Selected poetry by Strafe

[Strafe]

I'll periodically post poems I've created here, and a little bit of background on them.

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A Dark Room Full of Clocks
By Matt

He sits alone in a dark room full of clocks, watching hours die
Her picture rests in his hands, a loving memory of days long past
The grandfather clock beats in time with his weary heart
Tired eyes close as the tick tock tick becomes a steady waltz
The scent of her perfume dances, flits on the edge of his mind
He opens his eyes, sees himself dancing in turn, swaying as she smiles
Her dark hair ignites the flames from when they were young
Her gentle grasp as they turn sets sparks off in his hand
The waltz accelerates, and they hurry along with it
Until she laughs warmly when the final note fades away
They applaud the string quartet, as they return to their seats from the dance floor
He closes his eyes again as he sits, reeling from the sheer joy of it all
He opens his eyes again, expecting her comforting smile
It is all gone
The shining parquet floor is now the rotting hardwood he has once loved
The lively tempo has faded to the clock’s weary trudge
Every long second is again a heartbeat, another step closer
He is tired of walking in this room of clocks forever
He sits alone in a dark room full of clocks, watching hours die
Her picture rests in his hands, a loving memory of days long past
But a faint giggle comes through the wall like a gossamer thread
The door opens, light pours into the dark room
Standing there is his granddaughter, and he offers a warm smile
A smile just like his wife would have given her
He sets down her picture, and steps out of the dark room full of clocks

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So just something I wrote when I was bored. Not much about it.

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I Watched the Light Fall
By Matt

I listened for the future's call
As the sun fought against the dark sky
I watched the night fall

I knew that the wells would never run dry
For we would never have pain anymore
As the sun fought against the dark sky

And above all worries we would soar
As we had nothing in life to fear
For we would never have pain anymore

But the darkness began to draw near
While I clung to my hopes of perfect bliss
As we had nothing in life to fear

Further we descended into the abyss
As I begged the light to stay
While I clung to my hopes of perfect bliss

And now, for a shred of light, I pray
I listen for the future's call
As I begged the light to stay
I watched the night fall

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A little poem I did on the Great Depression. Again, not much to it.

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I Cried For You
By Matt

I watched the lights flicker across the television screen
The shifting pictures uncertain of where to go next
Until they stopped on you, as you dug through piles of refuse
And I cried for you that day
As you limped across sullen streets
Looking over your shoulder in fear
Until you were in the alleys, licking your many wounds
Because you were the outcast
And they knew that you knew you were nothing
So I cried for you
When the smell of your own intoxicated breath made you reel
And your tired rotting clothes leaned against you for support
Even though there was none you could give
Not even to your own family
But I cried for you
As I watched your life flicker before my eyes
Your shifting gaze uncertain of where to turn
Up to the day when they carried you away
Because you were finally at peace
I cried for you

Until I went home to the wealth I could have easily shared

-

Just another bored poem.

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Posting more later.

[Strafe]

So this time I'll post some of the villanelles I've written

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To the Sailors of the Hot, Dry Sea
By Matt

To the sailors of the hot dry sea,
Who never sailed on cold wet earth,
Might some water rise because of thee?

In every drop of air is a thirsty fee,
Which many have paid in full girth,
The fate of the sailors of the hot dry sea.

Many have danced in the deep green lea,
But you have been among the quiet berth.
Should some water rise because of thee?

The fishers of men had time to flee.
They escaped the burning ocean's hearth.
Unlike the sailors of the hot dry sea.

Should misery choose to not suppress me?
I, who had never fallen low into pits and mirth?
Might some water rise because of me?

And the people would cry with glee,
At the joys of an innocent birth,
But what of you, sailor of the hot dry sea?
Might some water rise because of thee?

-

Written out of attempt to use older language

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Don't Mourn this Dark Cursed Day
By Matt
Walk ever blindly in this dark cursed day.
Time will not stop, not even for the sea,
But don’t mourn the loss of things that will soon fade away.

Cry for the frail who unsteadily sway
To the inconsistent movement of a hypocrite’s tree,
And walk ever blindly in this dark cursed day.

Lament over the weary who with tired eyes, may
Choose the wrong path, that their soul pay the fee.
But don’t mourn the loss of things that will soon fade away.

Weep for the lost who have not found their way.
As some say that life is a road leaving none to see,
But to walk ever blindly in this dark cursed day.

Shed tears for the dying who cannot forever stay.
But for we will someday depart just as them, we
Don't mourn the loss of things that will soon fade away.

But for their broken spirits and hopelessness, pray
That they are not excluded yet from Heaven's perfect lea.
Though they walk ever blindly in this dark cursed day,
We don't mourn the loss of things that will soon fade away.

-

You notice, I don't use too much meter or syllabic Constraints...

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The Lonely Traveler’s Villanelle
By Matt

I walk on this road alone and afraid
In this barren wasteland, this shattered lie
Worn from the broken promises I’ve made

Because of the tired path I have made
Killing good men’s dreams and their will to fly
I walk on this road alone and afraid

Even though I know the price has been paid
By a man who bore the rugged cross high
Worn from the broken promises I’ve made

And though dying men, in their last breath, bade
Dying men to never let their hopes die
I walk on this road alone and afraid

Now, while I watch all the dying lights fade
I cower in fear of being passed by
Worn from the broken promises I’ve made

For here on my death bed, I have been laid
I wait in silence as the time is nigh
I walk on this road alone and afraid
Worn from the broken promises I’ve made

-

My best villanelle in my opinion. dunno. I got it to 10 syllables, but still no meter...

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More later...

[Strafe]

Sleep my Child
By Matt

When light has faded to the sea
The fields cry out for their worth
A grasping moon rises to the fallen world
Keeping watch over the restless night

Sleep, my child, heaven watches over you

Men may plow the broken fields in the morrow
Their rough hands sow the desert earth
A dying sun rises to this fallen world
Keeping watch over the restless day

Sleep, my child, heaven watches over you

To my pleas of mercy, justice, and peace
No answer runs to the debt of grief
But may God stand over us, in the fallen world
Keeping watch over the restless people

Sleep, my child, heaven watches over you

In the pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness
A murmur grows from the broken people
But May God stand by us, in this fallen world
Keeping watch over the restless souls

Sleep, my child, heaven watches over you

God in heaven, God above all
Watch over us in our desperation
The murmur grows louder in the fallen world
Getting stronger for the restless people

Lord and savior, King above all
Deliver us in our desolation
The shouts grow louder in this fallen world
Bringing rage to the restless souls

Lord and savior, deliver us in our darkest hour

The light has faded to the sea
Cries of the fields return content
God standing over us above the world
Keeping watch over the healing souls

Sleep, my child, heaven watches over you

-

A really old one. not special...

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The Mosaic of our Dreams
By Matt
Shattered glass scatters on the floor of our sanity.
The vase of our future holding the flowers of our aspirations now lies
On the floor, in a million pieces behind us.

We lament and weep, you and I...

Many moons rise and set over the motionless glass in this eternal night.
The way that we dwell on the mess on the floor lets us sink deeper
Into the darkness, that will blind us.

We lose all hope, you and I...

But the glass shards on the floor catch ribbons of the newly risen sun's light.
The reflections of our past, gleaming from the glass, shows us that
The sun has risen, light has come to find us.

We find new hope, you and I...

Tiles on the floor appear again as glass is removed.
There is open space, with no mess cluttering the floor and we
Place the radiant shards back, to remind us.

We piece together our past, you and I...

Shattered glass finds itself no longer on the floor of our sanity.
In its place now lies something more beautiful than the vase that was
Our past dreams, past dreams that no longer bind us.

We look at the mosaic of our dreams, you and I...

-

For some reason, it got published. I don't specifically like it... As you can tell, I don't think too highly of my writing.

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Sonnet based on Night
By Matt

Though time shall cover every dying flame
And tired breezes run the rivers dry
The sun hides not from ever fearing name
That screams so softly not to ever lie
For death floats gently ‘cross the blackened field
The ashes falling, ‘tis a darkened snow
The dreams of many, burning snow does yield
That perished not when it was time to go
Of Jews and Gentiles yet to walk the earth
And golden stars that gleam in candle light
The father pleads for heaven’s greatest worth
The son petitions God for peace that night
But shall peace come to guide us as it may?
Or will the night again consume the day?

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Finally... metric constraints. In iambic Pentameter for School assignment...