Long Clayton Poems

Gateway town, Mississippi and Missouri river flooding confluence,
with its celebration of manifest destiny, its looming, iconic archway.
Stainless westward marker, its culture flowed southward for influence
within the lawn-jockey, pink flamingo neighborhoods of moral decay. 

T.S, Eliot,...

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Bygone Days
Written: By Tom Wright
4/3/2007

Remember the slogan
 “Haskell is moving, are you pushing?

The railroad depot stands no more
In the spot it occupied for so long.
Instead in it’s space, a Homeland store,
But in my memory it...

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Le Rat Noir – Translation of Iris Clayton’s « The Black Rat » by T. Wignesan

(Iris Clayton of the Wiradjuri tribe in New South Wales was born in 1945. One of nine children, six of...

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dare not say how you excommunicated me from your life
a spoken word became as absent as bones in a sharks body
a smile which once created smiles now creates eternal strife 

the way you spoke French...

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My best friend, Suzanne, and I went to the same church.
I lived in Coral Gables; She lived in Cutler Ridge.
Her boyfriend went to my school; I had no boyfriend.
Being friends at church some of us...

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Clayton King was a cattle baron
With ranges like far flowin’ seas,
And thousands of Texas longhorns
Roilin’ around like swarms of bees.

He built a huge cedar ranch house
With everything he needed there,
And oversaw his vast empire
Right from...

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She is a true Black Ebony Queen,
A beautiful black woman that few have seen.
Her beauty is not from her looks, but what she possess on the inside,
And she lets God and wisdom be her guide.

Her...

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In the fifties, just a lad
Cheering locals with me Dad  
2nd tier, watch 'em play, 
Mannion, Peacock, Clough and Day 

Swinging 60s, working man 
Got the fever, diehard fan, 
3rd division, hear the moans,...

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>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Step by step I walk away,
>Step by step I drift away,
>Step by step I fade away,
>Step by step I stay away.
>
>Tear by tear I cry and sleep,
>Tear by tear I'm losing sleep,
>Tear by tear in...

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My first time at the movies
I was young at 13 years old
really excited I was that day
watching the big screen was true gold

The big feature was ' Kid Galahad'
starring Elvis the rock 'n' roll king
in...

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I dance. Dancing is what I do.
Dancing drug my pain
I dance because next to Jesus,
Dancing is my second lover
I dance before the crossroads of the world
I dance in front the statue of Adam Clayton Powell,...

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This is a poem I wrote for a boy we lost but we'll always love him dearly.

Our Nick was a really good boy.
He filled our hearts with love and joy.
Our memories of him will always...

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Lean and tall, and black behind dark specs
He was a quiet breeze passing by
He paused
I was perched on a pedestal I choose,
Right inside Paris Blues.

"the man behind the man" 
Said he has eagle eyes,
And his...

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As we lay him down to rest, we say our last goodbyes. 
The parting words are hardest, as we send him up high. 
The life of a child cut short, but he finally has his...

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(Dedicated to Clayton Moore who died December 28, 1999.)

He was the Lone Ranger who was played by Clayton Moore.
Law and order was the only thing that this person stood for.
Many criminals tried but they were...

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