Category Archives: Poetry

Caligula Though Tyrant He Be

Caligula though tyrant he be, is not so unlike my chaotic mind,

Burned to the ground like Nero’s Rome, a cure oh so difficult to find.

Cries to the almighty gods, heaven sent go unanswered,

Eating at my senses and sanity like a cancer.

Why is it that the clarity of thought so often goes awry

When focus eludes me no matter how I try.

Is this a curse–a symptom of a troubled body and soul,

I know not, still it leaves me feeling less than whole.

Most fortunate to me is that it never long lasts,

A matter of hours or days is all it takes to pass.

Yet this is of no less a concern and satisfies me little,

Stunting my spirit like knife to wood wittle.

Alone I am not of this I am certain,

As this diatribe ends and I bring down the curtain.

Praying that soon this too will vanish,

Returning to me clarity from whence it was banished.

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~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

Events, Cohabitors of Life’s Stage

Events, cohabitors of life’s stage,

Script our actions like the strings of the puppeteer.

We are helpless, dribbling fools

In the glaring light of potential tragedy.

With nary a warning, change can be thrust upon us,

Rendering us helpless like children.

How awful the feeling,

Being strangled by crises uninvited, we succumb.

What does the universe want from us,

Constantly testing our resolve,

Raining on our parade ‘til we drown;

Then as if a cruel joke, tragedy is replaced by joy,

Happiness diluting stress.

Not that we ever hoped for the worst,

But that it had never transpired at all.

In retrospect doesn’t this all go toward our maturation;

Making us whole, defining who we are

And who we will become.

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~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

Is Love What We Think (Tanka)

Is love what we think

An emotion of the heart

Or is it a flaw

A flaw of human nature

Opening us to sorrow

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Our Hearts Fade to Black (Tanka)

Our hearts fade to black

When compromised by a love

Leaving them broken

This isn’t by our design

But by our God given flaws

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

The Chances We Took

The chances we took

Gave excitement to our lives

Without second thought.

This was more than we had hoped

Yet not as much as wanted.

Is this so unusual

As we strive for happiness

Seeking fulfillment

Among an uncertain life?

Is there any greater joy?

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

Blue Skies

The Land Before Time by Michael Kittell

The Land Before Time by Michael Kittell – Jeremy’s Daily Challenge – Weekend Medley 4 January Writing Prompt

Blue skies,

Clouds of ivory,

Rain, fresh as a mountain spring,

Grass of emerald green

Under rainbows crown.

This land before time,

This land before man used it for his own gain;

Not for his survival, but for his profit.

What ever happened to taking only what you need,

Just what you require to live,

Not what you desired in greed.

Those that loved this land before time–

We called them savages;

Unworthy of sharing in its bounty.

They didn’t know any better,

They didn’t see the riches that lay before them.

Blind and ignorant in our eyes, they did not deserve it,

We slaughtered them taking what was never rightfully ours.

Our claims legally binding,

They had no paper, no contract, no right,

Trespassers, every one of them to the last,

We drove them to the verge of extinction

Like the buffalo and the wolf,

But who cares,

There will be another to take their place…or not,

It does not matter.

This land before time–

Abused, polluted, strip-mined, clear-cut, overbuilt,

Unappreciated, disrespected,

But isn’t that our way,

Take until there is nothing left to take

And leaving nothing but destruction in our wake.

A sad farewell to…

The land before time.

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~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

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Prompted By Jeremy’s Daily Challenge – Weekend Medley 4 January

Blustery Emotions (Sonnet)

Blustery emotions we never quite reveal,.

Held closely to the breast, we keep hollow charade

In clutching to desire, allowing us to feel

Passion for our lives behind handsome painted facade.

What pray tell do these falsehoods promise portend,

But misery and suffering at their wretched feeble hand.

Lies behind a masquerade, this be all that it sends

As it passes through the narrow, the hourglass sand.

To whom doth this harm, dishonesty deceive,

None other than ourselves with a lifetime of regret.

Whilst in our final hour, its our soul that we grieve,

Taken to the grave, eternity ne’er forgets.

Would truth not have been wiser, to others and ourselves,

For in the end lies get washed away like watercolors–not pastels.

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~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

The Blink of an Eye

The blink of an eye

Ones life in the scheme of things

Its here and then gone

Wasted due to our own fears

Until we end in regret

This should never be

We were all born to create

Everything we dream

The only shame–not living

Just because we are afraid

.

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

Torrents of Rain

Torrents of rain,

Devastating floods,

Blinding snows,

Frigid cold,

Sweltering heat,

Drought,

Wildfires,

Hurricanes smashing lives,

El Ninõ,

El Ninã,

The perfect storm,

Take responsibility for ourselves,

Take responsibility for our actions,

Unless it interferes with capitalism,

Then responsibility goes out the window.

Global warming…

Nonsense!

Liberal scientists–a gauntlet to progress

Or could we really be destroying the planet.

Recklessly laying waste to mother earth,

All for the almighty dollar.

What will we leave as our legacy?

A world spiraling out of control,

Cold, hot, bleak, devastated,

Because of our denial,

Because of our arrogance,

Chaos for the next generation,

And the ones that follow them.

Our responsibility is not arbitrary,

It is our duty,

We owe it to the future,

To do what is right,

Before its too late.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Blast of Arctic Cold (Tanka)

Blast of arctic cold

Chilling me ‘til blood runs thick

Rattling my bones

Like the loss of love’s passion

Breaking the innocent heart

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~