Long Persistence Poems

Pagans Protest the Intolerance of Christianity
by Michael R. Burch

“We have a common sky.” — Quintus Aurelius Symmachus

We had a common sky
before the Christians came.

We thought there might be gods
but did not know their names.

The common...

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Impossible mission to captcha infinitesimal moment

alternately titled: tick tock runneth amuck
seconds elapse imperceptibly 
leaving me dumbstruck,
how quickly fleeting tempus fugit; 
ofttimes imagined as time thief.

Hence following vignette: quiet as a mouse lurks the time thief...

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Various Heresies 3

Breakings
by Michael R. Burch

I did it out of pity.
I did it out of love.
I did it not to break the heart of a tender, wounded dove.

But gods without compassion
ordained: Frail things must break!
Now...

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Various Heresies 6

Altared Spots
by Michael R. Burch

The mother leopard buries her cub,
then cries three nights for his bones to rise
clad in new flesh, to celebrate the sunrise.

Good mother leopard, pensive thought
and fiercest love’s wild insurrection
yield...

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you were an infant
i would sing a song i created for you

'there's a baby in my arms
there's a baby in the mirror
but honey 
there's not really two
the child in the mirror
is only 
an image 
of...

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These are prophetic poems and apocalyptic poems about the earth, climate change, global warming, extinction events, and mankind's role on an endangered world ...



Polish
by Michael R. Burch

Your fingers end in talons?
the ones you trim to...

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In the darkness of the night, 
a ruby gleams 
to contrast a slumbered eye awakened 
to feeling, 
reflection, light, 
Lady "Genie", eyes aglow
like a beast, in mid-stride,
lost in her midnight dreams is clothed in a...

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How the housefly gets attracted to organic decay
and an infant child traces the voice of its mother
are nothing compared to the intense attraction
Michelle and I possess on the guy owning not a strand of hair...

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Tim’s father had been a refugee once he put down his fight and his gun

The story is that he embarked on the very last ship leaving East Prussia

Under siege tanks and bombs from above fireworks...

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Excuse me operator, 

I think I’ve been disconnected,

To a neurotic world that's seemed to lose its senses,

A ceaseless quest of life questions,

Where are all of these transcending fairytales and esoteric answers?

I am feeling like it’s...

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During finals week, I’d spent days on various reports and papers, scribbling in the margins of notes and books, checking facts, revising flashcards and prepping with friends. I’ve an unshakable faith in plodding persistence.
We were...

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I often fail to notice
nuanced distinctions
between ethics of punishment,
retribution, on right hand
and boycott,
shunning revenge, on my left;

Between reigning down further abuse
and more quietly raining temporary neglect,
social 
economic
political distancing.

Punishment is a tool
for privileged narcissists,
win/lose competitors,
colonizers,
for fake-righteously...

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Anything can change in the blink of an eye.
You could win the lottery and the next day you die.
These thoughts and feelings make it very hard to even try.
But if I said, I was giving...

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Winnie, wild-eyed, went insane
and sang “Happy Birthday” in the rain, 
while she washed away her bloody pain.

Now all day long she sings that song,
she sings it loud, she sings it strong,
walled in where she does...

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An unexceptional turning point in our marriage...

unexpectedly came about,
when possible prospect
of the wife going
to Puerto Rico by herself
(for a fêted celebration
of our eldest daughter
and her significant other,
which occurred years ago
courtesy justice of the peace)
attended by...

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Universal space…
Vast grace…
Infinity stars and galaxies
Of glory and praise
Joy
Jubilant 
Desire 
Humility
Hopefulness
Unity 
Peace
Happiness
Cheer
No fear
No tears
The Kingdom of unconditional clarity and love
Speak words of love from abuv
Roam home
Roam Home
Hold you dearly
Never let go
Insecure…
Then, I feel good
Misunderstood,
But good...

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Days passed, and became weeks.
Weeks became months. Soon it
Was June. "Everybody in the pool!"
All the kids communed. Molly and 
Dolly joined, in the cool blue zest.
The children answered the heat
With all day swimming relays.
Dolly and...

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It is a fever.

  
The poet

They found the poet outside the park

His steps spoke many words of wine

His upper half seemed half asleep

And his feet walked a crooked line

His arms were spread as if...

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Make it through.... 

There's  a  GIGANTIC mountain before me that I MUST  climb
Its lonely and SCARY & Its soley MINE
Its about moving forward being happy  now that your gone
Its about believing...

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My Perfect Home Zone...

I want the breeze of Jannah to permeate our abodes,
A restful peace within it take hold,
So I ask Allah to fill in them His light entirely,
with joy, contentment, & pure tranquillity,
To answer...

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There are moments when troubles enter our life’s
And we can do nothing to avoid them
But the one's we can
They look convoluted unless we demystify
But we think they are byzantine
As we think the mysteries in them...

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(There’s a song for this: ‘Confessions’ by Sudan Archives)

I remember it like it was yesterday (it was yesterday).

I arrived on a cool (42°f), blindingly sunny New Haven afternoon. It was as if they’d opened up...

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Every morning
When I glance into the mirror
I look deep inside
Deeper than my subtly-thinning hair
Deeper than my raven beard
Deeper than my mocha complexion
Laden with marks
Of life's wear and tear 
And high cheek bones
I see multitudes
From across...

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Theme: Vulnerability

Saviour Complex - Free Verse

In the absence of love,
a childhood is shaped by the stars,
but when black smoke is the only impression in the light,
sorrows peel in soundless motions - slow burning.

When fate is...

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The doors still creaked as they did before, age emanating from the very core;
The walls, ceiling, his arms and legs, even the floor, worn smooth and warped
From the years of trodden feet.
The smells bring back...

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