Encore

the psychological uprooting
the feeling of ended chapter
one more portion
of oneself slipping away
into the past

sit light to Life
to all its phases
The useless
word is
"Encore!"

Poet's note: This found poem was created from one of Professor C.S. Lewis' last letters written before he died, portions of which were featured in "Seeking the Secret Place: The Spiritual Formation of C.S. Lewis" by Lyle W. Dorsett.

Mammoth Love

I grabbed at His love
like a starving refugee
scavenging for food
like a selfish child
snatching sweets

I needed more love
than a person could spare
I needed
the mammoth love
of

God
will never resent us
for the
b-----r-----e-----a-----d-----t-----h
--------------------------e
--------------------------p
--------------------------t
--------------------------h

of our need.

Poet's Note: This poem was created from a portion of Beth Moore's amazing book "The Beloved Disciple"

Dying Jackson

Paris on the ground
balled up crying

Propofol

Prince standing there
slowly crying

Propofol

His eyes were open
his mouth slightly open

Call me right away
Please call me right away

Poet's note: This found poem was created from portions of an online article about the Michael Jackson case. The article was titled "'Shocked' Children Saw CPR on Dying Jackson"

Unholy Ana!

Thinspiration
a spiritual-ascetic flavour
fasting through
metaphors of bodily purity
food through
imagery of angels and angelic flight
Exhortations like
Ana's Creed and
The Ana Commandments

Poet's note: This found poem was created from the "Thinspiration" entry under the Wikipedia article titled "Pro-ana". I came across it while doing research for a photography project. Under this article, there is also an entry about Ivonne Thein's photo exhibition titled "Thirty-two Kilos", which was intended to be "a mocking and satirical take on pro-ana. To Thein's dismay, however, many images from the exhibition were nevertheless later shared online as thinspiration."

My take on Pro-ana? IT IS UNHOLY!!!

A Savior's Guide to Effective Communication

drawing in the sand
cooking on the shore
cursing
fig tree
dipping bread with traitor
walking on water
calming storm
illuminated on mountain
hearing heaven
descending Dove
eating a somber meal
with eternal significance

Poet's note: This found poem was created from a portion off my favourite book on prayer called "Creative Prayer" by Chris Tiegreen . The chapter is titled "God is Not a Formula". In this chapter, Tiegreen writes: "If Jesus had written a book titled "A Savior's Guide to Effective Communication", it would have no conclusion. It would be open-ended because he kept varying his style."

People Who Abstain (a self-poetry8?)

I used to be a whore
and so
so many are on
the complicated pandemic
of love
just thinking about it
can make you swoon

or wretch

abstinence
is
easily-breakable bracelets
tossed carelessly
into the cellar

people who abstain
are
black-and-white
house-bound
too ugly to get laid, living
under the alias of ‘abstinent’, ‘ unhappily
booty-free’
they wear glasses
read the Bible

and write

Poet's note: This is a found poem created from the description of an allpoetry.com contest courtesy of the very young and very talented poet “greenewhiplash”. The title of the contest was “Watiting ‘til Marriage: A contest on Romance and Society"

Shoot Your Honour

my mind tortures me
with thoughts of what might have been
and what might be to come
I can feel my mind

I used to love what they were
how they thought
and now I dread it when they come
cause I loathe the way they make me feel

I am filled
WITH AN ABSOLUTE SENSE OF OUTRAGE!
that you who have no knowlegde of me whatsoever
have the power to condemn me

because you cannot see the pain
there's no blood
there's no screaming
so you can't see

your honour.
if you saw,
you'd shoot
it

Poet's note: This is a found poem created from a scene off the brilliant movie "Whose life is it anyway?" which I watched yesterday night on TCM! The movie is quite funny yet deeply touching too. I was particularly moved by the court room scene and it just screamed to be turned into a found poem :-) Here's the scene:
http://youtu.be/CCpk1PQviz0

The Cult of Steve

church meetings
reach the grasp
of "mere mortals"
amid the chosen
Jobs invokes
power and precision
summoning up the sights and sounds of Star Wars, Space Odyssey,
King Jr, Kennedy
and Moon-walking
astronauts.

Poet's note: I wrote this last week (I think on 30th September). It was created from a passage included in a book edited by Glen Kenny. The passage is from an article titled "The Cult of Steve: All Hail the Prophet of the Personal Computer" by Wes Smith which was featured in the Chicago Tribune on 23rd October 1988.
The book is "A Galaxy Not So Far Away: Writers and Artists on twenty-five years of Star Wars"

Introibo ad altare Dei

Introibo ad altare Dei
I’d answer like a Do-wop
Backup singer dancing behind the lead
Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meum
Those late-Latin hit tunes
Tantum ergo and O Solutaris, hostia
Competed with Richie Valens
Donna was her name
Skeeter Davis sang
To know, know, know him
Is to love, love, love him
Doris Day sang
Que sera, sera
The King sang
Ah well-a bless my soul what’s wrong with me
I’m itchin’ like a man on a fuzzy tree
The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil
A world of girls with twirling skirts,
bobby sox and budding blouses,
Buddy, Skeeter and Elvis

Poet's note: This found poem was created from Citino’s “I Shall Not Want”: The Twenty-third Psalm Comes to Cleveland, Ohio” which is a chapter in his book “Paperwork”