All posts by Nathan Marchand

Poetry

NaPoWriMo, Days 25 & 26: ‘Ballad of a Broken Heart’ and ‘Triumph of the Nerds’

I used yesterday’s prompt but not today’s. Yesterday, I had to write a ballad. I’ve never done that before, and honestly, I was disappointed with my first effort. Feel free to disagree with me, though. Then read my rather silly poem for today. Enjoy!

Day 25:
Ballad of a Broken Heart
By Nathan Marchand

I was foolish and young
When that Cupid’s arrow first stung.
Never knew a girl
Who could throw my heart for a whirl.

She promised loyalty
And I saw her as royalty.
Beautiful as a dove.
I could not help but fall in love.

But I lied to myself,
And she was shrewd like a dark elf.
She perceived how I felt,
And then left my heart with a welt.

This was my first heartbreak.
I still have the same searing ache.
My heart was torn in twain.
How can I ever trust again?

Day 26:
Triumph of the Nerds
By Nathan Marchand

I am a nerd.
Or haven’t you heard
The name you called me an insult
Became my badge of honor as an adult?

I created your favorite TV shows.
Your video games? Wrote the code for those.
You probably read a book I wrote,
And I created the smartphone you use as a remote.

You were king because you played a sport,
But your reign has been short.
The kids at whom your insults were hurled,
In the end, it was them who shaped the world.

Blog

Elektra is Dead (or ‘I was in a Car Accident’)

I said I would explain later, and that time has come.

A huge monkey wrench was thrown into my plans because I was in a car accident Tuesday. Nobody was hurt (not badly. I was sore for a few days), but my car is in bad shape. The incident actually inspired my poem for NaPoWriMo day 23 because I named my car Elektra after the Marvel Comics character, but I digress.

I went to visit my Grandma at the nursing home she was recently moved to in Fort Wayne, Indiana. After spending a few hours with her, I left to get ballroom dance lessons from a friend and hang out for a bit afterward. I came to a stoplight on a busy street. Traffic was thick since it was 4:30pm and people were heading home from work. The light turned green and I moved forward. Just past the light, the quasi-SUV in front of me stopped, so I did, too.

There was a crash.

I suddenly found myself sandwiched between two cars. Someone had rear-ended me.

Both of the other drivers were soccer moms driving larger, sturdier vehicles than me (Elektra is a 1998 Ford Escort). The one in front of me said she stopped because of traffic. I couldn’t see past her, so I can neither confirm nor disprove that. The woman behind me said she thought her two-year-old son in the backseat was choking on something, so she looked back to check on him and didn’t realize I’d stopped.

Both of them had fairly minor cosmetic damage to their vehicles, but since I was scrunched between them, I took the brunt. The hood was arched about a foot, the headlights were shattered, and there was a huge dent on the front. The rear bumper was bent at a slight angle. I shut the car off immediately, but after 20-30 minutes of calling and texting, I tried to start it again and it wouldn’t turn over. The damage doesn’t look too bad, but since it’s 15 years old and has 225,000 miles on it, insurance will probably declare it totaled.

Anyway, the two women eventually left but I had to wait for a friend to pick me up and for a tow truck to take my car away. I did hang out with some friends to celebrate a birthday at a Mexican restaurant that night, though.

As usual with me, the gravity of my situation didn’t hit me until later. I’ve been quite frustrated since Tuesday. I get constant calls from the insurance companies involved in the accident (including one where they were running scared to set up a free chiropractor appointment for me even though I wasn’t hurt. They must be afraid I’ll sue). My plans have been forced to change. I’ve had to start looking for a new car. It hasn’t been fun.

What’s ironic was I had been telling people how grateful I was that my car had lasted this long. I’ve had it since 2006. I’ve driven it longer than the 1990 Dodge Daytona I had before that. It probably could’ve gone another 50,000 miles. It was like how God made the Israelites’ sandals not wear out while they were in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 29:5). Now I suddenly find myself in need of a new car.

If you’re the praying type, prayers would be appreciated. Thanks, True Believers!

Poetry

NaPoWriMo, Days 23 & 24: ‘A Dirge for Elektra’ and ‘Wasteland’

I didn’t use either yesterday’s or today’s prompts. It was mostly due to time. In the words of the Doctor from “Doctor Who: The Curse of Fatal Dearth,” “I’ll explain later.” Regardless, here are my poems for yesterday and today. Enjoy!

Day 23:
A Dirge for Elektra
By Nathan Marchand

Her name is Elektra,
A warrioress clad in red,
A veteran of many journeys,
And I saw her die today.
Crushed between two soccer moms
Because one was distracted.
Reliable though she was, Elektra
Was declared too broken to mend,
And too old to save.

She lays unburied amongst the dead,
A lifeless husk to be scavenged by vultures,
Forgotten by all except the one
Who journeyed with her most.
He’d revive her if given the chance…
If only give the chance.
Death came before her time.
Now he must move on, but her
Memory will always be with him.

Day 24:
Wasteland
By Nathan Marchand

I am lost in the desert,
The unending wilderness,
The most barren wasteland.
I see an oasis, my refuge,
But fear it’s a mirage,
So I walk on, my mouth parched.

I see the promised land,
My long-awaited destination,
But a minefield is before me.
Voices whisper in the stinging wind.
Some urge caution
And some reckless abandon.

I’ve seen others killed by mines—
I myself have their shrapnel
Imbedded in my body.
Another will kill me,
But the promised land beckons.
I don’t want to die in the wilderness.

It’s the only life I know,
Yet I desire far more.
I can receive more if I will but take it.
But I fear the minefield
That has wounded me so often.
I am at an impasse—what shall I do?

Poetry

NaPoWriMo, Day 22: ‘Magnolia Tree’

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Today’s prompt was inspired by Earth Day, which is today. I’m not one to celebrate this “holiday,” but the prompt was a good one. It was simply to write something that had to do with the natural world. Growing up in the country, I was always surrounded by nature. This poem was inspired by my favorite tree on my parents’ property: a magnolia. It was the most beautiful tree there, especially for the several weeks it bloomed in spring. (It was also easy to climb). I hope you enjoy it.

 

Here's a photo of the magnolia tree at my parents' house. It inspired today's poem. Photo by Nathan Marchand
Here’s a photo of the magnolia tree at my parents’ house. It inspired today’s poem. Photo by Nathan Marchand

 

Magnolia Tree
By Nathan Marchand

I hid in the shade of the magnolia tree,
Holding my broken heart as the
Pink petals fell like tears in the breeze.
This, the tree reborn annually at Easter,
Held no comfort for me
Despite its sweet-smelling overtures,
For like it, I’ll bloom only for a short time,
And then my beauty will fall,
Leaving me as common-looking as the others,
Until the onset of winter steals that from me,
And I am left naked and lifeless,
But with no hope of rebirth.

I wept like a widow, mourning my loneliness,
When I heard a man’s voice amid the wind.
“Did you come to cry here, too, as I do?”
I looked up to see a man with a weathered face.
He extended a hand to me, saying,
“The magnolia petals look lovely in your hair.”
Reluctantly, I took his hand, and he pulled me to my feet.
He took one pink petal from my hair wiped my tears with it.
“I came to grieve a broken heart, but perhaps
I no longer need to,” he said, and clipped a blossom
From a branch, placing it in my hair.
There, under the magnolia tree, we found our rebirths.

Poetry

NaPoWriMo, Days 20 and 21: ‘Braggart’ and ‘Rejected Fortune Cookie Messages’

 

I had to make up for another lost day today. Sorry!

Yesterday’s prompt was to write a poem using at least five words from a list given participants. I used more than five. The words I was supposed to use are in bold.

Today’s prompt was to write poetic fortune cookie messages. I wrote a list of humorous (and sometimes nerdy) rejected messages. I could’ve written more, but time didn’t allow for it.

Enjoy!

Day 20:
Braggart
By Nathan Marchand

He is a deadly combination:
A dunderhead with a massive ego.
He was fond of making rodomontades
About his many achievements:
The slaying of a bilious Cyclops,
The miraculous rescue of a maiden,
The invention of a clean energy generator.

He fancies himself non-pareil,
But I find truth to be elusive in his stories,
So I take them all with a grain of salt.
He is a boy who thinks himself a man,
Because he was abandoned by his cowbird father.
His tales are a thin veil he pulls over his face
To hide glasses that make him look like an ugly owl,
A cover-up for the potential he squandered,
To convince people he’s anyone but an oversized adolescent
You’d rather be upwind of after he eats cheese.

My words would be artillery against his ego
Had his skull not been thicker than a quahog.
Twice I have tried to help him,
But his mind remains in the gutter,
Collecting BS to sell to the gullible.
I pity him more than I could hate him
Because one day he’ll have nowhere to abscond from lies.

Day 21:
Rejected Fortune Cookie Messages
By Nathan Marchand

Never trust the next woman you meet who’s wearing a red dress.

The Doctor lies—just like you’ll learn your significant other does.

Talk to the next person you sit next to at a movie theatre—it might be a sweet beginning.

You will eat another fortune cookie, and its message will cancel this one out.

I am Batman, and so are you.

You’ll have a baby—even if you’re a man.

You will use more emoticons. J 😉 😀

You’ll notice this message doesn’t match your horoscope. Sorry.

You are the chosen one, I just don’t know what for.

Your lucky numbers are 5, 7, 9, 11, 16, 21, and 3,974,198.

Poetry

NaPoWriMo, Days 18-19: ‘Unrequited’ and ‘Super-Nerd Seeking Impossible Love’

Yes, I fell behind again. Sorry!

Anyway, yesterday’s prompt was to write a poem that began and ended with the same word. Today’s was more interesting. I’m not sure how to explain it. It amounted to writing a humorously self-deprecating want-ad. I recommend reading the prompt description in the provided link.

Enjoy!

Day 18:
Unrequited
By Nathan Marchand

Love is a one-way street:
I go, but she does not come.
She acknowledges my words,
But she is deaf to them.
My gifts are received,
But she never returns the favor.
We spend time together,
But I feel trapped in the “friend zone.”
She lets me carry her heavy loads,
But does not fully appreciate the gesture.
I offer hugs in time of trouble,
Yet she neglects to shake my hand.
No disease plagues a man worse
Than the sickness of unrequited love.

Day 19:
Super-Nerd Seeking Impossible Love
By Nathan Marchand

It’s a bird!
It’s a plane!
It’s Super-Nerd!
I’m a Spider-Man, 29, seeking his Mary-Jane,
Which any woman would find absurd.
So, single is how I’ll remain—
Unless you’re that rare bird
Who won’t find me insane
For quoting “Star Trek” lines you’ve never heard.
You’ll think I’m someone to disdain
When I greet you wearing a “Doctor Who” costume, how absurd.
At least I tried, though you’re a woman I can’t attain.

Poetry

NaPoWriMo, Days 16-17: ‘Misunderstanding’ and ‘Awestruck Greeting’

Once again, I was so busy yesterday  that I neglected to write a poem. I did make up for it by writing two today, but I didn’t follow yesterday’s prompt despite being a great exercise (“translate” a poem in a foreign). I did, however, follow today’s prompt: write a “poem of greeting.” So, without further adieu, here are two poems for you (hey, that rhymed! HA!)

Day 16:
Misunderstanding
By Nathan Marchand

Was it all a misunderstanding?
The year you admired me,
The day your attraction grew,
The flabbergasted joy of holding hands,
The adventures we shared?
Through it all, there was no love.
I was only a friend—
A friend who fell in love
For the first time in his life,
Who, despite no wrongdoing,
Was gently released and left alone,
Like a tamed animal abandoned in the wild.
You walked away without a drop of malice
While I, wounded, limped home
To lick wounds that may not heal.

Day 17:
Awestruck Greeting
By Nathan Marchand

I, surrounded by darkness, walked toward the light.
Touching it, I was enveloped by it, and transported
To gates of purest gold, shiner than bronze.
They opened wide and there stood a familiar stranger:
A face I had always imagined but never seen.
He, smiling, extended a scarred hand to me and said,
“Welcome, My servant, My child, My brother, My friend.”

I was awestruck at this, a sight beyond imagination.
Slowly, I raised my hand and took his, locking eyes with him.
He gripped my hand and pulled me into an embrace.
Overwhelmed surprise mingled with joy, I patted his back.
He said, “Well done! You’ve been good and faithful.
Come, share in my happiness. Your room awaits you.”
His hand motioned me toward a new home—my true home.

Words failed me, though I was a writer and a poet.
The day I longed for had come suddenly.
What should I say? Should I say anything?
I’d finally met the man I owed my eternity to,
Yet I couldn’t utter a grateful word or even a greeting.
I paused long to conceive a single sentence,
Finally saying, “Join me on a new adventure!”

Poetry

NaPoWriMo, Day 15: ‘Together’

Today’s prompt was a tough one. It was to write a pantun, which “consists of rhymed quatrains (abab), with 8-12 syllables per line. The first two lines of each quatrain aren’t meant to have a formal, logical link to the second two lines, although the two halves of each quatrain are supposed to have an imaginative or imagistic connection.” I’m not sure the one I wrote is very good, but if you can tell me what TV show I referenced, I’ll give you a Stan Lee-style No-Prize.

Together
By Nathan Marchand

The statue touched him with its finger.
The angel made my true love vanish before me.
This time is a place I can no longer linger.
I’ll follow him despite the Raggedy Man’s plea.

Poetry

NaPoWriMo 2013: Days 13 & 14: ‘Superman’ and ‘Captain America’

I wasn’t able to find time to do yesterday’s prompt, which was to take a walk and then write a poem based on what I saw. However, since I missed it, I decided to write two poems today. I also did it because today’s prompt excited me. It was to write a persona poem in the voice of a superhero. (What’s interesting is I wrote a poem about the Avengers last year, and now it’s a prompt!) As I said, I wrote two, one for each of my top two favorite superheroes. I’m not sure how good they are, but I hope you enjoy them.

Artwork by Alex Ross
Artwork by Alex Ross

Day 13:
Superman
By Nathan Marchand

Some call me, “Hero.”
Many call me, “Loser.”
I’m faster than a speeding bullet,
More powerful than a locomotive,
Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.
I could rule mankind, but I’d rather serve them.
But to them, I am too good to be true.
Their “heroes” brood and kill.
They can understand them.

But I am the Man of Tomorrow.
I am who they wish to become,
Who they could one day become.
Deep in their hearts, they yearn for greatness.
They see me, and see who they aspire to be.
Perhaps that’s why they scoff at me:
They fear they can’t reach these heights.
If they will only cast aside all that hinders,
They will believe any man can fly.

Day 14:
Captain America
By Nathan Marchand

Once, I was a soldier fighting for freedom,
A weakling granted incredible power.
Now, I am a man out of time
Who awoke from a frozen slumber
To find the world had moved on—
And my country had changed.
Ideals, morals, and patriotism are scorned.
The freedoms I defended are surrendered.
The line between right and wrong is blurred.

I am a relic of a bygone era, a forgotten symbol.
I punched out Hitler, but I can’t knock out cynicism.
No longer do I wear the flag of America the country
But of America the ideal: the nation she was and could be.
To forget that would mean the Red Skull won,
It just took a few extra decades.
I am a soldier without a country, but I still have a cause.
To fight for the restoration of the land I love.
Let all who oppose my shield yield!

Poetry

NaPoWriMo, Day 12: ‘The Devil’s Pawn’

Today’s prompt was one I wasn’t sure I wanted to do. It was to write a poem consisting of things I’d want to say, but never would, to someone I know. I went ahead and did it anyway. The person being addressed will remain anonymous for the sake of privacy. For the record, I longer associate with the person in question and the thoughts and feelings expressed herein don’t necessarily reflect my current opinions.

The Devil’s Pawn
By Nathan Marchand

You call me “narcissist,” “loser,” “predator,”
When all I ever did was love her.
Who is this man you fear will hurt her,
This man she must be protected against?
He is not I! I’ve done her no harm.
You are blind to the truth.

You think you know me,
That I’m just like the wretches
You see filling cells everyday.
But the only one I see is you:
The control freak who listens to nobody
And rules his household with an iron fist.

Only the perfect man will suit her,
So no man is worthy, in your mind.
No man except you, it seems.
Perhaps you should’ve married her
Since you are the greatest of men,
Except incest is a sin, even for you.

You dare chide me like a “brother”?
You are the Devil’s pawn,
A thorn in my side sent to torture me.
I pity you for becoming a tool.
There is no love, no trust, in you, only darkness.
You’re not my brother—he wouldn’t treat me such.

One day you will lose her in another man’s arms,
Or she will lose you to death’s cold touch.
Can you live without being the center of her universe?
Have you trained her to live without you?
Your “protection” is a prison for you both.
And you’ve left me caged by hate.