LIKE THE FLOWING RIVER'S POEMS AND SCORES

* IF YOUR NAME ISN'T ON THE LIST BELOW, PLEASE DO NOT POST HERE. THE ONLY POSTS ALLOWED ARE POEMS FROM LTFR'S TEAM LIST. THIS LIST CANNOT BE CHANGED. ANY COMMENTS AND DISCUSSION SHOULD BE TAKEN TO THE "MARATHON" THREAD.

* CONTEST STARTS 00:00 3 OCT PNQ TIME

* MODERATORS: If this thread goes beyond 100, please don't lock it, but I will try to make new ones on time if need be. Also, please delete any posts here that aren't poems (unless they're from me!).

LTFR'S TEAM LIST AND SCORES: 787 (includes 136 bonus points from HH)
Michael D Nalley: 7+9+8+8+8+8
Elizabeth 7+7+9
annika xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Mathew Scutt: 8+7+7+8+7
believeinlove (Holly): 2 xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Alone (hassan): 6+6+7+7+6+7+6
Larry: 8+9+8+10+7+10+8+8+10+8+8+8+8+7
Rabea: 9+7+7+7+6+7
Sarah (pinkyprinces): 7+7+6+8+7+8+6+6+7+8+7+7+8
Girl (Meeme): 8+6+7+8+7+7+6+6+7+7+7+9
Jon xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
sumit khanduri xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Innocent Fairy (Kristian): 7+6+6+6+8+7+6
Freeze Tyler xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Natalie xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Ms Sunshine: 8+9
Lebanese Phoenix: 7+8+7+8+6+7+7+9+7+6+8

THE THEMES FOR EACH ROUND
1. 21 syllables
2. Tanka
3. Water
4. Free verse
5. Include the word "microscope"
6. Wild card (pick any theme from this list)
7. Cats
8. aabab rhyme scheme
9. PnQ member
10. Alliterative verse
11. Five lines
12. Halloween
13. Toilet
Once all 13 rounds are completed by your team, go back to Round 1 again to start a new lap!

THE POINT SYSTEM
* Each submitted poem, if it complies with the theme of the round, will earn an easy 5 points straight away for your team, regardless of quality.
* Poems will also be roughly judged for quality- a maximum of 5 points can be earned for a high quality poem (giving a maximum total of 10).

HOW TO RACE
* The Great Marathon starts on 00:00 3 October, PnQ time.
* Anyone can start the race by submitting a poem for the first round in this thread.
* Another team member then completes the second round, and so on.
* A person who has submitted a poem MAY NOT submit another entry until SIX further rounds have been completed by other members of the team.
* All poems MUST be new and submitted here by the authors themselves.
* You may plot your team strategy within your club. CLUB LEADERS, it is up to you to do all you can to get your team's entries racing along. Bribe, threaten, shame, PM, blackmail...but get those rounds completed!
* With each entry, PLEASE LIST the Lap #, Round #, and the theme with your title.
* If all 13 rounds have been completed, the team can start from the Round 1 theme again to earn more points in further laps. These laps are unlimited.
* The team with the most points wins. Individual team members who gain the most points will also be recognised.
* It all ends on 00:00 9 October, PnQ time.

GOOD LUCK!!

Lap# 1, round # 1 (2r syllables)
------------------------------------------
Abby is the Best!

Abracadabra-
Abby can do miracles!
With such contests,
P and Q sparkles.

Lap # 1, Round # 2 Fast & Furious Tanka:

Any contest run
for personal glory will
not hold a candle
to one which is lit by the
hope to bring your team success.

Lap #1, Round #3 (Water)
--------------
You never failed to reflect
neither have you to refract
Conquering the top of the pyramid
that defines all the means of life

I can see you as a crashing wave
Hear you with the drops of rain
Taste you in my tea cup
Touch you first when I wake up

Lap # 1, Round 4

Free Verse

You remind me of how to always
embrace a smile that you say
brightens your soul and I
sit all day, waiting for your
words to complete the beam
I keep arced on my face for you.
You keep watching as time passes
me by, eager for my nerves
to be soothed by your confessions
but alas, your wariness beats your
acknowledgments.
Sometimes I think of giving up,
and sometimes again I think
I'll just love you like a free verse
that flows without expecting
a sudden rhyme to renew it,
to love you just the way I can,
to just love you anyway.

Lap # 1, Round 5 (Include the word "microscope")

Its Impossible
To see small bug In school lab
Without microscope

--------
HAIKU
---------

Lap # 1, Round 6
Wild Card (any round)

Beauty,
Throughout history,
Unmatched she stands alone,
Body moves perfect in motion,
No motion is felt,
... Nor gravity holds her,
Ambitious,
Without a doubt, shines bright,
Brightness,
Is brought to what she surrounds,
Values, she holds above all,
And above all she holds faith,
No family left to hold,
But her family is held within her,
Righteous words she speaks,
Untouchable,
She touches many men,
No man dares to touch her,
She speaks in the name of justice,
Peace speaks through her with all the blessings,
So peace and blessings upon her...
Suffering,
She witnessed it all,
And none have witnessed her pain,
Her gain is in the hereafter,
All that existed living mourned her,
Those who didn't, don't know her,
I hold her dearly within me,
Becuase I fear to disappoint
And in her I see a future
Because life wouldn't be without her,
Even in death she remains a hero,
Heroes and role-models bellow her,
And I only gathered this,
Just by reading about her...

Lap#1 round 7

Curious Cat

There once was a domestic cat
Who was curious of a rat
He had heard what they say
About dangerous prey
So that was just the end of that

Lap #1 Round #8
aabab Rhyme Scheme

In this enchanting, magical night,
this beauty is beyond sight.
Life is unexpected, unpredictable and fun.
The sky could be dark and bright.
At night, the moon is brighter than the sun.

Lap #1 Round #9
PnQ Member

I get online and check my messages
Before long, I am writing a poem
Some use it to simply let out emotions
Others to run away from being alone

PnQ is the best site that you could ask for
Smiling faces and amazing friends
Although miles may distance us all
We will be here together until the end

You are all a huge part of my life
Friendships that so heavenly right
With encouraging words and amazing stories
Home, is what I call this site

Lap #1, round #10

Opening the door into the dim lighted house,
hearing nothing but pure silence,
she says " Mom, are you here?"
getting nothing back in return rushing upstairs,
she finds her moms lifeless body next to her suicide note.

Lap #1 round 11

Sunshine fairy
bringing love to everybody
beautiful and glittering
always up best and happy
never playful, just there to shine

Lap # 1 Round # 12
12. Halloween

When I was a child
I sent off for a prize:
a Green Lantern ring
that would make me fly.

With green cape and the ring
I collected more candy
than ever before that
special Halloween.

The next day at dawn
I stood on my roof
cape on, ring aimed
at my power battery.

Only I could see that lantern
but I took my oath in earnest:
"In brightest day in blackest night ..."
And felt the energy surging in.

My race to the edge was unstopped
my fall to the earth unchecked
my only regret even then:
I did not take it serious enough.

Years later I bought a shirt:
Green Lantern's emblem;
I wore it with my children as
we all went trick & treating.

The next morning shirt still on
thought of the child who ran the roof;
I climbed up - climbed back down,
I knew my faith was still too green.

Lap 1, round 13: toilet
-------
Home Sweet Home

It's the only place where I can be the real me.
I was born to burp and fart,
so why hide them from public?
Etiquette? Maybe.
But thanks God there's a place called toilet -
a place where I can read magazines,
write poems for the sweetest Abby,
dig my belly button,
and cuddle with my monkey.
It's the only place to be free.

Lap # 2, Round # 1

21 syllables
--------------
Oh my heart,
why have you fallen deep this time ?
you know it's hard to stand,
after a fall ?

Lap # 2, Round # 2[TANKA]

"A Flight To London"

What an amazing
Scenery and land vision
From my flight window
Little trees under white clouds
Marvelous view of nature

Lap # 2, Round # 3

Water
--------------
Cold and Hot.
Salty and Fresh
Sparkling and Still
Cubed and Crushed.
Flavored and Tasteless.
Condensed and Vaporized
Falls from the sky and Stems from the ground.

Lap #2, Round #4

Free Verse

I'm still the girl you fell in love with
but maybe you're not the guy
that fell in love with me anymore.
I don't know what to do,
the only thing on my mind is you.
I hope that you will one day feel,
the pain I felt and how it's so real.
It hurts looking at you,
believing that our love is still there
when now you don't even care.
Sometimes I ask myself,
"Why did this happen to me?!"
We used to be so happy
in our own amazing world.
Now it's all gone,
and everything's not okay.
Even when you're right beside me,
you're still far away.

Lap #2 Round 5

Micro Neurons

Listen to my heart with a stethoscope.
Examine my mind with a microscope.
Telescopes will not capture my Spirit.
It should never come as any surprise,
The irrelevance of a mass or size.
You can feel a force when you are near it.

Lap 2 Round 6. Wild card (5 & 12)

I remember the days in late October
running for goodies house to house
homemade costumes I thought up:
pirate using sister's "missing" blouse.

Pillowcases bulging we'd pour it out
sorting the best to hide away
hard gels and stale popcorn
presented to our dad next day.

Not once did we worry about
unwrapped caramels hiding dope
or have to put our candies
underneath a microscope

Lap 2 Round 7 Cats

Furry
Fuzzy
Soft
Cute and cuddly
To love me is the plan
for a cat
is my never ending
pride and joy

Lap # 2, Round # 8

aabab rhyme scheme
--------------
Dancing with the melodies of swan lake
I feel you around with every move I take
Your presence dominates my every thought
Only you can take away this lingering ache
So release the strings you once taut

Lap #2, Round #9
------------------------
Abracadabra!

I swear I don't know her,
but she looks as sweet as cherry.
Her screen name says 'abracadabra' -
that's why I love her already.
Abby, marry me; Abby your contest rules,
and everything about you rocks,
you're magic, and I'm not kissing asses,
I know this is not worth a full mark,
but Abby, you know I can't resist to write
about you!!

Lap 2, Round 10

Alliterative verse
------------------
This contest had me stressed just like a
strong storm striking. Surprisingly I am
still standing straight to start a second
ride in this scary roller coaster

Lap #2, Round #11

5 Lines
---------------

Your voice rings in my ears;
the words you bluntly stated
are causing me a headache.
My heart simply cannot accept
that we are coming to an end.

Lap#2 Round 12

All Hollows Evening

Trick or treat the goblins sing
On all hollows evening.
Jack-o'-lanterns carved with care
Are bound to give us a scare.
Spirits roam with great delight,
As bonfires burn through the night.
Many of these things are seen
At this time of Halloween

Lap # 2 Round 13. Toilet

"Have you hugged your toilet today?"
The plumber's ad filled me with wrath
made me think back to college dismay:
nights of cheap wine - the aftermath.

Lap #3 Round 1 (21 syllables)

Impossible watermelon
invisible alligators
nest, rest, crept too fox

Lap #3, Round # 2

Tanka
----------
Look at the dewdrops-
reflecting a crystal sheer
by the morning light,
painting a new beginning
with the fresh breeze of Sunday.

Lap # 3, Round #3

Water

Running through the puddles
Diving into the lake
Swimming to the other end
Making no mistake

How refreshing it feels
As it flows against my body
Cleansing every part
Of this "image" called me

Some use it for fun
Others have to live with none
I believe everyone should enjoy it
Water, do you want some

Lap #3 Round #4 (free verse)
---------------------------------------
MOTHER

I was asked to write you a tribute,
but I couldn't find the right words,
for you cannot be written,
and at your mention,
any word would sound cliche.
Mother, you're more than stanzas
loaded with soulless metaphors.
Mother, you brought me to life,
how could words bring life back to you?

Lap #3, Round #5

Microscope

They are analysing my every move,
dissecting each crumbling part of me.
Living underneath this microscope -
I cannot be who I was meant to be.

They judge all of my flaws and mistakes,
yet seldom praise me for what I've done right.
Sometimes I just want to run and escape;
I've tried to break through with all my might.

They photograph me all the time,
even when I'm a complete mess.
I wonder if they could understand,
for my rights - they could care less.

Living underneath this blurred microscope,
I have no choice but to shatter the glass.

Lap 3, Round 6

Wild card (aabab rhyme scheme)
--------------
I dare you to look deep into my eyes
You cant, you know that I will see the lies
They say "eyes" are the window to your soul
But what if you are living in a perfect disguise
Playing with my thoughts to earn your goal ?

Lap 3, Round 7 Cats

My siamese reposes regally curled
on the special place on my bed
where, when I lay down,
there is a hollow before my chest
and underneath my breath;
when I sleep she is comforted
by my snoring and I am calmed
by her soft, steady purr.

LAP 3 ROUND 8 (AABAB)

Her lovely smiles for me
For everyone clear to see
Kissing her hands with care
On the bench under blossom tree
Now everything looks so fair

Lap # 3, Round # 9

PnQ member
---------------
For being the sound of wisdom,
the godfather of my thoughts.
For the guidance you show,
in every word you speak.
For giving those words of
advice, to everyone who needs.
For the kindness of your heart,
that grows with every heartbeat.

Lap #3 round 10 ( Alliterative verse)

Some suns sink selfishly
in the serene sea,
surprisingly, they don't give us
a chance to erase the elusive mistakes
we made, instead they
utter their fading farewell
in the flowing sea,
without any permission, and we plea...

Round #11 (Five lines)
---------------------------
Papers

Too many papers need to be written,
and I can't find anything to write about.
My publisher will sue me for sure,
and I'd probably end up in prison.
It's really tough... the life of a writer.

Lap #3 Round #12

Halloween

The blue sky darkened into black
and the sliver of the moon sparkled.
The breezy wind whispered into the night
and the owls' eyes widened in alertness.

The haunted spirits awaken this time,
ready to complete unfinished business.
They wander through the villages,
while smiling goofily at the living.

The brave stroll alone after sunset,
hoping for a one-in-a-lifetime experience.
The creatures are rumored to be fictitious,
but the legendary believers feel their presence.

There was something mystical about this night,
something magnificent - like the night of Halloween.

LTFR declares Happy Hour # 1 (Deal 2, 1/2 the wait period. New wait period is now 3 for one hour from this posting)

Lap 3 Round 13
Lenny Bruce drowned in his toilet
Elvis fell dead while sitting on his own;
if I get caught that unexpected, God,
please wait - let me get off the throne.