KellyB

om T Thou ughtts to o Wo ords Fro A Poetry ry Antholog gy

October 2 2011 LA Ms. White Period 2 Kelly B.

Dediication ns

Poem #1 1: To all my Language Artts Teachers w who have everr taught me tthe things I kn now‐ and sho owed mee the magic o of a story. To all the readeers out there w who will som meday changee the world.

Poem #2: To my b brothers, myy sister, and my friends ((all the peop ple who know how to ha ave fun). A And to all the little kids o out there wh ho what they ey lack in sizze make up ffor in courag ge.

Poem# #3: To all veeterans, sold diers, and an ngels guardiing us and fi fighting for u us. For all th hat they’vee sacrificed and all thatt they do. For the soldierrs that leavee their famillies to help o our coun ntry, the onees who have given up theeir lives, theeir health, th heir legs, theeir arms, and d everyth hing they haave.

Poem # #4: To everyy child or teeenager living g in today’s society. No matter how w tough life m may get‐ n never give up p, don’t givee in, and strivve to be the best you can be. Don’t m make a stup pid decisio on that ruinss your wholee life. Be sma art with wh at you do an nd who you hang out with.

Use th he knowledg ge you’ve lea arned and thhe gifts you w were granteed.

Poem 1_________________________________________________________________ _______________________________

The Book of o Lifee Open up yo our ears and hear the sounds of the birds fflying around yyou, the music spiraling throu ugh the cloudss above. way through th he beginning, Find your w Cut down b branches of kn nowledge that you learn once e You discovver them.

ho is evil.

Decide who is gallant, wh he dark Set out on to the side of the light, or th Your side is your choice er, but fools wiill make common mistakes.

A wise deccision is in orde

Tighten and strengthen yyour grip on the handle bar, The rollerccoaster has crawled to its peaak And is about to rapidly plummet.

Let the teaars of sadness ttrickle sorrowffully down your cheeks As your he eart aches with emotion Open yourr mouth and let out a warm laaugh At what yo ou find humoro ous Do not hold back.

he, relax, Take a moment to breath hat has thrown itself at you Take in wh Take a break from the en ngrossing game e and settle yo our bouncing thhoughts.

Return to yyour quest Dig througgh the firmest o of tunnels; disccover the mostt secretly guardded mysteries And travel the least trave eled and unmaarked path.

urney begins to o descend, the e goal that seem ms within yourr grasp, may taake a sudden spin.

As your jou Your missio on that seeme ed so clear at th he begging cou uld suddenly seeem like an ob bstacle that you u must avoid at all costs.

Untold Seccrets; revealed.

Lightning sstrikes at your point of weakn ness.

Minds are boggled‐ just aas fast as they figured out the rational info rmation.

Keep yoursself sane until the end.

When a tear of pain beco omes a tear of joy, when a sm mile spreads accross your facee, hat everlastingg moment, the enemies of th e day meet theeir maker, and d the slave is freed When the lovers share th and set out on his way ass a new man.

After all is said and done, your hand grips the tattered pages and gllue them shut.. our mind has b been filled with h dreams to po onder.

It is late; yo

ng of the story has ended, but the memory of the book livves forever.

The readin

Poem 2_______________________________________________________________________________________

Johnny Jim and the House on the Hill Every year they travel near and far in hopes to see The most terrifying house from sea to deep blue sea

The windows sit cracked and tinted each and every day The chimney bent and crooked, the roof lined with decay

The howl of the wolf heard loudest from the front most steps.

The holiday is greatest here in terror and in pep.

The devil haunted lady who abides inside this home, Is never satisfied until you shake beneath your bones

She rounds up snakes and spiders, goblins, gremlins, blood and bats Anything that makes you fear ghostly ghouls and eerie‐eyed black cats

Many have tried to brave the haunted house and its cruel queen.

But all who've tried have also failed, they dashed away in screams.

Corpses from the back awaken in song and sometimes dance But the children and adults who come‐ just shiver and wet their pants.

Every year on that same frightful Halloween night Kids begin to cry of every shadow in their sight

But one year, a single child stood out from the rest He didn’t fail or tremble in the courage‐needed test

His name was Little Johnny Jim, the smallest of his size He believed he was a giant, he showed it through his eyes

And the witch that horrified the others stared at Johnny Jim When she realized he was not afraid; she flashed a twisted grin

"Would you like to come inside with me?" she asked him with a smirk, "I would love to" said Johnny Jim and the witch began her work

The sight that lay ahead of him suddenly made the lightning strike It almost seemed that rain would fall on that full moon, clear‐skied night

The couch was a coffin‐ crumbling in tiny pieces, The mirrors shattered with bad luck unfolding through the creases,

A gathering of dead gone wrong lay lifelessly in front of Johnny Jim And what did that evil witch say as the door slammed behind him?

"Walk to the attic‐ find the blood‐stained courageous typed‐ key And I won't turn your nightmares into frightening realities"

So what did the little fellow decide he wanted? So what did that little boy do?

He looked as this as a challenge he'd win no matter how haunted so, He took a step on the stairway to doom.

The little witch just watched and laughed, he had chosen the wrong path.

No child would be able to withstand the terrors of her scary wrath

But little Johnny Jim felt braver than he had ever felt before, And when he came upon the attic, he knocked upon the door

When no one answered he turned the handle with a piercing creeeeek The room was too pitch black for him to view with just a peek

He took one step, and then another, cautious of the hissing snakes, They creaked and wailed and moaned and warned him of the highest ever growing stakes

He winced with every inch he moved, the wood was split and rough, But he had to find the key of his quest, no matter how impossible or tough

He felt around the objects frantically, his heart pounding like an 808 drum, Awaiting for a bloody hand to grasp him‐ he prepared himself to scream and run,

The spiders, goblins, bats, and ghouls, and evil gremlins glared, As he bravely traveled on not shaken, un‐spooked, and overall un‐scared

A painting fell loudly to the ground with a heart‐stopping sound Johnny Jim jumped out of his socks and boy‐ did his heart pound

Suddenly a golden sparkle caught the edge of his determined, but small blue eyes, Instantly he knew that he had discovered‐ what was surely his soon to be prize

He picked up the glowing key and felt it all around with his palm A sense of pride and accomplishment grew as well as a sense of calm.

Engraved on the side: the powerful word: courage. Gleaming like the virtue itself.

Johnny Jim realized the quests true meaning. Finding courage‐no matter how small you are‐ deep within yourself

The night time terrors seeing he had won‐fell back to hiding, The road of victory neither she nor he expected‐ he was riding,

He slowly began his voyage back, out of the attic, down the stairs Little Johnny Jim's courage proudly showing from his eyeballs to his hairs

When the witch who'd laughed her warts away saw his little freckled‐face She gasped and wheezed and coughed and breathed and then began to pace

"How were you not afraid" she gasped, "Of the darkness and the snakes?"

"Did you think I would fail?" he asked, "You knew that I was brave."

She rubbed her chin, and growled, and pondered what had just occurred, She realized he had won‐ honestly and for real, no matter how absurd

"Want some candy?" she scowled grabbing the sweet filled jar,

"I would lo ove some," he ssnickered in re eply, taking a chocolate bar

That fellow w‐ Johnny Jim left the old hou use on the hill that dark and gloomy night Knowing th hat courage co ould be gained no matter whaat your age or height

nd the largest in pride becam me Johnny Jim, The largestt in courage an He was the e shortest of th he children, bu ut no one would tell him thatt again!

wanted, a lesso on and of coursse a satisfying ttreat, He had gottten what he w But the best part of the n night‐by far‐waas when got to o...eat!

Poem 3_________________________________________________________________ _______________________________

A Fa avor Beefore I Go Daddy, wo ould ya' play your old guitar Sittin' colllectin' dust ju ust one more time?

Mama, would ya' whisper the word ds of the lullab by You sang to me each n night before I fell to sleep?

ould ya' please e show me yo our lovely dan ncin' Sister, wo In your little ballerina sskirt?

Brother, w would ya' thro ow me your m memory‐stain ned, faded foootball Before the game must end?

ories Uncle Billyy, would ya' ttell me the sto Of the cou urageous and d the fierce Like you d did when I waas young?

Aunt Lucyy, would ya' sttroke my oilyy tangled hair Now straight and spikyy, Like ya’ ussed to do to ccalm my nervves?

Grandma Sally, would ya' hold my ggiant youthful hands againnst your frail aand wise fingeers So I won'tt yell at my brrother For stealin n' the last slicce of apple pie?

Best Frien nd Jimmy, wo ould ya' remin nd me of that joke That we shared in the summer of w when we were e children As we walked with that beat up bassketball down n to the vacannt park?

Girl Friend d Molly, will yya' tell me thaat ya' love me e?

As we sit holdin' handss on the frontt porch for wh hat may be The last tiime…

Jesus, God d my only savvior, will ya' h hear my praye ers as I begin my journey?

Let my friends hear myy poem beforre your angless lift me up w with their winggs of glory…

who I loved most, would yaa' understand d?

Anyone w I've alwayys cared for y''all through th hick and thro ough thin

I’m only aaskin’ for som me favors…

And then I’ll be on my way.

Poem 4_________________________________________________________________ ______________________________

The Final Scene S The ice off the lost soulls freezing hiss insides Shatteringg them to the e floor Bits of bro oken glass.

Red‐ the liquid stained d to the off wh hite ground The Wine of the Last B Breath spilled without notion of the effeects soon to ttake place.

ple, Black, and d Brown are tthe colors painted reckles sly; Blue, Purp Splattered d with a faulty brush, bearing sw wollen wound ds of flesh.

e devil's clash hing swords, Angel's risse against the Fighting fo or the fading painting.

Doing what they can to o save your fo oolish decisio ons.

A wind exxtinct: revitalized, Harshenin ng the grief, e eerie feel to the scene.

The fire of the wandering unfocused eyes consumed by a carreless choice.

The mind once overflo owing, now vaacant Within the blink of the e eye oon‐light crow w that creeps longingly thrrough the barrren graves, ccovered in sno ow and miserry.

Of the mo

The agingg tree suffers with the conssequence of tthe mindset oof a seedling.

A foolish llife, for an inffinitive death.

eless in the m moment‐ but sshe knows…

The mother's tears use If only he had used an ounce of the intelligence he had earneed, The memories would n not find them mselves stoppiing abruptly As they do o now.

If only he hadn't wandered aimlessly Through tthe piercing silence, And burniing chill That reste ed outside thaat blinding daark October n night.

en swallowed d He would not have bee unning front lights of the b barreling truck.

By the stu

Pictu ure Sources_______________________________________________________________ Picture for Coverr Page: shaw.typepad.com/ /jason_ren nshaws_we eb_log/20 010/04/so omet http://jjasonrens imes-th he-pen-is-s still-mightier-than-tthe-keybo oard-for-m me-anyway y.html Picture for Dedic cation Pag ge: Kelly B. Original Photogra aphy Picture from Poe em #1: http://newautho ors.wordprress.com/ /2011/07//12/little--book-of-m magic/ Picture from Poe em #2: dpress.com/2008/1 10/10/hau unted-hou use-painting/ http://marygeorgilas.word Picture from Poe em #3: http://bonniieborrow.b blogspot.c com/2011 1/04/lette erl.html em #4: Kellly B. Original Draw wing Picture from Poe s Page: Ke elly B. Orig ginal Phottography Picture for Picturre Sources