through
esker,my Body chilled.
Then I reached a dry land
With scanty huts,wetting
My throat in a hut.
With a scorced feet,I walk
On this endless road,I
Witnessed a
gathering,Legs moving in
Rhythm and hands on
Drums,I ate and moved
On.
Came I to a serene
place,I wondered as I
sojourned,the speechless
Mouths and hands
restraining one another
To join the "lonely"body
Below.
I passed a crossed
building;hands clasped in
Gentle procession.
Moved I to pace of
Sustainance;the noisy
Atmosphere,hands
Exchanging needs.
On and on I walk on this
Endless road,when will I
Reach my destination,
When my knell of old St
Antonne tolls?
'Tis 60 years now come and gone
Since first we took our Pledge
To be true, one to another,
To take a step beyond the sharp edge
That marks the bounds of Mine or Thine,
Embracing, the more nobly, in its stead
This larger life of Two made One,
Sharing our travels 'round the Sun.
Through Fortune's forges
Together we've passed,
Shared its givings and takings,
First to last.
We've sojourned together the whole of the way,
To pull into safe harbor at the end of the day.
To safe harbor at sunset we come,
Our treasure in tow;
All the diamonds we've gathered
From the things we now know:
That the Having is more when the Taking is less,
That the Wealth is more than the simple show
Of whatever fine fittings upon this fair ship,
Between us the diamonds flash and spark,
All carved from whisperings in the dark.
So thanks for the diamonds,
My Beloved, My Dear
That shine with the light
Of each cherished year -
Stronger than time, deeper than death,
Those treasures we build, while yet we draw breath.
Walking on clouds in the heavenly blue
In a job that I loved, with a sky view,
Let me travel with a smile on my face.
I've sojourned afar in aloha's grace.
Every city, every place had a song...
A melody played as I sang along.
As many years passed and I longed for home
I gave up my wings; no longer would roam.
Island of pineapples and sugarcanes,
Vapor trail dreams, from paper airplanes,
Memories now, I recall from above
Have left me contented with my sweet love.
12-18-16
What was I thinking Contest
Sponsor Daniel Turner
Sound the gong
O ye poetic comrades!
Heralding the seventieth year of the River
Play the flute
O ye poetic comrades!
A symphony of moving waters.
As the river flows, not withstanding
Its stage of life into craving streams
So does of the poetic life of Lindsay Barrett
Flows into the open hearts of juvenile poets
Making classics out of their juvenilia
Lindsay Barrett is the River
Making streams from the belly of juveniles.
Sound the gong
O ye comrades!
Lindsay Barrett is the River that sups with
The Ocean for poetic genius
He knows the Ocean
This River has traveled afar
He has sojourned forty five years in west Africa!
Sound the gong
O ye poetic comrades
The River knows the Ocean
For the river is seventy today.
This River has a favorite song;The ***** Speaks of Rivers
And this song is from a beloved departed Ocean
Departed ocean?
Langston Hughes is the departed Ocean
Departed out of our sight,but his memory
shall live on in our hearts;
''I've known rives
I've known rives ancient as
The world and older than the flow
Of human blood in human veins
My soul has grown deep like the rivers''
Sound the gong
O ye poetic comrades!
Poetic streams; children of Lindsay Barrett
Sound the gong
O ye poetic comrades!
For the river is seventy today!
Happy Birthday Daddy!
15/9/2011
inspired by Julio Eglesias song March 9, 2016
Composed by Joan May Donnelly Ellis
To all the men I've loved before
Who found their way to my heart's door,
I'm grateful to you,
I've learned a thing or two,
From all the men I've loved before.
To all the men I once embraced,
Whose splendid presence graced,
My home with abundance of sheer delight,
And many a romantic night,
I'm glad I gave my heart,
To all the men I've loved before.
The sea persisted in her calling,
And the temptation was so strong,
Not knowing where I was going,
Desiring the unsung song.
To all the men who sojourned with me awhile.
I remember and smile.
You were such a charming guest,
And I wish life's best,
To all the men I've loved before.
To all the men who pampered me,
With showers of admiration and luxury,
Cuddles beneath each starry night,
Sipping on wine growing giggly tight,
Such were the men I've loved before,
To all the men who held my hand,
As we travelled through Adventure Land,
Who forgave when I was cross,
Comforted when I was lost,
I shall not toss away a single gem,
Left me from these men.
In that moment when souls unite in harmony,
I've soared with bliss in places of rarity,
Tasted the nectar of sweet ecstasy,
On eternity's golden shore.
Time passes and all things change,
Circumstances force one to rearrange,
As youth evolves to maturity true,
I'm reminded of yesterdays I knew,
I will waltz until life here is through.
I won't live with regret, nor forget,
The rendezvous, au revoir
To all the men I've loved before.
Down he sojourned
On life's journey
Encounters upon encounters
Mistakes he made
Even offences...
To the people he met
"Apologize" ...he was told by some....
This he did
To erase his misdeeds
"Am I forgiven", he wondered
For others could not yield
To the gesture, so human
"Go get some counselling"
They advised...
Insinuating insanity
To such he said
"Apologize as well"
Our qualms doth not live aloft our dreams to confer
Upon heavenly horizons where every soul shall dwell
Twas meant to turneth thy sight away from a lovers stare
Should sunshine always show, should seas forever break swell
Thou and thou maketh one long vow bound before holy eyes
As fate end lives to lure in new casts God maketh so endears
Why hath ye been sojourned in secrecy of where thine truest treasure lies
When in that divine next place, you will sigh at thine sight of no fears
Mustn't time only tell tales lived on by unvanquished surrenderers
Sailing cordially lost with us, addled no more but paddled on pent in pain
Or herein reap rewards wrought upon death’s frozen oar bearers
Shores to shores, we promised ourselves cradles to returneth once again
Thus as adventure unfolds amongst ocean graves hushed we see
Where perpetual peace reigneth forever we are at last in love at sea
Nap Time
In the astral world of utterance, one overhears the whispering of sweet nothings, breathlessly whisking up a spell of portioned scents that nay, nearly spilt the teacups swirled cremes delights and demitasse gooey treats,
Behold the phoenix rise to full measure under a lunar ecliptic mystic mesmerizing trance, upon a peacocks crown, whose stretched out azure-chartreuse wings, becomes enmeshed betwixt the manes of an unbridled passionate gallop,
For it leaped towards a skipping array of a colorful rainbow's path, that was freely dancing throughout its phases within the warmth air of a frozen sky,
As it spread o'er a vast terrain of mounds and vales of gathered greens tethered to tawny treasures teeming of life with no end at joyful pleasures,
Thus at the behest of Cherubs during the advent of endless stars whose dreamy light twinkles instructions that seduces a flock of whimpering lambs a free ride on their woolly souls,
Fostering meek minions to flow in the channels of a righteous domain free of a distant storm pushed by the lashes of sunbeams tickled whips temperate to your hearts enchanted beats that steadies the gauges of innocence,
And as a cluster of mirrors enlightened volumes of your sojourned quest of luminous unconscious prominence in a period of this, your inner realm expanse, collectively storing away as romantic muses within the anthology of your memory as its key
All delicately locked by the fortuitous magnitude of your eyelids.
2019 May 16
*4th Place*
Baby Face What's You THINKIN 2
~~James Edward Lee Sr.
I arrived at gadgados
today TD our receptionist
is on leave and i have to multitask
between HR and customer care desk
We did lose the keys to the washrooms
turns out the HR forgot and they ended
accompanying her home.. as we are almost
giving up hope of ever finding them..
The boss arrived and they popped out of her bag..
TD arriving at the office these days he keeps popping
up like hes traveling on the fourth dimension
And mi i do know there is no way those keys could
have ended in Madams handbag for the previous day
i am the one who had custody of them last
But the cybertrack ringing in the air.. ability
give me ability... i bet it must be young bujas
who is up to his usual tricks once more
they say he formed the puma squad with the crown prince
and here at gadgados no one really knows what the silver
sentinels are up to... the pumas are very evasive
today the HR trying to corner me wanted to know why
the crown prince deserted duty at the military academy
i don't know i mussed... no one really does know
Maybe Bujas does.. its rumored left to start the puma squad
private silver sentinels... and they have made gadgados facility
their operating base... what they do no one wants to knows
Later in the evening we lost the front door keys only for them
to mysteriously reappear again an echo of the cyber track.. strength
strength give me strength to overcome for you are strength...
I have to mention Bujas strange companion Roy now prowls this area
and the other day i heard Lemmy roughed up people after i declined....
declined work... like TD and took a leave of absence to do music
for i week i sojourned in music traveling trans dimensional arriving...
at the land of light not very unlike Roy.. but different from Roy i traveled
in the eye of my mind and unlike Bujas i have no need for a time machine
Lewis Nyaga
a day at gadgados
Smokey stop pell,
hovering on the station sail,
policy of the ram hitting in a jam in their whole man-
the self assured meander un~spell.
Yes, yes it's a 2000 time tell,
it's so sojourned now we can't expel-
that leader had his mound,
and his following the overt round,
but we had face that was sound?
What is the mettle now?
The rain appeared, arctic
Spattered the duck board
As angry pellets flinched
And recoiled
Boathouse dank, bleak
Galley proofing transpire
Moist and humid
With sense of Frangelico
And bitter almonds
The sord chattered
With new fervor
And feeders sojourned
Past darkled dawn
Composition turned to
Decomposition
Place in basket
Not to collate
Wits and writer’s block
Onset of migraine
Twinge
With visual disturbance
And sorrow
Write of grief
She is not coming back
Time heals
Do not die
Spring frontward
Go home
Sun is aching to flicker
Drop downbeat design
Bloom buds of dreams