Long Merrill Poems

Poems about Poets



Long Division
by Michael R. Burch

for Laura Riding Jackson

All things become one
Through death’s long division
And perfect precision.



Nod to the Master
by Michael R. Burch

If every witty thing that’s said were true,
Oscar Wilde, the world would...

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These are English translations of Spanish poems by Pablo Neruda. 

Religión en el Este (“Religion in the East”)
by Pablo Neruda
translation by Michael R. Burch

for Tom Merrill

I realized in Rangoon:
the gods were our enemies
as much as...

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The General stands at attention, West Point tall and straight
Gazing at row upon row of white headstones
On his shoulders lay the finality of their weight
Family, friends and patriots gone too soon
Heroes all and each one...

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"Ladies and gentlemen, direct from the bar, here's Dean!
                          ...

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My Prayer For Today
                               ...

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Lillian’s Echo

Lillian sat in the dayroom’s dim embrace—a survivor etched in time. The air clung to stories, whispered secrets, and the lingering scent of suffering. She, the one-character legend, spun her tales—prose blabber, raw and...

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He’s always So Behind

Hasten,
Mason

Heavenly Guy

Sky glow
Milo

A Great Guy

Maxwell
acts swell

Sure Not Dickie Nixon

Tricky
Micky

Spoiled Guy

Bratty
Mattie

Why We Follow

Moses
Shows us

Such a Cheerful Fellow

Jaunty
Monty

Hope he Doesn’t want Kids

Sterile
Merrill

The Stoic

Spartan
Martin

He Keeps Them in the Family

Newel’s
Jewels

The King’s Favorite

Jester
Nestor

He’s Just so Tall

Shorten
Norton

Almost got...

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I heard my name in the wind where the willows do weep,
Such a moment of bliss I will evermore keep.

For I sat in the silence, just a moment or two,
With paper and pen, thinking only...

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Dappled sunlight dancing among the trees in the wooded glen
Lingering amongst the wood where it has ancient been
She dances fast, and sometimes slow, the tempo ever changing.
Gentle breeze she stirs the trees; the mood is...

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Dappled sunlight dancing among the trees in the wooded glen
Lingering amongst the wood where it has ancient been
She dances fast, and sometimes slow, the tempo ever changing
Gentle breeze she stirs the trees; the mood is...

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The poet is the chameleon of our modern society
Constantly changing his appearance
Always adapting to his fresh new surroundings
Looking for something to write
Writing to support illegitimate children he’s never met
Strangely fitting in with every demographic of...

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My angel wakes to dew drops through her misty, bedroom eyes,
Of what she dreams, the stars it seems, as begins the dawn's reprise.
Her ruby lips ignite a spark, and beg a gentle kiss,
This thing I...

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In the darkest hour, when hope was thin,
A healer appeared, with wisdom within.
Doctor Krolick, with steady hand,
Guided my heart to a safer land.

The beat was faint, the pulse unsure,
Yet you found a way to make...

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Mr. R. Reindeer had always pined for his own Christmas tree.
He was in the oak forest, lamenting – oh me, oh, my, oh me!
We’ll help you out said his friends, the bunnies and squirrels.
I will...

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