Starboard, or: Gunwale

Poetry Partners #135

‘Falling Stars’, a poem by Malalai Khan of ‘Malalai Noor Khan’

While all the world is asleep
And I too close my eyes,
My inner ones open
To gaze at the soulful skies.

The night ocean glimmers
Upon the starry shores,
A whole place for me
To roam and explore.

The darkness covers me
In a hopeless veil,
But light is always there
For the stars lead the way.

I run around the
Vivid constellations,
Making wishes
With great expectations.

But...

The skies start to shatter,
The stars begin to fall,
And I wake up
To these forsaken walls.

Everything fades,
My dreams go numb,
While to reality
I give up and succumb.

• Malalai Khan: https://malalaikhan.wordpress.com

A ‘choka’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

thunderstorms tear up;
broken below deck, I lie
to myself again;
no, I'm not nihilistic
I'm realistic
about these rising waters;
up above, I smile;
my child blows a kiss to me;
her bright, cloudless eyes
lit with flashes of lightning
possibilities
an electric optimism;
I cannot contain myself

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#TankaTuesday

This choka was written for this week’s Colleen Chesebro’s ‘Tanka Tuesday’ prompt, which was provided by Sangeetha of ‘Mindfills’. We are encouraged to write syllabic poems on the theme of: ‘The Nature of Lightning’.

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Moonwashed weekly prompt

Thunderstorm

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Let’s write poetry together!

When it comes to partnership, some humans can make their lives alone – it’s possible. But creatively, it’s more like painting: you can’t just use the same colours in every painting. It’s just not an option. You can’t take the same photograph every time and live with art forms with no differences.

–Ben Harper (b. 1969)

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

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List of Poetry Partners