First, I will post the overall rules, and then I will post the specifics about this week.
Original rules, as stated by Ubertuna:
It must fit the week's theme. It must be submitted by the deadline. It cannot have inappropriate language in it. It cannot be stolen (if you plagiarize, we will find you).
Also:
The poem must be created for this contest A user cannot win two weeks in a row (though everyone is welcome to submit every week!) Only one submission per user will be accepted
As we all know, the winner will recieve a merit, and their poem will be featured on the _Poetry_ page.
OK, on to this week's topic...Again, we are having a style instead of a theme. Also, this week we are having TWO WEEKS to do it, instead of the usual one. Why? Because this will be an EPIC poem. Or, rather, a parody of an epic poem. Generally, epic poetry is very long, and tells the serious story of a heroic figure. Well, this week, the epic figure is YOU! Write a long poem (I'll leave the definition of 'long' up to you, but give it a good go) about the heroic story of you! It can be silly, serious, whatever... just have fun with it. You have two weeks, so have a great time!
I swear to god I suck at spelling... judge this. (spell checked version) ________________________________________________________________
The Road
As I walk upon my path of doom I pick up a morning flower Stuff it in my shirt pocket And down my path of doom
I look around my path of doom And I see the woman I love I give her a kiss before I continue Down my path of doom.
I begin to run down my path of doom I shall no longer be distracted off into the dark abyss Down my path of doom
I look down into the path of doom Crowds of people begging for me to step down I look at my flower and I remember the kiss And I turn around from my path of doom
Well, my girl dumped me lately, so I'm mainly writing poems about her these days, hoping she'll come back to me someday...I guess I could use the inspiration for the next round though...
op'ning with a bang spring rains give life to barren land winter snows recede
summer sun beats down golden rays fill life with joy dashing to a pool
crisp is the season trees lose there burden of leaves apples in my hand
carolers singing old man winter blows his gales jack frost lays down snow
This actually isn't a real haiku. Several of the lines have too many sylabuls, or not enought. Amazing the amount of improovement that occurs over 2.5 years.
Right, so this is long over due. But since YOU procrastinated, I felt I had some right to.
3rd Place: Jeol
Star-tripping
Spinning 'round and 'round, You can't tell where you're facing. Stopping and being blinded, you know: Gravity is pulling to the ground.
Though you may have stopped And are sure that you aren't moving Your world is still spinning 'round Until to the ground you've dropped.
There on the ground you close your eyes Dieing to get out of this circl'ing madness You open you eyes and look straight up To watch one thing that remains in place: The skies.
You lie there on the frozen ground Blindness and a headache storm your mind Suddenly one by one the stars appear And above the north star is to be found.
Though still you may be confused, You wobble to your feet again, Then finding your friend, you walk, and He gives you a flashlight to be used.
Then spinning 'round and 'round, He loses his sense of direction, He stops for a moment and being blinded, Down he falls to where gravity is pulling: The ground.
Nicely done Jeol. I'm going to be honest, this is good, but need improvement. Overall the flow is decent, but there are several spelling mistakes throughout, yet despite all that the theme is captured, and the poem is an intriguing read that dives away from the cliche.
Second Place: TackyCrazyTNT
Blerg
Make me a map to my life's end Mapmaker, mapmaker dear Point me the way, the twists and turns Mapmaker, mapmaker dear
I want to see your pen bleed With ink upon my path The winding roads; the jagged lines That link me to my past
Waiting here on the blank page, I walking without lines; Hurry and fill in the space I'm lost inside my mind.
A nice use of repetition in the opening stanza and a continuing theme of maps throughout the poem make this a strong piece of writing. I liked the references to the ink lines throughout the entire poem. I would have liked a little more repetition and references back to the mapmaker, as the opening stanza often defines the poem. Aside from some minnor spelling issues, this is a decent poem.
First Place and Merrit Winner: Maverick4
West
Sunlight... Opens up my eyes... But not for the first time, I find my self trapped In a cage of lies.
Those who decieved us, Who spoke from books of knowledge, Led us to our graves, Oh! I cry...
Asking: 'What could now save us?' Pull us out of the fire That envelopes our bodies? Hold our souls and then never Let go?'
Westward facing I lie now, Never to breathe the sweet air. Only now do I know That we were all wrong!
As the stars say their prayers, And the whole Earth adores Him, Darkness flees in His prescense, And inside my tomb, I face... West.
Darkness... Closes up my eyes... And now for the first time, I see the truth that I have been missing.
And here is our winner for this round. A fairly dark, and depressing poem we have. I caught a lot of Ancient Egyptian imagery with the idea of facing West. Whether intention or not it was there. The flow is chaotic and the stanza length is a small nuance that detracts from the enjoyment of the read. However, a strong theme and strong imagery with allusions historical, and possibly Biblical, makes this a good piece of writing. Congrats!
Scratching, kicking, screaming, Trying to find a way out, Thrusting myself about, My life needs to be redeemed, I've got nowhere to go, Locked away from living, Every night, I'm *****, Will I ever escape? Lost out of hearts, Evaporated from minds, Too far apart, Need to get away, Somehow, someway, Will I be found?
