All Hallows Eve, when all creatures abound
as witches, vampires and other costumes
trick or treating or lighting bonfires
carving pumpkins into jack o lanterns
apple bobbing and divination games
children go from house to house with their bags
sweets given by the crowd are bags and bags
witches with their cauldrons always abound
people play on each others tricks and games
Mum made them or from old siblings these costumes
paraded on the streets at night are lanterns
old furniture, papers and wood for bonfires
hotdogs and hamburgers eaten at bonfires
they’re filling up through the night their sweets bags
dimmed then gone out are flashlights and lanterns
rumours of further doom abound
some authentic, some fakes, these costumes
zombies roam in doom and gloom games
hide and seek or of no return games
burning leaves and woods bonfires
as celebrants revel and dance with costumes
dark bags under eyes or energy bags
rubbish after the festivities abound
paper with candles ready-made lanterns
of sparkling swans, stars and angels lanterns
raising to another level some games
that garden with stone carvings abound
prepare for Guy Fawkes night early bonfires
children ask for the Guy with their pennies bags
with iconographic patterns some costumes
sceneries for plays and masks costumes
tapered served as thermal chimneys lanterns
fish and chips with salt and vinegar in bags
played through the night when evil comes games
being lit for the celebration are bonfires
in the risqué humour of Hitchcock abound
all costumes were part of the games
some lanterns lit for bonfires
bags and bags of energy abound*
(c) ladyleemanila 2016
* The sestina is a strict ordered form of poetry, dating back to twelfth century French troubadours. It consists of six six-line (sestets) stanzas followed by a three-line envoy. Rather than use a rhyme scheme, the six ending words of the first stanza are repeated as the ending words of the other five stanzas in a set pattern. The envoy uses two of the ending words per line, again in a set pattern.
Concluding tercet: middle of first line ..2, end of first line ..5 middle of second line ..4, end of second line..3 middle if third line ..6, end of third line ..1
When the food came and it wasn’t tasty
When I like that dress but it was too big
When I said something and you didn’t agree
When I love that song but you didn’t dig
When I like that dress but it was too big
I wanted to go for a walk but it rained
When I love that song but you didn’t dig
I wanted to do that but you were drained
I wanted to go for a walk but it rained
I wanted to skype you but you weren’t there
I wanted to do that but you were drained
That one day you’d leave me and I’m scared
I wanted to skype you but you weren’t there
When I said something and you didn’t agree
That one day you’d leave me and I’m scared
When the food came and it wasn’t tasty*
(c) ladyleemanila 2016
* The pantoum consists of a series of quatrains rhyming ABAB in which the second and fourth lines of a quatrain recur as the first and third lines in the succeeding quatrain; each quatrain introduces a new second rhyme as BCBC, CDCD. The first line of the series recurs as the last line of the closing quatrain, and third line of the poem recurs as the second line of the closing quatrain, rhyming ZAZA.
The design is simple:
Line 1 Line 2 Line 3 Line 4
Line 5 (repeat of line 2) Line 6 Line 7 (repeat of line 4) Line 8
Continue with as many stanzas as you wish, but the ending stanzathen repeats the second and fourth lines of the previous stanza (as its first and third lines), and also repeats the third line of the first stanza, as its second line, and the first line of the first stanza as its fourth. So the first line of the poem is also the last.
Last stanza:
Line 2 of previous stanza Line 3 of first stanza Line 4 of previous stanza Line 1 of first stanza
Your name in glitters written with my microlith
Are you real or just a myth?
In my heart and soul, you’re always the one
My superstar, my full moon and bright sun
Perhaps exalting you for what you really are
When you’re gone, I’ve got the biggest scar
Even though nothingness comes out
And my life’s one big blackout
I don’t regret what we had, I mull
When the whole process is futile
Wherever I go, your silage lingers
My heart you definitely capture
Your breath I can still taste
I don’t want our memories be erased
Your brown eyes haunt me
Mesmerize with the taunt
Esurient of your affection
What we had, that was fun
Let me be among the brambles
A single bramble or in bundles
The roses, lavender and hyacinth
I’m sure one day I’m out of this labyrinth
But for now, here’s wishing you the best
Having known you, I know I’m blessed
I wish I may, I wish I can make a wish
I wish I may, I wish I can make a wish
To be able to fly like a bird, see the world
To be able to fly like a bird, see the world
I wish I may make a wish, see the world
To be able to fly like a bird, I wish I may
No pain, no heartache, no misunderstanding
No pain, no heartache, no misunderstanding
People are sympathetic and help each other
People are sympathetic and help each other
No pain, no heartache, people help each other
No misunderstanding, people are sympathetic
A big smile for each one, to start the day
A big smile for each one, to start the day
“Pay kindness forward” and spread peace
“Pay kindness forward” and spread peace
A big smile for each one and spread peace
“Pay kindness forward” to start the day
I wish I may, “pay kindness forward”
To be able to fly like a bird and spread peace
No pain, no heartache, a big smile for each one
No misunderstanding, people are sympathetic
“Pay kindness forward” and help each other
Make a wish: spread peace and help each other*
(c) ladyleemanila 2016
* The Paradell Structure
First Three Stanzas: The first two lines as well as the third and fourth lines of the first three stanzas must be the same (repeat). Where it begins to get difficult and become more of a poetic puzzle is when reaching fifth and sixth lines. These lines must contain all the words from the preceding four lines within the stanza using them only once to form completely new lines.
Last Stanza: For the most difficult piece of this poetic puzzle, the final stanza of the paradelle does not repeat like the preceding stanzas, rather the final six lines must contain every word from the first three stanzas, and only those words, again using them only once to form completely new lines.
THIS WEEK’S WORDS come from “After Annunciation” by Madeleine L’Engle: have, reason, filled, when, room, child, love, irrational, blooms, wild, season, bright
Lots of things happening in the world
Why can’t people be good or give it a burl?
Seasons come and go, goes bright and dark
Celebrate or just enjoy walking in the park
Flowers bloom, animals run free in the wild
Have an ice-cream that made us smiled
Children get killed just watching fireworks
Why can’t we not accept people with their quirks?
Some irrational person drove his lorry through
Life is not fair, people dying in our full view
It hurled people and left them lying on the promenade
That wasn’t right, a system so fatally flawed
Is there a reason for all this, is the world indifferent?
Are the people so selfish and have lost their fair judgment?
To our needs, sufferings, are we dissimilar from the rest?
Societies don’t care, which left a lot of people depressed
Can we not fill the world with love instead of hate?
And when we’ve achieved that, life would be great!
ladyleemanila 