“...curiouser and curiouser...”
lewis carroll
featured poems
Invitation
While the world sleeps
We could delve the ouroboros of dreams
Rampage through Wonderland, Neverland,
cavalcades of roaring dragons,
princesses plucked from flowery fields,
angels dancing, dizzy as daemons, dervish
drunk on coloured rain
atop bright
copper pins.
Surreal circus of pineal circuit
Casts of glorious clowns sparkling
like sequined candy
Proud bears cycling in mid-air,
Amazing feats of flying day-glo trapeze chimpanzees
Wafting popcorn, white scents of sugar delight,
Pansies popping out of top hats as they expand
into darkest space
We could create
twinkling, luminous
sacred place
an anchor for unearthly adventure
a tableau to marvel in grace
if you would
play
May 2010
- laurie corzett
(2 poems added 09.02.10)
editor's note: Here is something from our newest Contributing Poet, Laurie Corzett. She is speaking for all of Mad Swirl with this open "Invitation." R.S.V.P. (See another new one from Laurie on her new page - check it out.) - mh
Johnny O
That night they put you in our circus
as one of the lions.
You came out naked and roaring,
covered only in earth, a true Rastafarian.
Rebel in body, you jumped through fire hoops.
We applauded your bravado, laughed at your crash helmet.
You pawed the ferocious lioness next to you.
We awaited your momentum – you gave chase.
Running in circles with your lion friends,
drinking spirits from a hidden bottle,
you stole the show by breathing fire.
- karin crinella
(added 09.01.10)
editor's note: Our own long-time leader here is lionized with literary aplomb. Should our readers consider this a thankless attempt at self-aggrandizement? Nope!! Let's consider upon which side of the web our Mad Swirl is buttered and offer praise where due. Laud our lionized leader and look out! Hear him roar! - mh
WE WERE MEANT FOR EACH OTHER
Do you remember the day we first met?
You sure were young, not more than sixteen.
You walked into that dealership, parents in tow.
Paced up and down the aisles searching for perfection.
Past the vans, through the trucks and on to the cars.
You looked ready to give up when I caught your eye.
It took more than an hour, but your parents eventually caved.
All that hard work was worth it, we were meant for each other.
You took the long way home, your smile getting bigger with every mile.
I was yours and you were mine. Life was now complete.
We went out every night for weeks, sometimes with nowhere to go.
It was never about the destination, it was spending time with each other.
You sure took good care of me, I couldn't have asked for more.
You cleaned me every week and were always there when I was down.
We've been through it all. The good and the bad, the ups and the downs.
I was there when you took that cute girl to the prom, you were glowing.
Then there was your high school graduation and the after-party, what a night.
Remember when you got your first job? I do, never work in the mall again.
How about that road trip a few years back? I though it would never end!
And what about when you proposed to your wife?
You sat with me for hours thinking about what to say. I think you did all right.
Something's changed though, you don't look at me the same way anymore.
We don't spend much time together, was it something I did?
Sure I've been around the block a few times, but it's still me.
These aren't dents, they're dimples. Scratches? What scratches?
I'm still the one you fell in love with so many years ago.
There's something different today, you sure are in a good mood.
You're cleaning me? You haven't done that in a while.
Must be a special occasion. How exciting!
Birthday? No. Anniversary? Not yet. What is it?
This is driving me crazy, what are you planning?
Here we go! Where could we be going, just the two of us?
I know this place, I've been here before. This is where we first met!
I bet you're getting me a surprise. What could it be?
What's this? You're getting me a sister? We're going to be best friends!
Wait, who is he and why are you giving him your keys?
What are you doing? Where are you going? Come back!
Why are you leaving me? Please, don't leave me!
Come back! …Please?
I still have so much to give.
I'll always remember you. We were meant for each other.
- raymond williams
(added 08.31.10)
editor's note: Shameful the way we leave old loves behind. Enough to break my heart, to hear it from the ex-love's point of view. I can hear mine calling from that junkyard in the sky. Soon! Soon! We'll be together again soon! - mh
Gushing thoughts
Everyone is Gaga for
telephones
and girls and guys
make simulated
love on the dance floor
and this freaking
is
freaking their
fathers and mothers
who are becoming
as frazzled as
the hair bands
of their youth
so they simply
cozy up by
fake fires
and read Nooks
and I am
neither fresh
nor stale
and my finger
is greasy on
the screen
of the iPad generation
the world is
cut and bleeding
crude greed
in the gulf
and Gore does
not have climate
control over his
life anymore
Obama is going
gray over Hurricane
Alex as Hurricane
Katy Perry washes
over California like
a sexy pink twister
yes, Gaga is
in total
dominatrix over
the land of
Pandora
and desire
blooms eternal
as I tame my
dragon nightly
and now I know
there is no longer
good or evil
just Jake or Edward
and yet I feel
renewed when
I hear a baby
say not Goo Goo
but Gaga as she
reaches for VH1
and
Eclipse falls
upon the
masses
I call out
Bella
and
convince myself
that Kristen Stewart
flicks her hair
for me
but alas
I am not
a wolf
with ripped abs
and so I am only
howling at Michael's moon
walk in outer space
- ivan jenson
(2 poems added 08.30.10)
editor's note: Well, what a great goo has gushed upon us!! So much to sort through; don't know whether to update Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Tweeter, Tooter, Tinkerbell Twang - it's so confusing. (Another good one from Ivan on his page - check it out.) - mh
dear,
seems like disaster is about to start
thousands of houses with no god
dying music...
skin burns rotting velvet
swindling records scratch on rusty needles
indigenous tribes rot in burial grounds
closets of smoke and debauched crystals
electronic diseases...
posters stained with hitler
ice capped globes spin in ecstacy
and too long
the animals wait in line
while i'm stuck here
in a straight jacket
biting my own lip
- wolf von blum
(added 08.29.10)
editor's note: Hmmm. Well, if forced to choose, I'll take swindling records over posters of hitler everytime. But, I'd go nuts if it had to be both! - mh
LET EARTH
Let Earth welcome us
like a friend
not an unwanted visitor.
Let Earth shelter us
like a house
and trust us to be human.
Do not trust in war
machines, guns, and bombs.
Love the human race.
Feel the dry branches
and green leaves.
Do not turn your back on the lame.
Let Earth heal our pain,
bring us joy,
and comfort for the rest of our lives.
Let Earth feed our thirst,
hunger, and
what our souls and hearts crave.
- luis cuauhtemoc berriozabal
(3 poems added 08.28.10)
editor's note: Yes, let's let Earth do all of these things. Let's not make her twitch like a horse plaqued by flies, lest we fly off into the stratosphere, with no where left to stand. Thanks, Luis!! - mh
The Equinox
every age there is a dawn
the chrysalis sun
bloats within the birth cloud
waiting for transformation
the metamorphosis of the red giant
the great mask of death slips o'er the face of god
and nods for the grande applause
- nicholas martin
(1 poem added 08.27.10)
editor's note: Could be death deserves applause, but the butterfly sun gets a standing ovation. - mh
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