the name of this poem is shattered departure the name of this poem will be shattered departure
why?
why must this departure be shattered? would it not be a reprise? a refrain?
what does it rhyme with?
shat-ter-ed de-par-ture shi-ny like ar-mor sig-ni-fi-cant oth-er
…a different name perhaps
ballad of the broken hearts… or lonely midnights
no, that doesn’t seem right
maybe i’ll choose the title last
the poem begins with a bang, not a whimper an exclamation not a question
some transcendental quote to denote that, either, or encapsulate some profound, nameless thing
“time wastes itself waiting on dreamers
takes itself seriously killing free-thinkers”
…no, that’s terrible i’m starting over from SCRATCH this time
maybe it won’t be so bad this time?
time rhymes with time but you can’t do that twice you can’t rhyme time with time or rhyme with rhyme time after time or use the same rhyme twice otherwise, it’s like why even rhyme?
oh, that’s right
you don’t really have to so, why even rhyme?
… okay, i’ve got it
“painful memories scar my heart and remind me of you
the shadow of time eclipses my perception”
i’m starting over again
“shattered departure shattered like ice fractured reflection splintered like…”
… no
where do i actually start?
“there was nothing then there was something a flicker a spark then there was everything then there was you”
but i don’t need the big bang to precede some stanza about a bad relationship
i don’t need a bang i need a whimper
“i loved you but i couldn’t bring myself to forgive you”
but that last part is a lie that isn’t true at all
so i start over again look down at what i have, which is nothing
put the pencil down again
“the name of this poem is shattered departure”
i pause i’ll choose the title last
JD- A poem about picking words before picking their meaning, and picking a title before writing the story.
winding buildings
fold and rest
in a forest of splintered neon trails
wrapped and coiled in
arbitrary collections
phantoms cast shadows
underneath the glow of smoldering white windows
the monolithic eyes of gnarled hands
pluck their attention
with deliberate purpose
wading through concrete jungles
garbage roads
through this waterfall of noise
rivers of shambling no-names
all gathered in curious clusters
scraping beside
bamboo lead pipes
screens reflecting fantasies
vision girls brushing their fingertips on one-way mirrors
the blackest nights
punctuated by digital glasses
all looking in
and over
and running over
every inch
of skin
around dark circles
and darker passages
underneath lime-tinted moons
between pillars shooting into starless skies
conversations between voices
without strangers attached
to them
moods
pressed into quivering palms
and kissed
with palpitating lips
looking at horizons located beneath
grids
empty rooms
and lonely people
plugged into happy moments
and crying
JD – This poem is about a nightmare about the future.
recount these words to bring yourself good fortune: “our will is as the ward does we commit ourselves to purpose our words will be a promise so long as each is honest”
may your firelight burn bright may the lanterns lead you home we’re all ships at sea you see in search of Avalon
may your purpose find you may you find your peace
every piece of me pines too but all i want are things i don’t need
Avalon noun literally meaning “the isle of fruit (or apple) trees”. A legendary island featured in the Athurian legend. Avalon was associated from an early date with mystical practices and figures such as Moran le Fay. It is traditionally identified as the former island of Glastonbury Tor.
JD- I wrote this piece as a charm for good luck and hope.
Verbalchemy 