Long Elected Poems

Limericks
by Michael R. Burch



Clyde Lied!
by Michael R. Burch

There once was a mockingbird, Clyde,
who bragged of his prowess, but lied.
To his new wife he sighed,
"When again, gentle bride?"
"Nevermore!" bright-eyed Raven replied.



The Platypus
by Michael R. Burch

The platypus,...

Read More

Limericks VII - Naughty, Bawdy, Risque, Absurd

There continue to be modern sequels of the famous "Nantucket" limericks, including this bawdy one of mine:

There was a lewd whore from Nantucket
who intended to pee in a bucket;
but...

Read More

Rejection Slips 3

Rejection Slip
by Michael R. Burch

Whenever my writing gets rejected,
I always wonder how the rejecter got elected.
Are we exchanging at the same Bourse?
(Excepting present company, of course!)

When editors reject my poems, did I slip...

Read More

Limericks III - Grab Bag

Being a peace activist, I once wrote a limerick in an attempt to stop needless wars:

Of Tetley’s and V-2's
(or "Why Not to Bomb the Brits")
by Michael R. Burch

The English are very...

Read More

EcoMinisters of Earth Rights
CoArise!

EcoLogicians of resilient encircling might
CoArise!

EcoLegislators of bicameral balancing disposition
CoArise!

What is our highest and best CommonSense
of currently elected policy-choosers?
Where are our optimal health outcomes 
of proactive CommonSense?
What does vast emptiness of positive results
suggest...

Read More

Rejection Slips

With over 5,700 publications if I count poems that have gone viral, I suppose I shouldn’t complain … but I do have some poems that have never been accepted for publication. Here are a...

Read More

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...

Read More

The day was going off, and the brown air
To the terrestrial animals gave rest
For their labors; and only me was there

Just ready to withstand the war at best
Both of the journey and of the torment,
Which...

Read More

justice 

What does this vastly misunderstood word mean to you? 

Too what ends? 

May we seek? 

Who(m) may guide us? 

Endless deliberation (spiss spiss spiss)

Debated and glorified by us all 

Beloved; instilled among (a) core...

Read More

The Picture of Dorian Gray: Paint Me As An Event
The Picture of Dorian Gray, a decent fanciful novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde, published in 1890. The novel, the only one written by Wilde, had...

Read More

Unquotable quotes: The Janitor, Gardienne, Landlady, Housekeeper, Portero, the Sereno and the Hausgast – XXXI  Part One

Be they so named or not in these here parts, visions of shrieking furies with Gorgon heads and...

Read More

When I was born in 1949, Harry Truman was the President of The United States.  Of course I do not personally remember him.  Mr. Truman was followed by Mr. Dwight Eisenhower, but I...

Read More

You know what I think sometimes?
said Allah to Buddha,
Of course you do
and yet you don't.

I think I gave this gift of language
because you have a uniquely humanurtured gift
of comprehending
and transposing
and translating languages thru-out each and...

Read More

Dear John,

All day
yesterday
I loaded up with a cascading river
of mixed anxiety and anticipation
about what to safely and kindly,
transparently and vulnerably
compassionately, so non-violently, share,
what to communicate;

Which narrative tributaries to choose
within this vast spacetime stream
of choices
directions
felt depressions...

Read More

Nelson Mandela, crossed my spirited mind today, a visionary legend of peace, love, equality, and unity of all people.

As a prevailer of great affliction, he was like a Greek God fighting for the—"Common man!”

I had...

Read More

The next event to be held for Joulupukki was the coronation, which followed closely behind his parent's burial.  He was very wary of what he would say at this event. Virtually every elf on...

Read More

Farmer Fred was out in his field making inspection
When I snuck up on him without detection
I stated my greetings with great voice inflection
Which caused Fred to jump in the opposite direction
Then he smiled and made...

Read More

Once pawn a time...

About four plus weeks after
frazzling fiasco from friggin fraudsters
white knight still mourns swindled money
Lynne Costello Senior Civil Investigator
(assistant to Philadelphia attorney general)
unable to recoup forfeited funds.

While holed up in castle keep,
(albeit fetchodit...

Read More

An open letter to new legislators,
new chief executive officers,
new judges,
and all new healthy climate parents and other advocates.

When you were in the process of securing this new position in your life,
and, hopefully, the lives of...

Read More

After serving six long hard years at Methacton State penitentiary...

as mini reunion number 
XLV fast approaches 
Saturday, April 30th, 7:00 pm 
until 10:00 pm
at The Trappe Tavern, 416 West 
Main Street, Trappe, PA 19426
regarding graduating...

Read More

“Now, if we can get these proceedings under way,” began Seileach.
     “No,” exhorted Rian!  “I demand to have more information about what is occurring here before we proceed.  It...

Read More

Once upon an evolving time
we were a great first nation,
or second nation,
depending on your historical perspective,
but definitely not a third nation
although some cooperative economists
thought we might be competing ourselves
in that over-invested and ego-inflationary direction.

This first...

Read More

Limericks IV - Donald Trump

The Hair Flap
by Michael R. Burch aka "The Loyal Opposition"

The hair flap was truly a scare:
Trump’s bald as a billiard back there!
The whole nation laughed
At the state of his graft;
Now the...

Read More

Did I hear that wrong?

On my way for another appointment
with the vampire bleeding Quest,
big stage conversations on the radio
travel way too fast
for me to stay tuned in
to our nesty mess
at my normal liberal-conserving pace.

A single...

Read More

The Edges of Rhyme 

I wrote the playbook, watching what they took 
While the earth shook I could not look 
In the direction of the Big Book 
Like a fish caught on a nasty hook...

Read More