Memories

Memories

The struggles of life

Blending together to form

Divine memories

© Phil Renaud 2015

Book Pressing

Book Pressing

Butterfly preserved

Pressed between the book pages

Turned to dust it’s gone

© Phil Renaud 2015

Image Courtesy Shefali Arora

Love

Love

Love is an emotion that when expressed freely spreads peace, warmth, and happiness.

Love is meant for sharing. For sharing by love spreads out covering the earth much like the Phlox flower spreads out to cover the meadow.

When love is shared it becomes as strong as a tree and as flexible as a branch. To endure love must be both strong and flexible to withstand the rigors of life. Having durability such as this love will last as long as the sun shines down on the earth.

Love has many faces. It can be seen in the joy of a child receiving their first puppy – unconditional & unrestricted. Or in the way a mother deer helps her fawn – nuzzling the baby deer. Or in the way a flower stretches out to reach the warmth of the sun – dazzling with beauty & aroma.

Love is not meant to be hidden. Hidden love festers and poisons itself with self-doubt and negativity quickly becoming like a boil – red & sore. Hiding love makes it unrequited causing the love to become hard & bitter pill to swallow.

Like Prince Charming and Snow White finding each other, true love will find its soul-mate.

So always remember that love is better shared or given away. And sharing love will only help to make this world a better place.

© Phil Renaud 2015

Massage

MASSAGE

Masterful methodical manipulation

Aiding abused anatomy

Skin sighing softly

Self-sinking slowly

Anxiety aches abandoned

Glorious gift given

Euphoria extremely elevated

© Phil Renaud 2015

Poor Alice

Poor Alice

Life

Used

To be

Fun. Working

For a living is

Such a bore. I cannot handle

It anymore. Please shut the door. I can relax more!

© Phil Renaud 2015

Picture courtesy  Bekkie Sanchez 

GOD

GOD

G – Give glory to God

O – Open thy heart to his awe

D – Divine worship God

© Phil Renaud 2015

The King Is Gone

The King Is Gone

The King of Blues

Was a modest man

His music lit a fuse

That began

A lifelong cruise

Through the musical span

Known as the Blues

 

His dulcet tones

Created by Lucille

Sunk into my bones

Sounds so genteel

I was often prone

It was all so surreal

 

His music will live on

Through the annals of time

And looked upon

As sublime

 

The King is gone

But not forgotten

RIP B.B.

 

© Phil Renaud 2015

Heights

Heights

Standing on high ground

Looking out over the land

Crush my fear of heights

© Phil Renaud 2015

A relaxing Sunday Morning

A Relaxing Sunday Morning

Tea to sip

Coffee to drink

Crosswords to do

Breakie to eat

Music to hear

All part of  a relaxing Sunday Morning

 

© Phil Renaud 2015

Marijuana, The Beautiful Plant

Marijuana, The Beautiful Plant

The plants stand tall and green

Seven fingered leaves absorbing the sun

Growing daily, reaching for the sky

Marijuana, the beautiful plant

Buds like freshly iced cake

Grow green with white resin drops

Resplendent among the seven fingered leaves

Marijuana, the beautiful plant

Harvest is both a joy and a pain

Joy abounds with reaping of the buds

Pain for the loss of the beautiful plant

Marijuana, the beautiful plant

Crumbled, rolled and smoked

Colors meld together

In a psychedelic kaleidoscope

Marijuana, the beautiful plant

The aroma of cooking wafting on the air

Sets the mouth to drool and the craving begins

Sated, naptime is imminent

Marijuana, the beautiful plant

To some it’s illegal

To others a boon

To me it’s just

Marijuana, the beautiful plant

© Phil Renaud 2015

Weekly Contest, TWA

Snowfall

Snow falling all night

Obscuring my view outside

Child’s playground delight

© Phil Renaud 2015

What was I thinking?

What was I thinking?

I was a newsletter editor for over ten years

Doing so overcame my fears

Of writing for others

I took some writing courses

To improve my poetic discourses

I started writing

It was quite exciting

To be creative

I found some communities

That presented some opportunities

To share my work

However I found

That some communities frowned

On newbies

I realized there were cliques

And they were not unique

To any one community

Eventually I came across

One that was boss

So I joined

The writers were great

The community was first rate

Then some nasty

People decided to get trashy

And the community was gone

Another took its place

To fill the empty space

Now that community has left

I am bereft

It feels like the rug

Was given a tug

And pulled out from under me

I can still write

In spite

Of this development

But do I want to place

My writings on a community base

Filled with cliques

What was I thinking?

I must have been drinking

To believe

That my favourite community would never leave

© Phil Renaud 2015

Word Mash-up #34

Word Mash-up #34

Pale grasses

Cover erotic powders

And spray a rosy swing

With gold

While stray men fling

Melancholy feelings

All around

© Phil Renaud 2015

Word Shaper

Word Shaper

I have just started writing

It is quite exciting

To put words on paper

Does that make me a word shaper?

© Phil Renaud 2015

I am such a Clown

I am such a Clown

I had a poem clanking around in my head

It was a cool one about the Dead

But I am such a clown

I did not write it down

Now I forget

That nifty little sonnet

So I wrote this little ditty

All the while thinking “It’s such a pity”

That I forgot

To think of a plot

And if this jingle

Makes you tingle

And smile

Then it’s all been worthwhile

© Phil Renaud 2015

Friends

Friends

Cyber, pen-pal, in-need

Best, frenemies, with benefits,

In high places, long lost

Close or passing acquaintances

These are a few of the many types of friends.

Like the rose friends come in many shapes, sizes and colors. Roses are white, red and blue. Sometimes roses are a bush. Sometimes they are single plant. And other times they are a bouquet. So it is with friends.

Friends are to be cherished as one would cherish a prize rose. The rose must be fed, watered and nurtured to be strong and healthy. So it is with friends.

Friends can be like two ships passing in the night. Occasionally the ships sail together. And other times they are together for a short period and then they are gone. So it is with friends.

Like a peaceful meandering river, friends are fluid. Sometimes the river pools and stays in one spot. Most times the river just flows along aiding growth and giving life to the land. So it is with friends.

Friends are part of everyone’s life. Friends are to be loved and held dear. Friends can last a lifetime. Be nice to your friends and treat them respectfully.

© Phil Renaud 2015

The Blues Show

The Blues Show

Went to a concert last night

John Hammond James Cotton and Charlie Musslewhite

Played Blues music with all their might

It was outta sight!!!

John Hammond was first

Out of him burst

Blues music so full of soul

It filled my whole

Being with joy

The crowd welcomed Charlie Musslewhite to the place

He filled the space

With dulcet sounds from his harp

So crystal clear and sharp

The guitar player in his band

Got a little out of hand

He wowed the crowd

Playing fast and loud

The final act of the show

Came out real slow

James Cotton shuffled to centre stage

Clearly showing his age

He played Blues music

It was all very cubic

Music with sight sound and feeling

Was bouncing off the ceiling

John Hammond James Cotton and Charlie Musslewhite

Played Blues music to excite

Blues Hall of Famers all three

As I am sure you’ll agree

That the honor was justly deserved

As we just observed

The Blues show came to a close

And everyone rose

Applause rang out

Leaving no doubt

That what had transpired

Had rewired

The memory

Of the gathered assembly

© Phil Renaud 2015

Inspiration

Inspiration

Reading poetry

Looking for inspiration

For my haiku works

© Phil Renaud 2015

Fall 2

Fall 2

The downward cycle

Of life begins with autumn

Leading to winter

© Phil Renaud 2015

Summer

Summer

The sun glared down boiling the earth. The heat was oppressive, covering the area in a steamy clammy blanket of still air.

The hot muggy air precluded all movement.

Cattle grazed in open fields, standing silently, statue-like in the heat.

Dogs lay sprawled on verandas. Their limp tongues drooled saliva which pooled creating a lake of slobber.

Flowers drooped and sagged under the weight of the humidity. Trees were still. No breezes in the stagnant air.

Kids cooled off running through lawn sprinklers, their arcs of water falling like a gentle rain on laughing sweaty children.

It is summer. The weather is hot and the days are lazy.

© Phil Renaud 2015

Mid Life

Summer 2 – Mid Life

Mid

Life

Crises

Begin with

Passing teenage years

The summer of your life is now

Do enjoy these times as summer passes by quickly

© Phil Renaud 2015

Muse Monday #33

Muse Monday #33

Groovy Times

Inhale deeply on the joint

It’s an attitude turning point

Peace, love and freedom now dominate

Groovy times and music intoxicate

Flower power and wellness of being suffocate
Me,

What an astounding dream

Inspired by a smoke or so it would seem!

© Phil Renaud 2015

Image © Rebecca Del Sanchez 2015

Writing

Writing

My poetry course is all done

No more writing under the gun

All the assignments have been sent

It’s time to get bent

Now comes the waiting

To get my rating

The illustrious final grade

That I Made

All is not lost

Through this course I crossed

Over to poetry writing

And it is exciting

Writing poetry has opened my mind

It’s as if I were blind

To the thoughts in my head

That went unsaid

So it is with great joy

That I can deploy

On a regular basis

My writings to Poets Oasis

© Phil Renaud 2015

Word Mash-up #2

Muse Monday #32 – Word Mash-up #2

Torsos wish for kinship

While bold enchanting lotus flowers

Devious in their nature

Are inspiring strange stories

That make sleep alluring

© Phil Renaud 2015

Photo courtesy of Bekkie Sanchez

Sunset

Sunset

The warm setting sun

Brings outs many bird species

Chirping songs of joy

© Phil Renaud 2015