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1 Set in stone Poetry By Garrick Johnson 2021 poetry writing
2 Table of contents • Introduction • Forgotten Rust • Bottomless Cascades • A Knight to his son • The Gardener • Time travel • A Star Walks into a Bar/ Comets • A Curtain • The Path • I am Looking to the Future • A Thought Set in Stone
3 Introduction Hello, my name is Garrick Johnson. I am a student at Cowley College studying creative writing. This semester I have taken a poetry class and written a lot of poems. This portfolio has some of my favorite poems that I have written in this class. The first poem in this portfolio is called “Forgotten Rust” The story behind this poem and the photo that accompanies it is that one of our assignments was to write a poem based off of a random photo from the photography class. The photo I received was of a old shell of a car half sunk into the ground in the woods some place, so I decided to write a poem from the perspective of the car itself. The next poem is named “Bottomless Cascades” This poem was inspired by caves and caverns and the mysterious natural wonders within them. Next on the list is the poem called “A Knight to his son” Which was inspired by medieval chivalry. Mainly I wrote this because I thought it would be cool. The poem after that is named “The Gardener” This poem is based on a fictional world I have helped create. In this world the planet basically persists indefinitely and because of that this planet outlasts the civilizations that pop up on it. After so long civilizations will become too numerous and too technologically advanced for their own good, conflicts arise, wars are fought, and eventually the civilizations will completely destroy themselves with powerful weapons, leaving nothing but an empty world. After the planet heals from the destruction, it is more or less a blank slate for new life to spring up, new life that is blissfully ignorant of anything that came before, new civilizations will form and this cycle will inevitably repeat itself. This poem is from the perspective of an immortal character known as the gardener, who is tasked to take care of the planet while it is healing from destruction, “like a gardener tills the ground to make way for a new crop.” The rest of the poems are mostly up for interpretation, two near the end follow a unique format of a kind of repeating theme, these two were interesting to write. The last poem in the portfolio is a poem about poetry writing and just writing in general, I thought this one would be a good one to end on because it has a certain finality to it. So, this is my poetry writing portfolio. I hope you will enjoy reading my crazy ramblings, because I enjoyed writing them!
4 Forgotten Rust Why have I been left for the rust? What is my purpose now that I have been forgotten? Am I doomed to turn to dust? Am I deserving of the fate that I have gotten? The earth gives way below me, The trees rise above me. Soon I will not be able to see. Soon even sight will not be free. I once believed there would be more… But now I know, being forgotten is all I’ve got in store.
5 Bottomless Cascades A quiet darkness beneath the ground Cavities that reveal secrets of the past Where drops of water on stone is the only sound Currents cut through leaving a mesmerizing cast. Reaching to the very heart of the earth it seems Drawing us deeper down with an alluring song Following bottomless cascades of underground streams The echo that rises from the deep makes its call even more strong. A world that the light of day will never see A darkness blacker than any night could reach But still this frightful world calls to me Like there is some hidden truth or a lesson to teach. Stalactites form on the ceiling, and stalagmites on the floor Making the finest art galleries one could ever hope to explore Sculptures made by the earth itself always teasing what it has in store Following bottomless cascades always looking for more.
6 A Knight to his son Keep your sword close to your side my boy Ready yourself for war, be ready to fight But know that the blade I have given you is not a toy There will come a time when you must stave off the thieves in the night. The days of safety grow thin And the time for you to become a man is near at hand You must become a mighty stronghold if you are to win You must protect your people; you must love your land. Remember my words when the seas get rough Remember my strength when all hope seems lost If you are to keep your honor, you will remain true, you will remain just, you will remain tough For if you must give your life to protect your family, rejoice to pay that cost. Remember son, The best blade is NOT the blade that is never used, But the blade that is used from a place of righteousness.
7 The Gardener I wander the world once it is empty. I clean up the dust they leave behind. Mortality is something I envy. Knowledge is never kind. They destroy themselves with their wars, This cycle continues… And the world is scarred with sorrow like bitter sores. All becomes dust, all bone and sinews. I wander the world once it is without life’s sound. I tend to its wounds and never stop. Like a gardener tills the ground, To make way for a new crop. When the world is ready, new life will breathe. Not knowing of what came before. Civilizations will grow and seethe. But with civilizations also comes war. I wander the world after civilization falls. Every cycle ends the same way, With the world empty where only wind and dust calls. Like the setting of the sun leads to the rising of a new day. I am the gardener of this plain. The only one who knows but can never say. My purpose is to wash away the memory of their stain But I remember the sorrows of the worlds long sense passed away…
8 Time travel I once heard a wind chime And began to think about time Time travel can never be done I say that time travel is restricted to none Time is the passage we all take To think that we can’t travel time is a mistake Because living and getting older is time travel Time is what our life will unravel Thinking things like these are quite the mind-rattlers But we are all time travelers
9 A Star Walks into a Bar A star walks into a bar, Everything within a hundred-mile radius was vaporized, All the roads were turned to lava and tar, Lucky thing the star was only medium-sized. Comets A ball of ice in an elliptical orbit. A bad omen, a source of magic. A tail to leave the sky lit. Beautiful stars, some of which we will never see, truly tragic. Sailors of the heavens stop by every now and then, To give the night sky a kiss. To leave for the outer reaches of heaven, then come back in ten, Only for a split second… it is too easy to miss.
10 A Curtain Someone must be there just beyond the curtain of time I see you, but I don’t see you, there is some shimmer but I cannot comprehend it I find it difficult to imagine what you might look like so I choose not to, perhaps it’s a crime If the curtain were to be drawn, would I realize that it was you that stepped through with a candle lit Would I even know if the curtains where drawn, perhaps they have, perhaps they never will? I am sure one day you will walk through, But now all is silent and still When we meet, I wouldn’t know what to say, I suppose the only thing to say is what is true Perhaps you are waiting for me to step though the curtain Until one of us does, I cannot be certain…
11 The Path The path is rocky If you fall, pick yourself back up When you fall pick yourself back up For some the path is long For some the path is short You won’t know how long your path is until you reach the end None will know how long their path is until they reach the end It is better this way Is it better this way? For some the path is easier For some the path is harder But all will face challenges But all have faced challenges The path is rocky
12 I am Looking to the Future I wonder what the future has in store I am looking to the future I have been looking to the future No can tell but one None can tell me but one Such a strange thing is time Such a strange thing is the passing of time Stranger still is my place in time Stranger still is your place in time Don’t fear the future though it comes to everything Don’t fear the future though it comes to everyone Though the future brings death Though the future brings life This is what the future has in store
13 A Thought Set in Stone To pluck out a piece of myself and let the wind carry it out into the earth To let others have a glimpse into my heart I write to share my experiences; I write to share my worth I write to let others enjoy this art So they can know me, so they can see All my writings are my own All my writings are a reflection of me Writing is like a thought but set in stone The End