You have considered me lost,

The pain has seemed so much to bear

But, I am with my heavenly father now

Waiting to meet you here

If ever you feel a tear come to your eye

Know I am watching, I will always be nearby

By David Bunch

April is National Poetry Month, and iBid is celebrating by sending three poetry recommendations your way. In an effort to include a wide cross section of genres, we’ll look at a classic poem, a modern poem, and an excerpt from a children’s poem.

i am last among the thousands.

i am first ... all by myself.
i dance, as if i were not waiting.
i am strong, but for my health.

i think of that i cannot grasp,
i fight with that i cannot wrest,
and yet i am beyond my best,
when among the thousands, i am last.

I am a blind man that has gained assurance with each step

(perhaps I am too assured sometimes)

I still feel excitement and wonder at the presence of you

By Rifka

A few lines from a poem by William Butler Yeats read:

“But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.”

Haiku is a type of Japanese poetry, usually about nature. The poem structure consists of three lines broken down by syllables. Typically, the first line is five syllables, the second line is seven syllables, and the third line is five syllables.

By David Bunch

Haiku for two
Symphony for 3
At the museum
Of masquerade
The admission’s always free
(except expenses)
Chef sings swell
With Dylan on the side
Candles cast
Sad silhouettes
And melt down like molten pride
(result: recompenses)

By Cindy Childress

It's not a sin, so he sits
and watches Andy Griffith marathons
every night
his hands march
through peanut M & M's and popcorn, Little Debbie Cakes and fudge
to the ten o’clock news.
No idea bigger than a commercial
exists here,
and sex is what they sell with vacuum cleaners
far away from his sterile room
sterile wife sterile children sterile liquor cabinet,
and it is a sin to dance. A sin to laugh
at the funniest jokes.
A sin to think this isn't natural
carmel cremes, chocolate chips, Doritos.

Reviewed by Kent d Curry

‘So beautiful and true, it should be in the Bible.’ That’s what I thought when I read Portia’s plea to Shylock in this amazing passage from William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. In fact, these are the only non-biblical words I have read and believed that.

Apostle Paul said, "Run the race in such a way as to win the prize" (1 Corinthians 9:14, NIV). Here are two poems that explore how that is done even when life takes us down tough paths. Both conclude by celebrating God's way of helping us move forward in spite of adversity. —David Bunch

Desperation (A Prose Poem)
By Frank Eubanks