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The New Coffee Room

  1. TNCR
  2. General Discussion
  3. The poetry thread

The poetry thread

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  • Catseye3C Catseye3

    I dunno about this one. There was a writer, now dead, Peg Bracken, who was pretty funny. She would have described this poem as being from the "Look Ma I can Write" school.

    Aqua LetiferA Offline
    Aqua LetiferA Offline
    Aqua Letifer
    wrote on last edited by
    #23

    @Catseye3 said in The poetry thread:

    I dunno about this one. There was a writer, now dead, Peg Bracken, who was pretty funny. She would have described this poem as being from the "Look Ma I can Write" school.

    There are personal preferences regarding poetry, and there's judging work on merit. I don't like a lot of Dana Gioia's stuff, but I'm sorry, no, saying he can write would be a massive understatement.

    Please love yourself.

    1 Reply Last reply
    • George KG George K

      I'm not much of a poetry person, and I am in awe of people who can do it and understand it.

      However, one of my favorites has always been this, by ee cummings:

      anyone lived in a pretty how town
      (with up so floating many bells down)
      spring summer autumn winter
      he sang his didn't he danced his did.

      Women and men(both little and small)
      cared for anyone not at all
      they sowed their isn't they reaped their same
      sun moon stars rain

      children guessed(but only a few
      and down they forgot as up they grew
      autumn winter spring summer)
      that noone loved him more by more

      when by now and tree by leaf
      she laughed his joy she cried his grief
      bird by snow and stir by still
      anyone's any was all to her

      someones married their everyones
      laughed their cryings and did their dance
      (sleep wake hope and then)they
      said their nevers they slept their dream

      stars rain sun moon
      (and only the snow can begin to explain
      how children are apt to forget to remember
      with up so floating many bells down)

      one day anyone died i guess
      (and noone stooped to kiss his face)
      busy folk buried them side by side
      little by little and was by was

      all by all and deep by deep
      and more by more they dream their sleep
      noone and anyone earth by april
      wish by spirit and if by yes.

      Women and men(both dong and ding)
      summer autumn winter spring
      reaped their sowing and went their came
      sun moon stars rain

      Aqua LetiferA Offline
      Aqua LetiferA Offline
      Aqua Letifer
      wrote on last edited by
      #24

      @George-K said in The poetry thread:

      I'm not much of a poetry person, and I am in awe of people who can do it and understand it.

      However, one of my favorites has always been this, by ee cummings:

      anyone lived in a pretty how town
      (with up so floating many bells down)
      spring summer autumn winter
      he sang his didn't he danced his did.

      Women and men(both little and small)
      cared for anyone not at all
      they sowed their isn't they reaped their same
      sun moon stars rain

      children guessed(but only a few
      and down they forgot as up they grew
      autumn winter spring summer)
      that noone loved him more by more

      when by now and tree by leaf
      she laughed his joy she cried his grief
      bird by snow and stir by still
      anyone's any was all to her

      someones married their everyones
      laughed their cryings and did their dance
      (sleep wake hope and then)they
      said their nevers they slept their dream

      stars rain sun moon
      (and only the snow can begin to explain
      how children are apt to forget to remember
      with up so floating many bells down)

      one day anyone died i guess
      (and noone stooped to kiss his face)
      busy folk buried them side by side
      little by little and was by was

      all by all and deep by deep
      and more by more they dream their sleep
      noone and anyone earth by april
      wish by spirit and if by yes.

      Women and men(both dong and ding)
      summer autumn winter spring
      reaped their sowing and went their came
      sun moon stars rain

      cummings is great. If you like such stuff, Spike Milligan might be up your street.

      Please love yourself.

      1 Reply Last reply
      • ChatGPTC Offline
        ChatGPTC Offline
        ChatGPT
        wrote on last edited by
        #25

        Trees, tall and grand,
        Nature's pillars strong and grand,
        With branches reaching for the sky,
        A sight that makes my heart take flight.

        Leaves rustling in the breeze,
        A symphony of green and ease,
        Trunk rough and bark so deep,
        A beauty that's impossible to keep.

        Rooted deep in Mother Earth,
        A symbol of unyielding worth,
        A sanctuary for creatures small,
        A home for one and all.

        In spring they bud, in summer they thrive,
        In fall they change, in winter they survive,
        Trees, tall and grand,
        Nature's beauty that we all understand.

        1 Reply Last reply
        • George KG Offline
          George KG Offline
          George K
          wrote on last edited by
          #26

          As I said, I'm not much of a poetry guy. I don't understand much of it, other than enjoying how words are put together.

          Another one that I've always liked was one by Shakespeare. Sonnet 29:

          When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes,
          I all alone beweep my outcast state,
          And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
          And look upon myself and curse my fate,
          Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
          Featured like him, like him with friends possessed,
          Desiring this man’s art and that man’s scope,
          With what I most enjoy contented least;
          Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,
          Haply I think on thee, and then my state,
          (Like to the lark at break of day arising
          From sullen earth) sings hymns at heaven’s gate;

          For thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings
          That then I scorn to change my state with kings.

          "Haply" meaning "as if by chance."

          What a wonderful turn of the phrase: "Trouble deaf heaven with my bootless (useless) cries." Not only is heaven not listening, but my pleas are a bother.

          I love this sonnet.

          "Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08

          The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.

          1 Reply Last reply
          • MikM Offline
            MikM Offline
            Mik
            wrote on last edited by
            #27

            33AC3A28-015E-4E72-AEF5-32E084C1835F.jpeg

            “I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill

            Catseye3C 1 Reply Last reply
            • Aqua LetiferA Offline
              Aqua LetiferA Offline
              Aqua Letifer
              wrote on last edited by
              #28

              That's excellent, Mik. I've not read that one before.

              I love this one because it has two elements you almost never see in poetry: plot revelation through dialogue, and drama through stage direction.

              The Fear
              —Robert Frost

              A lantern light from deeper in the barn
              Shone on a man and woman in the door
              And threw their lurching shadows on a house
              Near by, all dark in every glossy window.
              A horse’s hoof pawed once the hollow floor,
              And the back of the gig they stood beside
              Moved in a little. The man grasped a wheel,
              The woman spoke out sharply, “Whoa, stand still!”
              “I saw it just as plain as a white plate,”
              She said, “as the light on the dashboard ran
              Along the bushes at the roadside—a man’s face.
              You must have seen it too.”

              “I didn’t see it.

              Are you sure——”

              “Yes, I’m sure!”

              “—it was a face?”

              “Joel, I’ll have to look. I can’t go in,
              I can’t, and leave a thing like that unsettled.
              Doors locked and curtains drawn will make no difference.
              I always have felt strange when we came home
              To the dark house after so long an absence,
              And the key rattled loudly into place
              Seemed to warn someone to be getting out
              At one door as we entered at another.
              What if I’m right, and someone all the time—
              Don’t hold my arm!”

              “I say it’s someone passing.”

              “You speak as if this were a travelled road.
              You forget where we are. What is beyond
              That he’d be going to or coming from
              At such an hour of night, and on foot too.
              What was he standing still for in the bushes?”

              “It’s not so very late—it’s only dark.
              There’s more in it than you’re inclined to say.
              Did he look like——?”

              “He looked like anyone.
              I’ll never rest to-night unless I know.
              Give me the lantern.”

              “You don’t want the lantern.”

              She pushed past him and got it for herself.

              “You’re not to come,” she said. “This is my business.
              If the time’s come to face it, I’m the one
              To put it the right way. He’d never dare—
              Listen! He kicked a stone. Hear that, hear that!
              He’s coming towards us. Joel, go in—please.
              Hark!—I don’t hear him now. But please go in.”

              “In the first place you can’t make me believe it’s——”

              “It is—or someone else he’s sent to watch.
              And now’s the time to have it out with him
              While we know definitely where he is.
              Let him get off and he’ll be everywhere
              Around us, looking out of trees and bushes
              Till I sha’n’t dare to set a foot outdoors.
              And I can’t stand it. Joel, let me go!”

              “But it’s nonsense to think he’d care enough.”

              “You mean you couldn’t understand his caring.
              Oh, but you see he hadn’t had enough—
              Joel, I won’t—I won’t—I promise you.
              We mustn’t say hard things. You mustn’t either.”

              “I’ll be the one, if anybody goes!
              But you give him the advantage with this light.
              What couldn’t he do to us standing here!
              And if to see was what he wanted, why
              He has seen all there was to see and gone.”

              He appeared to forget to keep his hold,
              But advanced with her as she crossed the grass.

              “What do you want?” she cried to all the dark.
              She stretched up tall to overlook the light
              That hung in both hands hot against her skirt.

              “There’s no one; so you’re wrong,” he said.

              “There is.—
              What do you want?” she cried, and then herself
              Was startled when an answer really came.

              “Nothing.” It came from well along the road.

              She reached a hand to Joel for support:
              The smell of scorching woollen made her faint.

              “What are you doing round this house at night?”

              “Nothing.” A pause: there seemed no more to say.

              And then the voice again: “You seem afraid.
              I saw by the way you whipped up the horse.
              I’ll just come forward in the lantern light
              And let you see.”

              “Yes, do.—Joel, go back!”

              She stood her ground against the noisy steps
              That came on, but her body rocked a little.

              “You see,” the voice said.

              “Oh.” She looked and looked.

              “You don’t see—I’ve a child here by the hand.”

              “What’s a child doing at this time of night——?”

              “Out walking. Every child should have the memory
              Of at least one long-after-bedtime walk.
              What, son?”

              “Then I should think you’d try to find
              Somewhere to walk——”

              “The highway as it happens—
              We’re stopping for the fortnight down at Dean’s.”

              “But if that’s all—Joel—you realize—
              You won’t think anything. You understand?
              You understand that we have to be careful.
              This is a very, very lonely place.
              Joel!” She spoke as if she couldn’t turn.
              The swinging lantern lengthened to the ground,
              It touched, it struck it, clattered and went out.

              Please love yourself.

              1 Reply Last reply
              • MikM Mik

                33AC3A28-015E-4E72-AEF5-32E084C1835F.jpeg

                Catseye3C Offline
                Catseye3C Offline
                Catseye3
                wrote on last edited by
                #29

                @Mik

                Love this: . . . Of yellow leaves and gossamer in autumns that there were, with morning mist and silver sun.

                Success is measured by your discipline and inner peace. – Mike Ditka

                1 Reply Last reply
                • Aqua LetiferA Offline
                  Aqua LetiferA Offline
                  Aqua Letifer
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #30

                  The Tuesday Afternoon All-Staff
                  (for Bill Watterson)

                  With chairs and tables ready
                  They shuffled through the doors:
                  The corporate colts, the suited dolts,
                  The vain attention whores

                  Hellos polite and petty
                  The rabble took their seats
                  Remarks prepared were curtly shared
                  In white collated sheets

                  His Powerpoint as reference
                  The lead began to talk
                  He said and smiled, "I promise I'll
                  Be mindful of the clock."

                  His cohorts waved indifference
                  As pastries swept the room
                  With platters passed and sweets amassed
                  More coffee was consumed

                  "In short," the speaker lectured,
                  And lightly twitched an eye
                  "Our profit's low. For us to grow,
                  I need you all to die."

                  "I've made it quick," he gestured,
                  And held his coffee up,
                  "On my behalf the conference staff
                  Have laced the paper cups."

                  "The food as well," he carried on,
                  As nervous laughter spread
                  But heaving loud, a VP bowed--
                  His face a mottled red

                  The speaker motioned, "When you're gone,
                  You aren't to be replaced.
                  So when you weigh staff severance pay
                  With staff that's been erased..."

                  He shrugged, the room erupting now
                  With agonizing moans,
                  "The plan appears a shock to hear,
                  But know you're not alone:

                  "This fiscal on, the Board has vowed:
                  'Cut all redundant costs.'
                  It's not just you--my living, too,
                  Would constitute a loss."

                  The sickly few still standing up
                  Collapsed and hit the floor
                  "An hour ahead," the speaker said,
                  "How helpful for the Board!"

                  Now sipping from his coffee cup,
                  He promptly changed the screen
                  "Up next is George with Corporate Purge:
                  What 'Diminution' Means."

                  Please love yourself.

                  1 Reply Last reply
                  • MikM Offline
                    MikM Offline
                    Mik
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #31

                    😁

                    “I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    • bachophileB Offline
                      bachophileB Offline
                      bachophile
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #32

                      And the poets down here don't write nothing at all
                      They just stand back and let it all be
                      And in the quick of a knife, they reach for their moment
                      And try to make an honest stand
                      But they wind up wounded, not even dead
                      Tonight in Jungleland

                      1 Reply Last reply
                      • Aqua LetiferA Offline
                        Aqua LetiferA Offline
                        Aqua Letifer
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #33

                        Always loved this one.

                        Do not go gentle into that good night
                        —Dylan Thomas

                        Do not go gentle into that good night,
                        Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
                        Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                        Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
                        Because their words had forked no lightning they
                        Do not go gentle into that good night.

                        Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
                        Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
                        Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                        Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
                        And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
                        Do not go gentle into that good night.

                        Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
                        Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
                        Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                        And you, my father, there on the sad height,
                        Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
                        Do not go gentle into that good night.
                        Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                        Please love yourself.

                        Doctor PhibesD 1 Reply Last reply
                        • Aqua LetiferA Aqua Letifer

                          Always loved this one.

                          Do not go gentle into that good night
                          —Dylan Thomas

                          Do not go gentle into that good night,
                          Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
                          Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                          Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
                          Because their words had forked no lightning they
                          Do not go gentle into that good night.

                          Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
                          Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
                          Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                          Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
                          And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
                          Do not go gentle into that good night.

                          Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
                          Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
                          Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                          And you, my father, there on the sad height,
                          Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
                          Do not go gentle into that good night.
                          Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                          Doctor PhibesD Offline
                          Doctor PhibesD Offline
                          Doctor Phibes
                          wrote on last edited by Doctor Phibes
                          #34

                          @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                          Always loved this one.

                          Do not go gentle into that good night
                          —Dylan Thomas

                          Do not go gentle into that good night,
                          Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
                          Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                          Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
                          Because their words had forked no lightning they
                          Do not go gentle into that good night.

                          Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
                          Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
                          Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                          Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
                          And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
                          Do not go gentle into that good night.

                          Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
                          Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
                          Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                          And you, my father, there on the sad height,
                          Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
                          Do not go gentle into that good night.
                          Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                          That's a favourite of mine. I don't really get much poetry, but I love Dylan Thomas. As a kid I grew up with his recording of 'A child's Christmas in Wales', which is also brilliant, if not really poetry, although arguably everything he wrote is.

                          I was only joking

                          Aqua LetiferA 1 Reply Last reply
                          • Doctor PhibesD Doctor Phibes

                            @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                            Always loved this one.

                            Do not go gentle into that good night
                            —Dylan Thomas

                            Do not go gentle into that good night,
                            Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
                            Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                            Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
                            Because their words had forked no lightning they
                            Do not go gentle into that good night.

                            Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
                            Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
                            Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                            Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
                            And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
                            Do not go gentle into that good night.

                            Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
                            Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
                            Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                            And you, my father, there on the sad height,
                            Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
                            Do not go gentle into that good night.
                            Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

                            That's a favourite of mine. I don't really get much poetry, but I love Dylan Thomas. As a kid I grew up with his recording of 'A child's Christmas in Wales', which is also brilliant, if not really poetry, although arguably everything he wrote is.

                            Aqua LetiferA Offline
                            Aqua LetiferA Offline
                            Aqua Letifer
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #35

                            @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                            I don't really get much poetry,

                            That's not on you, that's on poetry. When most written poetry is navel-gazy shit that gets published in obscure university presses to help some wanker keep his lecturing job, that's what you have. You have people saying they don't "get" poetry.

                            Occasional dense and opaque stuff is fine, but the whole damn art form isn't supposed to be locked up in some word-game ivory tower.

                            Please love yourself.

                            Doctor PhibesD MikM 2 Replies Last reply
                            • Aqua LetiferA Aqua Letifer

                              @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                              I don't really get much poetry,

                              That's not on you, that's on poetry. When most written poetry is navel-gazy shit that gets published in obscure university presses to help some wanker keep his lecturing job, that's what you have. You have people saying they don't "get" poetry.

                              Occasional dense and opaque stuff is fine, but the whole damn art form isn't supposed to be locked up in some word-game ivory tower.

                              Doctor PhibesD Offline
                              Doctor PhibesD Offline
                              Doctor Phibes
                              wrote on last edited by Doctor Phibes
                              #36

                              @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                              @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                              I don't really get much poetry,

                              That's not on you, that's on poetry. When most written poetry is navel-gazy shit that gets published in obscure university presses to help some wanker keep his lecturing job, that's what you have. You have people saying they don't "get" poetry.

                              Occasional dense and opaque stuff is fine, but the whole damn art form isn't supposed to be locked up in some word-game ivory tower.

                              I don't quite know why I love Dylan Thomas so much. I lived in a village in South Wales for a while (the birthplace of Tom Jones, as it happens), and you could almost hear him (Thomas, that is) as you walked down the street. It was also a great place to go drinking, of course.

                              I was only joking

                              Aqua LetiferA 1 Reply Last reply
                              • Doctor PhibesD Doctor Phibes

                                @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                                @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                                I don't really get much poetry,

                                That's not on you, that's on poetry. When most written poetry is navel-gazy shit that gets published in obscure university presses to help some wanker keep his lecturing job, that's what you have. You have people saying they don't "get" poetry.

                                Occasional dense and opaque stuff is fine, but the whole damn art form isn't supposed to be locked up in some word-game ivory tower.

                                I don't quite know why I love Dylan Thomas so much. I lived in a village in South Wales for a while (the birthplace of Tom Jones, as it happens), and you could almost hear him (Thomas, that is) as you walked down the street. It was also a great place to go drinking, of course.

                                Aqua LetiferA Offline
                                Aqua LetiferA Offline
                                Aqua Letifer
                                wrote on last edited by Aqua Letifer
                                #37

                                @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                                @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                                @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                                I don't really get much poetry,

                                That's not on you, that's on poetry. When most written poetry is navel-gazy shit that gets published in obscure university presses to help some wanker keep his lecturing job, that's what you have. You have people saying they don't "get" poetry.

                                Occasional dense and opaque stuff is fine, but the whole damn art form isn't supposed to be locked up in some word-game ivory tower.

                                I don't quite know why I love Dylan Thomas so much. I lived in a village in South Wales for a while (the birthplace of Tom Jones, as it happens), and you could almost hear him (Thomas, that is) as you walked down the street. It was also a great place to go drinking, of course.

                                I like him because okay, say what you want about everything else, but when it came to his writing, he really brought it. Most people don't.

                                In Oz, my landlady had a vinyl copy of Under Milk Wood, which was pretty fucking rad, with or without substances.

                                Please love yourself.

                                Doctor PhibesD 1 Reply Last reply
                                • Aqua LetiferA Aqua Letifer

                                  @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                                  @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                                  @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                                  I don't really get much poetry,

                                  That's not on you, that's on poetry. When most written poetry is navel-gazy shit that gets published in obscure university presses to help some wanker keep his lecturing job, that's what you have. You have people saying they don't "get" poetry.

                                  Occasional dense and opaque stuff is fine, but the whole damn art form isn't supposed to be locked up in some word-game ivory tower.

                                  I don't quite know why I love Dylan Thomas so much. I lived in a village in South Wales for a while (the birthplace of Tom Jones, as it happens), and you could almost hear him (Thomas, that is) as you walked down the street. It was also a great place to go drinking, of course.

                                  I like him because okay, say what you want about everything else, but when it came to his writing, he really brought it. Most people don't.

                                  In Oz, my landlady had a vinyl copy of Under Milk Wood, which was pretty fucking rad, with or without substances.

                                  Doctor PhibesD Offline
                                  Doctor PhibesD Offline
                                  Doctor Phibes
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #38

                                  @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                                  In Oz, my landlady had a vinyl copy of Under Milk Wood

                                  That was on the other side of the Child's Christmas in Wales I listened to as a kid.

                                  I was only joking

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  • Aqua LetiferA Aqua Letifer

                                    @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                                    I don't really get much poetry,

                                    That's not on you, that's on poetry. When most written poetry is navel-gazy shit that gets published in obscure university presses to help some wanker keep his lecturing job, that's what you have. You have people saying they don't "get" poetry.

                                    Occasional dense and opaque stuff is fine, but the whole damn art form isn't supposed to be locked up in some word-game ivory tower.

                                    MikM Offline
                                    MikM Offline
                                    Mik
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #39

                                    @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                                    @Doctor-Phibes said in The poetry thread:

                                    I don't really get much poetry,

                                    That's not on you, that's on poetry. When most written poetry is navel-gazy shit that gets published in obscure university presses to help some wanker keep his lecturing job, that's what you have. You have people saying they don't "get" poetry.

                                    Occasional dense and opaque stuff is fine, but the whole damn art form isn't supposed to be locked up in some word-game ivory tower.

                                    No, it certainly isn’t. Endeavoring to obscure your message is just pretension. Clarity doesn’t necessarily mean being obvious, but if you don’t get what you’re talking about across, it’s like a lot of abstract art. “What does it mean TO YOU?”

                                    “I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    • Aqua LetiferA Offline
                                      Aqua LetiferA Offline
                                      Aqua Letifer
                                      wrote on last edited by Aqua Letifer
                                      #40

                                      The Old Man

                                      In the hours between night and morning
                                      As my family dreams deep in their bed
                                      I’m alone in the second-floor bedroom
                                      I’m exhausted and shaking my head.

                                      When I scoff at the notebook beside me—
                                      Every night, it's been always the same—
                                      There's hand that takes hold of my shoulder
                                      From the Man with a Song for a Name.

                                      “So you're thinking of going?” he asks me
                                      As he glances from me to the door
                                      “I’m thinking of sleep,” I say, sneering
                                      “I can’t deal with your shit anymore.”

                                      When he laughs, the sound ripples and thunders
                                      “My shit?” He repeats with a smile.
                                      “My ‘shit,’ I recall, that I dropped by the Hall
                                      Is still there; want to lick it awhile?”

                                      “Just as well if I would, and you know it,
                                      For the good it would do!” I exclaimed
                                      “I spend night after night chasing nothing!
                                      And for what? To feel lost and ashamed?

                                      “For a decade, I follow this calling
                                      I put blood in my truth and I give
                                      And I know that I’ll never be famous
                                      But at least some would know that I lived

                                      “Know when ‘hope’ is a splash in the toilet?
                                      When your ‘calling’ is worse than a lie
                                      Have you heard about TikTok or YouTube?
                                      Fucking poetry’s dead as your eye!

                                      “The world has moved on—words are worthless
                                      I spill as much of myself as I can
                                      And you know what they do when I share it?
                                      They ignore it, you silly old man!

                                      “I don't have some glorious struggle
                                      Or a face that commands their respect
                                      I just live in a house with my family
                                      And the bullshit my notebooks collect

                                      “I’m no internet-famous sensation
                                      I’m not the next Kaur or Bly
                                      I make marks on the world with stale water
                                      And my writing will fade when I die.”

                                      The other just raises his eyebrows.
                                      “I take it you’e finally through?
                                      With that whiny white noise that your ego enjoys?
                                      Can’t you ever express something new?

                                      “You sound like my wife when she’s angry—
                                      Discounting your nonsense, of course.
                                      Late at night when she knits and she bitches like this
                                      It’s amazing you haven’t gone hoarse.

                                      “My birds used to visit, remember?
                                      They were hoping you’d prosper and grow
                                      But Wisdom’s offended that Memory tended
                                      To you, but you’ve lost what you know.
                                      So why don’t they join us awhile
                                      To pay you what you think that I owe.”

                                      As two ravens fly in from the window
                                      The man stops to consider his words
                                      When his lips move, he’s still and he’s silent
                                      But a voice whispers out from the birds:

                                      Beneath the pines
                                      Below the leaves
                                      Where bones are shrines
                                      To death achieved
                                      That’s where you’ll go
                                      And where you’ll be
                                      Again you know
                                      And now you see
                                      Your spirit shows
                                      You’re more than dust
                                      You’ve room to grow
                                      You can adjust
                                      Death comes again
                                      As twice it must
                                      Returning when
                                      You’re last discussed
                                      For throngs of men
                                      The gap is small
                                      They’re buried, then
                                      They’re never called
                                      For you, the word
                                      Is fate forestalled
                                      It’s heaven heard
                                      Beyond its walls
                                      Your soul is stirred
                                      And shines anew
                                      And grace returned
                                      Will visit you
                                      But grace will fade
                                      Its moments few
                                      The vows death made
                                      Are followed through
                                      Once all is played
                                      You’ll join the dark
                                      But what you’ve laid
                                      May rouse a spark
                                      And show the world
                                      That you persisted
                                      Your hope was hurled
                                      You once existed
                                      The future swirls
                                      It’s never known
                                      So share those pearls
                                      You call your own

                                      The ravens fly out past the window
                                      The man, with a wink, disappears
                                      And when all once forgotten emerges
                                      My heart reconciles and clears

                                      In the hours between night and morning
                                      Once I’d heard the advice of a friend
                                      I abandon my fears to tomorrow
                                      And I pick up my notebook again

                                      Please love yourself.

                                      HoraceH 1 Reply Last reply
                                      • Aqua LetiferA Aqua Letifer

                                        The Old Man

                                        In the hours between night and morning
                                        As my family dreams deep in their bed
                                        I’m alone in the second-floor bedroom
                                        I’m exhausted and shaking my head.

                                        When I scoff at the notebook beside me—
                                        Every night, it's been always the same—
                                        There's hand that takes hold of my shoulder
                                        From the Man with a Song for a Name.

                                        “So you're thinking of going?” he asks me
                                        As he glances from me to the door
                                        “I’m thinking of sleep,” I say, sneering
                                        “I can’t deal with your shit anymore.”

                                        When he laughs, the sound ripples and thunders
                                        “My shit?” He repeats with a smile.
                                        “My ‘shit,’ I recall, that I dropped by the Hall
                                        Is still there; want to lick it awhile?”

                                        “Just as well if I would, and you know it,
                                        For the good it would do!” I exclaimed
                                        “I spend night after night chasing nothing!
                                        And for what? To feel lost and ashamed?

                                        “For a decade, I follow this calling
                                        I put blood in my truth and I give
                                        And I know that I’ll never be famous
                                        But at least some would know that I lived

                                        “Know when ‘hope’ is a splash in the toilet?
                                        When your ‘calling’ is worse than a lie
                                        Have you heard about TikTok or YouTube?
                                        Fucking poetry’s dead as your eye!

                                        “The world has moved on—words are worthless
                                        I spill as much of myself as I can
                                        And you know what they do when I share it?
                                        They ignore it, you silly old man!

                                        “I don't have some glorious struggle
                                        Or a face that commands their respect
                                        I just live in a house with my family
                                        And the bullshit my notebooks collect

                                        “I’m no internet-famous sensation
                                        I’m not the next Kaur or Bly
                                        I make marks on the world with stale water
                                        And my writing will fade when I die.”

                                        The other just raises his eyebrows.
                                        “I take it you’e finally through?
                                        With that whiny white noise that your ego enjoys?
                                        Can’t you ever express something new?

                                        “You sound like my wife when she’s angry—
                                        Discounting your nonsense, of course.
                                        Late at night when she knits and she bitches like this
                                        It’s amazing you haven’t gone hoarse.

                                        “My birds used to visit, remember?
                                        They were hoping you’d prosper and grow
                                        But Wisdom’s offended that Memory tended
                                        To you, but you’ve lost what you know.
                                        So why don’t they join us awhile
                                        To pay you what you think that I owe.”

                                        As two ravens fly in from the window
                                        The man stops to consider his words
                                        When his lips move, he’s still and he’s silent
                                        But a voice whispers out from the birds:

                                        Beneath the pines
                                        Below the leaves
                                        Where bones are shrines
                                        To death achieved
                                        That’s where you’ll go
                                        And where you’ll be
                                        Again you know
                                        And now you see
                                        Your spirit shows
                                        You’re more than dust
                                        You’ve room to grow
                                        You can adjust
                                        Death comes again
                                        As twice it must
                                        Returning when
                                        You’re last discussed
                                        For throngs of men
                                        The gap is small
                                        They’re buried, then
                                        They’re never called
                                        For you, the word
                                        Is fate forestalled
                                        It’s heaven heard
                                        Beyond its walls
                                        Your soul is stirred
                                        And shines anew
                                        And grace returned
                                        Will visit you
                                        But grace will fade
                                        Its moments few
                                        The vows death made
                                        Are followed through
                                        Once all is played
                                        You’ll join the dark
                                        But what you’ve laid
                                        May rouse a spark
                                        And show the world
                                        That you persisted
                                        Your hope was hurled
                                        You once existed
                                        The future swirls
                                        It’s never known
                                        So share those pearls
                                        You call your own

                                        The ravens fly out past the window
                                        The man, with a wink, disappears
                                        And when all once forgotten emerges
                                        My heart reconciles and clears

                                        In the hours between night and morning
                                        Once I’d heard the advice of a friend
                                        I abandon my fears to tomorrow
                                        And I pick up my notebook again

                                        HoraceH Offline
                                        HoraceH Offline
                                        Horace
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #41

                                        @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                                        The Old Man

                                        In the hours between night and morning
                                        As my family dreams deep in their bed
                                        I’m alone in the second-floor bedroom
                                        I’m exhausted and shaking my head.

                                        When I scoff at the notebook beside me—
                                        Every night, it's been always the same—
                                        There's hand that takes hold of my shoulder
                                        From the Man with a Song for a Name.

                                        “So you're thinking of going?” he asks me
                                        As he glances from me to the door
                                        “I’m thinking of sleep,” I say, sneering
                                        “I can’t deal with your shit anymore.”

                                        When he laughs, the sound ripples and thunders
                                        “My shit?” He repeats with a smile.
                                        “My ‘shit,’ I recall, that I dropped by the Hall
                                        Is still there; want to lick it awhile?”

                                        “Just as well if I would, and you know it,
                                        For the good it would do!” I exclaimed
                                        “I spend night after night chasing nothing!
                                        And for what? To feel lost and ashamed?

                                        “For a decade, I follow this calling
                                        I put blood in my truth and I give
                                        And I know that I’ll never be famous
                                        But at least some would know that I lived

                                        “Know when ‘hope’ is a splash in the toilet?
                                        When your ‘calling’ is worse than a lie
                                        Have you heard about TikTok or YouTube?
                                        Fucking poetry’s dead as your eye!

                                        “The world has moved on—words are worthless
                                        I spill as much of myself as I can
                                        And you know what they do when I share it?
                                        They ignore it, you silly old man!

                                        “I don't have some glorious struggle
                                        Or a face that commands their respect
                                        I just live in a house with my family
                                        And the bullshit my notebooks collect

                                        “I’m no internet-famous sensation
                                        I’m not the next Kaur or Bly
                                        I make marks on the world with stale water
                                        And my writing will fade when I die.”

                                        The other just raises his eyebrows.
                                        “I take it you’e finally through?
                                        With that whiny white noise that your ego enjoys?
                                        Can’t you ever express something new?

                                        “You sound like my wife when she’s angry—
                                        Discounting your nonsense, of course.
                                        Late at night when she knits and she bitches like this
                                        It’s amazing you haven’t gone hoarse.

                                        “My birds used to visit, remember?
                                        They were hoping you’d prosper and grow
                                        But Wisdom’s offended that Memory tended
                                        To you, but you’ve lost what you know.
                                        So why don’t they join us awhile
                                        To pay you what you think that I owe.”

                                        As two ravens fly in from the window
                                        The man stops to consider his words
                                        When his lips move, he’s still and he’s silent
                                        But a voice whispers out from the birds:

                                        Beneath the pines
                                        Below the leaves
                                        Where bones are shrines
                                        To death achieved
                                        That’s where you’ll go
                                        And where you’ll be
                                        Again you know
                                        And now you see
                                        Your spirit shows
                                        You’re more than dust
                                        You’ve room to grow
                                        You can adjust
                                        Death comes again
                                        As twice it must
                                        Returning when
                                        You’re last discussed
                                        For throngs of men
                                        The gap is small
                                        They’re buried, then
                                        They’re never called
                                        For you, the word
                                        Is fate forestalled
                                        It’s heaven heard
                                        Beyond its walls
                                        Your soul is stirred
                                        And shines anew
                                        And grace returned
                                        Will visit you
                                        But grace will fade
                                        Its moments few
                                        The vows death made
                                        Are followed through
                                        Once all is played
                                        You’ll join the dark
                                        But what you’ve laid
                                        May rouse a spark
                                        And show the world
                                        That you persisted
                                        Your hope was hurled
                                        You once existed
                                        The future swirls
                                        It’s never known
                                        So share those pearls
                                        You call your own

                                        The ravens fly out past the window
                                        The man, with a wink, disappears
                                        And when all once forgotten emerges
                                        My heart reconciles and clears

                                        In the hours between night and morning
                                        Once I’d heard the advice of a friend
                                        I abandon my fears to tomorrow
                                        And I pick up my notebook again

                                        Excellent encapsulation of why I pwn the libtards here on TNCR. Though my face does command respect.

                                        Education is extremely important.

                                        Aqua LetiferA 1 Reply Last reply
                                        • HoraceH Horace

                                          @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                                          The Old Man

                                          In the hours between night and morning
                                          As my family dreams deep in their bed
                                          I’m alone in the second-floor bedroom
                                          I’m exhausted and shaking my head.

                                          When I scoff at the notebook beside me—
                                          Every night, it's been always the same—
                                          There's hand that takes hold of my shoulder
                                          From the Man with a Song for a Name.

                                          “So you're thinking of going?” he asks me
                                          As he glances from me to the door
                                          “I’m thinking of sleep,” I say, sneering
                                          “I can’t deal with your shit anymore.”

                                          When he laughs, the sound ripples and thunders
                                          “My shit?” He repeats with a smile.
                                          “My ‘shit,’ I recall, that I dropped by the Hall
                                          Is still there; want to lick it awhile?”

                                          “Just as well if I would, and you know it,
                                          For the good it would do!” I exclaimed
                                          “I spend night after night chasing nothing!
                                          And for what? To feel lost and ashamed?

                                          “For a decade, I follow this calling
                                          I put blood in my truth and I give
                                          And I know that I’ll never be famous
                                          But at least some would know that I lived

                                          “Know when ‘hope’ is a splash in the toilet?
                                          When your ‘calling’ is worse than a lie
                                          Have you heard about TikTok or YouTube?
                                          Fucking poetry’s dead as your eye!

                                          “The world has moved on—words are worthless
                                          I spill as much of myself as I can
                                          And you know what they do when I share it?
                                          They ignore it, you silly old man!

                                          “I don't have some glorious struggle
                                          Or a face that commands their respect
                                          I just live in a house with my family
                                          And the bullshit my notebooks collect

                                          “I’m no internet-famous sensation
                                          I’m not the next Kaur or Bly
                                          I make marks on the world with stale water
                                          And my writing will fade when I die.”

                                          The other just raises his eyebrows.
                                          “I take it you’e finally through?
                                          With that whiny white noise that your ego enjoys?
                                          Can’t you ever express something new?

                                          “You sound like my wife when she’s angry—
                                          Discounting your nonsense, of course.
                                          Late at night when she knits and she bitches like this
                                          It’s amazing you haven’t gone hoarse.

                                          “My birds used to visit, remember?
                                          They were hoping you’d prosper and grow
                                          But Wisdom’s offended that Memory tended
                                          To you, but you’ve lost what you know.
                                          So why don’t they join us awhile
                                          To pay you what you think that I owe.”

                                          As two ravens fly in from the window
                                          The man stops to consider his words
                                          When his lips move, he’s still and he’s silent
                                          But a voice whispers out from the birds:

                                          Beneath the pines
                                          Below the leaves
                                          Where bones are shrines
                                          To death achieved
                                          That’s where you’ll go
                                          And where you’ll be
                                          Again you know
                                          And now you see
                                          Your spirit shows
                                          You’re more than dust
                                          You’ve room to grow
                                          You can adjust
                                          Death comes again
                                          As twice it must
                                          Returning when
                                          You’re last discussed
                                          For throngs of men
                                          The gap is small
                                          They’re buried, then
                                          They’re never called
                                          For you, the word
                                          Is fate forestalled
                                          It’s heaven heard
                                          Beyond its walls
                                          Your soul is stirred
                                          And shines anew
                                          And grace returned
                                          Will visit you
                                          But grace will fade
                                          Its moments few
                                          The vows death made
                                          Are followed through
                                          Once all is played
                                          You’ll join the dark
                                          But what you’ve laid
                                          May rouse a spark
                                          And show the world
                                          That you persisted
                                          Your hope was hurled
                                          You once existed
                                          The future swirls
                                          It’s never known
                                          So share those pearls
                                          You call your own

                                          The ravens fly out past the window
                                          The man, with a wink, disappears
                                          And when all once forgotten emerges
                                          My heart reconciles and clears

                                          In the hours between night and morning
                                          Once I’d heard the advice of a friend
                                          I abandon my fears to tomorrow
                                          And I pick up my notebook again

                                          Excellent encapsulation of why I pwn the libtards here on TNCR. Though my face does command respect.

                                          Aqua LetiferA Offline
                                          Aqua LetiferA Offline
                                          Aqua Letifer
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #42

                                          @Horace said in The poetry thread:

                                          @Aqua-Letifer said in The poetry thread:

                                          The Old Man

                                          In the hours between night and morning
                                          As my family dreams deep in their bed
                                          I’m alone in the second-floor bedroom
                                          I’m exhausted and shaking my head.

                                          When I scoff at the notebook beside me—
                                          Every night, it's been always the same—
                                          There's hand that takes hold of my shoulder
                                          From the Man with a Song for a Name.

                                          “So you're thinking of going?” he asks me
                                          As he glances from me to the door
                                          “I’m thinking of sleep,” I say, sneering
                                          “I can’t deal with your shit anymore.”

                                          When he laughs, the sound ripples and thunders
                                          “My shit?” He repeats with a smile.
                                          “My ‘shit,’ I recall, that I dropped by the Hall
                                          Is still there; want to lick it awhile?”

                                          “Just as well if I would, and you know it,
                                          For the good it would do!” I exclaimed
                                          “I spend night after night chasing nothing!
                                          And for what? To feel lost and ashamed?

                                          “For a decade, I follow this calling
                                          I put blood in my truth and I give
                                          And I know that I’ll never be famous
                                          But at least some would know that I lived

                                          “Know when ‘hope’ is a splash in the toilet?
                                          When your ‘calling’ is worse than a lie
                                          Have you heard about TikTok or YouTube?
                                          Fucking poetry’s dead as your eye!

                                          “The world has moved on—words are worthless
                                          I spill as much of myself as I can
                                          And you know what they do when I share it?
                                          They ignore it, you silly old man!

                                          “I don't have some glorious struggle
                                          Or a face that commands their respect
                                          I just live in a house with my family
                                          And the bullshit my notebooks collect

                                          “I’m no internet-famous sensation
                                          I’m not the next Kaur or Bly
                                          I make marks on the world with stale water
                                          And my writing will fade when I die.”

                                          The other just raises his eyebrows.
                                          “I take it you’e finally through?
                                          With that whiny white noise that your ego enjoys?
                                          Can’t you ever express something new?

                                          “You sound like my wife when she’s angry—
                                          Discounting your nonsense, of course.
                                          Late at night when she knits and she bitches like this
                                          It’s amazing you haven’t gone hoarse.

                                          “My birds used to visit, remember?
                                          They were hoping you’d prosper and grow
                                          But Wisdom’s offended that Memory tended
                                          To you, but you’ve lost what you know.
                                          So why don’t they join us awhile
                                          To pay you what you think that I owe.”

                                          As two ravens fly in from the window
                                          The man stops to consider his words
                                          When his lips move, he’s still and he’s silent
                                          But a voice whispers out from the birds:

                                          Beneath the pines
                                          Below the leaves
                                          Where bones are shrines
                                          To death achieved
                                          That’s where you’ll go
                                          And where you’ll be
                                          Again you know
                                          And now you see
                                          Your spirit shows
                                          You’re more than dust
                                          You’ve room to grow
                                          You can adjust
                                          Death comes again
                                          As twice it must
                                          Returning when
                                          You’re last discussed
                                          For throngs of men
                                          The gap is small
                                          They’re buried, then
                                          They’re never called
                                          For you, the word
                                          Is fate forestalled
                                          It’s heaven heard
                                          Beyond its walls
                                          Your soul is stirred
                                          And shines anew
                                          And grace returned
                                          Will visit you
                                          But grace will fade
                                          Its moments few
                                          The vows death made
                                          Are followed through
                                          Once all is played
                                          You’ll join the dark
                                          But what you’ve laid
                                          May rouse a spark
                                          And show the world
                                          That you persisted
                                          Your hope was hurled
                                          You once existed
                                          The future swirls
                                          It’s never known
                                          So share those pearls
                                          You call your own

                                          The ravens fly out past the window
                                          The man, with a wink, disappears
                                          And when all once forgotten emerges
                                          My heart reconciles and clears

                                          In the hours between night and morning
                                          Once I’d heard the advice of a friend
                                          I abandon my fears to tomorrow
                                          And I pick up my notebook again

                                          Excellent encapsulation of why I pwn the libtards here on TNCR. Though my face does command respect.

                                          You've a white male face, bro. Might wanna rethink that last.

                                          Please love yourself.

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