The Lost Love Playlist (a cento)

Stormy Sky by Alicia Dunavan

Woke up to the sound of pouring rain,
a bottle of vodka 
still lodged in my head.
There’s no comfort in the truth, 
full of broken thoughts,
lying naked on the floor.

What a wicked thing to do, 
to make me dream of you…



Lines for this cento borrowed from: I Remember You - Skid Row,  Bed of Roses - Bon Jovi, Careless Whisper - Wham!, Hurt - Johnny Cash, Torn - Natalie Imbruglia,  Wicked Game - Chris Isaak

Written for a prompt over at the Phoenix Rising Poetry Guild (the new incarnation of Poetic Bloomings), asking for poems about the sounds of love.

Revenant

Dead Rose by George Hodan

A revenant force 
Walks my halls, 
His energy charging 
My wistful heart 
In a tattered reverie 
Of what might have been.

Cradle my Heart

Red Heart in Hands by George Hodan

Cradle my heart

In your calloused hands

And remember how it felt

When I first gave it to you:

Lighter...

Unscarred...

Whole.

On a City Sidewalk (A Christmas Cento)

Giant Christmas Tree Lights by Linnaea Mallette

People hurry 
through the frozen streets 
meeting smile after smile, 
echoing the joyous strains 
of children laughing, 
sleigh bells in the snow.
His favorite time of year 
was always Christmas;
today’s celebration 
is bittersweet,
a hurting human soul
waiting in a silent prayer;
and in the midst of the laughter, 
he cries.

Lines borrowed from the following Christmas songs: Take a Walk Through Bethlehem, Silver Bells, Angels We Have Heard on High, White Christmas, It Won’t Be the Same This Year, Alone on Christmas, My Grown Up Christmas List, Breath of Heaven, Pretty Paper

Story of a Neglected Flower

Dead Rose and the Storm by George Hodan

Over the years 
her petals fell away 
in soft crimson drops 
on weathered hardwood. 
She wilted under his care, 
years of drought 
and angry heat 
leaving her parched, 
craving tender warmth 
and gentle rains. 
She faded, 
branches withering 
until little remained 
except a dormant dream 
rooted in hope 
that one day 
she might bloom again.

Still

Rocky Heart by Vera Kratochvil

The lines engraved

In my petrified heart

Still form the shape

Of your smile.

Written for the PAD challenge Day 15 prompt over at Poetic Asides, part of the Two-for-Tuesday write a love poem / write an anti-love poem.

Me and Neil

Moving by George Hodan

“I Am, I Said” echoes off the walls
Of a nearly-barren apartment,
The half-filled cartons
Packed with the trappings
Of a broken life,
Mementos carefully sanitized
Of your presence…
If only memories
Were so easily cleansed.

No one is there in the emptiness,
Only me and Neil.
I close my eyes and see
The ratty green recliner
Leftover from your frat boy days,
Your tattered Elway jersey
Draped across the arm,
Photographs of laughing faces
Untouched by the taint of betrayal,
The calloused hands
That used to dry my tears.
Those tears fall freely
In this soon-to-be vacant place,
Yet another failed attempt
To build a world without you.

Neil understands my pain,
The loneliness that hangs
Like tattered curtains
In a low-rent room,
The need to keep moving on,
Not knowing if I’m running
Away from heartache
Or straight toward it.
I tell myself that the next town
Will perhaps be a bit less empty,
But no one is there to believe my lies.
No one is listening.
Not you.
Not Neil.
Not even the chair.


~~Written for the Day 1 Poem a Day prompt from Poetic Asides, write either a beginning poem or an ending poem.

Here's a little video of Neil Diamond singing "I Am, I Said," just to show you where a bit of the inspiration came from for this one.