Long Sweetener Poems

Come Down
by Michael R. Burch

for Harold Bloom

Come down, O, come down
from your high mountain tower.
How coldly the wind blows,
how late this chill hour ...

and I cannot wait
for a meteor shower
to show you the time
must be...

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The Ever Shifting Pattern of Life by
Terence David Cooper. June is wife's
name and they are Basildon,  Essex, 
England.

As children we learn lessons clear
Broadly defined lines we hold so dear
Constants to which we can easily...

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Poems for Poets VI



Caveat
by Michael R. Burch

If only we were not so eloquent,
we might sing, and only sing, not to impress,
but only to enjoy, to be enjoyed.

We might inundate the earth with thankfulness
for light, although...

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POEMS FOR POETS IV

PROFESSOR POETS

These are poems about professor poets and other wanna-be “intellectuals” who miss the main point of real poetry, which is to connect with readers via pleasing sounds and the communication of...

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POEMS ABOUT POETS VIII

PROFESSOR POETS

These are poems about professor poets and other wanna-be “intellectuals” who miss the main point of real poetry, which is to connect with readers via pleasing sounds and the communication of...

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Black and White Yoyage

Ying and Yang come to mind that wakes up in the morning
                   Harmony the...

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A priest once told me that the lump
on my hand was a ganglion,
a fortress of fat besieged by health.
At last it burst and the hand swelled
like an old man's,
shovel shaped and splayed.

It was her black...

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I wake up in the middle of the night, and reach out to touch you but you are not 
there
 And then I remember, 
The pain returns as quickly as an express train racing out...

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I never used to drink sweet tea,
and neither did I drink coffee.
The one drink that my mother made
was the 60’s stand-by, sugar water called Kool-aid.
I never liked it much; I wanted pop instead.
“Pop I will...

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Practice-practice-practice, be good at what you know;
Patient-patient-patient, it takes some time to grow.
forgive-forgive-forgive, you could make the same mistakes;
Kindness-kindness-kindness, be good for goodness sake.

He practiced and he practiced, but nothing ever changed;
It's  been some...

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three words
eight letters
whisper them into my ear
and I’m all yours, love
never thought I would ever be
ready for love
ready for love
and then
somehow
sometime
I was ready for love
and you were ready for me
fallin hard and fast
and you caught...

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Striving for silver linings in the ebony of the equinox   
I chased my dreams of idealism to stop the endless maroon anguish shadows 
Yet your words failed to sing a symphony of mosaic...

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Kiss, kiss, kiss
My mind is all black out
and sensual creativity, beyond me in expressions
Kiss, kiss, kiss
I’m beginning to share your Life’s breath
crafting into you like the latest design
of a trending model
kiss, kiss, kiss
your delicate nature
which...

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This is a little story
About friendship ultimate
This friend knew my love of cake
But understood my need for health
She saw that I was trying
To be oh so very good
And she went above
And beyond
To do the best...

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You're such a pretty girl,
you've got skin that's like splenda;

Sweetener is added
every time you touch.
Some people around you
like a sugar rush.

You're such a pretty girl,
you've got skin like a swirl;

Ice-cream that is vanilla and chocolate,
mixed...

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i cannot begin to say how grateful i am,
that you took me away to bring me back again,
what meant so much more that i could see,
was so conformed from reality,
it was a daze in a...

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is you cute?
or is you mute?
they like when you mute
drowning in a salty pool and all your sugar dilute
a grin they never wanna see on your face 
 a sad clown they wanna paint on...

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("In Memory of Gary Vaughn", 2018, original encaustic)

The Flavor of Kool-Aid

We all get to choose the flavor of Kool-Aid we drink.
And maybe that’s the extent of free will.
We each have our world views formed and...

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STARING DEATH IN HIS CORNER

I'm not the best pound for pound
boxer trading blow for blow
This bout won't end in this 36th round,
battling from the cradle from the set go

when my eyes refuses to behold life's...

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A Monotetra

You may see a fluttering bee,
in the forest, or on a leaf,
of some sweet and gummy tree;
leave him be, leave him be.

Perhaps he’ll hum around a flower,
in some green and mossy bower;
that little bee...

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A Fierce Clarity

Conundrums of doubt
dumb, dumb, dumb
downers with an excuse
to gulp the pill
wash down chemical
sweetener for the bitter palate of sugar

Grains of possession
miserable addicts of this technological freedom
bar-code a ticket to emancipation
cold blooded despots
placed in...

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I RAISE THIS GLASS

To the sparkle of your skin,
To the reflections of your diamond,
To the span of your life,
To the stride of your gait,
To the depth of your bosom,
To the glow of your skin,
I raise...

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How can I be so sure.
There have been many times where I have been sure before.
In fact, surer than sure.
Standing outside of myself; I brush pass every other thought.
A space crowded with nowhere particularly to be.
Except...

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My Prayer
The smell of strong coffee wafts
    lingering through the house.
Black with a spit of cream sweetener
    and my first sip will open my eyes.
Wide and glad for the...

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Age.
It's a state of the heart.
It doesn't define who I am
Nor does it place limitations on my love.
Age.
Such a nasty word!
I hate when someone asks me, "How old are you?" as if they know more...

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