Tuesday, March 6, 2012

The Masthead


Label me an infant
label me a fool

do not trust the anarchist
preaching about rules

label me a scapegoat
label me a tool

do not dam the floodgates
lest inside they form a pool

label me a train-wreck
label me as blind

its good to poke holes in theory
so truth can breathe in time

call me what you like
call me what you don’t
it doesn’t matter to me;
I’ve learned to laugh at all your jokes

labels are scattered; they’re thrown around
labels are but words; always lost, but never found

they have no bearing; they play no role
in who I am, to what I do

they have no influence; they have not a say
as to what fate finds in store for me

your words fall deaf, meaningless and weak
never providing the satisfaction that you seek

your words bring pain to others, highlighting their many scars
but you should be reflecting, as to where the damage starts

your words are but a mere transference
of what you’ve been and where and who you are

sticks and stones…if it appeases you…
just know…that for each judgment cast
I’ll shed a tear in prayer for you—
Forever using those labels as my mast


Be sure to head on over to D'verse for Open Link Night.  The doors open up in just a few short minutes. Starting at 3pm the poetry is always fresh on tap. And while you're there, share a poem of your own. Cheers. 

24 comments:

  1. Labels come and labels go, this one had such a great flow. Could take the stick and poke them in the eye or the stone and shove it up some place high..lol poking holes in theory has lead to many a so called fool, but more often then not they have been found right in the end. Of course then that right becomes a wrong as we learn more, and so on.

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  2. Yep--the only labels that can mess us up are the ones we plaster on ourselves--best to be a non-stick surface, I think. Loved the rhyme and back and forth in this, Fred.

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  3. Nicely done Fred! Lots of truth and wisdom contained herein! And, don't people just love the labels!

    "labels are scattered; they’re thrown around
    labels are but words; always lost, but never found"

    Kudos!
    Roger ☺

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  4. I just the rhythm here. It just rolls and rolls.

    Started reading out loud at one point.

    Masterful writing.

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  5. Excellent! To spread love, not fight harshness with harshness, that is the key...dissolves their power! I enjoy your work :) Poppy

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  6. call me what you like
    call me what you don’t
    it doesn’t matter to me;
    I’ve learned to laugh at all your jokes....somehow makes me sad when someone is at that point...for me sounds like he's given up on the other person or the walls are so high already that the other can't hurt any more... excellently expressed fred..

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  7. Hi Fred - like the title and the label/sail/mast idea wraps it all up nicely - into a neat package, labelled... kick-ass ;)

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  8. I really love the rhythm here. The piece just rolls, and rolls, and rolls. Started to read aloud at one point.

    Just a masterful write.

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  9. This piece just breathes truth and compassion to me--Thank you!!

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  10. Again, I like your use of the page to emphasize your points. Overall, the effect on me was to highlight some of the oppositions or contradictions you see, then move on in the scond part of the poem to assert your argument. In some way that I can't pinpoint right off, the layout somehow strikes me as being effective in your major assertion about labels. As though the arrangement of dyadic lines is a way of undermining the expectation by many that text is supposed to run left to right. This adds an imagistic element to the words as they move toward their conclusion. There's a highly oral quality tonthe poem as well, and I could definitely hear it in my head as I read it. Nicely done.

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  11. strong write man...we label things to make it easier on our minds to process and find orde...but there is so much danger in it as well...i like the back and forth through the first part..and the rhyme scheme...these lines are def inspired...

    its good to poke holes in theory
    so truth can breathe in time

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  12. So truthful. I hate labels. Who is anyone to judge anyone, as Jesus once said: "let which of you who is without sin cast the first stone." None of us are without sin, or, we wouldn't be here.
    But, words can and do hurt don't they.
    Nicely written and, said!

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  13. I like your piece...labels hurt and sometimes they can kill one's worth. It is a challenge to live without labels, and to realize one's value. just being who we are.

    Nice share ~

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  14. So very true...labels really aren't for us anyway...but for other people that may need to decide what and who we are to them. As for me...I have no need to pigeon hole anyone...as soon as we do that to people...we miss out on the true blessing of who they were supposed to be for us.

    Peace and Blessings to you

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  15. Hi Fred, this was very rap-like in the best of ways. (I'm sorry to use that label--but you know what I mean!) K.

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  16. "its good to poke holes in theory
    so truth can breathe in time" -

    nice! looks like this hit well with some others too

    enjoyed the jogging rhythm of the whole piece taking bits of others projected thoughts, and taking them apart

    thanks so much fred ;-) best wishes

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  17. Good write. Labels are for soup cans.

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  18. "...its good to poke holes in theory
    so truth can breathe in time" -- love those lines! I've always found it interesting that we treat labels as information when they are so limiting and meaningless.

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  19. this is terrific. witty and full of wisdom.

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  20. This one flows really well. I absolutely love

    "do not trust the anarchist
    preaching about rules."

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  21. A wonderful poem and read, Fred!

    "sticks and stones…if it appeases you…
    just know…that for each judgment cast
    I’ll shed a tear in prayer for you—
    Forever using those labels as my mast"

    :)

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  22. I hit comment on the wrong poem. Well, your are right we tend to give people and things labels. so, in time we can in deed use them at as scapegoats. Good right and point with this work.

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  23. Hello, Fred,

    There isn't a single label that describes any of us in truth. I love the repetition in your poem and the staggered presentation seems to punctuate the ideas well. Much enjoyed

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  24. Message of this was spot on, a cadence to it that allowed for a perfectly timed flow, hitting at the right moments. Wonderful pen ~ Rose

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