coiffed and proper suit
maintaining elegant stare
model’s condition
showing their worth in a pose
many volumes of questions
Tag: tanka
Freya Pickard
Abyss
shriek into the void
dark shadows shatter, dissolve
still empty inside
alone in abyss
my screams no longer echo
finally absorbed
a soul-touching croon
expands to vast crescendo
calls me back to life
Alive
clasped closely
– I do not wish to escape
held by darkness
– his cold embrace, a refuge
he lives
– because of my blood
I am not yet dead
– he needs me alive
Victim
docile, I submit
ecstasy, then sudden pain
give myself freely
moonlit muscles enfold me
metallic kisses drown me
you cannot live without me
I need you to sustain me
what have you woken
in the embers of my soul –
dark flame of your heart
Attitude
with an
attitude as
bad as my boots, I strut,
swagger and sneer – untouchable
bite me!
killing for sheer adrenaline
no emotion this side
of death; why should
I care?
Suicide
no one hears me
therefore I do not exist
pale ghost in shadow
I step out into sunlight
erupt in blaze of glory
~~~

Freya Pickard is the author of The Kaerling series, an epic fantasy. She writes mainly fantasy tales and creates poetry in order to rest the prose side of her brain. She finds her inspiration in the ocean, beautifully written books, and vinyl music (particularly heavy metal and rock). Freya was featured twice in The Short of It – May 2020 and October 2020. Her piece, Sailing, featured in the first anthology – was selected for the Pushcart Prize.

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Reblog – The River Flows On
I do love the structure of this poem, really has you rolling along the river, so to speak! Enjoy the ride. 😉
the
river
flows
on
profound
streaks
crease
the
landscape
formed
with
time
in
mind
consciousness
a
constant
stream
the river flows eternal
Reblog – Tanka: Black & White Memory
This piece has me coming back again and again. I can find many sentiments expressed in this. How about you?
defy the long sleep
dark circles shadow your eyes
bear the weight of life
brutal ignorance becomes
a black and white memory
Undone
touseled, wildish hair
a sexy scent lingering
your beard unruly
please come back to bed, sweet man
fuck me, leave me disheveled
Pondering
calmly hanging on
solidly rooted on perch
the streaming winds call
give up this wonderful view
or remain, that’s the question
Carolyn Crossley
Divinity
You live in me, so
deep I neither hear nor see,
but know – you are there.
You have been there from the start.
In the gaps I feel your pulse.
Silence
I hear you in the
deepest silence, you are the
heart of my spirit.
Love
Universal love
links us all together like
hearts beat together.
The Witch Within
We are by Goddess
blesséd, she who lives within;
wakes the witch in us.
Reconnecting us to our
roots, chakras and ancestors.
~~~

Carolyn Crossley©TheVixenOfVerse has been a poet since 2002. She originally used poetry as therapy after losing her younger son to heroin. She now concentrates on her blog: backfromdarknesstolight.com and will publish her first anthology in 2021.

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Jaya Avendel
Hope
Though reality
Is often stark there is a
Place where the Queen wears
Creativity for a
Crown and inspiration flows.
Change
Alone in the dark
She waited for the door to
Open unsure of
What stood on the other side
But her heart open to it.
Strength
Our cries make them
Tremble with the ground as it
Quakes with silent strength
Though pain may rack our lands
We refuse to be silent.
Eclipse
Once in a circle
The earth catches up to the
Moon cloaking her in
Its glowing red shadow then
The cycle begins anew.
~~~
This is Jaya Avendel’s second feature with The Short of It. You can read her first here. Jaya lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, where she dips her pen into the inkwell of fantasy and prose. Often inspired by life in the forest around her, she writes at Nin Chronicles.

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Came Upon

large beast meandering
unaware of my presence
our paths crossed by chance
both stunned with heavy silence
which instinct will you present
Jaya Avendel
Greed
In her hands a gift
Before her eyes a silver lining
Tied into a thousand knots of love
As she unwrapped diamonds
She threw her life into the mud.
Hecate
She fights with bared teeth
Raking raw old lies and truths
It takes one willing
To see their mistakes for her
To welcome souls with a smile.
Benevolence
There is a city
Resplendent with crystal dreams
Hiding in a lake
Where broken hearts swim in tears
Made of vodka and whiskey.
~~~
Jaya Avendel lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, where she dips her pen into the inkwell of fantasy and prose. Often inspired by life in the forest around her, she writes at Nin Chronicles
If you’d like to be featured on The Short of It,
click here for the submissions guidelines.
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