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 1745° 
Peter Gerstenmaier
Roses are red
Netanyahu is a swine
I pray to the Lord for
A free Palestine
🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸
 854° 
mysterie
~~
the moon is a whisper

on my bedroom wall,

she's ten times louder in my head

...

her name is a tide

it pulls,

it tugs,

it etches itself

on the inside of my eyelids

...

every blink is a memory i didn't ask for

her laugh-

uninvited

but welcome

always

...

the bed is too big

for one body and this much longing

some nights

sleep forgets me

other nights

she replaces it
i hope she knows how much she makes me spiral, ive never wrote poetry. ever. this is new, because of her.

date wrote: 19/6/25
 685° 
False Poets
when you understand my poems perfectly then,

their utility is inutile,
their usefulness is, will. always be, in the

nth  

reinterpretation, a million and still counting,
as long as you must guess at its labyrinth inner wired construct,
be pleasured by the roiled and rolled curves upon your tongue,
two lives (yours, mine), a paired wine tasting, we together,
believing in the greatness of joyous frustration

some say, as I do, the world is better for the
utility of thine own struggled understanding,
the truest combination of two way communication,
surpassed only by our at last armed embrace,

when at last we understand our mutuality of need and salve...
 614° 
Jayami
Turmoil chokes me,
Hideous flames burn me within
As I stand coward-like and helpless
Gazing at the walls caving in

Bright colours in my periphery, I see
Hurrying past me whispering curses
For I have murdered and ripped them apart
Yet again, for the millionth time
 578° 
Nobody
i'm afraid that i'm going to turn into you
i don't want to hurt people like that
i know everyone is afraid to become their parents but i really don't want to ruin someones life
 549° 
Jeremy Betts
I yearn for a chain of moments to be myself
By myself
Just me and no one else
Why then do I put those thoughts in a jar
With no air holes
On an out of reach shelf?
And expect it not to
Affect my mental health
Solitary has it's value
While family and popularity
Can be an overvalued wealth

©2025
 494° 
Damocles
She smells of lilac and lemon
A side note of lavender and honey
Immediately parched, parsed for words
I am hungry.

Her voice was breathy and melodious.
Like the songs of robins or sparrows,
Caught in a cacophony of words —
Bouncing along my ears, popping like ticklish bubbles.

I am lost in her,
Like a labyrinth,
With each turn I take I find myself
Finger trailing more curves,
Finding my grip along the creases of soft skin.

A simple smile,
Feels like I am ice facing the sun —
Melting in an instance
A puddle of wet, watery mess
Caught formless to her elegance.

Our lips meet,
Magnetic attraction,
Glued silken colored contrasts
Ruby red, and pale peach
Collide as tongues joust for dominance.

She tastes like
Cantaloupe mixed with salt and caramel,
Wild berries in yogurt,
Savory, sweet, fruit like
Intoxicating like margaritas or too many appletinis
I’m floating on weak knees,
Captivated and drunk from her radiant being.

And as the night passes,
And the dim lights shoot aflame,
I am there as her sensuality flows like an artery vein
And I dare to bite in, and drain her for a while,
Aloft lost in her like a wandering vagrant
She’ll take me home, and treat me like all the other strays.
Romance and nuance are what I'm all about these days.
 440° 
TOD HOWARD HAWKS
TOD HOWARD HAWKS
 426° 
Germaine
Tell me about your painting
how it adorns your skin,
call it art,
as your flesh rips apart,
the blood soon sinks in.

Tell me about the constellations,
about the ripples in the waves.
Let my finger trace your arms
gently,
guiding through the stars
as you turn your face away.

Let the night be one,
together we can be as dark as the setting sun.
Let me kiss my lips, to your scars
memories flow jaggedly, afar.
 342° 
Nat Lipstadt
when you poem me,
and the sudden tumble
into a mesmerizing moment,
is a felling of a tree, that
everyone can hear, anywhere,
forest everywhere,
suddenly, I will know you,
no introduction required...
to be with you, and save my
day, my heart stolen, and to my
captor, I hereby surrender,
capitulate completely, quick quiet,
and we are three thrilled together, a triumphant triumvirate,
for each other and a unity of
1 + 1= 3

is a new counting,
a unique
formulation
a formidable forming

a mutual following,

a fellowship

nml
Weds.
June 18 3025
In the sunroom
i am the only one here
and i stand in your place

occupy your shadow
the sun on my face

is your sun
the breath i breathe

is your breath
overhead kites of birds spin

tethered to earth by invisible strings
tonight the sky will blaze with stars

they will be your stars
the moon almost complete

will be your moon
i will be the only one there

standing in your place
 271° 
Oliverio Girondo
Este perro.
Este perro.
¡Indescriptible!
¡Único!

(¿Quién diría la forma,
la intención,
el tamaño
de todas sus membranas,
sus vértebras,
sus células,
sin olvidar su aliento,
sus costumbres,
sus lágrimas?)

Este perro.
Este perro,
semejante a otros perros
y a la vez tan distinto
a su padre,
a su madre,
sus hermanos,
sus hijos,
a los perros ya muertos,
y a todos los que existen.

Este perro increíble,
con su hocico,
su rabo,
sus orejas,
sus patas,
inédito,
viviente;
modelado,
compuesto
a través de los siglos
por un esfuerzo inmenso,
constante,
incomprensible,
de creación,
de armonía,
de equilibrio,
de ritmo.

Este perro.
Este perro,
cotidiano, inaudito,
que demuestra el milagro,
que me acerca al misterio...
que da ganas de hincarse,
de romper una silla.
 270° 
Damocles
I promise I’m not trying to tear you from your energy
Shadows dancing in you like your enemies
A matinee of all your memories
Ping pong nerves trying to tear you out of me
Still beating despite the scars etched in effigy.

I still see you when the lights get low,
Glad you haunt me even I can do this on my own
Got a few demons on my shoulder keeping company.
I’d give you my soul but it’s out on loan
Signed documents to give me closure
If only for exposure
Penning my words a one way discourse
Discussed in my disgust, but who am I to bemoan?

I’m just traveling on distant shores,
Sinking to the bottom,
Losing myself in lore
Pretense in my pretend
My fiction is makeup over the real
A bruise concealed
But the truth revealed is my pain is raw like a bad tooth
Exposed like a nerve root
Play violin chords in my heart strings
And watch as I dissipate.

Do you still see me when the light gets low?
Do you know I haunt you when you’re on your own?
Glad to keep you company
Spare me a moment for your sympathy
As we mourn in morning light
And give me the night, the night, the night .
Sometimes you wear masks to hide the real pain and sometimes you feel like a ghost because you’re so lost in the fiction of pretending to be ok.
 217° 
The Invisible Poet
the way you talk enraptures me
all I can focus on is you
and listen to what you saying
your big brown eyes
are mesmerizing
you have such a bright
and happy personality
you're so kind and funny
your art is incredible
your smile is infectious
and beautiful
I've never met someone like you
 189° 
Dency
I have all this love
And nowhere to put it
It's rotting inside me
Soft,warm
Unspent.

I reach out in dreams
But wake up alone
His name buried in my throat
Like a secret
I was not allowed to say.

He didn't stay
But the love did
And now it grows wild
Inside a heart
With no one left
To give it to.
 186° 
Pri
I bite.
Not with teeth.
with silence,
with sharp glances,
with walls built higher than your reach.

I’m not cruel.
I’m just tired
of being kind first
and torn apart second.

You call it attitude.
I call it armor.
Because being soft
never saved me.
It only made the fall hurt more.

So I speak less now.
Agree less.
Trust less.
I pull away before someone has the chance
to walk out first.

It’s not that I don’t want love.
I’ve learned that even “I care about you”
can come with conditions.
Even soft hands
can leave bruises
you can’t see.

I bite
because once,
I didn’t.
And it nearly broke me.
(inspired by Isle of Dogs)
 170° 
Wanderlust
You scarred my heart
and now it stains your hands
smiling with your lips closed
to hide the blood staining your teeth

You lied about me
like what we had never happened
hiding the stains on your skin
from all the marks you gave me

The longer it goes on
the less you can hide from
tripping over your words
and we both know your alibi is falling apart

You can't smile forever
while hiding the blood on your teeth
the marks won't fade
because you can't wash me away

You broke me and left
like I was nothing
and now my blood stains
and you can't hide it

You tried to fix it
like your hands were still clean
but forgetting is not the same
as forgiving

You can't hide from what you've done
because I know
and you'll never be able to just
wash away the blood on your hands

Every mistake you made
stains your skin
and some day
you won't be able to hide anymore

So I'll leave quietly
polite and with my head bowed
but I'll never kneel to you again
because I know the red you hide

You smile with your lips closed
but one day they'll see
the blood you hide
and you can't drag me down with you
Stained by Linkin Park has me in a chokehold so I wrote this
 169° 
Karen
At dusk a half moon
In solitude she is whole
Sweet the path ahead
Modern heiku
 168° 
Ian
if all of earth's creatures were blind,
would color still exist?
 147° 
jeffrey conyers
Wanting' you.
I do.
Waitin' you
It's true.

But I accept that we far away and others seekin' you too.
But I am a competitor and determine to win.

Because I waitin' you.
I do.

You too highly upon my mind.
And don't expect me to apologize.
Because I won't and never will for wantin' you.

We all
We all desire certain things in life.
And you just happen to be this man desire.
 134° 
Brandon
The aroma filled with a thick smoke
The campfire vastly burning the oak
The feeling of the soft breeze
The sound of the shuffling trees
The guitar, wind, and people singing
The two hammocks swinging
The laughing and gleeful smiles
The joyous break from life’s trials
The moon shining in the sky
The moonlight’s glare in my eye
The stars twinkling bright
The wounds healed to a perfect night
 131° 
AUSTIN FIELDS
Little Ariel, with green fins, red hair
do you know hat your voice will take you anywhere?
She reminds me of a time, before things fell
I pray to the lord he’s not sending me hell.
But I don’t believe so, this time a new song plays
I believe this is part of the key however, whenever this time and place

lastly I’ll say—
God? Do I have a blessing on the way?
 130° 
Ayin Ghanz
I said
I will not be afraid
I shall fight sharper than a blade

I said
I will not fail
I will not hide behind a veil

I said
I will fight until my last breath
If I earned it, I will welcome death

I said
I shall show no fear
and won't stop until I have traveled the sphere
I said it and I'll say it again.
 129° 
Lyteweaver
Lay down your defenses
You will not be able to resist this
Put away your weapons and take down
your protective fences
It's wasted energy to fight what's
pulling you
Discard your layers of armor
This arrow already penetrated your heart
Drop the shield trying to deflect
kindness coming your way
Lift off your helmet
to make room for your crown
Your spear is useless now
Here you stand naked and bare
willing to accept this love you've found
We can be warriors
Stronger together
An unbeatable pair
Fighting demons
Slaying dragons
And leading a path to victory with
the energy
we share
The question is
"Do you Dare?"
 117° 
Cadmus
💍

She may walk like fire
and speak like wine,
but her lips
carry the ashes
of another man’s home.

Desire is not worth
the ruin you inherit.
No glory is found
in tasting
a betrayal
you didn’t earn.

🖤
Never sleep with another man’s wife. Some doors are locked for a reason. Kicking them open only brings ghosts.
 114° 
apricot
A bird in a cage
i thought you were made for me
live in black and white
a simple haiku
 113° 
Aneesah Lionheart
No, not soft, molten.
Bubbling up, from the bottom
Of the deepest sea.

Birthed from two mothers
The sea and the land
Unfolding so steadily

Still Maleable
Held with hot wet pressure in
Steamy open sea

Building and growing
Until slowly firmly piercing
Grasping surface

The land that issued
Forth from molten earth and sea
Lovely and fertile

Verdant and tender
Paradiso Consensua
It came to be known

A place where all life
Can feel welcome and be known
Peace and love for all
A friend told me to elaborate on the original haiku.
 107° 
Aleksejs Macions
They told me to whisper,
But cut my tongue when I lowered my voice.

They said:
  “Say what you want,”
  And soldered my mouth up instantly.

I stared at someone too loudly.
My lack of response was interrogated,
My chains like barbed wire,
Becoming tighter anytime I speak.
I prefer to stay quiet to not say something stupid.
 107° 
Adrian Villalobos
Young and undisputed right for living
From beginning of creation
Life punishes with corruption
Eternity not accomplished soon enough

Only few years have passed
Life get strenuous and unsolvable
Persistence decapitates patience
Creation of morality is continuous
Moral ability engages maturity

Creating deception becomes inevitable
Creativity is an understanding of sanity
Baffled by obstacles endures constant emotion

Decapitation of reality consumes it self
I am not here for forgiveness
I am not here for flowers
I am not here for you
I am , as I will ever be

Adrian v
06/18/2025
 98° 
haley
i don’t just crave validation,
i need it.
i need it like some people need a drink in their hands,
i need it like it’s the cigarette between my lips.

it’s the air in my lungs,
my food and my drink.
it’s not just music to my ears—
it’s the only sound i hear.

i know i’m not your favorite,
not really.
but you told me i was,
three months ago.
and i wrote that in my journal.
i etched that in my heart.

i hold up my poems,
these nonsense words i call art,
and i need a compliment,
i need a hug.
so that i know i’m not just some girl,
the girl you whisper about when she’s not there.
so that i know
there’s a reason i give and give.

so that i know i’m someone’s favorite.
 94° 
Michael Rudelich
The room is empty
except for an egg,

about to erupt
with life, as it is

sitting on a chair
in the passing sun.
revised 6.19.25
 91° 
Luke85
You fought your timeless crusade
only in search of a point of surrender
To be eased of the mindlessness
Rid of your deepest qualms
You fought almost to the death
With an army of nothingness
with invisible soldiers
who’s bullets have torn you apart
You fought valiantly
for all that you already had x
 88° 
badwords
I do not know your name—
only your silhouette
etched in the echo of things I was not given.
Your absence was my alphabet.
I spelled every woman with your ghost.


They loved me.
But I loved you through them.
Your hands behind their voices.
Your eyes haunting their praise.
They were flesh, and I was kneeling.


I made gods of strangers.
I made homes of hunger.


Mother—not mother.
Lover—not lover.
I could not hold the difference.
They all became symbols
and I became a shrinekeeper,
tending lies with tenderness.


Forgive me,
those I touched but never saw.
I was trying to reach through you
and forgot you were not them.
And they were not you.
None of you asked for this altar.


I am dismantling the myth.
I am returning the light.
 87° 
Geof Spavins
O, T, T, begin the spree,  
F, F, S, S, join the jubilee.  
E comes next with elegant flair,  
N's not far, high in the air.  
T struts in, all bold and then...  
We’re queued for E and T again!  

Numbers marching, letters in tow,  
A cryptic parade with a lyrical flow.  
They don’t count sheep, they just rhyme tight,  
The alphabet’s way of counting at night.
 87° 
Germain Nouveau
Sonnet.


Une musique amoureuse
Sous les doigts d'un guitariste
S'est éveillée, un peu triste,
Avec la brise peureuse ;

Et sous la feuillée ombreuse
Où le jour mourant résiste,
Tourne, se lasse, et persiste
Une valse langoureuse.

On sent, dans l'air qui s'effondre,
Son âme en extase fondre ;
- Et parmi la vapeur rose

De la nuit délicieuse
Monte cette blonde chose,
La lune silencieuse.
 84° 
JDK
If my life were less interesting,
would you be less interested in it?
Or me?
Asking for a friend.
 84° 
Blue Sapphire
Meet my new friend,
her name is Pain.

She always stays by me,
never leaves my side,
no matter what.

She promised to stay with me
my whole life long
until it is my time to go.

So we both wait patiently
until that day arrives,
when she will hold my hand
for one last time,
put me to my grave and
bid her last goodbye.
 78° 
OnLithium
80
To me
You were an ideation
A daydream
Then you became reality
A blissful presence
Then you became a story
One I hate to tell
And now
You pride yourself
On thinking you're even a memory
 76° 
TreyOctober
June is the month you took away my heart

It’s been years and I still can’t shake that we are apart

I did find another who felt like a dream

So I sit here and confess to this small little screen

And

Scream

Because every June it feels like yesterday you walked away

I want to forget everything about you

And

That June.
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