When Christmastime
shrieks by overhead,
and your Christmas thoughts
close in around you,
repeat to yourself: "it's just once a year"
it's just once a year, when that magical time
comes crashing down
and crushes our souls
into sugarplum pudding.
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
A bird lies dead.
A bird lies dead
in the first frost of late autumn.
A dead sparrow, I think.
Something small, brownish,
dead at any rate. One
of the birds that hop,
not walk.
I think of the birds
that you see, wheeling as one
in numberless flocks, turning
and contracting - individual birds
beating wings so hard, you picture
tiny looks of concentration
on each bird's face.
The whole flock
appears at once, rushing up
into the air in one great shape,
as if at some sudden
invisible call.
Was it the cold
that stopped its puny heart?
Or did the cold come after -
drawing a cold blanket over.
Frost feathers frozen windows,
and no two snowflakes are alike
they say; nor any two feathers
on this little dude.
Poor guy. His head lies cocked,
as if listening.
I think that he died
waiting
waiting
for the call to take off.
in the first frost of late autumn.
A dead sparrow, I think.
Something small, brownish,
dead at any rate. One
of the birds that hop,
not walk.
I think of the birds
that you see, wheeling as one
in numberless flocks, turning
and contracting - individual birds
beating wings so hard, you picture
tiny looks of concentration
on each bird's face.
The whole flock
appears at once, rushing up
into the air in one great shape,
as if at some sudden
invisible call.
Was it the cold
that stopped its puny heart?
Or did the cold come after -
drawing a cold blanket over.
Frost feathers frozen windows,
and no two snowflakes are alike
they say; nor any two feathers
on this little dude.
Poor guy. His head lies cocked,
as if listening.
I think that he died
waiting
waiting
for the call to take off.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
rush of time
The slow rush of time -
you are dragged by the neck
through the towns of your life saying,
"I will miss this place already,"
always passing through:
your life
the street you walk down
has already gone behind you
you anticipate
the past.
And then eventually,
it comes.
you are dragged by the neck
through the towns of your life saying,
"I will miss this place already,"
always passing through:
your life
the street you walk down
has already gone behind you
you anticipate
the past.
And then eventually,
it comes.
You Rule
Like a monarch with a sceptre,
waving left and right forever
as adoring waves of subjects bow and scrape
your keen glance of command
masters all that you survey
as you stroke your regal purple fur-lined cape
your court holds court in courtly ways -
the supplicants with lowered gaze;
the jangling of bells upon the fool
and that's me in that stupid hat-
but even such a fool as that
can see the truth, it's plain enough:
You rule.
waving left and right forever
as adoring waves of subjects bow and scrape
your keen glance of command
masters all that you survey
as you stroke your regal purple fur-lined cape
your court holds court in courtly ways -
the supplicants with lowered gaze;
the jangling of bells upon the fool
and that's me in that stupid hat-
but even such a fool as that
can see the truth, it's plain enough:
You rule.
I love you on a case-by-case basis
I love you on a case-by-case basis
each day's love comes up to spec
or else it's rejected. Needless to say
you insist on the best. There's an image
to uphold here, a standard to be met.
But that rejected love, I take it back
and retool it. To be slipped through later
on the sneak tip, perhaps.
each day's love comes up to spec
or else it's rejected. Needless to say
you insist on the best. There's an image
to uphold here, a standard to be met.
But that rejected love, I take it back
and retool it. To be slipped through later
on the sneak tip, perhaps.
this love that I have is meant as an encouragement
this love that I have
is meant as an encouragement
when the whole day sucks,
when the seconds of the clock
are beating down like big hammers
when the people that you know
are glowering at you scornily,
when the anger that wells up from within your bosom
tastes like certified grade-A USDA hate...
my love says buck up, little camper!
is meant as an encouragement
when the whole day sucks,
when the seconds of the clock
are beating down like big hammers
when the people that you know
are glowering at you scornily,
when the anger that wells up from within your bosom
tastes like certified grade-A USDA hate...
my love says buck up, little camper!
My love for you is for your own damn good
My love for you is for your own damn good
that look of reproach you give, can't sway me
the experts divide on the right approach,
but you know that this love that I give
is gonna hurt me more than it hurts you.
So think first next time maybe,
because otherwise, you might just get
a big kiss
on your smart mouth!
that look of reproach you give, can't sway me
the experts divide on the right approach,
but you know that this love that I give
is gonna hurt me more than it hurts you.
So think first next time maybe,
because otherwise, you might just get
a big kiss
on your smart mouth!
LOVE
the pome that I have for you
is LOVE
LOVE incarnate
LOVE almighty
LOVE with a vengeance
you sit there with a dazed look
on your face, just taking it in -
but the LOVE just keeps on coming.
finally you have to say "alright, STOP
that's enough love."
is LOVE
LOVE incarnate
LOVE almighty
LOVE with a vengeance
you sit there with a dazed look
on your face, just taking it in -
but the LOVE just keeps on coming.
finally you have to say "alright, STOP
that's enough love."
precaution
Are you sure that you love me? because
if you're not sure, I'll need to know about it right now
for my considerations. With bold swift moves,
I will secure your heart with a sudden flourish
of gestures and aplomb, with a subtle point driven home,
with a little trick I happen to know about.
But if you're not sure, and I don't know
right now about it - how then can my plan
spring into action? With what mistimed leap
would you have me fall to my death?
if you're not sure, I'll need to know about it right now
for my considerations. With bold swift moves,
I will secure your heart with a sudden flourish
of gestures and aplomb, with a subtle point driven home,
with a little trick I happen to know about.
But if you're not sure, and I don't know
right now about it - how then can my plan
spring into action? With what mistimed leap
would you have me fall to my death?
this hate that I have for you
the hate I have for you
is really miniscule
it's hardly there at all in fact
I had to get it out for you
and put it in this pome
and now that hate's all gone!
This epic pome in miniature
is just a souvenir
is really miniscule
it's hardly there at all in fact
I had to get it out for you
and put it in this pome
and now that hate's all gone!
This epic pome in miniature
is just a souvenir
The people who look at you
The people who look at you
from across the lonely way,
they don't know how this love
that we have so deep inside
truly operates. They might surmise,
but we know otherwise.
How dare they mock our pain?!
Let's get 'em!!
from across the lonely way,
they don't know how this love
that we have so deep inside
truly operates. They might surmise,
but we know otherwise.
How dare they mock our pain?!
Let's get 'em!!
Things such as cannot be said
My heart lives in a house on fire;
these feelings for you
that I have -
well they don't mean much;
not without that sigh of sudden tenderness
that awakens in your breast like a mighty shout,
a sweet whisper of the strange lands
that your heart hearkens unto
in the darkling deeps of love's sweet night of the soul -
when the toes of one's unreadiness settle
heavily
into the thickly downed slippers
of love's repose.
as we waltz achingly into the future,
dripping endless entreaties of love,
we sweet happiness to each other
over tender protestations of despair.
This, too, our dearly-made destiny:
falling haplessly by as the sleeping years
smite us hither with deep longing,
under the baleful glances of the moon.
you are beautiful
beyond flowers
and jewelry,
and sunsets,
and fine things,
beyond the soft glow of fires
and the sweet earth from which we grow
and I love you for it.
Your sweet head is in my heart
bumping and thumping around
but it can't get out.
these feelings for you
that I have -
well they don't mean much;
not without that sigh of sudden tenderness
that awakens in your breast like a mighty shout,
a sweet whisper of the strange lands
that your heart hearkens unto
in the darkling deeps of love's sweet night of the soul -
when the toes of one's unreadiness settle
heavily
into the thickly downed slippers
of love's repose.
as we waltz achingly into the future,
dripping endless entreaties of love,
we sweet happiness to each other
over tender protestations of despair.
This, too, our dearly-made destiny:
falling haplessly by as the sleeping years
smite us hither with deep longing,
under the baleful glances of the moon.
you are beautiful
beyond flowers
and jewelry,
and sunsets,
and fine things,
beyond the soft glow of fires
and the sweet earth from which we grow
and I love you for it.
Your sweet head is in my heart
bumping and thumping around
but it can't get out.
___________________
this is an earlier version of "Things such as cannot properly be said"
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
a pome
Your head emits a special radiance
as I put you in my heart.
The secret clink as I close it up
like a suspended bell.
My pulsing veins throb, an ever-changing note
eloquent of long ago, the seething winters
we had thought too soon forgotten.
Then, too, the after-times -
my simple wish defers itself.
Dreaming of a wheel
without a road
as I put you in my heart.
The secret clink as I close it up
like a suspended bell.
My pulsing veins throb, an ever-changing note
eloquent of long ago, the seething winters
we had thought too soon forgotten.
Then, too, the after-times -
my simple wish defers itself.
Dreaming of a wheel
without a road
Monday, October 23, 2006
spontaneous
A poem is spontaneous
that means it takes a lot of work
to make it look like nothing much
like children falling down in surf
like symphony orchestras tuning up
like down blown in through open windows
it's got to come across unkempt
but that's the unimportant part
that means it takes a lot of work
to make it look like nothing much
like children falling down in surf
like symphony orchestras tuning up
like down blown in through open windows
it's got to come across unkempt
but that's the unimportant part
critique
Your other poems were like brooks,
with too many bends for me to trace
or follow up; just meander down. The scenery
floats by, sudden bright patches dazzling,
the sound of an unknown bird. The eye
falls asleep to the soothing beauty of the world.
At the end you step out not really knowing
what land you passed through.
Or, like languorous conversation
flits, ideas skipping like stones across a pond,
like skipping across stepping stones:
touch on this, skip over that, and come to rest
here. In a papered front room of a very old house,
two friends sat close laughing and talking for hours.
Who can trace where the talk went? Or where
the talk went, when the silence fell? As,
leaning in, right hands brushed - touched -
in a way that seemed so suddenly
unexpected
This new poem of yours is short. Sweet...
perhaps. Direct, straight, in a way that is new
and nervous. For the first time I see what you mean,
conscious and clever and complete in one moment
and it scares me. For some or no reason, that old song
has stuck in my head: I like short songs,
I like short songs, I like short songs,
I like short songs!
with too many bends for me to trace
or follow up; just meander down. The scenery
floats by, sudden bright patches dazzling,
the sound of an unknown bird. The eye
falls asleep to the soothing beauty of the world.
At the end you step out not really knowing
what land you passed through.
Or, like languorous conversation
flits, ideas skipping like stones across a pond,
like skipping across stepping stones:
touch on this, skip over that, and come to rest
here. In a papered front room of a very old house,
two friends sat close laughing and talking for hours.
Who can trace where the talk went? Or where
the talk went, when the silence fell? As,
leaning in, right hands brushed - touched -
in a way that seemed so suddenly
unexpected
This new poem of yours is short. Sweet...
perhaps. Direct, straight, in a way that is new
and nervous. For the first time I see what you mean,
conscious and clever and complete in one moment
and it scares me. For some or no reason, that old song
has stuck in my head: I like short songs,
I like short songs, I like short songs,
I like short songs!
The Summer of My Lost Youth
Has anyone seen the Summer of my Lost Youth?
What happened to that Summer, those treasured days now gone?
Actually it was more like a couple of weeks than a Summer
Then those guys jumped me and I spent the next two months in a cast
Ah! For that lost and lonely yesteryear of yore! Forever ago it seems.
What happened to that Summer, those treasured days now gone?
Actually it was more like a couple of weeks than a Summer
Then those guys jumped me and I spent the next two months in a cast
Ah! For that lost and lonely yesteryear of yore! Forever ago it seems.
samurai
SAMURAI!! hair-tie armor plate strollin'
through the ancient Chinese world in a rage
he's rollin' through the forest
on his way to find an ambush
but his foes are making scarce
so he gets a little careless
when he rolls across the bridge
well it's not a big surprise
there's a sucka in the way
he defeats him with his eyes
and his sword is always holstered
'cause he never takes it out
til he takes it out for blood
that's his crazy code, WORD!!
SAMURAI!!!!
through the ancient Chinese world in a rage
he's rollin' through the forest
on his way to find an ambush
but his foes are making scarce
so he gets a little careless
when he rolls across the bridge
well it's not a big surprise
there's a sucka in the way
he defeats him with his eyes
and his sword is always holstered
'cause he never takes it out
til he takes it out for blood
that's his crazy code, WORD!!
SAMURAI!!!!
Untitl'd
This poem, who knows what it's about?
I've just begun to write it out
yet as the end creeps ever near -
it's nothing very deep, I fear.
I've just begun to write it out
yet as the end creeps ever near -
it's nothing very deep, I fear.
Memories were made to hurt us
Memories were made to hurt us
Memories of what we've lost
Happy times and cherished moments
'round our necks, like albatross
But memories will fade in time
Those cherished moments, too will fade
We'll turn our eyes to facing front
And leave behind the life we made.
Memories of what we've lost
Happy times and cherished moments
'round our necks, like albatross
But memories will fade in time
Those cherished moments, too will fade
We'll turn our eyes to facing front
And leave behind the life we made.
origin
In ancient days,
my love of you
lurched formlessly
among the wilds
in search of you
to feel about
in search of me
to feel inside.
Down all those days
without a form,
my love of you
grew mad and strange.
'Til we were born,
and it found me.
And I found you,
and we were changed.
my love of you
lurched formlessly
among the wilds
in search of you
to feel about
in search of me
to feel inside.
Down all those days
without a form,
my love of you
grew mad and strange.
'Til we were born,
and it found me.
And I found you,
and we were changed.
poetic dilemma
The problem with a poem is
you can't describe the sky unless
the person who is reading it is
someone who looks up.
they wouldn't get the reference
they'd say, what is he on about?
what blue, what sun, what puffy cloud?
this guy's some kind of nut!
you can't describe the sky unless
the person who is reading it is
someone who looks up.
they wouldn't get the reference
they'd say, what is he on about?
what blue, what sun, what puffy cloud?
this guy's some kind of nut!
Does a Poem?
"Does a Poem have to Rhyme?"
"Yes sir!" said the man,
so I showed him a poem
with a rhyme at the end
and he said, "Why you fool!
that's no rhyme, not at all!
you can't rhyme 'man' with 'end'!
Why, it's not even close."
Then he walked off askance
as I looked at his back
with a glance of reproach
and a crumpled-up poem
And I smoothed it back out
and I crossed out a part
and I wrote something in
but it's not even close.
"Yes sir!" said the man,
so I showed him a poem
with a rhyme at the end
and he said, "Why you fool!
that's no rhyme, not at all!
you can't rhyme 'man' with 'end'!
Why, it's not even close."
Then he walked off askance
as I looked at his back
with a glance of reproach
and a crumpled-up poem
And I smoothed it back out
and I crossed out a part
and I wrote something in
but it's not even close.
The two cats
A poem about cats has got to purr
but this one's mostly lying there
it's found its patch of carpet sun
and it won't stir for anyone.
but this one's mostly lying there
it's found its patch of carpet sun
and it won't stir for anyone.
The signpost
I saw a signpost standing by the side of the road
that said "stop here awhile"
there was nothing else there, just a little old sign
and I took it as a sign as I passed on by
Other than that, there was nothing to see
The road went on forever 'til I left it behind
But at every journey's end, in the back of my mind
is that little old sign that I passed on by
that said "stop here awhile"
there was nothing else there, just a little old sign
and I took it as a sign as I passed on by
Other than that, there was nothing to see
The road went on forever 'til I left it behind
But at every journey's end, in the back of my mind
is that little old sign that I passed on by
mysterious ailment
I don't know why I love you so much
but when I think of you it hurts
this love of you is way too big
my heart was not designed for it.
It could be in the intake valve -
it lets the love come in too fast
or maybe it just wants to hold
it takes love in and won't let go
but maybe it's not big enough
that's what I'm really scared about
and soon you'll notice, soon you'll know
and then you'll let that love run out.
but when I think of you it hurts
this love of you is way too big
my heart was not designed for it.
It could be in the intake valve -
it lets the love come in too fast
or maybe it just wants to hold
it takes love in and won't let go
but maybe it's not big enough
that's what I'm really scared about
and soon you'll notice, soon you'll know
and then you'll let that love run out.
Certain Themes Recur
Certain themes recur
that's only to be expected
unavoidable, really
poems, hymns, inspired songs
when one lifts one's voice up
one shouldn't be surprised to hear
one's voice. And thematically
-speaking, as well: the same
goes. And the same goes.
and the same goes.
that's only to be expected
unavoidable, really
poems, hymns, inspired songs
when one lifts one's voice up
one shouldn't be surprised to hear
one's voice. And thematically
-speaking, as well: the same
goes. And the same goes.
and the same goes.
My love for you is self-explanatory.
my love for you is self-explanatory.
I don't need to go on and on about it
it pretty much is what it is. If you have
any questions or concerns about
this love that I have for you, Please!
just figure it out for yourself.
I mean, how simple
do I have to make this love?
I don't need to go on and on about it
it pretty much is what it is. If you have
any questions or concerns about
this love that I have for you, Please!
just figure it out for yourself.
I mean, how simple
do I have to make this love?
Sunday, October 22, 2006
my love for you is like a golden wheel
my love for you is like a golden wheel
or a grand haiku, marching with measured syllables
through a tasty glade of magic watermelon grass.
Let me explain about the magic watermelon grass: it is very special,
in that it looks like regular grass, but in flavor it is quite like the watermelon
that sits ripening in its grove, awaiting the days of its full maturity,
until it can throw off its vines, arise and declare to you and the world
this love that I have.
or a grand haiku, marching with measured syllables
through a tasty glade of magic watermelon grass.
Let me explain about the magic watermelon grass: it is very special,
in that it looks like regular grass, but in flavor it is quite like the watermelon
that sits ripening in its grove, awaiting the days of its full maturity,
until it can throw off its vines, arise and declare to you and the world
this love that I have.
My love for you is pure like a fist in the jaw
My love for you is pure like a fist in the jaw
neck turning, sweat droplets fly glittering
through a strobe of camera flashes as the foot
slips, knees buckling under body crashing to
the canvas, groggy eyes unfocusing, I'm fallen
and I can't get up, ladies and gentlemen,
the new heavyweight champion
of love.
neck turning, sweat droplets fly glittering
through a strobe of camera flashes as the foot
slips, knees buckling under body crashing to
the canvas, groggy eyes unfocusing, I'm fallen
and I can't get up, ladies and gentlemen,
the new heavyweight champion
of love.
My love for you is quite like an american of ethnic descent
My love for you is quite like an american of ethnic descent,
struggling to find its place in a no-mans land between two cultures.
Should it speak english at home or be true to the language of its
authentic heart? And where can you get that good ethnic food
around here? When the strain of the difference becomes too much,
then the time has come to cease struggling, lay back and surrender
to the universal truth of my love for you.
struggling to find its place in a no-mans land between two cultures.
Should it speak english at home or be true to the language of its
authentic heart? And where can you get that good ethnic food
around here? When the strain of the difference becomes too much,
then the time has come to cease struggling, lay back and surrender
to the universal truth of my love for you.
My love for you is like a goddamned masterpiece
My love for you is like a goddamned masterpiece.
Hang it on the fucking wall for people to gawk.
Who did it? What the fuck does it mean? It
means I fucking love you, baby.
Hang it on the fucking wall for people to gawk.
Who did it? What the fuck does it mean? It
means I fucking love you, baby.
My love for you is like a mighty business
My love for you is like a mighty business,
stimulating the economy and creating
full-time positions for skilled and unskilled
alike. Since its initial public offering, the
stock has risen like a bull market in a field
of bears, bearing you fuzzy tidings
of this love I have.
stimulating the economy and creating
full-time positions for skilled and unskilled
alike. Since its initial public offering, the
stock has risen like a bull market in a field
of bears, bearing you fuzzy tidings
of this love I have.
My love for you is like a hilarious joke
My love for you is like a hilarious joke
doubling people over in laughter as the
punchline comes all unexpected, your
eyes all squinty, your mouth hung open
waiting for someone to explain to you
this love that I have.
doubling people over in laughter as the
punchline comes all unexpected, your
eyes all squinty, your mouth hung open
waiting for someone to explain to you
this love that I have.
This love that I have for you cannot be compared
This love that I have for you cannot be compared
to animals, or to the wind, or to a mythical giant,
swinging his redwood club above the terrified villagers.
It cannot be compared to treasure, or to fine things,
or to sweet memories of forgotten times. In fact,
this love that I have for you can only be compared
to one thing: a poem.
to animals, or to the wind, or to a mythical giant,
swinging his redwood club above the terrified villagers.
It cannot be compared to treasure, or to fine things,
or to sweet memories of forgotten times. In fact,
this love that I have for you can only be compared
to one thing: a poem.
My love for you is dumb like a dog
My love for you is dumb like a dog. He
don't know from hem lengths and hairstyles.
He wants a biscuit. He's got a shiny coat
and strong teeth, because he uses name-
brand scientific dog chow for his dietary needs.
That dumb dog!
don't know from hem lengths and hairstyles.
He wants a biscuit. He's got a shiny coat
and strong teeth, because he uses name-
brand scientific dog chow for his dietary needs.
That dumb dog!
my love for you is like a rippling beast of the jungle
my love for you is like a rippling beast of the jungle
reclining in languid aspect among the high grasses of the veldt
licking from its hideous maw the scraps and remnants
of a raw, bloody breakfast of carnality.
See it stretch to its full terrifying length,
its yawn exposing a jagged cavern of flesh-tearing finality
as it lets out a groaning, echoing roar
eloquent
of this love that I have.
reclining in languid aspect among the high grasses of the veldt
licking from its hideous maw the scraps and remnants
of a raw, bloody breakfast of carnality.
See it stretch to its full terrifying length,
its yawn exposing a jagged cavern of flesh-tearing finality
as it lets out a groaning, echoing roar
eloquent
of this love that I have.
my love for you is a policy decision
my love for you is a policy decision
made at the highest levels of the organization
and strictly enforced all the way down the chain
to the lowliest members of the rank and file
who grumble at the strict enforcement
of this love I have
made at the highest levels of the organization
and strictly enforced all the way down the chain
to the lowliest members of the rank and file
who grumble at the strict enforcement
of this love I have
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