The poems are not good, but I'll share my reviews.
Dry leaves fall -- Poetic
I've just subscribed
and this is the best poem I've seen so far. The imagery ties well with
the concepts. It's a bit too repetitive, but it might be justified by
its straightforward manner. The third line of third verse is I think too
abstract. This line certainly falls outside the tuned-down flow of the
rest of the poem. It would make the poem better, more interesting, if it
was better connected with some other, concrete piece of the poem. Some
striving that fades from hope? I have reservations about the second half
of last verse. The last verse is a necessary part of the poem, it puts
the person back into the scenery. I think it provides too little:
there's candle-incense, and dear-breathe-arms. But what is colorful, and
what is dreamed? "Cradle" connotes the traditional trope of
infancy-advanced elderly similarities; I don't buy it. I'd try to put
here something worthy of despair. The lively colors of autumn. The
wisdom-tainted youth of the dreams.
Happy Birthday Dad -- Raw, nice idea, too casual
I enjoy conceptual poetry and I like the idea that forms the backbone of your poem. It starts with a feeling of loss in the speaking subject, loss of a younger self, perhaps with his/her joys and perspectives. If two people are close, they form a kind of a single person in two bodies, with flows of passions from one to the other, and shared occupations, growing stronger together. And when this kind of bondage weakens, for me, it can be painful as in a way I contemplate my own death, of the part of my soul that existed as this common person. And then the speaking subject realizes that that part of the soul lives on, because the common person was so deeply rooted in the father, that the relationship finds its nourishment despite the speaking subject has abandoned it. So the speaking subject discovers him/herself alive and complete, which spurs the feeling of dearness and self-love, the strong kind of love of our core values, our identity. The love rather than directing inwards, flows to the father, who is discovered as sharing the identity of the speaking subject him/herself.
The poem doesn't use sufficient poetic devices to convey its meaning so that it would reverberate in the reader. It is not condensed, striking. Surprise the reader rather than just express surprise! Alternatively, it could have sufficient content to ground the idea. Something in the poem to convince me that your connection is genuine rather than an expression of a clever thought. The way of poetry is not to just lay out what you want to say as a clear thesis -- despite we want the thesis to get through! -- and be done.
Fire And Ice -- Nothing creative
I feel sorry for the person to whom the speaking subject addresses the invectives. Why do you think I have no heart just because I'm not warm to you? What makes you think that you see through me? The poem has nothing interesting to offer. On the positive side, at least the poem does not try to be difficult (which, if it was just as unjustified, would make it really terrible).
