Poetry Blog by Jon Stainsby

Starting the journey afresh

a zero point, a big bang,

an expanding universe,

the endless possibilities.

The long, soft puff of breath

spreading the bloomed spray

in a myriad of directions,

the unknown escaping

to sow itself into the lives

of the unsuspecting,

of the ones searching

for that, as yet, hidden pleasure

or thought lying at the bottom

of the deep we...

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If my love for you were a road
then it would stretch beyond the horizon.

If my love for you were an oak
then its branches would reach the highest heaven.

If my love for you were a lion
then its strength would overcome all.

If my love for you were water
then there would never be a thirsty mouth.

If my love for you were bread
then no-one would go hungry again.

My love for you is ...

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Surrounded by summer verdancy,

the sweet smell of the linden tree

and the deciduous arboreal presence

dining on the twilight sun.

The bright notes of the songstress

soothe my ears and calm my nerves,

that mambo rhythm cradles me

while I dream of glorious dances.

The floating melody is in full flight

and transcends the corporeal

to rise above the out reaching soul

t...

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A wild flower doesn't waver

faced with the oncoming weather.

A stout tree doesn't falter

when the hurricane gathers.

A passive creature doesn't move

but has the strength to stand firm.

A crying man doesn't shy

from his emotional outburst.

A breastfeeding mother doesn't heed

the talk of closed minds in public.

A questioning child doesn't listen

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You are the blood of life

but your wasteful spilling

also signals its dying away.

The danger you show

is like a bull's enraging rag

In shame and unease,

facially giving away

from ear to ear.

In courage, passion and confidence

you fly the hoisted flag.

Cupid's waving his two fingers

to show he can still let loose that arrow

while the devil pla...

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I share your sadness

in my time of need,

but bask in your heat

in the azured heaven

of canicular days.

The cold is also tied to you

and I am frozen in your hue.

Mental calm and serenity flow

from your presence,

and we can feel reassured

in the body of your essence.

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Through Vincent's eyes

the sunflowers radiant and mellow

shine through the murkiness

of the temporal world

his spirit rises above the earthly plane

beyond where the prosaic lies,

into a world of the sublime

where the heavenly riches

of bountiful dreams meet the

reality of the canvas.

A beautiful scene from

a mind so clear its visions

stretch beyond the limits

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The second serpent

devoured the right hand

and the devil tied a knot

around the left

to tease and to prise

all of humankind

into the caves where

the chains hold us tight

while we watch

the shadows

dancing until the

morning light,

never to behold the

true forms

always to see the pretence

and believe it.

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The drunken dancer

and the temperance priest

whispering to each other

about a fiery affair of love

between the sun and moon,

and the emotional outburst

when the universe was born.

The priest he begs for

the drunk to desist,

but the drunk just mutters

obscenities under his breath

and calls for more.

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Although you are

in essence an absence

you are always deliberate,

mysterious and silent,

a shadow following,

a shade from the sun,

impression gives colour

but you remain intact

with none.

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The quiet twisting of already

screwed and spewed words,

uttered from the gaping wounds

of their sorry faces,

mouths as bleeding caverns,

pus filled lies uttered in a

disingenuous cacophony,

where no one is safe from

the tirade of empty locution,

a terrible warped view

crammed into the selfish egos

of monsters in out midst.

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The holy man stands in his pulpit

and calls out to his congregation

that they cannot wait to turn to God

because it will then be too late,

and his forgiveness forgotten,

their souls tied to the hounds of hell

that unceasingly bite at naked heels,

and drag them down below with

wounds that will never heal.

The righteous shall inherit

what's left of the earth,

while t...

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From a sedentary position

you vent your anger

order! order!

From a sedentary position

you bare your bile

order! order!

From a sedentary position

you defile democracy

order! order!

From a sedentary position

your hubris takes a fall

order! order!

From a sedentary position

you will achieve nothing

order! order!

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Happiness is a fleeting emotion

and that’s how it should remain

for if we were eternally happy

how could we ever feel pain?

Sadness is a fleeting emotion

and that is how it should remain

for if we were eternally sad

joy would be hard to attain

Jealousy is a fleeting emotion

and that is how it should remain

for if we were eternally jealous

where would trus...

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The soft rising sun mellowed

by the thin layer of

slowly dissipating clouds

beguiling me

leading me on my way

forward, onward

to my destination

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The quiet choir

who ultimately sing

the crushing melody

of a silent night

and a frightened dawn

The muted musings

of a dying priest

whose last wish

is to shout at God

for such betrayal

The weeping child

who screams aloud

of lost innocence

in the mourning

of its nascent life

The beguiling beast

sleeping in its lair

dreaming of its ki...

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I am a word wanderer

peripatetic poetry is my voyage,

each syllable a serendipitous moment,

vowel vitality fuels every page

while a loquacious line forks off into two distances

leaving a double and doubtful sense

to my meanderings

all the better for the turn of phrase,

adding to the journey

is a consonant chaos of juxtaposition and alliteration,

a choice to turn left ...

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Are these my words

or those of someone else

plucked out of the ether

original or borrowed?

Are they a randomly

collected assortment

strung together to form

a coherent mass or

an incoherent mess?

One letter making

such a difference to

our feeling

our understanding

our meaning

our perception

our walking out the door

after studying the room

its conte...

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High hopes for the hangman

you will go far and

fulfill your many dreams

but the people will not

forget what you have done

and the pain you have caused.

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That single drop in the ocean

that butterfly flutter

that ripple in the potion

that nervous stutter

The reason follows 'because'

a fall after a stumble

a gamble after a pause

lightening before a rumble

Blooms from the seed

seed from the flower

the cycle of life

revealing endless power

An effect follows a cause

some larger, some small

all fol...

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Don't leave your laughter

lying around here

it is contagious and

might infect others

we wouldn't want

people enjoying themselves

and having fun

it could spread like wildfire

rampant and unchecked

run amok and carefree

it may make the world

a better place

and we wouldn't want that

would we?

Haha haha.

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A shadow drawing across my notebook

a guiding hand for my uncertain pen

another mind thinking my thoughts

the ghost writer begins to take over.

Words from a different realm

sentences flowing from beyond

aiding me with my creative void

the ghost writer is taking over.

Holding my unsteady hand

boldly streams of words do flow

happy am I with my expressive frien...

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The butterflies caressed

the frail old man

and soothed his sorrow

in the light flutter of

their dainty wings

his heavy heart

lost all its weight

and floated gently

to its resting place.

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I hid behind the veil

waiting to surprise you

but you never appeared

so I melted into the fabric

and became a part of the universe

that is never more to be seen

a molecule among millions

I found my place and am happy there

faceless, indivisible, a cosmos

inside a myriad of stars

a silhouette inverted

a ghostly whisper of a dream

floating around in a whirlpool

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To find a peace beyond

sentience and experience

to find that inner tranquility

floating in a calm sea of stillness

resting on an ocean of order

where there is no space

or physical place

just a quiet solitude

full of soulful grace.

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The soft singing wind

lulls me into a slumber

where my dreams

form their many colours

and the rainbow of mixed

temporal and spiritual boundaries

fade and merge into each other

creating an ephemeral cloud

on which I fly to the

corners of the realm

to seek out my true self

in order to believe again.

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You sucked the melancholy heart

from my cursèd body

drank the treacherous blood

from my hardened veins

retched the black bile

from my pensive spleen

ripped the calm phlegm

from my very breath

but I am still here

alive and happy to die.

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Stretching their limbs

up high to the heavens

outwardly so thin and fragile

but still vitally full of the force of life

enduring the stark harshness

of nature's capricious temperament

strong in root and sure of stature

the cold azure of a winter's sky

interspersed with snow filled pillows

on which to rest their hibernal heads.

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You opened my eyes 

then shut them again

the sun shone

then came the rain

the joyous rapture

and the ceaseless pain

unbridled laughter

that today sounds insane

once a transport of delight

now a trip down memory lane.

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The heavily laden sky

hanging like a shroud over your head

a dense blanket of deep shame

and guilty promises

a teeming downpour of tears

drowning out the screams

of tormented children

abandoned and destitute

cruelly denied a loving spirit

by the mean minded heavens

to scream, to dream, to summon

a better life than the one

randomly placed before you.

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I hope that around the world

people, everywhere

are trying to look through

another's eyes

taking another perspective

opening up

and showing compassion

and understanding.

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The snowman floats an eternity away

distant, but now closer in this vast array

Joined at birth, Ultima and Thule

Now become the universe’s jewel.

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