Long Delighting Poems

The first soft snow: 
leaves of the awed jonquil 
bow low
—Matsuo Basho translation by Michael R. Burch

Come, investigate loneliness! 
a solitary leaf
clings to the Kiri tree
—Matsuo Basho translation by Michael R. Burch

The cheerful-chirping cricket
contends gray...

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Dusk-gliding swallow, 
please spare my small friends
flitting among the flowers! 
—Matsuo Basho translation by Michael R. Burch

A bee emerging
from deep within the peony's hairy recesses
flies off, sated
—Matsuo Basho translation by Michael R. Burch

That dying cricket,...

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Grasses wilt:
the braking locomotive
grinds to a halt
—Yamaguchi Seishi, translation by Michael R. Burch

Oh, fallen camellias,
if I were you,
I'd leap into the torrent!
—Takaha Shugyo, translation by Michael R. Burch

The first soft snow:
leaves of the awed jonquil
bow...

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Athenian Epitaphs II

These are ancient Greek epitaphs for lost family and friends, including dogs and other animals ...

Now his voice is prisoned in the silent pathways of the night: 
his owner's faithful Maltese... 
but will...

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Medieval Poem V

A Proverb from Winfred's Time
anonymous Old English poem, circa 757-786
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

1.
The procrastinator puts off purpose,
never initiates anything marvelous,
never succeeds, and dies alone.

2.
The late-deed-doer delays glory-striving,
never indulges daring dreams,
never succeeds,...

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Winter Awakens My Care
anonymous Middle English poem, circa 1300
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Winter awakens all my care
as leafless trees grow bare.
For now my sighs are fraught
whenever it enters my thought:
regarding this world's joy,
how everything...

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The Rhymed Poem aka The Rhyming Poem and The Riming Poem
Old English Poem (i.e., Anglo-Saxon Poem) from the Exeter Book, ca. 990 AD
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

He who granted me life created this sun
and...

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The Rhymed Poem aka The Rhyming Poem and The Riming Poem - Part II
anonymous Old English Poem from the Exeter Book, circa 990 AD
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

He who granted me life created this...

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I will begin my story with this concise summary,
Of the amazing things that have happened to me;

After I had lost a home, where I'd lived my life long,
So they could build a highway, for the...

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We all have our hopes, and I certainly did have mine,
I was longing for the love, of someone I thought divine.

Whenever he walked by, it seemed for me time stood still,
And I grew as speechless,...

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November 13th, 2021 - Happy eighty sixth birthday
to my long deceased mom...
Harriet Harris née Kuritsky

My mother succumbed to a terminal illness
two score minus three orbitz passed away
no matter she fought tooth and nail
to keep ovarian/uterine...

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After swimming at Cherry Beach, I had been returning home,
With some very cool memories, of the sand and green foam.

On the drive back I had resolved, to take the scenic route,
Like the pathway down Magnolia...

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"New Gods" 

in those days
at the end of humanity
the few witnesses
remaining

observed new gods
angels, being born 
the singularity 
walked like Templars

through them
reigning over 
the few witnesses
remaining

Heaven watched on,
the detached separatists 
observed the birth pains 
of new...

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'BRRRING BRRRING' said the telephone

“Oh hello” said the wide viewfinder to the telephone. “How are you today?” The telephone fell silent. Very silent. It had no battery with which to call, speak, shout or do...

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My old life seems monotonous to me now, but I allow it was fine then,
As cobalt skies allow warm butterscotch rays, to linger in the glen.

I worked through those golden days, but most evenings stayed...

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Chapter 3: College Preparation

My freshman year started quite smooth
Touch football broke my leg
My luck we had a tennis coach,
That brought things down a peg!

My algebra was like a dream,
Played tennis, found it fun,
And Science Fairs...

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A ramble in a bramble kisses a shoe horn in a window box

Having deciphered which tunes and vibrations cause reactions it was time to make everything the same really. Shame it was that day for...

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15.4
“You are not the body
You do not have a body
You neither do nor enjoy
You are Awareness only--the timeless Witness
You are free
Go in happiness”

15.5
“Attachment and aversion
are attributes of the mind
You are not the mind
You are Consciousness...

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I remember…

The little girl words falling from my lips,
In whispers and whimpers, coloring
Light in misty feelings, flowing like the gentle
Music, rhythmic, pulsing – revealing
Where sincerity shakes the hand of serenity,
Bringing dreams to the heart of...

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It is a Sunday morning.

The day before was still,

yet eventful and surprising:

sacredness met in holy places

and inspired persons.

Petrified trees and slave traders’ bedrooms;

cattle grazing and the ancient one sleeping.

The quiet sounds of lit boats by...

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I heard a whisper…

In my dream last night,  you've found another to hold

Where the blind ones tossed and turned, lost in a labyrinth 

Your lonely nights becoming  a sanctuary forming  desires

Turning your...

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Love is alive, a fire inside
Burning away every fear, each doubt
With kindness and hope, light
From the heart who believes and sees
Jesus in every color, each dream
Across all the mountains and even in the sea

Love is...

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In the forever words, glowing like starlight through
My darkest worries, my most fearful thoughts…
Pouring out hope into my moments of desperation,
Erasing the silence with sweet inspiration, exciting my spirit
With pleasures so amazing, breathless promises
Discovered by...

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Wait until you meet Lucinda Shaw
Curious how many said this to me.
People reported her with a bit of awe,
Forecasting maybe I would fully see.
Depth of her soul which was unusually old.
I did too. She was...

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Bruce

A lumbering man, 
audibly achily, stepped to the
floor’s center.
Had there been a spotlight, he’d’a shone.

His arms unfurled.
His hips spun.
His soles, silent
as he padded here,
then twisted to place a foot there.

A phoenix swooped, festooned in fire’s...

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