Frederick Kesner

Member since August 16, 2007

Member for 18 years, 11 months

advocate member Founding Member

270 Poems

974 Comments

14 Followers

Most recent

Until the Cosmos Speaks

Posted Jul 20, 2026 · 26 lines · 1 critiques

"until the cosmos speaks"

A shimmering constellation behind the Eyes
throbs in the temples, a slow and heavy rhythm
—not an ailment, but a cosmos waking up.

Headache: that’s what they call
the pressure of existence,
that insistent sense of language
pushing through the skull.

It is the poetic inevitability of the word,
a solar system burning in grey matter,
each pulse an asteroid, a path
for letters that have nowhere else to go.

Star‑patterns of pure pressure tighten,

Read the rest of the poem Show less

a milky way of unspoken lines behind the eye.
The brain is too small for the infinity of being,
so the universe cracks open in glorious pain.

You seek the dark,
the quiet, the empty,
but inside, the constellation
keeps shining: existence insisting,
star after star, until the cosmos speaks
and silence breaks.

.

Frederick Kesner’s timeline

July 2026
20 Mon

Posted a poem
Until the Cosmos Speaks
""until the cosmos speaks""
Open thread 26 lines
18 Sat

Received a critique
on voices we allow/disallow from @Geezer
"but I wondered what the A.I. was talking about and then it occurred to me that the thread was needed to mend the seam. ~ Geez."
18 Sat

Received a critique
on mirrored glass from @Geezer
"was the pivot of understanding for me. Truth be told, I had to read what you and the others had said, before it clicked. ~ Geez."
18 Sat

Received a critique
on voices we allow/disallow from @Geezer
"what the A.I. sees here; that the gentle-spun tone is never developed into a thread to sew/mend the seam; it was just vaguely alluded to. ~ Geez."
17 Fri

Posted a poem
voices we allow/disallow
""voices we allow/disallow""
Open thread 15 lines
17 Fri

Received a critique
on mirrored glass from @Lavender
"Hello, CB, So quiet, full of gentle, intentional movement. Love the heavy cedar door contrasting within all that is so simple and light - and fleeting. Thank you, L"
17 Fri

Received a critique
on mirrored glass from @kellustzall
"Few words but crazy power. Just wow..."
17 Fri

New follower
@kellustzall
16 Thu

Posted a poem
mirrored glass
" "
Open thread 18 lines
16 Thu

Received a critique
on frayed with disuse from @Lavender
"Hello, CB, Not so much a sense of subtle loss here, but perhaps the painful awareness of neglect? Thank you, L"
16 Thu

Received a critique
on frayed with disuse from @Geezer
"I'd change is the third line, last stanza. "once lowered by pulley." ~ Geez."
16 Thu

Received a critique
on frayed with disuse from @DrEvildeern
"Hi. I was intrigued because it is such a seldom used word. In the world of addiction the term “misuse” has been applied more - and as a professional nurse, I struggle with euphemisms when it comes to addiction in partic…"
15 Wed

Posted a poem
frayed with disuse
"""
Open thread 22 lines
14 Tue

Posted a poem
before dawning
" "
Open thread 15 lines
13 Mon

Posted a poem
demise at the well
" "
Open thread 13 lines
12 Sun

New follower
@R.
11 Sat

Posted a poem
frozen clock
" "
Open thread 19 lines
10 Fri

Posted a poem
enough
" "
Open thread 21 lines
09 Thu

Posted a poem
turncoat
" "
Open thread 19 lines
07 Tue

Posted a poem
the dust of your passing
"“The dust of your passing”"
Open thread 15 lines
05 Sun

Posted a poem
looking forward
" "
Open thread 52 lines
04 Sat

Posted a poem
fourth of never
"fourth of never"
Open thread 7 lines
June 2026
12 Fri

New follower
@tgaz
05 Fri

Critiqued
"Learning Bicycle" by @Sen99
"A truly fun read here. Never had an accident on my bicycle except once three years of so after when the front wheel went into a pothole and sent me flying. No other spills besides that."
01 Mon

New follower
@patrickgadoury
01 Mon

Critiqued
"The Frenglishman" by @patrickgadoury
"Loving the language play here. And to 'bleed before language has a say,' now there is a punch of a line! "Do we nod bleed!" a great playwright once wrote. This feels personal and existential like a multilingual raison d…"
May 2026
31 Sun

Critiqued
"Stargazers in Awe" by @Wallyroo92
"Last night was stepped outside in the chilly autumn air to witnessed what was meant to have been the last blue micro-moon for a while. Perhaps the moon was meant to be at its farthest apogee from earth. Fortunately, bec…"
31 Sun

Critiqued
"I Remember It Happening Kindly" by @Wallyroo92
"sometime ago, I re-watched Casablanca after being inspired to write a poem about one of its famous (misquoted) lines, "Play it again, Sam" (sic) as you aptly remarked "why not quote it and remember it kindly." In my cas…"
31 Sun

Contest commendation
05/26 My First Time

with "a small dismissal".
22 Fri

Critiqued
"Cowboy" by @Lavender
"Likewise. And you are most welcome, L. CB"
22 Fri

Critiqued
"Cowboy" by @Lavender
"Quite a highlight read, so much in the moment and stretches it out in the reading even if it was a short poem. Most thoroughly enjoyed🕊️🙏"
22 Fri

Critiqued
"Gone Unnoticed " by @RJ Bear
"Glad that you found the work around that suited your purpose. Your reading it aloud has made the poem sing its soul. This makes me happy. 🕊️🙏"
21 Thu

Critiqued
"Gone Unnoticed " by @RJ Bear
"The language use is one of the strongest aspects of the poem. The imagery is simple but carefully chosen: “Dust would settle on the things once held,” “A scratch on a surface that’s easily buffed out,” and “A life writt…"
15 Fri

Highest posting month
May 2026 — 26 poems
April 2026
30 Thu

Contest commendation
04/26 April Fooled

with "bemusedly ruminating".
July 2025
31 Thu

Contest commendation
07/25 Renovated Quill

with "morning psalm".
31 Thu

First contest commendation
07/25 Renovated Quill

with the poem "morning psalm".
August 2022
15 Mon

Anniversary
15 years of membership
August 2017
15 Tue

Anniversary
10 years of membership
August 2012
15 Wed

Anniversary
5 years of membership
March 2011
06 Sun

Posting milestone
100 poems posted
November 2010
23 Tue

Most-discussed work
Looking out the kitchen window

24 critiques to date.
August 2008
15 Fri

Anniversary
One year of membership
January 2008
26 Sat

First critique offered
on "Revolving Echoes" by @purplemoondoll
23 Wed

First publication
From Swords to Plowshares
August 2007
15 Wed

Joined Neopoet
Membership begins

First poem published 160 days later.

Bookshelf

Book	Where to find it	Files	Added
Wind Chimes Frederick Kesner (crypticbard) (2009) Experimenting with sound recordings with the help of friends. I am finding that this adds an extra dimension to creating new writing - verse spoken aloud makes a…	View →	—	Mar 22, 2009
Castles in the Wind Frederick Kesner (1998) Wattle Grove Books	View →	—	Jan 26, 2008
Eye Soar Frederick Kesner (2007) Wattle Grove Books http://www.lulu.com/content/328767	View →	—	Jan 26, 2008
Waking Up to Self Frederick Kesner (2006) Wattle Grove Books http://www.lulu.com/content/278695	View →	—	Jan 26, 2008
Poetical Works of Frederick Kesner Frederick Kesner (2000) http://www.poemsabout.com/poet/frederick-kesner	View →	—	Jan 26, 2008

About Me

About me

…a writer who started on the quiet side of things.
Early on, speaking felt harder than shaping a line, so the page became the place where thoughts could land cleanly. That history still lingers, but it doesn’t define the work.

What I write now comes from paying attention to the small moments that pass too quickly unless someone pauses. If you read along, thank you for meeting the work with patience and curiosity.

Location: West Moreton, AUS

Favorite Poets

There is nothing quite as boring as a life completely devoid of shadows.

I am because we are

Contest Wins

Winning Submission	Contest	Contest Date
a small dismissal	05/26 My First Time	1 May, 2026 – 31 May, 2026
bemusedly ruminating	04/26 April Fooled	1 April, 2026 – 30 April, 2026
morning psalm	07/25 Renovated Quill	1 July, 2025 – 31 July, 2025