P.E.G.S Poets

2011-12-26T17:34:00.001-05:00

...)
(Sent via GO SMS)

I Guess This Is Good-Bye For Now...

2011-07-16T16:31:00.005-04:00

I guess this is good-bye for now
We've taken each other as far as we can go
It's been a long road
And now its time to go home
The years have passed us by while we have stood still
Numbed by time, our hearts have grown so cold we can't feel
May the tears fall like rain to wash your spirit anew
When the battle is over- wait for me and I'll be right here waiting for you
Something tells me that we'll meet again my friend
Somewhere.
Somehow.
For just a while, I guess this is good-bye for now...

Alya Landry's Pegspoets™
©2011

2011-02-28T10:18:00.001-05:00

Thank you Aretha! how have you been? There are some very wonderful talents on here...have you written anything lately?

2011-02-16T15:49:00.001-05:00

Hi everyone!

in his kiss

2010-09-14T11:44:00.001-04:00

what's not to like?
each cherry lip gloss kiss
seduce innocence
into the warmth
of a gentle predator -

whose eyes relive
the chase of heartbeats
and silent dances
where only hearts
could hear...

what's not to miss?
each collared shirt
and musky perfume,
lavender lace
and high-heeled shoes -

such differences
cascade to hold
each longing embrace
into the littlest part
of eternity...

what's not to love?
when in this prison
freedom lives,
when in this secret
truth survives -

and in his arms
she is saved,
in her kiss
he is made immortal...

and for once
sin has saved them all...

A Humble Prayer (from one and for those who hurt)

2010-08-28T10:52:00.001-04:00

Faith takes time.

Lord, forgive me if I grieve,
and see only the pain & sadness.
For my heart is clouded by despair.

Humbly i ask
of your patience & understanding
of my human weaknesses.

And yes,right now i refuse to understand,
i humbly ask for your love & kindness
that I may rise above my plans/expectations & accept yours.

W/ all my heart I surrender everything to your power,
for my spirit wavers, & the only light I see is mounted by your cross,
where you carried the weight of the world on your shoulders to save us all.

Your wisdom knows what I may never learn,
Your love transcends all human sacrifice,
teach me ways to see through your eyes,
to love as you have loved...

Teach me forgiveness in this ocean of hate,
Give me eyes that see Your glory
when all I can see is pain and
broken promises...

I humbly ask O Lord, for your forgiveness...
For all I can do right now is doubt, and hate, and hurt...

Faith takes time, but I pray that you shed your light
into my darkened world
that I may not be lost in this ocean of hatred,
where families break and friendships burn...

Teach me to be calm, to be humble.
to be thankful, to see the purpose as I fall
to my knees, and as I bleed
I beg for Your love to sustain me.

I am weak, and though the cross I carry
is far too light than yours, far too small,
May I possess the courage to crucify myself
as I am able to love, not hate,
to forgive and to trust...

and to save those that I love...

AMEN.

A Coffee Shop on 5th & Vine

2010-08-05T23:21:00.003-04:00

Sitting accompanied by my thoughts and an oversized mug of something sweet, marked with foam and an extra shot...

I saw you at a coffee shop on 5^th and Vine.

Your glasses sat low on a perfectly shaped nose that was built for such an eclectic pose.

Remnants of your cherry lipstick stained the porcelain mug from which you sipped, from your thoughts you were ripped as I interrupted with... "hello."

Squinting, you first examined me searching your mind for a previous memory.

Finding none you placed me in the category of stranger, knowing full well of my intentions.

A half-hearted smile and a look of disgust you used as prevention from further inquisition.

I sat, you sighed, I relaxed, you lied.

Trying to convince me that a male companion was in route, I trusted the source of my doubt.

Relentless to your reluctance I asked your name.

Ebony you said with chestnut eyes rolling from left to right, Ebony I repeated impressed with the insight of the woman or man who knew your chocolate skin would wear you name perfectly.

Legs crossed eloquently, teasing made it hard for me to conceive or believe that I should offer the slightest reprieve from this advance.

Romance is what I sought and with the right words you would have bought into promises I would sell, hell... I had no choice I had to approach.

Small talk was useless and had no effect, I would need the skills of a master wordsmith to impress or erect a relationship from this chance encounter.

Give me a just a moment I begged as I placed a palm on your leg that made you wince, how could you be convinced that fear was the wrong emotion?

Could I use humor to put you at ease or would promises to please invoke the response that I seek?

Refusal to admit incompatibility or inability to persuade I pressed on allowing you to continue your charade… pretending you weren’t the least bit intrigued.

I saw that smile out of the corner of your mouth that was meant for me. I saw your eyes light up as you glanced at a possible future with this debonair suitor.

Covering your mouth trying to hide your embarrassment that you treated my pursuit as harassment, you cleared your throat.

I waited patiently, possibly an apology or even a unique methodology for us to become one would part your lips.

You spoke.

Pointing in the direction behind me, you informed me that the man approaching had rightful ownership to your heart and the very seat I occupied. Your man had arrived.

You stood and embraced the familiar, both of you laughing leaving me behind. Alone as I sat in a damn coffee shop on 5^th and Vine.

TMass

http://TMassChronicles.com

P.E.G.S- A visit behind the name with founder Alya Landry

2010-08-05T18:47:00.013-04:00

Hello everyone!

In my effort to find talented writers and poets, I have received several questions asking about what is the concept and in general- what is P.E.G.S about? Well, here is the story of P.E.G.S

P.E.G.S came to me one day just sitting at work (I should have been working, but anyone who loves to write knows when inspiration hits, the pen and paper rule!) With pen and pad and my mind racing like crazy, I thought about my earlier Poetry.com days when I met a lot of great poets and they were from all walks of life and ages and that is basically how P.E.G.S came to fruition. I meshed together the fact we all loved to write, coupled with the the valuable capacity to learn from older and younger writers respectively. The acronym proved to be a challenge. Some letters came to me easier, but I wanted it to be a name that really captured the meaning of the vision I initially had in my mind. I tossed and turned in my head for it and then it just came to me. The rest as they say is "herstory"

What is my vision for P.E.G.S Poets?
My philosophy was really quite simple behind this. I wanted to create a very comfortable space where people could express themselves and be showcased.

Showcased? Why?
Everything I seem to do is simple. I believe from the bottom of my heart if you treat people right and reward talent, encourage people that struggle with confidence in their writing, seek out their strengths, potential and build up their weaknesses- you give a person wings and they can soar so high. That takes little to no effort and it doesn't cost me a thing.

Challenges?
Since P.E.G.S is really in its infancy stages, people just don't know we are here, so I have to put a lot of time into going to find people, talent, using free resources such as Facebook and Twitter to advertise for me and word of mouth. It's a struggle, but anything in the long run that you love is worth struggling and pursuing. I ultimately believe that when you give from your heart to people, it comes back to you!

What do I hope to gain?
Again, this is another simple answer:) My hopes for P.E.G.S is to see it change lives, to give people wings to fly and I want to see the P.E.G.S name on T-shirts that have traveled around the world. So if you haven't done so please stop by and customize your P.E.G.S Poets T-shirt today! (the pegs store is right on this page) To see that come to a reality would be so awesome to me and gratifying that my dream came true. When you order a T-shirt please send us a picture and tell me what state you were "Pegged in" We will start a new blog for that as we receive your photos. Oh!!!! please guys order a P.E.G.S Poets bracelet just $2.00 (just another way of trying to get our name out there.)

What do I want from you?
Nothing but the best that flows from your pens and for you simply (there's my word again) to tell people to stop by and flow with us and supports us in making P.E.G.S Poets a place they call home.

How can we personally contact you?
alyaspegs@gmail.com or our general email box pegspoets@gmail.com

I personally will always answer your inquiries within 24-48 hours. And remember, we welcome criticism and compliments and suggestions, so if you have them, we want them.

On behalf of The P.E.G.S Family, I thank you for joining us in our infancy stages and hope that you are there as we continue to grow as a strong poetry community and family!

PEGS Poetry Contest 50.00 to the winner and extra prizes!!!

2010-08-02T22:19:00.012-04:00

P.E.G.S Poets Poetry Contest!!

Purchase a P.E.G.S bracelet (2.00) Hey we are trying to get our name out there. so c'mon and support us!
Simply submit your original work to: pegspoets@gmail.com
P.E.G.S Judges will select the winners
Enter as many poems as you like!

Winner: $50.00 pegs poets Visa gift card!!

2nd prize: p.e.g.s t-shirt 3rd prize: p.e.g.s mug

Spread the word! Our prizes will increase the more popular the contest becomes!

Flow on y'all...we look forward to hearing from your pens!

***Contest ends 9/3/2010***

The Same Girl album by Trina Broussard LIFE OF A LIBRA...COMING SOON!!!

2010-07-12T22:26:00.004-04:00

The Same Girl album by Trina Broussard LIFE OF A LIBRA...COMING SOON!!!

candy-coated dreams

2010-01-14T03:10:00.002-05:00

the drumbeat starts to play
as heartbeats drown as one
like magic confusion goes away
as you took hold of my hand...

like a long-running love song
the mystery of emotions serenade
underneath is one sweet notion:
"maybe love is ours to take."

No trembling hands no butterflies
each look a welcome coaster ride
wonderment's in each quest for answers
the fun's in all the things he hide...

And so she sleeps in softness
of her candy-coated dreams,
of cherry lip gloss kisses;
where all is sweet ---

just as he is.

I'm ready, but love I don't want to go

2010-01-13T17:37:00.017-05:00

Your eyes my love are the same

That met mine oh so many years ago
Tears flooding my soul at this moment
Together keeps us alive- keeps us holding on;
I'm ready, but love I don't want to go

The tenderness shared will let us endure forever
Spanning across time
Forsaking distance
You will always have me to hold
Though the time has betrayed us now
I'm ready, but love I don't want to go

Take my hand and let's walk across the memories
That brings light to this freshly fallen night
Shhhh...quiet now It's time for farewell's good-bye
Let me disappear like a shooting star
Ahead of you, I'll never travel too far
Whisper my name in the fall of Autumn
Should loneliness ever come
Let happiness hold you if you will
And remember with a fire in your heart
That I love you
Forever.
Even still...

May you never come to know
No matter how ready
I never wanted to go....

© Alya Landry 2010

Grace

2009-09-02T13:30:00.004-04:00

(For Angie. Thank you for sharing a small piece of your Mom with me)

By Grace I came to be
Her strength and indominable
Spirit resonates through me
The woman who stands here today
Is only through Grace
Falter I may
Wobble I just might
But because of Grace
I know how to stand and fight
Hard on me yes, she was
But I know now it was done all out of love
She prepared for me anything
For the lessons learned have taught
Me to handle life's stings
Small she stood
But oh what an incredible woman she was
Not a day goes by that I don't feel her
Fierce independence and humor
Alone I smile. I laugh. I remember
Though her presence is now absent
I thank God each day for this Grace he sent...

helplessly

2009-08-14T04:12:00.003-04:00

If i could only name each heartbeat
born anew with a single smile
Each chill you send running down my spine..

I would..

but i could only drown in those eyes...

If i could muster up the courage,
and do more than just to stare
I'd kiss your lips and let you know I care..

I could..

but sadly wouldn't dare...

If i could bottle up sensations
i'd keep them near beside my bed,
then i'd only have to reach out
to get you out from inside my head..

oh I would..
in all the ways i could...

but i could only write you verses,
and whisper a prayer or maybe three-
that i'd have the power to love you
with all i am and will ever be..

as you captivate and break me,

falling deeply - helplessly..

Too much..

2009-08-04T11:08:00.007-04:00

silent..deadly..the taste of regret
poison each chain;
Like cowards, each whisper taunt
a traitor of promises
Each passing day the lies
overpower truth
& the once familiar warmth
turns cold ; a deadly blow..

selfish ignorance
naivity stains trust;
Loyalty loses name;
Respect shamelessly claimed---

-in imposition

by an undeserving adam

without testosterone

whose skin sheds

but never changes...

-clinging to the naivity

and selfish ignorance

branded by your name.

No more lies... so in honesty
respect turns its back on your display
of sordid friendship - tattered by
twisted philosophies..

Too young...Too ignorant...

Too much...

(*a tribute to the friendship you buried and took for granted...)

his faded jeans

2009-07-17T11:45:00.002-04:00

there are things I know don't fit
into the simple valleys of your world...

the very glisten I love is what you hate..
each golden strand that frame my face,
push you away...

this silkened skin; your faded jeans -
we're rugged fashion...
w/ our hearts on our sleeves - we look away,
and yet we hold on,
to each other...

our charade remains unnamed...
the truth we have is far too humble for my pride,
my love commands;
your submission far too harsh
and so i hide...

you laugh - a child - as i raise my tone
to reprimand...
each time you ask, i find that i'm too proud
for your demands...

Too powerful, your beauty and mine
captivate those outside our world-

& we both rule - oh yes, but you crown me
with your heart and callous hands,
each scrape a warmth i love and hate..
your face a blessing & a curse..

I know not if i will stay or run away,

I wonder, how you fell in love
with my promiscuous play...

prelude

2009-06-23T07:53:00.004-04:00

no i cant bear each moment
why do we have to part?
time is of the essence,
so i give you all my heart..

must we be in denial?
our eyes reveal what's true,
the hypnotic appreciation
- i only find in you..

lately it's been harder
to even walk away..
i look back and sigh
as those eyes beg me to stay..

maybe.. tomorrow,
i shall you give you all of me..

but for now, in sweet surrender,
we must wait.. we shall see...

Soft

2009-06-12T17:10:00.013-04:00

Inspired by Boney James' "Soft"

Please check it out on imeem.com

http://www.imeem.com/artists/boney_james/music/iXUTVYVu/boney-james-soft/

I caught you in a lingering breeze

Soft
Your name

You whispered to me
My ears and shoulders prance in almost a bashful shame

Embraced me in the tenderness of chiffon

I feel your love that touches me often

Oh, spinning in my heart

Weaving you into my being

Love, close is never close enough for me

Dancing whimsically in my soul

Dripping in my memory

Sweet like honey combed

Bellowing
I hear you calling
So, so very soft
Come home...

Echoing

2009-06-09T13:14:00.003-04:00

...Through my mind
Rolling quietly
Heavy and weightlessly
I feel you echoing
All around and inside of me

Through my existence
You are felt between
The space that separates distance

A touch that makes my hollowness quiver
I am transformed
Changed forever

A bellowing sweet whisper
Hangs in the air
Wrapping me inside its space
So I can breathe when you're not there

...Entered my life
Never saw you coming
Captured me without knowing
My soul touched without hand
My heart rippling
You
Echoing~ ~ ~

Alya86

Broken

2009-06-06T10:43:00.004-04:00

I wish I could speak to your brokenness
With mended words
How and where would I begin
To start to protect you from
What once existed outside that is now in?

I am torn to shreds
Confused
My direction is full of dread
Hurting my heart that reside inside of you
I wish I knew what to do

Lost is the only thing that finds me
Exposing my wounds
My absolute uncertainty
To know how to heal
The hurt you feel...

© Alya Landry 2009

Tainted Pictures

2009-05-28T09:40:00.002-04:00

Tainted pictures leave me confused
Bruised. Your words of pride pushed through me
Can't you see.
Sour love will never last long enough
Your eyes tell a bluff
You leave my soul in chains
My tears in cuffs.
I walked away to free you You don't believe me but its true
You see, tainted pictures leave me confused
Shattered and bruised
I cannot love you knowing I'll loose
Tell me what you choose
Broken hearts can never pretend
A scare that penetrates will never mend.
Go please let's not tear each other apart
Love is pain they say that's the art.
My plea you dismissed
You threw me out into the abyss,
Now our frame is broken
From the words unspoken
Our history is frozen.
Tainted pictures leave me confused
Ugly and bruised.

Created By Aretha Forrest

Sweet Intoxication

2009-05-14T08:35:00.004-04:00

It was like poison contained in the perfect body
The venom from his lips corrupted me.
The sensation of his magic motion
Sucked me in, hypnotised me and drove me to devotion.

This man was more than fine art
The epitome of confusion, I don’t know where to start.
His voice whispered a spell
And his eyes oozed with more than I can tell.

He possessed dark forces of ecstasy
And the supernatural level of love almost blinded me.
His essence charmed my sprit into submission
He would speak and I would listen.

I was drugged up from his potion
Before the sun woke and dawn had spoken
He released me back into the world and he was but a substance
And I rose with only disjointed memories of his existence.

Created by: Aretha Forrest

Copyright@

Welcome Aretha!

2009-05-13T12:44:00.000-04:00

On behalf of Alya and the PEGS Family, we extend a warm welcome to our newest "Pegged Poet" Aretha Forrest!

Welcome! We kindly look forward to hearing from your pen!

~The PEGS Family

vksn (vixen)

2009-04-13T08:05:00.006-04:00

imperfection rots my soul - you celebrate in hate
in your eyes i am the sordid daughter led by fate

which intertwined our lives in all of their lost charity
you stab my heart in foolish pride and inhumane brutality

I bleed profusely on the floor and you laugh, unabashed
proud that you have caused my death and wishes it would last

you pounce and drag my lifeless corpse into the realms of hell-
each tear from every nightmare, oh no words can ever tell
how every sin you make is made to exist under my name
and you accuse - you scream, you curse - and not a hint of shame

bruises your mouth..

i hear the tormented cries of a fist-sized machine
gasping and weeping as you take away its bleeding skin

til nothing's left..

in my black dress i walk with a bouquet upon my chest
you lift your hand and begin to hit my face without a rest

without a breath i fall and you mercilessly spat and kicked my head
-if they only knew how you took away each dream i had
how you suffocate me by filling my mouth with grains of sand
stained by regrets - i fall ,you let go of my hand..

some days i wish i never knew your name; your voice i never heard
i could have saved myself from all the cruel hurt

but all's not lost - i find victory from all the pain
my reflection smiles at my throbbing, living brain
which refused to die along with your misery
i live my life and you cannot deny that i have me

me who died a thousand deaths but never dies
a daughter you have killed by all your curses.. all your lies
i live again for my own sake - and maybe for your own
hoping that my resurrection teaches you what is home

and maybe, just maybe you won't die alone..

i retrace each step, each accusation that grew each day
17 years..look at me, i grew up - now hear me say:

"Your very mouth has caused you to lose so much, oh don't you see?
You've begun to lose yourself and now?

tsk.. You're losing me..."

Crucifixion

2009-04-13T03:34:00.003-04:00

so it's a game of cat and mouse -I chase in masked monstrosity
..as the crooked lines of faces flood the rage of jealousy

hypnotized and nonsensical ; blinded by your truth..
..I taste the sweetness in your eyes as you render me my youth

in a trance of daydream that shape the ancient biting cold,
I set foot on uneven ground & surrender in your world..

the chorus of my very blood and soul and psyche as one
shifts the laws ; breaks the norms - the concert has begun.

fiery steel stung my core and shed my virgin skin
each gasping breath reminds me of our dark, romantic sin..

& as I take each step - I grasp the road of no-redemption,
in forbidden roots I find the ashes of salvation..

the crow now spreads its wings and takes me to that unknown place,
its very eyes cascade of honor for all of my mistakes.

this demented romance has taken all of heaven away ---
in this pleasant crucifixion, in your hellfire, I will stay...

Jaspered

2009-04-12T19:58:00.000-04:00

Jaspered...

Sweet as the combs

Spun like silk

Lingering like the rain's dew

I remember you

Beautiful

Tracing your love

In the emptiness of space

I am filled with wonderment

Of your essence

Though your presence

Absent

"jaspered"

Softly whispered

Alone on this night

~

2009-04-12T18:22:00.001-04:00

Wash my heart clean of this

Hurt that rages within me without restrain

Waves of hurt clashing

Dashing me to pieces

My soul drowning

My fragmented existence

Floats off into obscurity

Remnants

2009-04-11T00:41:00.005-04:00

Remnants of you settling inside
A cymbal crescendos a cataclysmic silence

I hear you breathe

A heavy cold dust of breath

Warming my fading memory

Fragmented remnants of you

Shattered, scattered into whole pieces

No longer able to find their way again

I am left with the hour glass' sand

Holding the moments shared

Now seeping through my hands

My knees beg the earth

With uncertainty

A Western star shines ashore

Glimpses of a partial soul that once whole bore

Forever's more

© Alya Landry 2009

Welcome! xiaRa_08

2009-04-10T17:19:00.002-04:00

On behalf of Alya and the PEGS Poets family, we would like to welcome the following new "pegged poet" xiaRa_08! Welcome aboard. We look forward to hearing from your pen!

G. Michaels,

PEGS Editor

"Pio"

2009-04-10T12:52:00.004-04:00

A cell of dreams and childish fears

-with a smile the dream begins

From dark-brown mirrors : sideway glances

burn this winter's spring:

and brought to life..

I sit, enthralled and trapped

a willing prisoner of this sorcery;

Blinded glances, silenced passion

fleeing to the fantasy...

Lost in your soul,

The air trapped in my lungs,

Hoping for release,

Longing for your return...

In Reverence to Vivaldi's "Storm"

2009-03-07T07:49:00.001-05:00

How like a tempest
uncontrolled
It rages through my brain
The sound of wild rain
and making love in spontaneous

Sparks fly from the flames
red and burning in the night
A thunder crash inside my head
I feel the lightning stab the cracks
of my heart…. rarely seen….
and far from caressed

Magnificent and virile
Pulsating and sexy
A raw thrash of tenacious
tough notes that glide
and ripple like liquid sunshine

Rugged….

A heavy dew of crystal showers
Tinkling like wind chimes
Vivacious and turbulent

How ripped of defenses
it leaves my naked soul….

Chaotic it titillates and tempts me
with unfettered imaginings
White sand and beaches
Waves splashing bodies
in erotic embraces….

Sweet strawberry wine
Lingers on my tongue
Pink and longing….
as I pirouette…laughing
embracing life and love
and all that makes a smile
reach and touch my lonesome face

Vibrating and vital
Driving notes into my psyche
Dazzling this…..
Forever

Infinite

Eternal

STORM….!!!!

Those Eyes

2009-03-01T11:02:00.000-05:00

Like shots of whiskey your eyes just burn
I….addicted to the fervent heat they pour
This desperate skin just aches for more
A roaring beat…..a rampaging yearn
Tempestuous waters….a storming churn
That penetrates barricades of this core
Molten lava crashes…. (forsaken shore)
Where a fractured heart shall toss and turn

The Wind….it keens of a howling desire
A shattered bewail of distance and dreams
A mewling of tearstained orange red fire
Those hot eyes shred what is left of seams
On a mile high tip toe on a tight rope wire
An eternal lament of kiss me extremes

Upon The Rise...Just I

2009-02-27T15:40:00.000-05:00

The first blush of dawn
caresses my skin

A chill wraps me
inside a glow
of pink sky

A misted dew
upon my lashes
and lips taste the linger
of night
that fights the gentle
overtaking

And...silence...

I sneak out
to sit alone
and watch the sun
with winking eyes
peek and blink
upon the rise

Water colors
(across a sky)

Shades of deep pink
Triumphant......
as they drench
a brand new day

What shall I be?
I think...

A smile that trembles
my lips
with a glance from the sun
or
a frown that stings my face
from the absence of one

Content to linger...
I shrug off reflection
so endless for me...

Like a child with dancing eyes
I devour .....
mesmerized.....
the loveliness.....
that floods a
Blue Grass Sky

The first fresh blush of Dawn....
and I....

Unrestrained

2009-02-26T10:09:00.000-05:00

A still silhouette to the sky

In your radiance
you champion the wind
In your untamed wild

Sun beating off your onyx sheen
Ah…how very brilliant you are!

How wild you look
And how incredibly free
My heart beats like a caged animal
In witness to your unlocked soul

Your glorious mane blows
in liberations zephyr
Long and streaming, lustrous blackness

With all the mysteries of you
glowing in your eyes
Such knowing eyes
Your dark chocolate
glistening eyes
That gaze the distance
with wisdom and silence

Proud head, held erect
muscles ripple in the still
I seem to feel I have stumbled on
Something so incredible
To behold you in your moment

Oh, how my soul vociferates….
Yes….cries to you

On that grassy eminence of green
As you ponder when your spirit shall unlock its still
And dash the summer strawberries
In your vivacious way
I cannot help but envy you….

Oh, ebony stallion…..
(As you break into a canter,
and I hear those hoof beats pounding,
and your mane blowing gaily on a mid July breeze)

Run free….just run free!
For you… and for me!

Alliviated

2009-02-24T17:31:00.001-05:00

Broken, shattered, you splatter it all
Sky blue crystals of a bled dry heart
Beating fiercely from a precipice fall
Of love (false) whispers find a start
Festering with a tattered shawl
Ballooning out to shred apart

A blushing dream of sweetest hue
Unrequited..... (be it) the clue

Multi colors bleed from hands
You splash the canvas painting pain
A bleeding story unfolds and lands
with swirls of red, an angry rain
Blue and black intermingle and brand
Arrayed in light, this brilliant stain

Heart breaks tempest found its cease
Formed in its wake, a masterpiece.....

Eyes Of The City

2009-02-24T12:48:00.002-05:00

Watchful eyes
targeting
preying

with a clarity unmatched
speaking without words
vision whispers stories
of those who walk the night
of those who claim the darkness
as their own

These eyes of the city follow closely
invisible
mostly ghostly
prying into the nakedness of your soul
your deepest thoughts and secrets
exposed

You feel and unexplained coldness
more than a chill but less than a thrill

There are no hiding places
for the eyes of the city
sees all

Cloaked Prescience

2009-02-23T12:33:00.001-05:00

Silence tramples this warm beating cave
Puncture wounds, severed, beaten, and bruised
Thine eyes (whispered) a whimper...confused
Silence...on bated breath......await the wave
that thus empowers and laugher's save
Message imparts (printed) feeling used
This enigma, worship, (a pine) refused
Lips that any crimson blood would crave

For love (this destiny) shifts so fast
Upon a crest, risen, a shimmer
A silver mad, that dashes past.....
Apricot hues, red (wild) hot simmer
Upon a phantasm that finds no last
Pages unwritten...shadows...thus cast

Thorn Of A Rose

2009-02-23T07:49:00.001-05:00

Shattered glass that reflects a hue less light
Fractured wounds unhealed in a dormant heart
Fisted wails lost...drift a lake of star sight
Listless eyes (disillusioned) stand apart

Dark walls torment and shred this Juliet
Fire leaves the ash of a weakened power
A punctured place of burned out "can't forget"
Entombed...chained in an ebony tower

A (defective) dream of "please love THIS me"
Hidden beneath a haunt of Southern Sweet...
Red truth glares....unaccepted cannot be
HALT! Romeo conquers not this defeat
-----------------------------------------------------
Oh, to only fall headlong like the brave....
But mausoleum walls enslave this cave....

Welcome Christie!

2009-02-19T19:21:00.005-05:00

I would like to take a moment to welcome a beautiful writer/artist and poet. Christie Moses! Welcome to the PEGS Poets family. I have been a huge fan since day one! Please let your pen feel at home here! I (we) look forward to hearing from you!

Alya and the PEGS Family!

Ending Without Begin

2009-02-19T12:06:00.003-05:00

I feel the ache on my skin
whispers of ending
without begin

Soft shreds of passion
with tender taste of want
Wine on my lips
red and dripping
Longing for a chance
to taste you....

I feel the needle pricks
and knife jabs
in my soul
that tatter my heart
and shred it whole

Distance....an enemy
of dark cloak
and dagger thrusts

I cherish the moments
that hold particles of you
like the dust of wind
Blowing soft tendrils
of quiet callings
of sweet fallings
and i...
a precipice lodged
gazing at the chasm...

Longing forever holds me

You...me....
to only be...
'tis not...have not...
A beggar...
I ride
a sky of dreams

Lost inside a memory

Soul Mates

2009-02-19T11:26:00.000-05:00

A familiar ambiance…she had known this air….
This sand she had felt on her feet before
Ripe red strawberries grew wild somewhere
For, they’d shared them on a quiet shore
Her soul felt stripped…..naked…left bare
A man once whispered love ever more

These eyes of hers had never seen this place
Yet her soul sang of his hands on her face

His fingers once kissed a gentle caress
On her starving mouth that craved his touch
His lips made her an angelic mess
Wild eyed passion…a brush fire crutch
His hands reminisced her summer dress
Love and fear that she could feel so much

Yes, in a sometime, somehow she’d been here
How she missed those distant eyes....so near....

Ripe Rich Colors

2009-02-19T11:21:00.002-05:00

Phantasm broods in a conundrum of tears
Cherry blossoms blush and perfume the air
A poignant scent yet dark raven appears
As the sloe black abyss engulfs her stare

Scarlet red tulips and luscious sweet pea
Cinnamon and jade mix carmine and teals
Hues of deep verdant blow kisses to trees
As he storms in and this naked heart steals

Roiling high seas and boiling hot waves
toss her upon their ultramarine kiss
With raspberry passion that orchids crave
metempsychosis for a peonies bliss

Arrest bronze eyes on these blooming lips
where strawberries wait for slow sweet sips

2009-02-16T23:10:00.009-05:00

A Note From P.E.G.S Editor...

Hello Fellow Poets!

From time to time it is necessary for the PEGS Editor to sweep this page for questionable content. As you all know Alya and PEGS are dedicated to showcasing the best of the best poets and writers. All poets are most welcome to request an invitation to add their creative works to share and comment. The reputation of PEGS is one that fosters the creative poet/writer and the desire to write works that can be showcased and rewarded. We trust that all poets/writers will adhere to these simple guidelines. We would ask everyone posting to this page to display a decorum that reflects writing excellence and integrity and ultimately a representative of PEGS and the PEGS growing Poet family.

PEGS reserves the right without notification to withdraw/delete any entries that are deemed unacceptable/abusive/overly provocative or of a violent nature. Abuse of this page can result in revocation of posting privileges.

PEGS is dedicated to building a community that is unlike any other. One that truly highlights what PEGS stands for-Poets EnlighteninGenerationSeperated. In the mean time, please keep those pens moving and the creative thoughts flowing

PEGS Editor~

Welcome Harlem 360!

2009-02-16T12:29:00.003-05:00

Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to take a few minutes to personally welcome Harlem 360 to the PEGS Poets family! We are looking forward to hearing from her pen.

Alya:)

Jan's Crimson

2009-02-09T14:59:00.011-05:00

Thank you Jan...

This piece was inspired by Jan Mader who challenges writers to write. This is what I came up with for the challenge of the color red...

~

Beautiful marigolds dancing in my mind
Reminders of you
Of love
Swirling thoughtlessly...

Remembering crimson's sunlight
That sat so warmly in the hands
Of a bellowing ember in the bitter cold of winter
You fall into my mind on a day that
Recalls love to my heart
Like the rose that sits in solitude
Withering away
Crimson's light shines in to water my soul

© Alya Landry 2008

Indelibly

2009-02-06T12:42:00.022-05:00

I wrote this piece for a very good author who lost her husband some years ago. She described him in such a way the title was very fitting. Thanks MJH

Michael Franks: How I Remember You

Time holds me for a moment and you are here with me
When the moments have passed, you are still the only one I see
Indelibly written on my heart
Your spirit fills the space between
So I never have to feel the emptiness of apart
Our love spreads in all directions
It wraps me 'round when loneliness visits
Bringing back the happiness
That only my heart has felt
Each other we understood
To, for, and with me you were so good
O, how I remember you on a day like this
I could never unweave you from my heart
That you have tenderly kissed
You are etched vividly in my life
Indelibly penned
You, my husband and I your wife...

© Alya Landry 2008

The Longest Good-Bye

2009-02-01T21:26:00.003-05:00

Tears fall as you turn and walk away
My heart begging

Dying for you to stay

Our eyes say what our
Silent whispers won't
They tell you not to look
Back only to see my head hanging
Low to the earth and the drizzle's

Shower begin to beat me

Don't look back to see
Me with the memory of
You and I drenching from my heart
Slipping through my fingers
As I drop to my knees trying to hold on to you
Let me remember the happiness
That was you and I
Me and you
Us

Don't say a word
Just let me smile at your
Solemn stare and let me
Cry this flood of emotions
Running standing still inside of me

Let me have the memory of holding your
Senses in the palm of my hands
And let me wonder you

With eyes screaming quietly
STAY...stay...stay
We let go… and O how we wished
That it were hello's beginning
Instead of ending's good-bye...

© Alya Landry 2008

Just For A Moment

2009-01-10T21:50:00.008-05:00

As the moon gives its last wink of light
We stare embraced until
All we can do is welcome night
"Shhhh"...the breeze whispers
Nature tickling our backs
We quietly thank her
Holding this moment as if it's our last
We know with time the sun will
Hug the moon
And we will let go as our moment
Held has now passed...

© Alya Landry 2009

VSL..The Microphone Conversations

2009-01-05T12:38:00.008-05:00

Me and this thing is suppose to be
We are as natural as the combs of honey
From the hives of bees

I grab hold of these virgin steel lips
The smell sweet yet cold
That I have never kissed
My heart would be free if I'd just let go

I wrap my hand around his hip
That dips like that and this
What stops me from doing it
Is my sin so shameful
I'm marked prohibited?

Do I need protection since I am infected
My mental standing erected
Maybe I'm afraid of rejection
Of injecting my fornicated pen
Into this virgin's head

Amplify my sin
Spews from within
Thoughts running wild
Where do I begin?

© Alya Landry 2009

gal

2009-01-05T12:35:00.005-05:00

hey gal
all young and frayed
what be yo name?

you remind me of innocence
that ain't passed this way since...
hey gal, why yo hair so nappy
and yo clothes so filthy
ain't you got
no mammy
no pappy?

hey gal
all young and frayed
what be yo name?
why you stare
like i'm barely there
don't you speak none
is you dumb?

why, sa i am but a gal
who came into this world
born free but shamed
by the hands of yo men
my mammy was raped

it was her innocence that once passed
stripped from her nakedness like a sash
tell me sa, does my eyes look familiar
does yo disgust like mine feel similar?

i traveled through the
the trenches
so please forgive me if
my hair be nappy
my clothes filthy
but you see sa
i come by way of
my mammy
the one you sold
now gone
why do you call me gal?
when you sa
is my pappy?

© Alya Landry 2009

Saying It Would Mean...

2009-01-04T22:55:00.006-05:00

Saying it would mean...
How I feel
Tell me...
Would that make us real?

I've painted imaginings of you
Wonderful...
Perfect in every way
My mouth wants to speak
I want to tell you, love
But what would I say?

I see you
Stare's stare -intense
My head hangs low in lament
You're so close
And yet we've never met
Only a moment dividing us
But...
Eyes can only ask "what?"

Afraid to lose
The game only played
And still no moves

I draw imaginings of you
And what we could be
I could say it but
Saying it would mean...

© Alya Landry 2009

No Strings Attached...

2008-12-29T23:55:00.010-05:00

So...
Here we are- no strings attached right?
No regrets?
Ending where we met
Just a few things...
Remember to forget
All that was never spoken
But how it was always felt

To erase "this"
Should we have walked backwards
So we can move forward?
I mean, don't get me wrong because
There aren't any strings attached -right?
Can we let this day turn to night
So we don't have to see good-bye?

How strange this feels...
Tomorrow how do I deal
With the empty space
That once held your face
Do we just drop a dime
And say thanks for the time?

Why do you smile
While I'm desperately trying to
Unweave you from my heart
That's slowly dying

We knew it would end
But how do we leave when
I was just about to begin
To tell you I love you
With all that I am and everything that you are
Because you and I just don't equal apart

No strings attached right?
Then why can't we let go?...

© Alya Landry 2008

Did You Forget?

2008-12-29T12:49:00.004-05:00

Did you forget?
Love…tender and sweet
Once held within a space
Shared by hemispheres
Undivided

Recall if you will
How I beckoned to you
Without a word
Love?
Did you forget?

The dwelling that lies within
Stands open and empty
Without you
Tell me…
Did you forget?

Talk to me
Let me take in your air
Because I cannot breathe
My peace - warring
My simplicity
Unfamiliar and complex

Alone
Me you left
Tell me love
Did you forget?...

© Alya Landry 2008

Virgin Steel Lips (Once Again)

2008-12-27T21:56:00.001-05:00

I'm nervous as hell
But I'm about to crack out of this shell
Let this gift sift through virgin steel lips
That have never kissed amplified sin
That digs so deep that outside wants in
This pen keeps dribblin', scribblin'
Bouncing and shooting
All my fears I'm trying to miss
But they keep going in

Blessed of hand and of tongue
I am many, but really only one
I'm nervous as hell as I step to this
But it ain't no way to conquer it other than to do it

Let me flow...

Check the math
Pen + Pad = me
Divisible by only who I know how to be
Multiplied by endless possibilities
= my truths and words
pull y'all ears to this
I know you hear
But tell me if you heard

My sin lies buried in once blank canvases
That now bear the wounds of pain and
Fornicated crevises
My healing cannot begin
Until I voice my sin

Cold is this steel
That warms my soul
I hold it tight
So it can feel my fright

I open my mouth to put it down
Ain't no turning back now
I'm about to let go
Flow~

© Alya Landry 2008

Paper

2008-12-27T21:14:00.004-05:00

I didn't mean to be rude

Honestly, I didn't even know

You weren't in the mood

I guess, I can take for granted

That you will always lie there

And take what I have to say

I just assumed that each

Other we understood

But now I see your hurt

And pain and it ain't all good

How do I begin to say

"I'm sorry?"

I want you to know I understand

I ponder...

The only thing I can say

When you and I can't be

And my thoughts need a place to land:

Moon's Cover

2008-12-22T12:02:00.010-05:00

I pulled the moon like stretched cotton to cover me

From the cold- a cold that lies deep

Within a worn soul that has lost its hold

I would turn loose, but where would I go?

The bottom has fallen from under

So I hold tighter to my cover of the moon

As it protects me from the cracks thunder

Tucked away until the anger passes

It's burning and I can taste the seeped in

Bitter ashes of consequence

I'm peeling from head to heel

There is nothing to numb the pain

The sting of sin is all I feel

My spirit collapses and the fierce rumble of anger

Finally subsides

I roll back the cover of the moon

To feel peeks of light

2008-12-21T22:22:00.007-05:00

Autumn's Good-Bye (Haiku)

Crimsons, greens and golds

Colors waltzing with warm air

Prelude to Winter

Erie In The Fall

2008-12-15T13:01:00.005-05:00

I see her vastness from the bluff
Her waters are rigid
Not like the calmness she displays during the heated summer months
Her waves pound against undaunted boulders
They endure the blunt of her punishment without protest
But is it punishment perceived?
Could it be a raging beauty
dancing with the forceful winds?
Could her swaying be a melodic response to the singing gulls
hovering above her in anticipation of their next meal?
Maybe the cold irritates her
Maybe it's the tickling from her inhabitants;
yellow perch and walleye, and rainbow smelt
Maybe it's the feeling of being alone on those brisk, autumn evenings
which cause her to make a scene for attention
So she rumbles and sways
and as the wind cuts past my ears
I could hear what sounds like distant cries
begging me to stay
She doesn't want to be alone
I blow her a subtle kiss
Hoping that the breeze doesn't rob me of my efforts
I turn and slowly walk away
Her waves pummel furiously as a way of telling me to stay
She doesn't want to be alone

~Dane

To Dance

2008-12-15T09:51:00.005-05:00

It would be my honor
As I escort you to the floor
Us
Alone
As we make this space our very own private island
cascading through the sands
Time stops and has no meaning
our motions...effortless
our energy expended through eye contact
I read your thoughts as you sing mine
together
We turn this moment
into
eternity

~Dane

A Blues Forooze (Virgin Steel Lips) Revisited

2008-12-13T03:39:00.012-05:00

{Inspired by Boney James "You Don't Have To Go Home}

Hey, I know you’re not suppose
To be here and I know you have go
But there’s a few things I just need to say…
A few things you need to know
Tell me, would you be surprised if you knew

I got a blues forooze called you?
I can’t front because you make my lies tell the truth
I can’t quite describe it as good as I sho it…but let me try
Umm…tell me sweetheart, have
you ever been touched by words
Through unspoken lips
I mean your ears would listen
But it would be your eyes that heard
Oh, have you ever known love as an unselfish giver
I mean that kind of love that reaches down into your
Heart and makes your soul quiver
Or kisses
That drip sweeter than molasses
Honey, I ain’t even gon’ ask
The story of abandonment dangles in your eyes
Let me comfort it-stay the night
Don’t tell me you have to go and I’ll ever see you again
Because it would have been better for me to be blind
So this picture of you wouldn’t replay in my mind
Darlin’ would you be surprised if you knew
The things I want from you?
Is nothing at all
Simply that other connection
When you pick up and call
Me for a little company
Tell me what you need
I left a second ago to get
To where you need me to be
This blues forooze
Is about to make me lose my cool
But I like it though is got me going insane
Funny, I know I’ll never have you
Close your eyes for a moment
And imagine feeling
Your tears sweat
And your apprehension forget
Don’t ask me because I can’t

Explain these blues
But wouldn’t you be surprised if you knew
How I try to shake you
From my mind
Only to turn around to
Find you’re taking my time
You got me bowing my head
Shooting rounds at these thoughts
But they refuse to stay dead

Slow Hand

2008-12-09T20:52:00.017-05:00

{Inspired by Stanley Turrentine's "Maybe September"}
~

May I have this dance?

In case we should never meet again

I have to tell you - beautiful is your definition

Your hand soft in mine reminiscent...

Of a time tender

A moment of sweet surrender

Dance with me

Slow

And never let go

Spin around in my fantasies

When I open my eyes

Please don't let this be a dream

Hold me close

As if a familiar stranger

And let our memories linger

Like combs of honey

The moon will be my only witness

That no one has ever dance

So slow of hand and beautiful as this...

Braille

2008-12-05T11:57:00.034-05:00

Like Braille
I am only understood if you touch me
Careful because I’m frail
Like a painter’s hand
That draws time in the sand
The ocean is my eraser
Now I can start over again
~~//~~
If you peer into my soul
You won’t find me there
For I am tucked away into my inner fold
Afraid to let go
~~//~~
Sin is my tattoo
Unwashable and unforgivable
Never to be removed
I can peel this shame
And yet it remains
~~//~~
I am reminded that I am alive
When I am touched
By the things that
Recall love to my heart
That I miss so much
~~//~~
Fragile, I lie at the oceans hand
And like braille he reads my life
In the sand

© Alya Landry 2008

Your Words

2008-12-05T11:56:00.019-05:00

{Inspired by Dane Dawson}

Your words
Full of love
Fills this emptiness I feel
A figment of my imagination?
No.
You are very real
~~
Your words take me in like air;
They settle down with me in darkness
And love me tenderly-passionately
~~
The world is quiet;
The earth retires from
Spinning on its axis
For just a few brief moments
~~
Your words dance with the butterflies
Fluttering inside, captivating me
Your words you give so freely
But the Lady behind you disguise
~~
I close my eyes and you are everything
I imagined you to be
The only thing missing - you here with me
~~
Though we have never crossed paths;
You are very familiar to me
As the essence of your words' presence
Has graced me with glimpses
Into the beauty of this elusive
Poetic Princess
~~
Laughing a lonely
Lover’s laugh
I grin
Slowly clutching
Your words to me
I take you in
~~
The earth spinning
the world…

Silent

© Alya Landry 2008

Only You

2008-12-05T11:50:00.018-05:00

Falling
I rise
In the height
Of depth
Width
unmeasured
~~
I am felt by you
Without touch
Loved without
Embrace
~~
You envelop me
In your absence
I feel your presence
~~
There is no touch
like yours
No love
That can equate
To this feeling
That you breathe
~
Only you
My love
Have found the
Secret in
Loving me...

Jai's Good-bye

2008-12-05T10:49:00.033-05:00

{Inspired by Joshua Redman's "Make Sure You're Sure}
~
Baby are you sure? Because on the other side
Of this door means no more
I couldn't stand the idea of apart
But I understand if you must go
I'll just sit here and fall to pieces in the dark

Are you sure? Because good-bye means
Ending you and I
Recall if you will the moments spent
Darl’n, if I've ever done you wrong
Let me bend low and repent

My pity is shameful yes, I know
But tell me love, how is it that together
Can let go?

Baby make sure that you're sure is my final plea
Because I can't hold you if you need to be free
Where you leave me is where I'll be
When you want to come keep my loneliness company

Look me in my eyes and tell me good-bye is fine
And I swear I won't be alright
Just leave me a touch of uncertainty
That maybe one day you'll return to me

Before you go, there is something that you must know...
I love you from the beginning to the last
Future, present and past
You will transcend all loves to follow
Though they may fill my days
Inside I'll remain hollow

Baby, should you ever need me, remember...
Right here is where I'll be
Every day for you my heart will yearn
I'll leave the door unlocked
Should you ever return

No questions asked but this last
Are you sure?
"Good-bye"
Jai softly whispered

© Alya Landry 2008

Alya's Funk

2008-12-05T10:49:00.031-05:00

Like air to lungs
This pen and pad
Lets me breathe
It keeps me needing
Selling my self-respect
For just a hit
Of that inspiration to drip
I can't contain this feeling
Like me
It's claustrophobic

It straight pimps me
As I walk the streets
Of my mind looking for that
Lonely corner
For some peace to find

Wrapped up in this chaotic hole
I feel all my wrongs
From yesterdayto days long gone
Swinging and missing
The stench of a roaming dog
And his territorial pissing
Marking the home
Inspiration and I once shared

Abandoned, stranded
Back due rent
No letter left
Or dropped dime
For the time spent

Battered, baffled, dazed and confused
Abused, misused recluse
Struggling to see my use
I search for lie's truths
Contradictions visit and leave again
Metaphoric beatings for my past poetic sin
Of the fornication of this pad and pen
I drop my head in this lament
Can you feel my astonishment
As this chaotic hole once called home
Shared
Now gone?

© Alya Landry 2008

How Do You Read Me?

2008-12-05T10:49:00.030-05:00

{smile}

Like fine wine;
Ageless and without time
I am to be taken into your senses
Are you listening?

Slowly…

Like a package marked
“Handle with care”
Drink me from a straw?
Don’t you dare!

Hear what I’m saying
Beyond what is written
Believe me, it’s not hidden

Tear down your walls;
Your heart I’ll soften
Most important
Read me often

© Alya Landry 2008

Grasping

2008-12-05T10:48:00.007-05:00

~
Grasping for life
The world is turning
And yet I stand still
I can’t seem to find the plug to
Stop this emptying of my soul
When it is this woman I’m trying to fill

Losing in life
When my goal was to win
My soul complains
But not even I care to listen

Grasping, I lose what I never found
Though I see
My step is unsure of solid ground

Peeling my wounds so that I can feel
I reach inside this can
There is nothing there
That feels real

Time rolling on by
Too lazy to raise my hand to wave good-bye
Wishing and fit-pitching
For my lot
Blaming my fault for what I want
And what I ain’t got

My tail sore
Looking, but never
Going through the door

© Alya Landry 2008

Alya's Funk II

2008-12-05T10:42:00.010-05:00

This funk I feel is more than words
More than an attitude
This funk is my reals
My truths that I'm spilling to you
These feelings
Stopped up by my own
Fears of the tears
That run deep
As canyons that have
No bottom to catch this pain
That top the height of my agony
Do you feel me?
Or do you judge me
Because I am square
And don't fit into your
Circles of mediocrity
This heart that beats inside of this cage
Is filled with righteous rage
Rage fueled by being stepped on and over
Tucking within myself just to find cover
This funk is real
As from all directions
The sting of being me
I feel

© Alya Landry 2008

Cleansed

2008-12-05T10:32:00.010-05:00

~
Rain falls slowly…
I cry so no one sees my pain
Rocking myself in my shame
Remembering, forgetting
All the same ...

Searching for the inside
That is withering and being washed away
With each drop
Tears flowing uncontrollably
Unable to stop

The sun won't break through
To let me of this life make sense
I talk to the rain
As I cry
My soul-

Wait For Me

2008-12-05T09:41:00.008-05:00

Wait for me by the breeze called forever
I’ll meet you there with the horizon in my eyes
And together we’ll say good-bye to never
~~//~~

Wait for me under the tree
That blossoms in all seasons
Though time passes my
Love for you will remain
The same reason
~~//~~
Wait for me in your heart and mind…
When your tears begin to fall
Stretch out your hand and
I’ll be there right by your side
~~//~~
Wait for me beneath the rain clouds
I’ll be sure to cover you
With love that is all embracing
Just like the warmness of the
Sunshine breaking through
~~//~~
Wait for me in the song
That serenades life
And dance as if
You were free as butterflies
~~//~~
Wait for me in the day after
Just beyond the shore;
You’ll hear bouncing of the waves
The echo of my laughter
~~//~~
Wait for me under the moon
Just after the sun sets
And let's remember sorrow's
Way to forget
Wait for me at the end
I promise together hand in hand
We will begin
~
© Alya Landry 2008

Process

2008-12-05T09:39:00.006-05:00

~
Pulling myself inside out
So that I can see the reason why I doubt
This ability that lies beneath;
I have vision, yet sometimes
I just can’t see
Blocked by my refusal
To use my mental
I give way to uselessness
I see the to goal before me
But like prerequisites;
I must first go through this process.
Alone- by self
From others I need no help
This is mine to define
And make shine
To go through
To figure out
Then do

© Alya Landry 2008

Resignation

2008-12-05T09:35:00.006-05:00

~
When resignation is
The only thing I have
Left to give

When rock bottom
Closes its mouth and won’t
Swallow me in

When the polarity
Of my inner compass
Is off by a half degree
And my way cannot be
Felt or seen

When darkness can’t
Hide what is secret.
When what I choose
To remember I
Always seem to forget

When all my frailties
Are exposed.
When doors are closed
Where they were just opened

I drop my head feeling
Lost and that I’ll never win;
I tuck my chin deep into my skin
Put my face to the obstacles that
Feel like a monsoon wind

Taking a deep breath
I am convinced!
Resignation is not in my plan
It is only when I think I can’t
That I know I can

© Alya Landry 2008

Still Standing

2008-12-05T07:46:00.013-05:00

{Inspired by Aleja Bennett}

~
Through trials and pain
You couldn’t break me with your hands
Look! I never fell.
I’m still standing

My skin is thick
And my wounds are deep.
My insides rotten from years of neglect
I’m empty-go ahead, take a peek

My world spinning
Looking at myself
Barely recognizing it’s me;
Three hundred and sixty degrees of misery.
Only silence hears my screams

No escape do I find
I rise within myself
And yell to the top of this hell
“No more can you take
The fear I no longer possess;
No longer can you break
The shell I left”

Tried to crush me to depth’s ground;

Like pumice I’ll never sink.
What did you think?
Don’t look down because I’m here
And this self that is me I found

I am whole.
In my heart lies my soul
Take it again?
I don’t think so!

Take a look in all directions
Here I am...
I am still standing!

© Alya Landry 2008

Alya's Rant

2008-12-02T12:57:00.014-05:00

{Feel me Dane?}
~
What irritates my within
Is this situation I find myself in
Like a bees' sting
I feel the pain of sin
How can I turn around
When my beginning is distantly flapping in the wind
And the guilt of my direction fuels me with contempt
To others it's simple as a turned around step
Looking back on what I've given up
Only to reap a rut
I am clothed in filth in the presence of dirt
I cannot begin to strip off this hurt
Not for self, but those whom I've left
Behind and counted insignificant
Only to put nothing in the space I
Sought to fill that still remains vacant
There is no occupancy in my soul
I turn around and I still don't know
Which direction to go...

© Alya Landry 2008

Carrie

2008-12-02T12:50:00.007-05:00

{for my Great Grandmother}
~
She reaches out to hold my
Hand with all her might
Memories walk right on in
Making me laugh...cry

Our silence is comfortable
Her eyes reveals the loneliness
Of her soul
I hold on so she doesn't let go

Stroking her hair
She barely knows I'm there
Calling her name I have her attention
But only for a second

I wonder if on the inside
She is lonely
If her eyes could whisper
I know they'd tell me

Alone in this shell
Scores of borrowed hell
Beaming eyes growing dim
Her tears so quiet that
Tells of life's end

Her voice silenced by time
But she has the promise
Of a great hope in her ear
So apart is just for a while

Still holding my hand
I only know that if sorrow
Exists in tomorrow
I'd rather yesterday borrow

© Alya Landry 2008

Back In The Day

2008-12-01T22:38:00.010-05:00

~
Afro puffs, shags, beads and braids
Slicked back and to the side
With daddy’s pomade

Marbles, yo-yo’s, and jacks
Bell bottoms, polyester
Butterfly collars and stacks

Roller rinks and Parliament’s
“Flashlight”
Every Saturday night

Hoola hoops, lemon twist
Back in the day
When kids were kids

Iron-ons and patches
Shorts your mama cut
From a pair of pants that
Looked like eggshells

Tricycles with the tassels
It was a good day when the neighborhood
Bullies weren’t a hassle

New PF. Flyers- thought you were maxin’
Pulled up to the group with your
Big wheel with the skid out action!

Red wagons, glass bottles, and aluminum cans
Mike & Ike’s Now and Laters, Boston Baked Beans
All play stopped when you heard the ice cream man

Playing paddle and ball
Junior rollin’ by with
The wax still on his car
And gansta’ white walls

Fuzzy dice and boom boxes
When dudes were cats
And chicks were foxes
The Jackson 5’s on 8-tracks
And cussing was whack

Can we find our way
To back in the day?

© Alya Landry 2008

Beautiful You

2008-12-01T22:34:00.005-05:00

~
Words cannot express the beauty of you
Like the tracing out the beginning of time;
I simply could never do
~~
With a heart as wide as oceans apart
The beauty of you spans hemispheres
Away is never too far
Forever keeps us connected
By time and distance we are unaffected
~~
The same as you are today
Is the way you will stay
Time will pass and yesterday will still whisper your name
He will call you “beauty unchanged”
~~
Seeing you is always as if the first time
Your beauty makes my soul shine
Like love found anew
It is wonderful to grow and love
Beautiful you…
~

© Alya Landry 2008

Good Old Days

2008-12-01T22:24:00.008-05:00

~
shuckin' corn
early Sunday mornin'
poppin' beans
cleaning greens
scraping potatoes
mama screaming
outside for you to go
dusty front yards with grass in patches
bunny hopping, double dutch
any bounce and relay races to see
who could run the fastest
microphones? broomsticks and mop handles
oops! mama forgot to pay the bill
where’s the candles?
album covers used for dustpans
grocery bags as garbage cans
sitting on the porch
drinkin' from mason jars
screaming "THAT'S MY CAR!"
33's as frisbees
black ingenuity
aerodynamic masterpieces!
hangers brought reception to your TV
do y'all feel me?
talking back to mama
you were dead
she wore that hind out
then asked you what
kind of "Kool-Aid" you wanted
with tears in your eyes you said"RED"
crates as basketball hoops
books as steering wheels;
Saturday mornin'
splash your face off to the group
straightenin’ combs
home before those lights came on
where did the good old days go?
hide-go-seek
mother may I?
red light. green light, simon says
got your tag, duck, duck, goose
no peekin'
the good old' days
as Stevie Wonder said
"I wish those days could come back once more"
days no matter how old, we all long for

© Alya Landry 2008

Beneath the Cherry Blossom Tree

2008-11-28T22:43:00.021-05:00

{I wrote this poem a few days after my great grandmother passed away}
~
Sitting in the empty space she use to fill
I try to absorb her absence
To drown this loneliness I feel

Life left right before my eyes
As I held her hand and whispered
The promise to see her in paradise

I’ll see her beneath the cherry blossom tree
That will oddly bloom in the Fall
And the traces of tears will no longer linger
And pain will not be remembered at all

Happiness will abound in her soul
And she will leap as if a gazelle
And she’ll recall the stories
Of this place I used to tell

No more will there be a need for good-bye
For every day will bring an everlasting new sky
Beauty as far as time will take her
And we’ll stroll barefoot together

Reuniting after a painful time apart
I’ll make it through is the promise I gave
From my soul and heart

What a time this will be
When the hold of sleep sets her free
And there standing is where I’ll be
Waiting anxiously beneath the cherry blossom tree

For just a little while I must let go
But my precious one
It is saying good-bye
That we will be able to say hello

Momma, I’ll hold your promise that you’ll be there
And you will look for me
And if you should forget
Just look beneath the cherry blossom tree
I promise.

That is where I’ll be...

I promise...

2008

Broke

2008-11-28T22:43:00.016-05:00

~
Tired of struggling
Tired of wondering and not knowing
If my lights, gas and phone will be on
When I get home

Tired of living pay check to pay check
I have to shrug my shoulders just to keep
The collectors from breathing down my neck

O pay check I work hard for you
Don't you know my rent is due?
All these dips in my pocket
Like I some kind of “31 Flavors”
I'm struggling with embarrassment
Not to borrow sugar from my neighbor

Robbing Peter to pay Paul
When I still owe my
Brother, sister and Mama!
Feel me, y’all?

Working over time just to breathe
My ends have to get a running start
Just to try and meet

Like a tight rope walker
I want my checking account to
Have balance
I want to go into the store- not
Just walk by and glance

I want to have enough to give to others
And finally pay back my

brother, sister and mother

Don’t get me wrong
I ain’t striving for riches
I got the necessities;
I just want some of the wishes

Fight, Battle and Struggle

2008-11-28T22:35:00.008-05:00

~
Here lies my fight, battle and struggle
My inner conflict of heart;
Trying to fight off the temptation to do wrong
But the desire like glue holds on

I try to break away and apart
From this stain of worthlessness;
Instead I swing on shadows in the dark
I'm adding, but the sum of my life
Doesn't make sense

I see a way out
But this temptation that taps on me like shoes
Causes me to doubt
So my anticipation to move forward
Is halted by reservation

Do I give up and stop trying to attain
A peace of mind and in it remain
This struggle and this fight
Forever pushing and pulling
On me when my direction is right

…Am I weak?
Because air seems hard to breathe...
I have grown tired and weary
Trying not to fall into the hole of self-pity.
Reminders of a dismal past
Now reflects through sin's glass

I am ashamed to look and to read
Passages of haunting memories that
Like a criminal can be traced back to me
I am tried and convicted
My life's choices is the only needed evidence
Fight, battle and struggle
My sentence

© Alya Landry 2008

Filthy Sassy Chile

2008-11-28T22:34:00.012-05:00

(Inspired by 'Miles Davis Generique')
~
Filthy sassy chile
A street harlot from up the way
Living down below
Searching street corners
That only lead her in circles
Taking her right back to the hell
She left just left
Heaven knows she's been spent
With no change for rent

She is a wanderer
Nomadic squanderer
A hit for five;body sold for ten
Don't care where you've been
Starving just to live
Dying as scores mount her
Old enough to be responsible for her birth

Cold earth is her bed
That warms her back
And cushions her knees;
Eyes shamed as they scream
No stand for a toothbrush to clean her teeth
She feels herself slipping from underneath

Reminders of no way out come in
Fashionable Johns and Joes
Fancy cars, polished shoes, neck ties
And money clips
Creeping from uptown to dig into the harlot's hip
Self-deception allows her to believe
She is desired and needed
But the fallacy of her reality returns
As she is left with a green back and wet thigh
Some other junkie's momentary high

Left on the street corner
She has tried to leave
She can only roam
This territory called home;
Her fornicated dignity is all she has to hold
Filthy sassy chile
Scraping for love on the

Bottom of empty garbage cans
Reaching out but ain't no lent hand

Kicked by time
She is running out
Her future- mocked in a puddle
She mimes
Streets wrap her up like a blanket
But there is no heat
Shame drips from her head
She hangs herself in her pity
She is unidentified though used by many
As just another filthy sassy chile
Toe tagged, cooler kept, a spirit long before

Dead

Snaps

2008-11-25T22:17:00.019-05:00

{Thanks Lezlie Perry}
~
Fingertips that tap
like shoes that rap
on floors where I
stand to let this
gift like flour
sift through
virgin-steeled lips
that kiss my soul
as I reminisce
about this and that
you don’t know?
you betta ask
someone who knows this flow…
don’t believe what
you don’t know
listen and learn
from the audience
who for this yearns
let me open your
mind so you can feel me
I know you have eyes
but darlin’ your vision can’t see
don’t worry
I got the keys
let’s go for a ride
destination?
my inner side
hold on to your cap
but let your fingers snap…

© Alya Landry 2008

He Told Me That Was Loving Him

2008-11-25T22:10:00.013-05:00

{Inspired by Duke Ellington's "In a Sentimental Mood"}
~
He told me that was loving him
The pupil of his eyes
I held within me as if a student
To teach me what I couldn't see
All of his frailties that had sustained him
And his weaknesses that made him powerful

He told me of the touch just right there
That seemed almost unfair
A touch that gave beat to a faint soul
Dying
But too afraid to let go

He told me that was loving him
The way the sun rose when the moon fell
Just after dawn and we became one
How beginning never ended
And finished was never done

He told me that was loving him
Though his mouth never uttered a word
He stood before me- stripped of his existence
Giving me nothing but everything
I can only tell him I that I love him

He told me that was loving him
Through the gentle and quiet calm
Dwelling within him
That rages in me
With the greatest tenderness
I cannot contain myself though I have tried
To hear a man speak of the way love makes him feel

© Alya Landry 2008

When She Plays The Piano

2008-11-25T22:04:00.006-05:00

~
You can hear her soul
It cries like violin strings
She dances on ivory petals
And like a deluge all her pain is washed away

She waits for the sound of the lonely pelican
But there is none and just like him
She sits alone with her head hanging
In devastated places in her heart

She plays on...

Dancing slowly on keys that
Open her past, she stops for a moment to
Remember the lost child within

A tear falls like hot lead down her cheek
And stings the wounds of her life
She hangs her head low in the uncertainty
Of her existence

She sits alone and plays
Until her petals turn gray
With only her soul to listen.
"Play on" her soul cries....
"Play on..."

© Alya Landry 2008

Misunderstood

2008-11-25T21:58:00.009-05:00

{Thank You Dane}

~
This gift born through sin;
I am misunderstood in a world
Confused about my within

My pain bleeds
From cuts that have healed
So you can never see this
Hurt I feel
How I deal
How I try to hold onto
Reality just to know I'm real

I am conceptually misunderstood
From my mother's womb I came
Abandoned and left for stranded.
My innocence raped and unprotected
From shelter and hood

You cannot render judgment upon me
As I on the surface try just to breathe…

I am confined to this self that is me
I'm twisted and toiled
My past soiled
My soul torn
My spirit worn

You with vision, but cannot see
Imagine being me
Understanding of my identity
I have yet to know
Explanation of self
How could I possibly owe?

The Story Is This...(Loves' Matador)

2008-11-25T21:52:00.011-05:00

{Inspired by Chris Botti's "A Thousand Kisses Deep"}
~
Love's matador beckons to the center of my core
Eyes of love call without words
My spirit unravels as if a premonition
Our souls connect as to say we’ve met here
In this moment once before

I move with uncertainty
But I am sure as I can see
The rain begins to drizzle
My heart races as Loves’ matador
Dances with the steps that bring me closer to him

Our stare unbroken
And still no words spoken
Silence of a united pulse
Throbs in my ears
Loves’ matador’s movements say
“Yes, I hear you, my dear”

Tears begin to fall
And the sweeping and turning of
Love's matador calls
I answer unafraid
Though the voice still faint

Closer…closer he calls
Wrapping around me
With the sweetest tenderness
Eyes finally behold the same soul
We embrace
And we dance to surrender

© Alya Landry 2008

Naked

2008-11-25T21:45:00.011-05:00

~
Dry tears fall down my
Cracked and hollow face
I am lonely
Alone in this
Residence called space

Searching for sobriety
Of heart and mind
In a world that won't let
Me peace find

I am full of rage
I empty my bitterness out on this page
Can you feel
This pain that is real?

My temples in anger blare
My eyes dilate in an obscure stare
My position is fetal;
Afraid to walk or crawl

Peeks of sun burn my virgin skin
So I tuck myself within...

My tears are silent
But they break the ground
That supports my frame
Revealing guilt, hurt
Shame

My exterior implodes
My naked soul
Exposed

© Alya Landry 2008

The Longest Day

2008-11-25T21:37:00.006-05:00

~
The piano plays the song of such
Lonesomeness since you’ve gone
Seems like the longest day that will never end
A day so long that keeps lingering and holding on

The sun never rises in my aching heart
Though the clouds break- it always feels dark
The rain keeps on fallin’ as my weeping tears
Tirelessly crawl and wrap themselves into a fetal ball

I can hear the wind crying as it
Rocks my sorrow’s sighing
The drummer plays for my soul
That feels like dying

The ladies grind quietly to dust
And drip with anger
As the windows to this life closes
And death is no longer a stranger

This day seems so long
Though I hold you
In my memory
You're presence is gone

O, if this pain would break
Like my heart that aches
With a slow throb that my chest cannot contain
If I bottled this hurt
I swear it would always rain

© Alya Landry 2008

Surfacing

2008-11-25T21:31:00.007-05:00

Surfacing from the pain
That drowned my sorrow and shame
Pulling the plug from the drain
So I can stand the rain
Looking back to what is hurtful- no more
My direction is forward
What came last is now what comes before…
Any selfish device
That keeps my soul on ice
I’m thawing from a long cold
I almost gave up
But I know this state ain’t my mold
Breaking free so my lungs can breathe
Panting like a dog and fighting like a mad man
Anything in my path is now underneath me
Peeling from the fetal position
I am metamorphizing
To invincibility from victim
Bumped and bruised and nearly crushed
Through the blows I held myself together
Like a sponge- full
I let go and rose like pumice
Defeat tried to hold me down and under
My imploded soul erupted and cracked like thunder
I gathered my limbless heart that had been sawed asunder
The rain floods my soul as I hold my breath
Braced.
I close my eyes and surface

© Alya Landry 2008

Play~

2008-11-25T21:22:00.008-05:00

~
Play the sunrise until it sets
Play until sorrow’s way we forget
Play the blues to chase the grey away
Play yesterday so we don’t have to let go of today
~~
Play the memories that dance
In my aching heart
Play them so I don’t have
To hear the echoes of apart
~~
Play the sadness that resides within
Play forgiveness of a soul tattered and thin
Play a beauty that my eyes have never beheld
Play love’s touch that needs to be felt
~~
Play forever endlessly
Play until relentlessness finds and holds me
Play hello’s beginning just as we say goodbye
Play reason’s reason for why
~~
Play the tears that fall tenderly
Play my heartstrings that recall you fondly
Play the mute heart that never embraced farewell
Play quietly now so my frailty you can feel
~~
Go ahead. Play…
Play
~
© Alya Landry 2008

Summer's Winter Blues

2008-11-25T21:11:00.012-05:00

{Inspired from a beautiful piano player-James Holzer}
~

I can’t remember the day I knew
That I would always love you
Was it the day your voice bristled
In my ear like a chiffon breeze
That wrapped me deep within
Maybe the shine in your eyes
That promised forever mine
~
I can’t remember the day
But I just knew
That it would always
Be me
Be you…
~
Safe from all that existed
That moment forever present
Is all there is
You and me.
You and I.
Reflected images of I love you
Without there being a reason why
~
A love I held so close to me
Only to have to set you free
Slowly from my dying heart
I still feel you unweaving
~
Like a ribbon with no ends
We can only meet again
For love has yet to begin
The sun tickles the sky’s blues
My tears smile
And I remember you
~
Cold and empty on this day of June
As if Summer’s got the Winter blues
Memories of together from my soul flow
They whisper and dance with the rain asking…
“Where you’re going…can I go?”

© Alya Landry 2008

2008-11-25T21:08:00.009-05:00

Who Is The Pencil Character?

For those of you that may want to know who that pencil guy is...That is my official logo for P.E.G.S. His name of course is PEGS. He was created from nothing by a wonderful artist, Jim Hurguy. Jim took an empty space in my head and drew (no pun intended) from some thoughts I had and after going back to the drawing board (ok, that's another bad pun!) and lots of attempts, PEGS came to life.In the very near future Pegs will be availble to purchase on T-shirts, hats, back packs (just to name a few) My goal for PEGS is to make it one of the most widely recognized logos in the poetry community. Please spread the word to evryone you know. Please stay tuned for updates...

Alya's PEGS