Listen.
Listen carefully and you'll hear
A young girl's voice,
Suppressed,
Silenced
By the chains of poverty,
Her dreams left abandoned
On the cold concrete,
Her potential fading
Like graffiti
On forgotten walls.
In the corners
Of... – by Joe Strickland | 6 Views added 1 year ago
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With the weight
Of unfinished melodies
Soul's echoes
Trapped
Within hearts.
And as their breath
Whispers through
The cracks of existence
The universe hums
A forgotten rhythm.
Each note holds
A story untold,
A symphony
Lost in the... – by Joe Strickland | 10 Views added 1 year ago
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In the realm of glassy surfaces,
I stand by
With my lonesome eyes,
Framed by lashes
Where sorrow takes root,
And silence is my fate.
Within my cavernous sockets,
Worlds collide.
I witness nature's splendor
And cruelty so vast.
Yet,... – by Joe Strickland | 13 Views added 1 year ago
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Everyone will love you
When you're sleeping
Six feet in the earth,
Or at least that's what they say.
But I've come to realize,
There's no love
Like the dead man's love.
It's when you're gone,
Surrounded by smoke
And soil,
That... – by Joe Strickland | 8 Views added 1 year ago
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True freedom is when
You can no longer remember
How heavy the chains were,
No longer recall
The weight of the metal links
Dragging you down
Through the depths of despair,
And the depths of desire
When your mind is cleansed
Of the iron grip... – by Joe Strickland | 17 Views added 1 year ago
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I'm just another lost soul
Wandering through these cold streets,
With the weight of humanity
Bearing down on my weary shoulders.
A secular humanist, they call me,
Because I proclaim
My love for fellow men and women,
But deep down,
I... – by Joe Strickland | 15 Views added 1 year ago
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Tell me, what should I do with this bruised heart?
A blade of grass, both fragile and fierce,
Whispering secrets of whispered fears.
I feel my pulse racing, a wild horse running,
As the world collapses all around me.
A cacophony of thoughts,... – by Joe Strickland | 34 Views added 1 year ago
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My ambition, crippled and naked,
Lazily sprawls, hungry for action.
A sensual dance, a primal tango,
Nervously shivers within my bones.
The flame that burns, unfulfilled desires,
Taunting, teasing, seductive whispers.
Eager hands, slip and... – by Joe Strickland | 10 Views added 1 year ago
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I'm determined
To never writing a poem while sober.
I like drunken words,
An artful blur,
No boundaries,
No sharpness,
Just a haze of syllables
Escaping my lips
Into the night.
Liquid courage
And liquid inspiration
Flowing through my... – by Joe Strickland | 12 Views added 1 year ago
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They said nothing lasts forever,
But they only whispered it,
Afraid of the truth echoing back,
Of echoes that linger, refusing to fade.
They fear the longevity of love,
The endurance of passion and joy,
Because in their shallow hearts
Love... – by Joe Strickland | 9 Views added 1 year ago
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Scarlett O'Hara was a woman
Of fire and passion.
As a gifted cosmetologist,
She had an eye
For beauty
And a talent
For transforming
Her clients
Into breathtaking
Works of art.
But strangely,
She despised this talent.
It was... – by Joe Strickland | 6 Views added 1 year ago
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Through inner thoughts
And dream like,
States of
Consciousness.
Imagination,
That fierce flame
Which burns,
Bridging realities
And fantasies,
It yearns.
In its depths
Lies untold power,
A kaleidoscope
Of hopes,
Each... – by Joe Strickland | 3 Views added 1 year ago
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Quandary.
Thoughts in all directions.
My memory is failing me.
Did I hear it thundering?
The question echoes
In my mind
As I listen to the soft
Pleuvisaud of the rain on my roof.
I believe it's playing Mozart.
The sound is calming,
... – by Joe Strickland | 7 Views added 1 year ago
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The slurs I hauled
Into my mouth like a sailor's net,
Heavy with hate,
Leeches of ignorance
Clinging to my tongue.
How easy it was,
To fear what I could not comprehend,
To label love as unnatural,
To close my ears
To the song of... – by Joe Strickland | 2 Views added 1 year ago
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The regret assumes its stance,
Hunched,
A shadow cast
By the sun's disdain,
It laughs and twirls,
A wicked dance,
Encased in solitude,
Like a burning flame.
I, with fractured wings,
Fall from grace,
Whispering forgotten melodies,
... – by Joe Strickland | 5 Views added 1 year ago
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In the shimmering shadows,
Where wild winds whisper secrets,
We stand alone, a solitary tribe.
Bound by reason, not belief,
We tread softly on this unyielding earth.
But the land remembers,
The ancient songs
Woven by unseen hands,
Tales... – by Joe Strickland | 4 Views added 1 year ago
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The world becomes
A language forgetting itself
In drops of letters reaching
For the sun's fingertips.
The cat's purr
Drops like a tune
Without a melody.
Silence becomes
A handful of stars
Falling into darkness.
And we, too, become
... – by Joe Strickland | 2 Views added 1 year ago
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When we were young,
Everything felt infinite.
We could walk
For hours,
Discussing
Our dreams
And the adventures
We wanted to embark on.
We spent
Countless nights
Traversing
The main street
Of Woodruff,
Taking in the sights ... – by Joe Strickland | 5 Views added 1 year ago
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I'm staring out the window,
Watching the world go by,
And I'm thinking to myself,
"What planet is making
Me a lunatic right now?"
Is it Jupiter?
Is it Mars?
Is it some distant galaxy,
Wreaking havoc
On my already fragile
State of... – by Joe Strickland | 3 Views added 1 year ago
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The men
With the pistols
Turned their attention
To the man
Holding a machete.
He smiled a toothy grin
And they all chuckled
At something unsaid.
To anyone else,
It would have been
A terrifying moment,
But they were all
... – by Joe Strickland | 2 Views added 1 year ago
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The rain
Came down in sheets,
The droplets
Tapping
Against my window
Like an army
Of fingers,
Each one trying
To worm its way
Inside.
But I didn't mind the sound.
I welcomed it,
Actually,
Because it was
The only thing
... – by Joe Strickland | 4 Views added 1 year ago
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In the morning
When the coffee
Is hot
And the dreams
Are still fresh
In my mind
When the bathroom mirror
Reveals the truths,
My longing
For you
Is a fire.
When the busy streets
Start to clog
With folks in a rush
When the bird... – by Joe Strickland | 10 Views added 1 year ago
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There was this woman,
You see,
Who had a hold
On me
Like a vise grip.
It was tighter
Than a sailor's knot
And deeper
Than a grave.
I was wrapped
Around her finger
And I couldn't
Break free
Even if I tried.
And believe me,... – by Joe Strickland | 6 Views added 1 year ago
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My damn aspirations
For glory and fame
Aren't like theirs.
I'm not after fast cash,
Or fast cars,
Or fast women.
I just want her to say
She's damn proud of me,
And actually feel it
In her bones,
Actually fucking mean... – by Joe Strickland | 4 Views added 1 year ago
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Written words,
Prose,
Songs
Have always found
A way
To speak to
Whatever soul
I may or may not have.
And you,
You're my favorite... – by Joe Strickland | 8 Views added 1 year ago
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In this city,
No one reads anymore,
No one lingers
Long enough to browse.
They're too busy
With their own tales,
Running down the streets,
Chasing ghosts.
And so,
She remains untouched,
Her pages unturned,
A protagonist waiting
... – by Joe Strickland | 7 Views added 1 year ago
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Dropped like a strand of silver,
My body's anthem
Twisted into knots,
Chronic pain,
An unwelcome tenant.
I am a field,
Shattered by my own roots,
Digging deep,
Burrowing into marrow,
Each ache a testament of fragility.
In the realm... – by Joe Strickland | 8 Views added 1 year ago
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The wind whispered secrets
As the waves crashed,
A symphony of forgotten words.
But I was deafened
By the thunderous silence,
And my pen fell from my hand,
No longer able to translate
The ancient echoes.
Lost in the vast expanse,
I... – by Joe Strickland | 6 Views added 1 year ago
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When we quit the basis of sensation,
All is in the wind.
Everything’s in the wind.
The mind, a lonesome wanderer,
Dreams of terrors and uncharted realms.
In shadows, whispers reside,
Their haunting echoes, desperate to be heard.
The veil... – by Joe Strickland | 6 Views added 1 year ago
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There is a place
That exists
In the depths
Of the human
Psyche,
A purgatory
Of sorts,
Where emotions
Run rampant
And consume
The soul.
It's a dark,
Foreboding place
Where even
The strongest
Of individuals
Can be... – by Joe Strickland | 12 Views added 1 year ago
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