Weekly contest results, 20 March 2017

As this week’s contest closes the Winter season, melancholic poetry grabbed the judges; in fact even the site took the dark side in breaking a tie with Ben’s walk among the doomed giants of the arbor. The judges chose Poetess’ dirge to a mourned suicide and Lyrical Madness’ acceptance of a past which left permanent reminders of her self-inflicted sickness. The latter gave me pause, as the rule laid down by the site’s owner is that poetry which in any way glorifies mutilation, whether self-inflicted or otherwise, should not be eligible for the weekly contest. However, my interpretation is not that the act itself is the center of this poem, rather the apparent success in overcoming the addiction - i.e., the recovery - is what is celebrated here. Thanks, judges, for your discernment.

Congrats to all the winners and the HMs as well.

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Front Page Winners
To Those Who Chose to Leave by Poetess (10+10=20 points)
Unspoken by Lyrical Madness (10+4=14 points)
Listen to the Earth cry (One tribe Pt 2) by Naughty Mouse (10 points)

Honorable Mentions
She Never Said Goodbye by Larry Chamberlin (10 points)
Our Hereafter by Abed (7 points)
Where'd the Sunshine Go? by BlueJay (7 points)
Bad Intentions by nani (7 points)
Being content reveals wisdom by Naughty Mouse (7 points)
The Wait by Yakari Gabriel (7 points)
Widows story come to pass by BlueJay (4 points)
naturally by ether (4 points)
Petals Plucked by Insecurities by Everlasting (4 points)
Bullfighting by Frank (4 points)

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To Those who Chose to Leave by Poetess 10 points
Not only has this piece captivated a large portion of PnQ this week, but it has also made it's mark on the hearts and minds of many. With imagery so clear that there is no mistake in the scene, and a tone of voice that is both gentle and startling, Poetess has reminded those around her that depression, dark times, and really any other difficult day are just minor experiences they do not hold us back from our potential and they do not taint the beauty of the world around. For such a brief write, this is stunning. So phenomenal that not being recognized this week would be a tragedy.

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To Those Who Chose to Leave by Poetess (10 points)
This poem really struck a chord with me. The poet does a wonderful job contrasting the beauty of a sunrise and, in addition, how one more sunrise could be all it takes to see new light against the sadness of someone’s passing.
“But I will always wonder
if you would have found solace
in today’s sunrise.”
The ending really hurts - perhaps all it would have taken was one more day to escape the darkness. A sad, but poignant and powerful poem.

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Unspoken by Lyrical Madness 4 points
Even though the repetition was a little but overused in this piece it manages to stand out among the others that have been nominated this week. The author has beautifully blended a great mixture of tones and textures in this piece. The flow is wonderfully smooth and the word choice is rough in just the right ways to express how this person feels about growing up and moving on from some darker days. There is a much more personal aspect of this piece than most of the others this week and I think that this one provides great contrast on both that front and the front of having a little more structure (or well done structure). For a fairly new poet to the site, Lyrical Madness has definitely gained fans from this piece.

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Unspoken by Lyrical madness (10 points)
Great poem and my top pick for this week’s contest. Excellent rhyme and meter. What I really enjoyed was the way the rhyme flowed, nothing was forced this enabled the message to shine through without being distracted. The stanzas were concise and well constructed, once again emphasizing the message and emotion that you want to convey. Well done

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Listen to the Earth cry (One tribe Pt 2) by Naughty Mouse 10 points
I found this to be a very inspirational and powerful piece, well written and with a strong message to all of us that inhabit this still beautiful but daily ravaged world, that we MUST take care of it and stop this needless plundering and polluting!
There was great imagery in every line, every word was descriptive and packed with unbridled emotion, that almost brought a tear to my eye as I digested each beautiful line.
This poem was truly a majestic write and worthy of much praise. Well done!

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She Never Said Goodbye by Larry Chamberlin (10 points)
so much loss and sadness this week. However this poem showed itself differently, at least it appealed to me with its personal, mysterious, yet open emotions. There was rhythm and play on words from the very 1st lines, and the word choice, instantly gave this piece a dark theme.
There were those very personal lines which mark back to personal events, and yet one should read thoroughly to feel and understand the pain of each stage and what every image stands for.
I am absolutely blown away by this poem.

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Our Hereafter by Abed 7 points
Abed has blown PnQers off their feet so many times, and this is no let down. The diction and flow are gorgeous and the story that the author is telling captivates those who come across these words. So much generous emotion and lovely tone oozes from every line of this beautiful piece. Even after reading this a handful of times, all that came to mind at the end was another way to call this beautiful. With hope and love and complete mastery of expressing the profound, Abed continues to amaze his PnQ home.

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Where'd the Sunshine Go? by BlueJay (7 points)
Heart-wrenching piece.
I could honestly taste, smell, feel, and see everything. Vivid, deep, and emotional. The moment we do understand what's going on, and when we reach that stage of life where we are mature enough to see everything through a crystal glass, but that, isn't making things any easier, is perhaps the hardest stage.
The poem reflected the the late stages of death, the early stages of witnessing and absorbing he pain it leaves and the broken expectations.
Very sad, but very well expressed.
Epic word choice, and nailed phrasing.
Sorry for your loss, a poem to keep, for sure.

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Bad Intentions by nani (7 points)
Without delving into the motivation behind this work, it certainly griped me from beginning to end, It’s descriptive and well written. The random use of rhyme works really well and made it easy to read without stumbling. The message is a strong one, one of hope. The more times I read this the more I realize how good this poem is….

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Being content reveals wisdom by Naughty Mouse 7 points
Wow! What a beautiful piece this is! This Poet has a real gift with words that he expertly places together, constructing sentences to form a breath taking, emotion filled poem that I have had the pleasure to read. He is able to connect his Heart to every word that he writes, producing much imagery and descriptive wording that is beyond reproach! A most worthy poem for the Competition!

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The Wait by Yakari Gabriel (7 points)
The poet immediately tells you what you’re going to read about in the first line - “my own sad” - and does an excellent job of expounding on that topic throughout the poem.
The first stanza has multiple good images: makeup cannot hide sadness nor well made-up hair. Despite the best attempts to escape their personal sadness - the image of a stubborn lover - it always seems to find its way back.
“I do affirmations
I tell myself I am happy
I tell myself I am successful”
This final stanza closes the poem on a strong, though realistic and in-this-manner melancholic note, that one can tell one’s self anything - that we are happy, successful, etc. - and though it may be true, sometimes it simply does not feel like it. And thus, we are left waiting for that feeling to come. Great work here!

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Widows story come to pass by BlueJay 4 points
This poem 'knocked by socks off!' (lol), although short, it was simply beautiful and very poignant, with lines that I wish that I had written. - 'but I remember you as the flame laughing at passing time...' What a line!
'but I remember you as the brightest thing I have ever known...' Another one!
I so liked this poem. It is magical in the emotion that it packs into every line, and is worthy of entry into this competition. Well done!

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naturally by ether (4 points)
The title, thumbs up.
This piece is very precious, shows that its writer has a natural talent with words.
As though images come without any effort exerted.
The combination and comparison throughout the piece is mesmerizing and nostalgic in a sense and another.
The closing verse, nailed.
Well put, thanks for sharing.

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Petals Plucked by Insecurities by Everlasting (4 points)
Though a common trope in poetry and media in general, the act of plucking petals to determine love, the poet takes an original turn at this topic. “…love was a game of luck” - and though it may not be the simple luck of pulling flower petals and repeating a mantra, perhaps love is more about luck than we might believe.
“But love is not a game.
Love is certitude.”
The above lines are certainly true - love is about another being certain of their feelings for you, not about a game. You cannot play some game piece for someone to love you. Very interesting poem!

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Bullfighting by Frank (4 points)
One of the great things about reading poetry is the different topics that sometimes come to the fore. What a great topic to write about! It brings together the horrors of a sport (if you can call it that) that is adored my millions at humanities based level, blood and killing, that is abhorred by millions more for the total inhumanity of it. But more about the poem, a great write, great word choice and alliteration. You have used some very descriptive lines like “vampires with erectile excitements” that adds punch and imagery, a very good strong poem. Job well done.

Well done to everyone this week; more wonderful work.

Congratulations to all the front page winners and HM's! Beautiful, beautiful work all around! Larry, thank you for hosting, judges, as always wonderful critics. You have your work cut out for you, tough to choose with what everyone is submitting.

Congratulations to the front page Winners and HM's!
Thank you judges for your time and comments and thank you
for hosting Larry :)

Congrats everyone I loved these poems this week!!! Judges thank you for all the work you guys put in every week and thank you so much for the wonderful comments on my poems, really they're so nice to read!

PnQ Rocks \m/

Congrats for the winners!
(PS: Yaki, we should collaborate.)

^(PS: Yaki, we should collaborate.)

IMHO that would be an awesome collaboration

Congrats to the winners, HMs, and Ben for the tie breaker!

And thank you judges for the comments. It seems that writing is the best way for me to deal with the loss of two close friends. I really appreciate it!

Congratulations all. So much fantastic poetry recently. Thanks Larry and judges as always

Thank you so much for my comment

Thank you to the judge who commented on my poem.

I am not sure if love is more about luck. I think love is a universal feeling. A feeling that should be felt for everyone. Love is like Mark mentioned in one of his poems, "love is symbiosis".
However, meeting a soulmate might actually be more about luck than we believe. And spending the rest of life with the soulmate is about a mutual choice. Just throwing some ideas that came to mind when I read your comment. Thank you.

Congrats winners.

Belated congratulations to all winners and indeed, contributors to the competition!
PnQ are blessed to have such talented Poets in its midst! Well done everyone.