Best Atavistic Poems
Dog Days Endure
Sirius, rising with late summer sun,
Dog star, your timeless tour has just begun.
Sweet sultry lazy days beside the lake,
These precious waning days of swimming fun.
How I'll miss the warmth this season bestows
As romance dwells in soft full moon that glows.
I will miss the ducks that soon will fly south,
I'll miss my sandals baring naked toes.
Atavistic admiration will buy
These glorious last latent days from sky
Until autumn breezes in with her chill
And I will welcome hues and will not sigh,
For each season has beauty that's unique
With shades of glory in milieu mystique.
Each a blessing progressing to the next
Till then, let dog days gift the joys I seek.
9-29-18
~8th Place Premiere Contest~
Contest judged 12/1/18
(A Rubaiyat is a Quatrain with a rhyme
scheme of AABA, CCDC, EEFE, etc.).
Sponsor Gregory Richard Barden
Burn the bush and eat the fruit.
Take everything you can from this life.
It’s not meant to last
And you came first
Rules of the desert
Leave the dead and wounded behind.
Bushman, atavistic warrior
Live by the spear and die by the machete
An AK47 by your side.
Sixteen years old
Never felt true love
Lying there in death
Bleeding from your mouth
The roses of humanity
Have left their thorns in your throat
You never cried
You never laughed
You barely lived
And then you died.
Some dude from
vinyl city revs engine
of his dirt bike to the max
blasting the air
testosterone roars throughout
his every bone and fiber
broadcasting deafening
nauseating mating clear
*****sapien primal
(atavistic urge) culled dear
ring lee from bajillion
years old genealogy,
sans chromosomal
blueprint in heir
writ tens of thou
sands sieve generations
ah...momentarily, there
pervades a stillness,
which golden imponderable
silence savored heavenly,
gloriously, and fully with delight,
unsure when the next fume ming
fuel blast will excite
the truant high
school kid delinquent
stinting precious
education, viz flight
o' fancy to race beginning
at dawns early light
ear splitting unmuffled
noise pollution,
where exhaust smoke billows
akin to tethered kite
blending with rarified
atmosphere height,
as wisps snake
skyward eventually
getting dispersed amidst bright
amidst soundcloud
clear out of sight,
which brief interlude of quietude
near painful silence to bear
ah...thank dog the
wind in the willows
soon replete with blare
ring blitzkrieg bomb
bard ding doth declare
ring foolish time
wasting youth
desultory cavalierly,
blithely and aimlessly gear
rill less lee spinning away life
with nary a blues clues care!
A hiding place, a warm and darkened room,
A lit doorway, bright against the dark,
Cold against the warmth, a frame for odd
Assorted stranger-forms whose faces loom
As quarrels over (what?) convulse and rend them,
Leering laughter giving in to vicious
Sneers, bared fangs, silent snarls
Of wretched, clutching, atavistic mayhem,
A terror once removed. Inside that hole
Distant from the proximal horrid window
Where twisted evil shadow-puppets fight
Peculiar faint amusement seems to roll
Like waves around the cave, detached and born
Of safety via distance, of certainty
That out would never be in, that warmth was safe,
That war above, so far away, forlorn,
Could be watched as from a languid seat
Far recessed in a darkened empty theater,
Nestled snugly, listening to the voice
Which comments on the raging battle heat.
From somewhere up, behind, not left nor right,
But from the center, voice and fight both
Directly sensed, as if they each occurred
In a vacuum, touch and smell, sound and sight
Being interchangeable and void.
The fighters jab and poke, madly gouge,
And neither gains advantage, being justly
Matched, as both are faceless, the man
At left pitted fair against the shrewish
Plot of his opponent, evil woman.
Both in turn appeal for judgment, turning
Away from fighting to glare and wave and hiss
Silently for a verdict on the ghastly driven
Feud which now has stopped, as it began,
Abruptly, and receiving none, for in
The silence no answer can be given
(Besides which, being taken by surprise
And overcome by sudden fear, aware
Of change in circumstance) the watcher is mute,
The murderous woman lunges at his very eyes
In deadly assault, bent on maiming, killing,
Groping fiercely at his open throat
For no apparent reason; and the comfort
Of the soothing voice utterly halts.
Words without sound fly like spears between them
Accusatory fingers gesture madly
And spittle from their half-crazed livid mouths
Wings through air in visual acid anthem
To this grisly deadly tandem fight
That seems the worse being set in relief
By the rectangular hole that serves as both
Window and door, divider of dark and light,
No protection, as threshold battle threatens
Him within, as blind hatred rages
In deft slashes of lengthy fingernails
While foe from foe extracts macabre debt.
Look for this tragic dilemma:
either people have reached the real powers
and handled the weal of engine
or government done the same
wiped people completely out
from ruling, managing and controling.
Either nation harnessed rulers
through election, freedoms
and other democratic institutions and values,
either rulers slipped away again and again
from common monitoring,
hooked heavily country by its gills.
At first scenario your fate going gradually
for recovering and prosperity
maybe slowly, after some disasters and calamities,
discherishes and dishonesties
under the guide by community,
but never lost hopes
the people who harnessed powers.
In the second case
when government bodies
took powers on theirs hand
the unhappy country and people
drifted slowly and implacable
for the stagnation and dying
through killing freedoms and justice
in police, mass-media, election,
eventually fatally
all structure descended to repressions.
unjustice, wars, starvation, deficient
and multiple lacks and problems
so familiar for Soviet empire
in its 7O year biography:
theirs birth, increasing,
pride, glory
and total worthlessness
and bankruptcy.
Our world has kept many other tragic examples
of enfoldment the worthiest scenarios
Look for the North Korean regime
or what happened with Cuba
under the life-long ruling of brave Fidel Castro,
honestly say two thirdth of all nation and countries
can not to learn this art
for their government firmly harnessing.
They appointment person, presidents and prime-ministers
slip away from common control
leading with their atavistic desires are sordid and sinister.
God bless USA and West as whole
to be a good teachers for this world
that is the best advice that I told
for the mine and next generations
who don’t want sacrifice their precious lives
for the bad and cruel guiding at all.
A kiss on the forehead
Is a gesture of betrayal
It's not a kiss of love
Filled with joy and humor.
It would be better to kiss a dog
Which is as silent as a wandering
Moron in the Latin quarters.
Oh! Poor are those who smile
To these words emanating from a place
Where everyone has atavistic rights
Despite the silly threats of the accursed.
A kiss on the forehead
Is a sign of punishment
It is an act of treason.
P.S. Translation of ‘ Un Baiser Sur Le Front’
By Hébert Logerie.
Copyright © May 2022, Hébert Logerie, All rights reserved
Hébert Logerie is the author of several collections of poetry.
Late at night I hear the monkey’s laughing in the jungle
They are burning an effigy
And they find it more than amusing
They find it comforting.
They built it out of broken dreams and green cards.
It was no accident that they built it
The moon and the tides gave them no choice
As it burns the night screams
And I wait for the dawn.
Tenuous as it may be I can wait
For I am still taking apart my nightmares
And putting them on the workbench to toil over
To reassemble and to ponder
I never read the instructions I just go with my gut.
As I look through the trees I see the burning light
And I wonder why it looks familiar to me.
What will the ashes tell the seer?
He was a man who lived liked an animal?
He was anonymous to feelings and life.
Atavistic to the end, destined to die but never to live.
Up river they all seem to know the truth
It’s simple: keep the primates happy
And they will leave your soul alone.
I hang my head out of a window and howl at the moon
She smiles back benign and hopeful
I think about the other side; cold and dark
And then I realize the fire in the jungle is to drive away my fear
And it all makes sense.
Volition, orientation familiarization aahing
and oohing within restrictive paradigm molding
inviolable honorable gentility -
flagrantly, desirously, clearly boyz abandoning
willfully skirting, panting (heavily)
forfeiting abominably, (no Joe King) abiding
chomping at bit, damning delineated, or obscure
parameters, between one acceding
Earthlinked selfish living
psychosexual pining human bing,
and another ardently avowedly ambitious
altruistic agent provocateur (lol)
at first blush hinting Moulin Rouge adulation
under dim (witted) lighting accenting
individual randy salient
traits savoring tête-à-tête
tasty hors d'oeuvres accentuating
nuances highlighting flirtatious countenance
initially unconditionally stubbornly accepting
dire hormonal straits
as prickly fledgling acquaintanceship
quivers, negotiates, kickstarts abolishing
inchoate biochemical protracted coupling
conveniently interpreting accessing
breeching, catapulting Dickensian estuary,
non verbal communication nsync abridging
painstakingly erecting complex edifice
suavely, urbanely, wittily accessorising
tried and truevalue tricks acclaiming
debonair heroic manliness princely
qualities dutifully dominate directing
demure damsel in distress absconding
convincing, foreplaying, jimmying,
rollicking readily acclimatizing
challenges thrust up gracefully parlaying
most savvy serious similarly sophisticated
totally tubular testosterone tactics
versatile repartee accomplishing
dynamics cultivating atavistic romantic ballet
on duh poe whit tick abutting
metaphorical foot accoutering
trappings adorned since mythological
Adam and Eve accrediting
latter, sans virile unavoidable temptation
savoir faire verboten fruit, accelerating
action whereby unsuspecting, slithering,
lurking serpent teen accounting
rattle unheard by apse cent church fathers
subsequently excoriating, condemning, accusing,
nonetheless indomitable transcendence achieving
pinnacle of prostrate poignancy
inexpressible ecstasy acquiescing
nonpareil acquisition adulation activating
ascendence assaying administering
amorousness activating. aching.
Twittered Via Chilled Wren
At Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
Prior carte blanche to confessing illicit
extra-marital affair
I embolden tomb ache
elicit, and baldly bare
faced laid out some
of the sordid details clear
embarrassed at one escapade
in particular constituting dear
peppy's questing randy romping caper
necessitating vigilance 'ere
a park ranger, (or other unsuspecting
winter weather way
Farer attired in gear
adequately bundled
cold as a witch's tit
seasoned trooper)
reluctantly repeated here
(unforgettable if only be
cause this "FAKE" Casanova ace
thee Missus i.e.wife)
did conversationally chase
beseeched, hen pecked,
and implored me NOT to erase
boot to recount with (itty bitty)
Monty Python glory, a straight face,
that one particular amazingly grace
obviously penned up,
and not in the write
mind (pre poetry daze),
which scurrilous anecdote
did (and still does) in vite
guffawing, sans
peculiar public philandering,
with atavistic cave man
designs tried to unite
where daunting phallus spite
confronting Arctic Vortex when right
lee let loose from pants
froze like a little popsicle quite
purposely remained flaccid
leaving me in a penile plight
when trying to hump
(standing up like a good Knight
comically ridiculous travesty)
With Barbara B****, light
of adventurous Green Beret spirit, the
Unabashed MILF about average height
fifty years, whose busty bosom
silicone breast implants
tell tale viz radiation
and chemo therapy fight
(resulting from post
Ductal Carcinoma in situ)
needless to tell
nary an erectile spell
Asper tinker soldier
tailor spy didst quell
basic animal instinct,
and feral gonadal horniness
with intent to consummate sexual intercourse
according tummy ought to occur,
cuz that blustery air
mirroring said day when hell
nearly froze over invoking
intervention from Cain and/or Abel.
Thus when prick remained
limp and nearly frost bitten
(at a boulder christened cock rock),
aye frostily smitten
slogging wet sneakers, thru
knee high snow...now, no mo' tubby written.
They killed him
And dug a pit to bury the body
Unaware of a pack of wolves waiting
In the cavity of woods; their eyes burning
In passion for live food;earth soaking
The smell of blood, some wafting
To the swelled nostrils
whipping atavistic appetites
in all who were awake
In this chill.
The dead man sleeps.
Because She Craved the Very Best
by Michael R. Burch
Because she craved the very best,
he took her East, he took her West;
he took her where there were no wars
and brought her bright bouquets of stars,
the blush and fragrances of roses,
the hush an evening sky imposes,
moonbeams pale and garlands rare,
and golden combs to match her hair,
a nightingale to sing all night,
white wings, to let her soul take flight ...
She stabbed him with a poisoned sting
and as he lay there dying,
she screamed, "I wanted everything!"
and started crying.
Keywords/Tags: Rose, Roses, Flowers, Materialism, Possessions, Shallow, Shallowness, Greedy, Greediness, Desire, Lust, Craving, Cravings, Gift, Gifts, Gift-Giving, Ingratitude, Ungrateful, Ungratefulness, Pomp, Circumstance
What The Roses Don’t Say
by Michael R. Burch
Oblivious to love, the roses bloom
and never touch . . . They gather calm and still
to watch the busy insects swarm their leaves . . .
They sway, bemused . . . till rain falls with a chill
stark premonition: ice! . . . and then they twitch
in shock at every outrage . . . Soon they’ll blush
a paler scarlet, humbled in their beds,
for they’ll be naked; worse, their leaves will droop,
their petals quickly wither . . . Spindly thorns
are poor defense against the winter’s onslaught . . .
No, they are roses. Men should be afraid.
The Monarch’s Rose or The Hedgerow Rose
by Michael R. Burch
I lead you here to pluck this florid rose
still tethered to its post, a dreary mass
propped up to stiff attention, winsome-thorned
(what hand was ever daunted less to touch
such flame, in blatant disregard of all
but atavistic beauty)? Does this rose
not symbolize our love? But as I place
its emblem to your breast, how can this poem,
long centuries deflowered, not debase
all art, if merely genuine, but not
“original”? Love, how can reused words
though frailer than all petals, bent by air
to lovelier contortions, still persist,
defying even gravity? For here
beat Monarch’s wings: they rise on emptiness!
a tsunami catapulted cruising skiff
skyward landing with quiet thud
across undulating infinite granular waves
formerly solid state rocks and minerals
optimism vibrant upon initial unforeseen
crash asper for test dummies
foundered as undertow fostered diminishing hope
initial faith for survival quickly ebbed
nsync with retreating tidal wave
pessimism dreamt fantastical holograms
farther from beached berth
immediately transformed into quicksand,
while off in the distance
a glimmering chimera
(the first of many) appeared
amidst the desert sands one mirage
after another falsely broken promise
buoyed drained salvation
quick decision decreed each man for himself
thus disseminating banded bruited "brothers"
condemnation, damnation, excoriation, fulmination
hurled at cosmic creator thwarting intercession
dehydration, exhaustion, ingratiation, jubilation
foretold merciless portentous demise
witheringly desiccating lovely bones of mine
no doubt raw elements of nature wrought
fate worse than death sans, cabin "mates"
lost among expanse of whittled quartz
across chronometer measuring millions of years
now subjecting one measly mortal i.e. me
to cruel unforgiving, unrelenting,
unwelcoming petty coated junction
blistering hot wind obliterated
fellow travelers convoy deeply
within diabolical dunes
eternally erased doom
awaited for 21st century explorers
to discover scattered wreckage
both beast of burden, outrigged contrivance
and starry trekkers, who vanished without a trace
a handful of scrappy rapscallion existences
blotted (like ink, oil, or other liquid sponged),
where subsequent seasons
of wicked bewitched slow torture
akin to being raked over hot coals
exception made for this interminable sufferer
at the whim of sadistic
persona non grata evil spirit
n'er obliterating diehard survivor instinct
a foreigner to yours truly
but atavistic primitive fight or flight
witnessed relieved whence absently blinking
this life married to indiscriminate
clamped, harried, styled devilishness
evaporated in thin air
upon tentatively opening myopic brown eyes
horror, twas boot a dream.
Wrestle with me; the small voice weighs
as does your brother when he prays.
There's much so wrong, but also right
I can council if you invite;
Shepherd your tenet when it strays.
Don't live in atavistic daze;
closed minds the playground where He preys.
Surrender not, put up a fight;
wrestle with me.
You love your pleasure, languid ways;
that sort of life, it soon decays.
As you retire to bed tonight
dreaming of your next day's delight;
think long before your lust obeys,
wrestle with me.
(alternately titled: aery diction galloped jocosely)
Abbreviation asper "FAKE"
abdication (wishful thinking),
an aberration Trump accepted
abjuration (or alternative) i.e.
ablation, thee apprenticed
president, would never forsake
abnegation (sooner his cold,
dead paws pried loose Putin
on the Ritz Carlton), this
abomination, his indiscriminate
abrogation appears (underwent)
acceleration autocratic accentuation
Americans aver acceptation,
acclamation, acclimation,
accommodation "FAKE"
accreditation, averse Hispanic
refugee acculturation, he blithely
asseverates, viz faux (trumped up)
accumulation unfairly fingering
accusation (baseless bigotry)
scapegoating fifty plus shades
brown illegal aliens despite
provable residency status
conveniently citing himself
perforce repetition validates
accustomation touts "FAKE"
non hardy laurels spilt, spelt,
and smelt acetification reign
ruination unleashing acetylation
promoting political acidulation
SCOTUS acrimonious activation
authoritarian smug egoistic
actualization nepotism, jingoism,
despotism actuation atavistic,
apathetic, allergic adaptation
acquiescent, arrant, abhorrent
adjudication Machiavellian aggressive
adjuration acrimonious atrocious
administration alarming, appalling,
arresting admiration abysmal,
artificial, asymmetrical adoration
awful adulation, ambivalent
apathetic adulteration avast
averse adumbration adulteration
affair advocation barren aeration
puffed hirsute aerosolization.
No "FAKE" Fire Drill
Residents at high
land manor apartments
(aside from myself)
got rudely awakened -
by what sounded
like a screaming,
seething, and shrieking airplane
early morning hour
'ere september eleventh
two thousand eighteen
with deafening decibel (at
maximum threshold)
ear piercing shrill alarm
rousing atavistic primal
Neanderthal tapping primal brain
if NOT a atheist secular humanist,
I would aver my linkedin match
(com mon lee) attributed
to Abel and/or Cain,
but whether broad
minded or parochial,
that deafening fire alarm
this bloke doth disdain
but to ears of
volunteer fire fighters,
that unbearable audio
warning tone beloved,
aye need not explain
how appreciative, and
reassure ring knowing
rough and ready persons fain
to selflessly risk
life and/or limb,
when trucking
extinguishing arsenal
with genuine gratitude to gain
demonstrating without
pomp and circumstance
the art of being humane
automatic reflexive
instincts second nature
where breathe, eat,
and live for others
a credo, dictum,
ethos deep ingrain
within every cell
of their sturdy bodies,
sans indefatigable as
Tarzan and Jane
on par with prestidigitation skill
visa vis tricks of the trade
discovered via legerdemain,
yet aside from
power house strength,
another salient trait
needed asper physically,
emotionally, and spiritually exhausting,
grueling, and taxing job,
would necessitate one to maintain
composure in the
midst of pandemonium
gamely, gingerly, and
gloriously fighting infernos
(WITHOUT any mon
key business)
while training, learning,
and exacting diligence
non harried styled
tailored swiftness!