i suppose they will all
be soon to depart
the danish girl
has removed her top
the germans will soon follow suit
the french girl
will arrive soon minus everything
there goes the male tourist
down the beach
time to stroll, exercise
amidst the breasts residing on the sand
isn't it funny
tables emptied of annoying badinage
i owe so many clear views
of Mexican beaches to Europe
but the sad aspect
is that amidst
all of this tropical beauty
the male tourist is unable
to rise above the preoccupation
of viewing breasts
myself, i prefer legs
they represent a short blip
a blink of the eye
to the pelicans coasting upon
the wave generated wind
the sky filled with marauding
magnificent frigates
surfers hanging in for the wave
where they balance in nature
on a ride into shore
where some will banter me for a poem
i reply, your eyes (fill in color)
are birds who steal my thoughts
my breath, my heart
go away now
and it ain't look at that ass
it is a callipygous goddess
yes i wrote short love poems for them
and bettered their vocabulary
San Blas 92
is this then my fate
watching the scurrying crabs
rearranging sands, counting the waves
the wary eyes of the magnificent frigates above
your eyes were to me
exotic birds of aquamarine
whose free flight
stole my thoughts
my breath
my heart
now i have a horizon
where the world disappears
the universe begins
azure is more than a color
how ironic
how often said
love is blue
herein are only remembrances
of shared happiness
a gentleman never tastes bitterness
in what was not meant to be
i had a professor once, well more than once
who explained that we needed
to reach into the depth of being
to write poetry
that sentiment was to be avoided
as some shunned member of society
a useless masked whore
this poem is my gift to you
not to impress a world i could care less about
but to validate the point
sentiment is the foundation of poetry
innate to the heart's wings in the quill
that fills the dreams within
or walks in mourning upon the beach
Fergus Falls 2000
on Youtube:
Tom Waits - "The One That Got Away"
You may talk of submarines
And of other war machines
As you sip your beer and talk of yesteryear.
You may even look with awe
At the ships that roll and yaw,
And the carriers as steady as a rock.
And what’s prettier to see
Than a ‘can’ while out at sea
With her bow that’s dancing through the brine.
A destroyer, tough as nails
Boarding seas bury her rails
Staying vertical is truly an ordeal.
To the frigates plaudits go
They put on a graceful show
As they sleekly speed along at sea.
But there is a far-famed ship
And to her our caps we tip
To the Sweeper who was where we’re heading now.
See their sweeps when they outreach
Clearing paths from deep to beach
For landing craft to bring the soldiers through.
Knowing mines unswept ahead,
Resolutely then they thread
And their sweep gear clears a channel for the fleet.
So we give them our salute
Every mine-sweeping galoot.
And raise a toast to them when they’re ashore.
Let the Wind Blow Through
My house is built of fragile sticks
Each window opened shows a different view
Clean or with a dusty film, yet held close
A skin of remembrance hidden deep
Different footprints in the sand
The wind blows through my head
Doors left wide open
Against the morning breeze
My thoughts drift like the frigates above
Gliding across a great expanse of blue
Rocks tossed by waves
litter the sandy beach of my mind
Each a nugget of surprising wisdom
To pick up and use as needed
or a piece of waste to step around
Sometimes it's hard to know which
Before it's too late
The need to slam the doors shut
Against the tempest inside
Swirling towards dark thoughts
Or open wide my heart
And receive the gifts contained within
That brings peace and happiness
Mine to make as I walk alone or as two
I let the wind blow through to clear the air
Underwater where sound
carries much farther
the bustling of fish feeding
awakens the whales
tis morning above
frigates are moving
their noise like fright rising
all the sea's creatures
suffer it's passage
from shore into deep water
filling the oceans and seas
noise pollution is deafening
the whales by nature
swim towards the quietus
mass strandings before them
dolphins lead the way
facing an unheard of escape
frigates grow larger
and the new are born to it
the bewailing
that ear splitting deprivation
our cloud of disquiet
at sea level up on it
above the drone of ships
onboard under Cetus
no hue or cry is made of it
the devastating consequences
of 1087 feet per second
beating soundly to extinction
all that lives below
while humans draw power from it.
On a Sea Wild and Stormtoss'd
Once, on a sea wild and stormtoss'd, two boats were flung, no sure hand at their helm, no guide to steer, they at the mercy of every wave lashing. Oft storms flung them apart, but ever they came to drift together again, side by side. The sea, dark and angry, strove to separate them, but only in vain, for across the waves of the sea wild and stormtoss'd, the two boats always came, eschewing the company of lordly frigates, swift sailboats, and sleek packets, that together they might drift; until into a calm and serene port they both entered, and upon the calm water there, the two boats were at rest. Was it only chance that drove them to this port calm and serene, or was it God who guided two little boats, to meet in this habor of serenity, across the wild and stormtoss'd sea?
If Emily—Ms. Dickinson—could pen
fresh lines of verse today; what, I wonder,
would she say? Where would she even begin?
How will today change her verse—I ponder?
Would the Lady in White still write of books, —
those “frigates” of the rich imagination
that find their way in the grooves and the nooks
of her most literary creation?
Would she still ponder the tried relevance
of Life and Dying—of Mortality?
Or what of the strange nearness of distance
imposed by our hi-tech? —what Irony!
No doubt, she’d pen that though Facebook’s fresh Faces
seem happy, they’re still empty in some places—.
A CASTLE OF TEMPTATION - collab with JA Fraser
A CASTLE OF TEMPTATION
Proudly standing amidst three lochs, verdant hills
a Castle enciente breathing beauty but sadly chants
passed feuds sparking battles having harried their foe
and it's demise caused by Frigates cannonball screams.
Colonel MacRae-Gilstrap rebuilds now redeemed:
stoned arch bridge supersede the sea highway flow,
circular stairs and ceilings with coat of arms grants
changes made but its history today remains still
Tourists not deterred by ghost tales scary extreme
But await they exercise for imaginations to show
the setting, a romantic reincarnation that enchants
attracted lovers to celebrate their matrimonial thrill
Eilean Donan Castle in its stunning reachable location
pose the Western Highlands of Scotland a temptation.
Written by: Olive Eloisa Guillermo and James Andrew Fraser
8:46 pm; August 18, 2015
A CASTLE OF TEMPTATION
Proudly standing amidst three lochs, verdant hills
a Castle enciente breathing beauty but sadly chants
passed feuds sparking battles having harried their foe
and it's demise caused by Frigates cannonball screams.
Colonel MacRae-Gilstrap rebuilds now redeemed:
stoned arch bridge supersede the sea highway flow,
circular stairs and ceilings with coat of arms grants
changes made but its history today remains still
Tourists not deterred by ghost tales scary extreme
But await they exercise for imaginations to show
the setting, a romantic reincarnation that enchants
attracted lovers to celebrate their matrimonial thrill
Eilean Donan Castle in its stunning reachable location
pose the Western Highlands of Scotland a temptation.
Written by: Olive Eloisa Guillermo and James Andrew Fraser
8:46 pm; August 18, 2015
Frigates flay above the waters
Sea smells of salt
Manta swims through ocean depths
Sailor puts the nets on the bay
Sunset has a deep orange glow
Suddenly something orange shines besides the sun
On an island volcano spits lava and brimstone through the air
But it is the souls in the port that are in danger
The volcano makes earth plate shift
And colossal wave comes forth
Tsunami destroys everything in its path
High and mighty billows grow
Disrupted is the serene beauty of the sea
Ocean demon rages opening gates of hell
Like a hydra of thousand heads
The billows grow as tsunami pushes inland
The flipside of that is if men
The hates of their hearts erase
And work together against common threat
They will prevail
But if they keep fighting among themselves
If love will be as scarce as water in drought
If justice lead by compassion will be drowned in billows
The tsunami will easily destroy the port
Sinbad and Columbus nautical
Miles from home
Their flotilla of frigates
Sea sailed flags, flown
Compulsorily becalmed
Roped to steadfast bollards
Wharf bound
Red, green marine, sea blue scene
Maritime, party time, home time
Shore leave, can't leave, must leave
When the ship horn sounds
Sirens and mermaids waiting
Can't stand too long on
Unwaving ground
Ask the pilot, for the plot
Cards for money lost the lot
Ladies with port light windows
Sailor's take comfort
What happens, stays on land
Red, green marine, sea blue scene
Maritime, party time, home time
Shore leave, can't leave, must leave
When the ship horn sounds
Sirens and mermaids waiting
"Midnight Pearl"
There is none faster to traverse the seas
Or stirring terror in hearts 'round the world.
Her sails as black as midnight steal the breeze.
This envy of the deep is called the Pearl.
She lies in wait near trade routes of the East
For loaded frigates bound to England's coast.
With Calcutta to Canton's cargoed feast,
They're pillaged, plundered, raped and put to roast!
Though, East India Trading Company,
Enraged by constant smuggling and the rut,
Fights harsh without success relentlessly,
The Pearl takes spoil and always doubled up.
It's midnight, Pearl, your hatches all dogged tight...
Horizon bound, more frigates yearn to fight!
by~deborah burch©
4/19/2012
_______________________
English/Shakespearian Sonnet
Father, your ship keeps me waiting here, my eyes
Peeling horizon for mast or sail
Where the frigates fly, and seagull, wind slanting, cries
I walk the sands silent shadows pale
Hungering for a deck to stand
Beside you, and be like you, a man.
Father, in the lonely nights bereft of inheritance, I
Hear you singing songs that wrecked
My desires to grant you authencity, when you deify
The armored foot upon my neck
Conquistadores prowess and sly
I could not love the cold ambuity.
Father, I undersatnd them all today, our mix origin
Straddled loyalty that divides us
Yet though we have been classified in our skin
Not easily removed like mere rust
And for this we are bridges again
New planks to walk away from pain.
Father, this moment on the silent moonlit gaze of sand
I miss you beyond meaning here
A boy, like a ship too, needs his rudder in your hand
Need support negotiating his fear
Need to hear your footsteps walk
In the room, where I stand a stalk.
Only silence dresses her rigging now
To the call of the bosun’s whistle
Her hatches now stand locked and secure
Where long past sailors once lingered
She is the last of the old frigates
Moored in the shallows of Charlestown
Board her and hear her echoes of valor
Haughtily anchored her colors humbly fly
No blemishes on her hull show her battles
Her carronades still sit silently waiting
As she floats mythically at ease
For a moment I can hear the great moans
Her keel and sailors cresting Atlantic waves
To Captain Hulls orders to come about
And charge on the enemy ship Guerriere
On her decks I feel the plight of her dead
Hearing stories of centuries old bulkheads
Astounding feats of a morose pride
To have brought their foe to capitulate
Now she stands tacit though ever grand
And still on her decks and deep in the bowels
The mighty spirit of U.S.S. Constitution dwells
A monument of endurance softly whispering
“Lest we remember long forgotten sacrifices…”