Long Overheard Poems

Sixty some odd years ago, when I was just a kid, our home was on the very edge of town.
The man that lived next door to us - a Mr. - O. M. Crabb -...

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I’m broke without your love to repair me…

My young heart breaks into two and you push on the brakes…

Three strikez…you’re owt…. Get lost….that is my only plea

Our lives were at stake and we were taking...

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The one time before they had brought me along - to this cabin - to fish on this lake...this primitive structure that Leo - Dad's granddad - had constantly threatened to sell...
I was a toddler...Father...

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‘Bout 8:15 this morning, on the bus that I was riding, I overheard a woman tell some gal it seemed she knew,
Her pastor - reverend Bishop - and a “tacky looking woman” we’re spotted leaving...

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These two old geezers have definitely worn out their welcome with Betty-Joe -


“NO, IT DOESN’T!” 
“YES, IT DOES!” 
“NO, IT DOESN’T!” 
“YES, IT DOES!”       The two old geezers argued...

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Half a dozen girls, at least, were on my list of ‘maybes’, as I was on the prowl to find a date for junior prom,
When I was coaxed to think about a girl who lived...

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At the edge of a wood, in days of summertime,
Lived Hansel and Gretel, once upon a time;
Whose dear father, a poor woodcutter,
Could no longer earn their bread and butter.
Late one night, a conversation overheard--
As from...

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This happened last Fall, during Thanksgiving break.

Lisa and I were at the MET (The Metropolitan Museum of Art), with her family, at an exhibit of Art Deco sculpture. Lisa and I came out of a...

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My father and I did not share all that much,
More like passing a truck on the road
Parent’s squabbles I overheard offered me clues
And at times I caught glimpse of his load.

His freight always sealed with...

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This is based on a true story -


The wind was soft and swishy as the sun was drifting down, 
As most the town were mingling at the annual county fair,
When loud across the speakers by...

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Have you been hearing voices again?

Still, yes.
No new ones, though,
since the Voice Against Death Investment.

So you're still hearing from the Forest Voices
which are actually more of a rhythm and blues chorus
made up of 4-part harmonic...

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Here's the deal, folks...

This is, as indicated, the 2nd HALF of this fairly lengthy poem. Due to Poetry Soup's file-size limitations, this piece had to be posted in 2 parts. 
   The 1st...

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I
How long have I been doing this
Throwing my time & money
Into a hole
Filling up notebooks
Mining overheard conversation
For lines
Squeezing the sponge
Of my wine soaked
Mind
Into the bucket
Of poetry
And now here we are
Gulping down the
Lead tainted water
Like Romans
Romans
Forced...

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“I’m sorry that it’s been so long,” the old man told the tombstones, scanning them that brisk fall day, in 1969.
“It’s not that I’ve forgotten you.    It’s not that I’m not proud...

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“Wha’da-ya’ s’pose he’s thinkin’ about,” I heard a nurse inquire, “he sits there almost every day just gazin’ at the pond?”
“Hard to say,” a laundry gal replied, “but chances are...if you could, somehow, read his...

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'We have a future king to make,'
Said the deep, resounding voice.
'But it is not a proper fit for everyone.
For a king must know first how to obey than to command,
And to abide rather than reign.'

'And...

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One afternoon Martha the mother of Jack, who was in her early eighties, told an amazing story about her son while having coffee in the parlor with her neighbors; it was a weekly gathering to...

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This isn't the way we should walk into this
And my SOS signal didn’t seem to bring God into it
Just like shaking people's hands doesn't gift us world peace 
And speaking of shaking hands,
You're in a...

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WITHIN THE BRIGHTEST NIGHT (Part 11)

He placed the flower back in the middle of the floor. He walked back over to the door. There was a handle on the other side.
I'll open it.

He lifted the...

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WITHIN THE BRIGHTEST NIGHT (Part 11)

He placed the flower back in the middle of the floor. He walked back over to the door. There was a handle on the other side.
I'll open it.

He lifted the...

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I'm not comfortable
talking about racial differences,

Or even racial
or sensual similarities.

I know what you mean
or maybe I do.
Something intimate and personal
about melanin
and hair qualities
and what lies red-blooded
under shared and segregated skin.

I remember when long hair quantity
was...

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I didn't know him as a serial not exactly 
at least not at first even though I'd overheard 
the plotting of arson from a dim lit restroom
searching for tissue only to find several guns 
rifles...

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Historically and biblically true, first Abraham, Isaac,
Then Jacob, who loved
Joseph, his 11th son more than any other,
He was his beloved.
Joseph would interpret his father’s dreams,
But the brothers were terribly jealous it seems,
For the first dream...

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I'm determined to be heard
Through the walls 
Beyond all That 
Deafening windfall

My voice never deterred
Tasking freedom 
dispensing wisdom 
Offering up hope

I am the force, overheard  
A solid speaker for the mute
Constant presence for the Word

I...

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Old Jambu tree
Still bearing fruits;
Generous delights

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NDP crowd
Massive tapestry;
Community celebration

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Each passing year
Affirms our country;
Diversity in oneness

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We celebrate
Our little red dot;
Gratitude remembers

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So much to see
So little time;
Familiar complaint

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Fireworks display
After The Pledge;
Poignant philosophy

~~~~~~~~~


Politics means action
Mere words concede;
Happy results...

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