Weekly Contest Winners 04-27-2015

Hello everyone! Here are eagerly awaited results and
comments of our front page holders. Congratulations to our
winners and to all the HM's! Thank you judges for your
time, effort and patience, very much appreciated.

WINNERS:

Art is suicide by Kakera

The City Bus by Maple Tree

Final Appraisal (Pensamientos De Abuela) by FTS Miles

Art is Suicide by Kakera

This piece is so absolutely raw and emotional, it's
refreshing. The author uses a mix of incredible diction and
imagery that brought this piece alive - you come to feel
the author's pain and sorrow after reading this piece,
and after reading the concluding stanza you understand
the title. Phenomenal write. (7 points)

Art is Suicide by Kakera

Started off right, though a pinch cliche, then transformed
into a poem that I thought about for several hours
after reading it. The second stanza was what got me --
an utter 'YES!' moment. I adore the dark humor of
'laughing at the madness,' and then we're taken to the
third stanza with 'Hope! They promised us, in honeyed words. . .' Excellent craftsmanship, truly. Excellent use
of colons, semi-colons, capitalization, commas, line
breaks, ellipses, etc. as well. Every word feels tightly
laced into its exact place, which shows a natural inclination
for precision and modesty; two invaluable traits in poetry.
Great work. I'll be keeping an eye out for this poet's
writing in the future. (10 points)

--------------------------------------------------------------------

The City BUS by Maple Tree

Phenomenal write by Andrea, I absolutely loved this
piece and found myself READING this piece over and
over and over again. I found myself relating to this piece
a lot, I've always found bus rides intriguing and wondered what everyone else was thinking at that moment, and
sometimes feel captivated by someone's eyes or their
expression, and wonder what their life is like, and find myself sympathizing with some individuals when I realize
they have a look of sheer sorrow on them but are trying
to hide it. This piece captures all of that in great DETAIL ,
and absolutely love every bit of it. (10 points)

The City Bus by Maple Tree.

Smashing piece, no doubt. Somehow we are connected
invisibly in this world, we could be lonely but not
alone. These thoughts are interpreted brilliantly in this
writing. The truthful insight portrayed in attractive layout,
great imagery and use of language, the poem is very
vivid. A professional use of contradiction also must be
noted, bringing auras alive within poetry/ lay dormant
within my tattered nightmares... and lastly she knew
very well to end this human experiment realistically.
Excellent, a joy to read. (7 points).

-------------------------------------------------------------------

FINAL APPRAISAL (PENSAMIENTOS DE ABUELA) by FTS Miles

This is a truly breathtaking poem, full of detailed imagery
and visuals. FTS Miles has flavored this site over the
years with his visual mastery and I was in awe! To lose
a loved one is devastating and here he takes us on a
journey of going through her belongings..its such a heart
wrenching and yet creative piece... very touching read
this week!! (10 points)

FINAL APPRAISAL (PENSAMIENTOS DE ABUELA) by FTS Miles

Fantastic writing in every sense. The poet employed
mesmerizing imagery could draw a series of nostalgic
scenes, each unique, tragic, picturesque and very well penned. Using a remarkable one block structure and
unusual diction this poem had that resonating effect on
the mind of the reader which lasts for very long time. I
have recognized how each thought (supposedly stanza)
sounded strong and emphasizing, a smart use for the
passive tense which deepen the emotions and the
meaning through out the piece, ~Gone is her patched lazy
boy/ Sold are the living room comforts ..etc All in all,
worth reading, voting and winning. (10 points).

FINAL APPRAISAL (PENSAMIENTOS DE ABUELA)

I liked the title but not that it was capitalized all the
way through, that I wasn't a fan of. Love how it's a
mixture of Spanish and English in the title. Now for the
poem itself it's more like telling you the setting and it's
a rare to pull of this beautiful way of writing, where it's
a setting and yet there's emotions on how it affects the
person after all is said and done. Great tribute to a
grandmother, I hope time gives a person the ability to
miss that person but still be able to move on when
needed to. (4 points)

_________________________________________________

HM's:

Riptide by Mahal Ko Kuya Ko

You are the cold by Poet on the Piano

Power Of Affection by Liam

Daughter of Nature. by Poet on the Piano

Belonging by Poet on the Piano

Ain't worth the whiskey (ballad in two persons) by Larry Chamberlin the Godfather

Riptide by Mahal Ko Kuya Ko

There is a CERTAIN beauty in this piece that you
cannot explain, but appreciate after reading it. It is
something between a mix of sorrow, solitude and
hope. I found myself ruminating on this piece long
after reading. Powerful write. (4 points)

Riptide by Mahal Ko Kuya Ko

I had not read Mahal's poetry before last night. I'm
looking forward to what this poet will produce in time
to come, as it was a struggle to select just one of his
poems to cast a vote on this week.
'like a shadowy flower
amidst the current of water inlets and Manila estuaries.'
^How lovely. Also, the kite as an understated metaphor
for the lost relationship is great. (4 points)

----------------------------------------------------------------------

You are the cold

The way the poem was formed was beautiful, the sadness
of the poem was spectacular, and what made me almost
cry is the fact this poem had a story about a husband
who died and left his widow behind. It hurts when
someone dies but it burns like hell when you love your
spouse and they die. Sorrow was stitched in this whole
entire poem it had a bittersweet view to me, made me
think bout the future that's in store for me one day.
Very nicely done. (10 points)

You are the cold. by Poet on the Piano

"Beautiful writing here. The use of proper nouns (specifics) drew me in and created a landscape for my imagination to play on. At first I felt this speaker was reflecting on Jesus, or some strong religious figure, but the message seemed to morph into a sort of mistress-forbidden love tale. By the end, I considered the death belonging more to a loved one and/or a familiar father figure. I love that this poem shaped into multiple story lines that could all belong to one plot. Great storytelling, imagery, and feeling all wrapped into a lovely piece of poetry. I particularly like the bit about 'my hands, my lips, my hips - charcoal.' Gorgeous!" (7 points)

-------------------------------------------------------------

Ain't worth the whiskey (ballad in two persons) by Larry Chamberlin the Godfather and Adreamer

I loved how this was written, the original poem was
lovely but this one was just a tad more stunning than
the one before! Two great poets remaking something
grand is just so lovely to read; the {} and [] were an
interesting way of knowing who was which part. The
simplicity is nice so it tells a story that's easy to read
and understand, not very hard to comprehend what's
going on in this particular poem. Very blunt in emotions
and imagery it's something worth reading when wanting
to read a poem on a rainy day. (7 points)

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Belonging by Poet on the Piano

Beautifully simple, I like how this well written free
verse piece passionately felt without excessive use
of complicated wording, similes or metaphors. A single thought expressing the title and neatly framed. (4 Points).

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Daughter of Nature. by Poet on the Piano

Earth day tends to bring about some breathtaking poetry
but this piece here should be highlighted because it
stands out above the rest. Mary Anne goes into great
detail, the true essence of nature with each and every
line. Just beautiful! (7 points)
----------------------------------------------------------------

Power Of Affection by Liam

Liam has taken us on a simplistic journey through the
power of compassion, affection and his love, passion
and drive within his spirituality. Its a really pretty
life/ religion poem and I had to showcase it this week.
Lovely poem! (4 points)

Congratulations to the Winners and HM's (: Thank you, Judges and Ms. Meena (:

Thanks, Meena, for posting. Congrats winners & HM's! Thank you judges for the thought-provoking comments. "You are the cold" could be interpreted however one wishes, but I did mean for it to have a focus more on unrequited love.

Congratulations, great poems.

Congrats and thanks all around!!

Congrats guys!!! Great pieces all round :)

Congratulations to Mr. Miles and kakera, sharing the front page with them makes me smile... Thank you judges for the awesome comments.... And congratulations to the Hms as well..... I wrote a seductive poem about a tree years ago and always held that as my favorite.... Until I wrote city bus.... It's now my favorite I suppose and I'm glad people enjoy it.... It was a moment of clarity for me...

Congratulations to everyone!

Congrats winners & fellow HMs!
However, Ain't worth the Whiskey should show "Adreamer" as coauthor, please.
Thanks, Min for hosting & judges for the comments.

Okay Sir, have added Adreamer too...sorry for the delay!

Hellooooooo. Wanted to let everyone know that I "edited" Meena's post because I was the 5th judge this last week and my comments had a few grammar mistakes, so I decided to fix them.

Congrats to everyone!

Congrats all