Long Staggers Poems

Snapshots
by Michael R. Burch

Here I scrawl extravagant rainbows.
And there you go, skipping your way to school.
And here we are, drifting apart
like untethered balloons.

Here I am, creating "art,"
chanting in shadows,
pale as the crinoline moon,
ignoring your face.

There...

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Completing the Pattern
by Michael R. Burch

Walk with me now, among the transfixed dead
who kept life’s compact and who thus endure
harsh sentence here?among pink-petaled beds
and manicured green lawns. The sky’s azure,
pale blue once like their eyes,...

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The Moon Also Rises
The Midwatch

Harry Mayer


The X.O.’s in the shower
and the Captain’s in his bed.
The Chiefs’ are playin’ poker
as we’re steamin’ to the Med.

“I’ll take that bet and raise you”
is what the Bo’sun says
from the...

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Well, here we are in the Araneta Coliseum
In Cubao, Quezon City in the Philippines
To witness two modern boxing Gladiators
Their prowess, stature, about to be seen

This will be the third between the WBC, WBA
Stepping into the...

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Pied tidings of suburbian 
Magpies,
Squawking and squabbling,
Quarreling ferociously among 
Themselves - 
Rush to steal
From off the beleaguered bird 
tables,
To the annoyance of all concerned,
A much begrudged meal;
Before scurrying away into 
Unfrequented woodlands,
Marooned like islands in...

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Wicked Romancer a provocative Prince of fanatics in the dramatics of fashionable word's. 
 Giving orgasms of mind unique one of a kind pleasures of my rhythms in rhymes. 

Mesmerizing feelings of exquisite emotions written...

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Will you make the cut?
Or settle for a shortcut?
Coaches' scuttlebutt

Execute the steal 
Professing rather than real
The truth to conceal

Blessing progeny
Highlights God's sovereignty
Not autonomy

Man's wisdom swaggers
'Til adversity staggers
Making Sandbaggers

Men try to judge Him
When self-righteousness rules them
Worthless...

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“What is he, this lordling, that cometh from the fight?”
by William Herebert, 14th century
translation by Michael R. Burch

Who is he, this lordling, who staggers from the fight,
with blood-red garb so grisly arrayed,
once appareled in lineaments...

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Thomas Hardy the Poet, spoke with me last night,
Speaking of his thoughts, as I sat in bed upright,
Though twas in a dream, I never thought it strange,
That we enjoyed a moment for literary exchange.

In his...

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They meet:
in the gathering of those who matter,
the high and mighty, the big and powerful
a post-conference period to socialize and acquaint,
Suits and gowns, holding half filled glass cups of wine
is the order and uniform of...

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Life has thrown dirt on me, and I grew a wild flower.
A demon's knife cuts into my spirituality, and I watch my soul be devoured.
Open Bibles lay on my night stands, I keep crosses hanging...

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And soon you will see that inside every impossible is the word “possible”…if only we dare to see it. - TerKeurst, Lysa. What Happens When Women Say Yes to God Devotional (p. 40). Harvest House...

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From Gabbatha, before the judgment seat,
a winding, tortured road: Golgatha's end.
His flesh in shreds, he staggers on His feet,
rough timbers grate excoriated skin.

The lines from Jesse's root are drawn by thorns,
the precious blood, in rivulets,...

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Today, the local daily papers highlighted a man of honour...
Deserving of his honorific title Datuk bestowed on men of honour...

Given his loud and strident calls for those holding the reins of power....
To better buck up...

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Belladonna blue.
Scenes in a mystery, do.
Hope, need ye accrue?

Indeed! Heart, why bleed?
Lead? Others or ye? Be! Sea;
Four seasons; change? Strange...

Cold core, darkest door?
Ancient lore, forgotten shore?
Anything for sure?

Weathervane, point! Taut.
Stretching out without a doubt?
Shout? Pout?...

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It squeaked as it slowly rolled out the door
Trundled out the rusty gate
Over the sunken wooden bridge 
and onto the sandy sidewalk.
The daily trudge had begun.

Nestled and nurtured within were the lives of her family
And...

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Scarecrow Addict
           

Gritted and dusty
Powered by flack jacket eyes
Bootsteps through grey puddles
Flotilla of cigarette butts
Trash kicked aside
In a desert of litter
Seeking the soulless of death
Chattering...

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" Scream, Ann, scream! Scream like you've never screamed before!"
    
     I saw their eyes, wide like turkey eggs
     for his bombast had provided...

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John
Is 65 and a tall man
Dressed in a white suit and tie
With nice tennis shoes fuzzy socks
And some hair plopped on top.

Mary is 24 with blond hair and a smile so fun
Her sweetness tosses like...

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What happened to the man I loved? Why did he lose himself?
The strong hold his demons had over him was tearing us apart   
Dilated pupils, slurred words, stupid grin worn when drinking,
a fool...

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Bermuda Triangle

This event was terrifyingly true,
Out in Atlantic, on the ocean blue.
It was ‘81, after we left Fort Lauderdale,
Hoping for happy Bahamas vacation tale
Aboard chartered sailboat, ketch of 52 feet,
Even air conditioned for the Florida...

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Daddy has gone missing
Lost his space at the dining table
Found it at the bar table
He will be home unstable
He staggers to the door unaware of what he is capable
The drink has taken over
He fights with...

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For all the weighted years of empires
Stockpiled with human grief
For all the fallen towers of desires 
From which love has no relief
For all the cargo of the heart and ships
Tossed and turned where water whips
Across...

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I give all
To one who owns all:
My Joy and
Hope, Strife and pain,
all do i
loan to him to
bear them on his wing,
Soaring through
the claws of the cloud,
Barging through,
Hailing the wind by
her name: que
que, que que
que que...

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to tell the truth i have to tell the tale of a dangerous drunk...drowning in devil water...soon to get sunk
menacing stares from demons all around...laughing as he stumbles and staggers in the 
lounge
another sip of...

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