Oodles of Poodles (Meaning 'poems', of course)

Wow! For a blog that's supposed to be a personal journal, a clutter-free Facebook, there's not much to look at other than poems, is there?

I guess I can run a personal update. My schedule just got very hectic. Wanna see?

February 28th- New Beginnings
March 3rd- Sterling Scholar Finalist Competition
March 11th-13th- FFA State Convention
March 19th-20th- Laurel's Conference
March 30th (hopefully!)- Sterling Scholar State Competition
April 22nd-28th- Washington, DC for "We the People"

Right now, my life is filled with fundraising, projects, letters, and other stuff like that. It's pretty busy. When I get back from DC, I'll post all of my photos on here! I'm so excited!

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Twenty One/Ode~ "An Ode to the Refrigerator"

Faithful servant!
Willing friend!
That giving appliance,
Always willing to lend.
He feeds the hungry,
Nourishes the weak,
Makes the roaring stomachs
of children
A mere squeak.
Who else would keep
Our mustard ripe?
Hold our crayon masterpieces,
Calm our feral gripe?
An ode to the machine
That makes men merry and fat.
To that old refrigerator,
I tip my fancy hat.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Twenty One/Nonet~ "life"

prarie grasses wave lazily where
country homes dot the valley floor
tractors putt down lonely roads
birds dance with open skies
as the wind curls my
sun smattered locks
I sigh soft
this is
life

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Twenty/Naani~ "Melt"

A hope
That once the morning dawns brightly
Icicles will shatter
And snowmen will d-ie.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Nineteen/Monorhyme~ "Travel by Notes"

Earbuds in and the world goes away.
I run through forests. I rule the day.
I sit 'mongst trees whose branches sway
In the sweetened wind of May.
I soar through sunsets, colored clay,
I run through sand on salty bay.
Through forests bundled in a sleigh.
I swim through ocean foam and spray.
I am the lead in a Broadway play.
Dancing, twisting, bright sun ray.
Atop a horse that smells of hay.
Then I'm a wolf, alone, a stray;
A hawk, an eagle, and a jay.
I ride the back of a manta ray.
I sit alone at a french cafe,
Clutching close a red bouquet.
I watch the dying light of today
As the wind puts my hair in disarray.
I still need to write my 'We the People' essay,
But, until then, it's in musical I stay.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Eighteen/Monody~ "Sweet Rose"

She met me at the window pane,
Her bright face stretched near mine.
The day when her pink smile did wane
She lost that youthful shine.

Her petals lost their - er,
And her spine begin to curl.
Her strength was hard to muster.
Her weakness did unfurl.

The vase I bought to be her stage,
Picked out just for she,
Clouded with the dust of age,
Her droop a silent plea.

Her pond of water once so clear
Filled with the film of - .
She lost her rosy petals dear
And fainted with last breath.

Her skin is brown and torn apart,
Sweet petals slimed and black.
That little flower of my heart
Victim to silent attack.

She met me at the window pane,
Her bright face stretched near mine.
Her youthful scent a flowery rain,
Her life and mine entwined.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Seventeen/Mirrored Refrain~ "My Sun"

Blue drapes are strung above me,
Speckled with happy white puffs.
Because the sun still shines today,
There's light inside my heart.

A drive considered long and lonely
Is my escape, my journey.
There's light inside my heart
Because the sun still shines today.

Faces pass me in the hallway
And I grin at them.
Because the sun still shines today,
There's light inside my heart.

My books slide onto the desktop
And I scoot in with a content sigh.
There's light inside my heart
Because the sun still shines today.

I walk from class refreshed and curious
Hoping for more days like this.
Because the sun still shines today,
There's light inside my heart.

Suddenly I see your face before me,
And I search for the smile I adore.
There's light inside my heart
Because the sun still shines today.

It's slow in coming, but it's there,
And I can but smile back.
Because my sun still shines today,
There's light inside my heart.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Sixteen/Minute Poem~ Trying

You told me not to bother you,
When I feel blue,
When things are bad,
Or when I’m mad.

I’ll deal with those myself, I guess,
Though I’m a mess;
To prove I can,
You understand?

I’ll be strong, defy gravity.
Believe in me,
If nothing more,
I do implore.

Happy First Gentleman Day!

Today is President's Day. As both an AP History and AP Gov. student, I've gained so much appreciation for the President and all he does for his country. I'm just taking time to note my favorite: Thomas Jefferson.

He was a fighter for liberty, independence, religious freedom, free speech, and other such grand ideals of America. That's why I like him.

In honor of President Jefferson today, I am going to conduct a service project. Maybe clean my house up for my mom. :)

Whose your fave? Do something for him.

Happy First Gentleman Day (since they call the Prez's wife First Lady ;D)!

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Fifteen/Limerick~ "Because My Dad Hates Robins"

A robin once flew out to Benson,
Sticks in his mouth like a great ensign.
Daddy opened the door.
Now that birdy's no more.
We ate robin for lunch and then some.

Lots of Lovin'

So, it's Valentine's Day. It came quickly, far too quickly. On Friday there were flowers and baskets of red and pink everywhere, and I had to ask myself, "What is going on?" Oh. That's right. Day of Love.

Things that I love around this season?

Family
Friends
Christ
Spring
Sun
Dogs
School
Teachers
Scriptures
Movies
Music
Good books
Home
America
Church
YW leaders
Hymns
A warm bed
A clean room
My mama
Papa
Sis
Brothers
Life

These are what I love, no matter what.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Fourteen/Lanturne~ "Love"

Love

looks gross;

but we are

simply jealous

souls.

Fresh Start

Hey Blog.

I basically gutted you out and started afresh, because all I really need right now is a new start. I posted every 100 Days of Poetry Challenge poem on you so far, just because it's fun and one of those things I'll look back on and smile about later in life. So that explains that.

Why am I starting over? I've had a rough week. Yeah, winning a trip to DC is absolutely amazing and I am still so excited about it, but nearly losing a best friend outweighs the joy you feel when you win a trip. I guess I'm wanting to start over because I made mistakes in that friendship and ended up hurting...well, just myself.

Lessons I have learned:
Having a friend means sacrificing your perspective to see theirs and make it work.
Having a friend means caring about them more than yourself.
Having a friend means that you need to listen.
Having a friend means that you are blessed.
Having a friend means God loves you.

So. I'm starting over, cleaning myself up, looking ahead. Thanks for listening, even though you can't, really. You just take what I give you, and I have so much to give.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Thirteen/Kyrielle~ "Wings"

We stand on the tip of the world,
Our hair getting snarly and curled.
I tremble, looking from the sky,
Because one day soon I will fly.

Your voice is stern, your features grave.
"Jump, little one. Try to be brave."
I shake my head and ask you, "Why?"
Because one day soon I will fly.

My hand is in yours as you speak,
"If you won't try, life will be bleak."
I look down in fear with a cry,
Because one day soon I will fly.

"I'm not going to do it for you!
Not for me, not them. I refuse!"
I fold my arms tight and I sigh,
Because one day soon I will fly.

As the mountains echo my voice,
They isolate yours. "It's your choice."
You walk away from me; so high,
Because one day soon I will fly.

Not a whisper. I stand alone.
The wind now howling, chilling bone.
You're gone; a fact I do deny,
Because one day soon I will fly.

"I cannot do this on my own.
Come back!" I cry. "Come back," I groan.
You always said, "It takes one try"
Because one day soon I will fly.

You don't come back; that chance I've lost.
My refusal came at high cost.
And I can't wail, I cannot cry,
Because one day soon I will fly.

"Okay!" I shout. "I'll leap for you!"
But that is not what I should do.
It's me whose stuck midst peak and sky,
Because one day soon I will fly.

I take a breath, I see your face.
It hovers in surrounding space.
I stick my feet out, leap, and sigh,
Because one day soon, I will fly.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Twelve/Ghazal~ "Veins"

Tightly strung veins stand suspending heart;
The pumping through them attending heart.

They fill with excitement and sometimes anger,
And every once in awhile, charity that comes with extending heart.

They're little and fragile, but they are strong,
Their power beyond mighty; transcending heart.

For an organ can't work, can't survive, without aid,
Though that aid is often shadowed by an impending heart.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Eleven/Haiku~ "Echo"

Tree branches rustle
with the weight of heavy snow
in the mountain tops.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Ten/Free Verse~ "Just a Book"

A cover slightly blemished,
Binding not quite straight,
And a shy blush tinging the leather;

That's what greeted the readers
Of the small, insignificant book.

They couldn't read her face,
So they'd feel around the back.
No summary was there,
No words,
Just leather.

She was vulnerable,
Nothing protecting her
Fragile form;
They couldn't read her story
On the jacket.
There was none.

A lot of them quit after that.
Who wants to read a book without a story anyway?

But some kept going.
She was filled with fairytales,
Stories of love, pain, tragedy, experience.
The words were beautiful,
Exposing her story to the world
In tangible ink.

But it wasn't that exciting.

Few cared to finish,
But some did.
They came to know her,
Maybe love her,
And say, "That was good",
Tossing her aside as they did.

She would shudder with rejection,
Soon dusty and forgotten.

Inside,
Beneath the words and the page numbers,
Beneath the scripted ink and the chapter heading,
Were pages,
Blank as could be,
Hiding behind the stories.
For that's what books do;
They hide behind their words.

No one noticed the smooth texture of the paper,
The sweet scent as they flipped through it,
The soothing, pure sight of untouched pages.
They only came for the story,
And she gave it to them,
But they didn't see the pages,
The soul of the book.

She was really just a sheaf of
Cowardly papers,
Hiding behind the stories she hoped
People would like,

Afraid of not being read,
But also afraid of being read the wrong way.

Just a book.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Eight/Epitaph~ "Epitaph of the Alaskan Politician We All Loved So Much"

You were such a maverick,
And we were so used to your face.
I hope that your Bridge to Nowhere
Takes you to a much better place.

P.S: George and Thomas and John and James and Alexander and John and Benjamin and Nathaniel and Luther and Charles and Robert would agree that you were their favorite, too.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Nine/Etheree~ "Sea"

Waves
curl through
the tendrils
of my dark hair
as I swim below
the glowing, moonlit night.
I taste the sweetened bubbles
that hobble and dance around me.
I imagine that dolphins watch as
I embrace the world they've had forever.
My hearbeat pulses like a dull echo
As I drift and glide through darkened space.
Water is freedom and escape.
I never understood that.
Now I want to live it.
As tide pulls and moves,
I go along.
I'm ocean.
I am
sea.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Seven/Epigram~ "Give Me a Game on TV and I'll Be Happy!"

Patrick Henry exclaimed, "Give me liberty or !"
Citizens today wouldn't dare ever waste their breath.

With a bag of potato chips clutched tight to his chest
The average American seems to know what is best.

It isn't liberty or freedom or a cause most noble
It's what's on the television or who won the Super Bowl.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Six/Didactic~ "To Escape Life"

To escape life for
A moment or more,
Follow the following
Directions.

Step through the glass doors
Of a room filled with
Billions of characters
And places
And situations.

Pull a neatly bound
Treasure chest
Filled with some of those
People and
Places and
Situations.

Run it under the red light and
Clutch it to your chest
As you walk home.

When you reach your
Quiet bedroom,
Curl into the nearest
Spot with some pillows.

Open up that small, square
Trove, and delve into
A world that someone created
Just for your pleasure,
Your resort.

To escape life for
A moment or more,
Pick up a book
Written just for
You.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Five/Diamante~ "Mind and Heart"

Mind
systematic, realistic
analyzing, cautioning, protecting
logical, secure, curious, carefree
accepting, exposing, liberating
brave, open
Heart

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Four/Clerihew~ "Look Out Your Window..."

Jessica Swenson
drove out to Benson,
putting her mug 'gainst my window to scare.
She's the favorite stalker of my nightmares

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Three/Cinquain~ "Sandy Bottoms"

swimsuits
sagging downward
with the weight of wet sand
dumped from the pails of small young s
with glee

100 Days of Poetry Challenge~ Day Two/Ballad~ "The Ballad of Friendship and Flight"

Refrain:
If you could see the Land of Oz,
And sail its em’rald sky,
I’d hope that you’d take time to pause,
And take me for a fly.

(I)
We both have lived a quiet life
And written down our dreams.
We’ve talked of love and future days
‘Neath mounds of cloudy creams.

(II)
One day a bird will split that sky
As we below it lay,
And piling swirls of darkened wind
Will take us separate ways.

(Refrain)

(III)
You’ll land upon a golden path
That stretches past your view,
And I will land ‘mongst mountain peaks
Far away from you.

(IV)
You will meet a tall tin soldier
Who guides you to your end;
You’ll run into a lion cub;
Your honor he’ll defend

(Refrain)

(V)
A kindly man of straw and cloth,
Not quite bright or wise,
Will help you ‘long the way you walk,
If just to catch your eyes.

(VI)
I’ll be battling flying monkeys
And maybe even es,
And I’ll escape these tow’ring peaks
With nothing more than stitches.

(Refrain)

(VII)
Your friends will help you reach your dreams
While I can only pray
That as they please your wits and whims
They’ll bring you ‘round my way.

(VIII)
You will reach that tow’ring city.
To awe you will succumb
As you fly across horizons wide
And see how far you’ve come.

(Refrain)

(IX)
You’ll sit beside the lucky ones;
Your dreams will stay alive.
Meanwhile back in Land of Oz
I’ll struggle to survive.

(X)
But one day as I think of us
Sprawled beneath one sky,
I’ll find the path you stumbled on,
And I will with you fly.

100 Days of Poetry Challenge

A very close friend named Jessica and I decided to write a different kind of poem a day for one hundred days. Here are the poems I've written.

Day One/Acrostic~ "COTTON SWAB":

C ommonly called “Q-Tip”
O verlord of ear defending
T all and mighty for two inches
T rojan horse of all toiletries
O ften overlooked
N ever backs down from a fight

S acrifices pride for the sake of your good hygiene
W axes his cotton head with yellow slime selflessly
A lways there when you need him
B ut always under-appreciated