once I watched looney tunes
with crazy music in the background
and loveable cartoon goons
back in the day
memories of maniacal melodies
morphed into dismay
listening to rock and roll
one fateful tropical day
in a helicopter on my way
to battle
Author: Dave Stancliff
Retired newspaper editor/publisher, Vietnam veteran, freelance writer, blogger. Married 51 years. A sense of humor. Defender of truth. Give my poems, essays and short stories a read. I look forward to feedback. Write on!
Idiocracy and Liberty
it’s been plain to see
from sea-to-shining sea
America has become an idiocracy
instead of a democracy
oh say, can you see…
the dumbing down of our society?
our president’s notoriety?
the partisan impropriety?
someday historians will agree
this was a dark time in our history
our saving grace, we love to be free
we believe in social equality
and in the Constitution’s guarantee
the very foundation of this country
A Bird Jubilee
looking up at a beautiful blue sky
filled with flocks of busy birds
hearing an Orioles clear cry
a Veery Thrush’s sweet melody nearby
their acrobats in the sky
waterfall notes of tiny Wrens
flocks of feathered friends
Grosbeak’s melodic tones
White Geese’s harsh baritones
riding the winds currents
and the cross currents
sparrows sing joyfully
in a bird led jubilee
The Fable of Fate
scholars and philosophers claim
we are all victims of fate
in some big game
nothing is foreordained
our future is unwritten
we choose our own lane
how we spend each day
dealing with reality
and sometimes play
fate is not cast in concrete
framing your name
on destiny’s side street
I don’t care what the poets say
we are not bound by fate
or any other written cliché
and what pundits say
Hilarity in the Key of Be
it takes practice to be happy
to enjoy each day
no matter what comes your way
there’s no limits to hilarity
and the joys it brings
to little things
belly laughs and chuckles
achieve their happy goal
of bringing peace to your soul
look how breathless laughter
brings a smile to your face
when your in a bad place
oh, hilarity!
Where would we be without thee?
Repetition: The Earth’s Opera
the steady flow of water cascading down ancient cliffs
fed by hidden springs forever full
repeating repeating repeating
a cycle stretching back to the dawn of time
a chorus of crickets singing
repeating repeating repeating
the heartbeats of mother Earth
the sound of whistling winds
repeating repeating repeating
a secret orchestra for the universe
and songs for other galaxies
repeating repeating repeating
throughout eternity
Shopping At The Fantasy Store
step right in to a writer’s dream
and visit a fantasy store
where imagination is the central theme
story ideas from A to Z
are carefully separated
for all to see
tomes full of wizards words
nestled alongside fairy tales
and legends of Thunderbirds
rows upon rows of fantasy
inspirations from famous scribes
throughout history
there is no end in sight
you can go on forever
with the speed of light
Nonsense in the Key of See
New York Babylon
politicians who don’t get along
parades of stupidity by the deplorably strong
images that are just plain wrong
freedom is facing a swansong
swing low and bang the bong
racists don’t belong
shades of King Kong
a saint in a sarong
pimps playing ping pong
the growing throng
you might as well come along
after all, we all belong
The Rise of Poetry
Essay – 1 minute read
The traditional gatekeepers of poetry, professors and such, have longed considered themselves quality control experts. Their narrow interpretation of what constitutes worthy works comes with constrictions and different restrictions.
Examples include:, Haiku, Ballad, Stev, Ode, Free verse, Blank verse, thematic, limerick and nursery rhymes. Spoken out loud, they provide powerful images within the confines of each style. A feat many writers haven’t bothered to try, poetry, was once deemed elitist and a byproduct of scholarly snobbery.
But The Beat Generation came along in my time and showed that not all poems have to rhyme and that provocative word pictures could be painted without formal meter or stanza standing in the way. A revolution that is still happening today.
Even more important to me, is that everyone can feel free to write poetry on their own websites or social platforms without conventional publishers dictating terms to them.
This, because of the growing poet population online, is the new Golden Age of Expression
Winter Flower
The valley was a wintery tableau
buried beneath a carpet of freshly fallen snow
where a defiant flower bulb did silently grow
snugged in beneath the frozen ground
it didn’t wait for spring to come around
already emerging safe and sound
The Creative Chronicles of Dave Stancliff 