Shambala Stories and Poems
Shambala Poetry Competition 2008
Thank you to everyone that entered our online competition this year. I have been inundated with over 70 entries since January. And it’s been great at times to have new poetry landing here everyday. Well done to everyone who entered, However there can be only one winner and as hard as the task as finding that winner has been. Congratulations: Sian Robins-Grace of Llanfoist, Monmouthshire.
The two runners up poems and a selection of other entries will be appearing on the poetry section of the website shortly. If you didn’t win this year and have more work or further ideas for spoken word at next years festival then please get in touch with me from January 2009 onwards at.
Send us a poem for any reason!
By Poem winners winning poem!
(July 31, 2008)My mum said to tell the truth.
Tell it what?
Tell it to hide inside with the cat
while I sat and told tall stories to my little sister
"listen Mister"
I told the cat,
Go and tell the truth...
That it can go get lost
Cos I'm a big girl getting ready to lose herself
And I can't do that with the truth tagging along
SO the truth got gone.
Now I'm a bigger girl in a bigger world I think I'm ready to find myself
But to tell the truth
I can't tell the truth
That I'd like to get to know it again
Cos it wouldn't recognise if it saw me now
And it sure as shit doesn't look much the same.
Next time we meet it'll be in the park
I'll be climbing my zimmer frame
It'll call itself "Wisdom"...
And I’ll've forgotten my name.
For now we’re all too old for simple truth
Not old enough for wisdom
I heard truth can’t be learned
Nor Wisdom earned
Which one comes first if they’re both a priori?
IIIIIII don’t know
But there are instances few and far between
Where wisdom and truth have been simultaneously seen
Temporal coordinates: 15.00 hours, May 6th 2003 AD
Spatial coordinates: 23 degrees North by 59 degrees West
Truth and Wisdom met
In the sticky little pudgy pointing fingers of Stewart Pett:
“Mummy, look a sheep”
“Yes darling”
“Mummy, another sheep”
“Yes, that is another sheep darling”
“Mummy, a sheep”
“Yes darling”
“Mummy, look, another sheep”
“Darling, you don’t need to tell me every time you see a sheep somewhere”
“But mummy, if I don’t tell you, how do I know they’re there?”
23 degrees North by 59 degrees West
Wisdom and truth aren’t there any more, they aren’t there yet
And no use looking for little prophet Stewart Pett
Cos he’s not four any more
And he’s too old for simple truths and too young for the wisdom
that's found hobbling cross the cobbles that cover what came first
when we were running
leather loving
‘cross the careless ancient ground
pounding it to dusty dirty brown
till truth looked down
somewhere just before puberty
sees its nakedness become nudity.
Youth learns shame and truth forgets its name
until humans stop being and start dressing
in banter, and versace.
By Sian Robins-Grace - Winner 2008!
(July 14, 2008)So here we are
You’ve paid your money
I’ve made my choice
To be a voice tonight
To bring a little bit of light,
Or darkness, whatever, I don’t know what you like
Yet
We haven’t properly met
Yet
And we haven’t reached that pinpoint yet
Where your hands get wet with the realisation
That your mouths gone dry
As the conversation
Pitter
Patter
Peters out…
To a pause
…
That’s big enough to fit
A double decker bus
Though the only thing that really fits is a smattering of applause.
Someone flicks a switch
And enlightenment dawns
In the form
Of a flashing neon sign
That reads “STRANGER DANGER”
There to remind you that you ran out of boring things to say to each other
Instead of just running out with each other.
Now that would be an even stranger danger.
Do you take sweets from strangers?
Don’t take my word sweets then,
My sweets,
Take my sweet words
Then…
…There.
We’re not strangers any more.
By Southampton Activitists
(May 28, 2004)Once upon a time, there were four people...
Their names were Everybody, Somebody, Nobody and Anybody.Whenever there was an important job to be done, Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. When Nobody did it, Everybody got angry because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought that Somebody would do it, but Nobody realized that Nobody would do it. So consequently Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done in the first place.
By Chris. Jones
(September 02, 2003)What Men Really Want
All men want to dress like girls
It's always been the way
Just one excuse and several beers
A dress, and they're away
Of all the options they could choose
Like nurses, cats or nuns
Out come all those flowery frocks
Hey Presto! They're their Mums!