For October 2022, A Poem Showcase From Bri Edwards, To Share With You …..[ Includes Authors, Titles, Bri's Notes On Poems ] Poem by Bri Edwards

For October 2022, A Poem Showcase From Bri Edwards, To Share With You …..[ Includes Authors, Titles, Bri's Notes On Poems ]

Bri's introductory poem to the ‘showcase':


It's only Monday September 12th and I've got the time,
to begin compiling poems [some will contain rhyme] …
to be featured in October ‘22's showcase for you all.
So off I go in quest of ‘the best'. I shall NOT now stall *.

As for my last two monthly showcases, no poem texts I'll copy,
instead listing just authors and titles, and notes, not sloppy **.
The 'notes' will be thoughts I have on each poem to share,
wrenched *** from my small brain as I pulled on my long grey hair.

I expect my readers will, alas, be very few and 'far between' ****.
None I DON'T hear from (comment or message) will I consider mean.

Bri Edwards
Sept.12,2022

Some definitions:
* STALL, intransitive verb: to come to a standstill (as from mired wheels or engine failure)
** Sloppy, adjective: careless
*** Wrenched: verb: pulled out
**** 'far between': I'll call it an adjective: rare


I shall be working on this showcase over several weeks, adding poems as I have time and energy!

(CONTINUES …..)

1 - Poem by s.zaynab kamoonpury

In And Out The Lusty Nil Wedding Bells

Bri's Notes on the Poem:

The author has been influenced by a group of poems by other authors. She mentions them in HER Poet's Notes on her poem page on PH.
The poem is a long and well done account of the widespread occurrence of men and women [ not married to one another ] who fail to take sufficient ‘precautions' in order to avoid having the woman become pregnant, with, too often, the result being children who are 'cast aside as some leftovers'.
Yes, the first poem of my September Showcase also was by this author, a mere coincidence.

bri ;)

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2 - Poem by Loke Kok yee

Pandemic Limericks

Bri's Notes on the Poem:

This seven-stanza poem includes six limerick poems, each with at least a hint of the author's humour/humor, a feature of many limericks.
A 'china man from Wuhan', China, the suspected location of the first alleged transmission of the 'Covid virus', from animals to humans in 2019, is the poem's focus. The china man is restricted in his activities by ‘rules' imposed due to the spread of illness in his area. He turns to other activities which don't involve much interaction with people. These include writing, particularly poetry'/poesy', and drinking alcoholic beverages. [[ HOW MANY of PH's poets can ‘relate' to THAT! ? ]] At one point his enforced social distancing causes him to begin conversing with a rodent.

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(CONTINUES.....)

3 - Poem by Jayne Louise Davies

The Presence Of Nature

Bri's Notes on the Poem:

The author speaks of Nature and 'her' changing seasons, and mentions that one of the four seasons may bring, to a human, memories of their past. But she also says that, unlike the changing seasonal weather, a person's memories of her/his past tend to NOT change.
[ Of course, Bri says, sometimes unfortunately, some people lose their memories, OR their memory is not accurate, e.g. 'did I put the poem's title above? ' Hmm? (Not so) Ha ha. ]
There is fine rhyming throughout the poem.

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4 - Poem by Stewart Watkins

Underneath The Bridge

Bri's Notes on the Poem:

The author provides a photo of a city's skyscrapers and other buildings, and, I believe, a set of large bridges leading in and out of the city at night. He mentions 'asphalt', but not an 'Asphalt Jungle', the title of an American movie from 1950. Later he refers to 'concrete jungle' the habitat of, among others, people who seek shelter under bridges at night and roam city streets during the day. The rhyming is fine and consistent throughout...until the last two lines which do NOT rhyme. I also have written a few poems which I ended with two un-rhyming lines.
And I've visited small under-bridge encampments in small cities when no one was 'at home'. Though I've never slept under a bridge or in a cardboard box, I had a similar experience for a short while when my first wife and I parted company.....for good. I lived in a commercial storage unit; I don't think the management knew I was living in it.

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5 - Poem by Uche Nwanze

8 Minutes 46 Seconds

Bri's (and Uche Nwanze's)
Notes on the Poem:

First I'll paste the author's Poet's Notes:

'The poem 8(Eight) Minutes 46(forty Six) seconds chronicles the events of May 25 in Minneapolis. The circumstances that led to the death of George Floyd. Racism, police brutality, inequality in the system exposes the flaws in our world. We cannot pretend it is not with us.'

NOW my, Bri's, Notes on the Poem, AND my notes on some background information which may have influenced the author:

The death of George Floyd occured in 2020. The online research I just did indicates that 'expert medical witnesses' at a trial for police officers were not all in agreement concerning the official 'cause of death', . The chief medical examiner said 'murder' was the cause. At least one 'expert' gave asphyxia as the cause. Floyd became unconsious while being pinned to the pavement by a police officer and later died at a hospital. It was said Floyd had 'underlying' medical conditions which contributed to his death. Several police officers were fired and subsequently found guilty and sentenced for offenses. George Floyd was a black man and his death resulted in the formation of an organization named 'Black Lives Matter'.

This was NOT one of my 'favorite poems', but I rated it highly due to its content and to its 'countdown-like', line-by-line expression of what Mr. Floyd MAY HAVE BEEN THINKING during the 8 minutes and 46 seconds, which I just assume is a length of time of a video, from a nearby camera, showing what happened, perhaps from the second he was pinned down on the pavement by an officer to the time he became unresponsive.

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6 - Poem by Adiela Akoo

Pre-Natal

Bri's Notes on the Poem:

This short poem's sentences lack Capital Letters at their beginnings and punctuation at their endings, making reading for me a moderate inconvenience. I could not read the poem smoothly until I figured out the sentences. But once I figured them out, I liked the poem very much.
It deals with a mother-to-be and a father-to-be and a 'baby' sharing a womb with its placenta....[aka 'afterbirth' after the baby is born].
I recommend it to those looking forward to having a 'new baby' and those who've experienced a successful pregancy and good times as new parents.

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7 - Poem by Bri Edwards

Audience Of One

Bri's Notes on the Poem:

Having slaved for DAYS! adding poems by OTHER authors to my usually-monthly showcase on Poem Hunter, I've decided to add one by ME! The poem concerns one unique and very satisfying experience I had as a library volunteer reading to (mostly) preschool children at a local library near my last residence, in northern California.
For THIS 2014 poem I am giving you the complete text so you won't have to 'bust your butt' trying to find it on PH. Bon appetite!

Audience Of One

Once a month I go to the library
to read to preschoolers.
Books and my voice are my tools,
not pencils and rulers.
Today I was ready to read,
but no children I saw.
Last month there were at least eight,
but......today none at all.

So I searched our small library until,
on his mom's lap, I spied
a little boy who looked at me,
questioning with wide-opened eyes.
They were at the computers and
at first he remained there,
but before long he wandered over near me
and hid......behind a big chair.

I started to read one of the books
I had already brought,
and he soon became the sole member
of the audience I'd sought.
He came out and stood quietly in front of me,
staring as I read,
then off he darted again behind a chair,
just......showing his head.

When I finished one book, he started
to take one from the shelf,
but I encouraged him to choose from those
nearby, which I'd chosen myself.
He picked out one, I read it, then
he picked out another.
After a while, to a nearby table,
along......came his mother.

I would have kept reading …..
past my allotted time,
reading of cats-baking-pies,
and a book full of rhyme,
but my wife was coming soon
to pick me up with the car.
I had fun doing, for One, what,
spelled backwards......is daer.

[make that 'for Two']

(February 28,2014)

Bri Edwards

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END OF OCTOBER 2022'S SHOWCASE...........I think. ;)

bri edwards aka Brian Edward Whitaker...in 'The Real World'

:)