Long Uncelebrated Poems

Sappho fragment #155
translation by Michael R. Burch 

A short revealing frock?
It's just my luck
your lips were made to mock!

*

Sappho fragment #156
translation by Michael R. Burch 

She keeps her scents
in a dressing-case.
And her sense?
In some undiscoverable...

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RED

One hundred years ago in Pollockshaws
A man was laid to rest,
From humble beginnings to a martyr
They buried Scotland’s best.

A man who stood for the people
A man unshaken and proud,
Till the imperialist and capitalist murderers
 Connived...

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No!
Nobody forgets you.
They just remember themselves more.
It’s not hate,
not truly.
It’s the noise of their lives
that drowns out the quiet of yours.

They don’t sit around
thinking of you.
Not because you don’t matter,
but because their minds
are crowded with...

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When it rains, it shines in these radiant beaming eyes of mine.
When it's cold, it's warm in these promised lands I've come afar to farm.
When you're there, I'm right here and there's nothing for us...

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How can you tell when you've hit bottom and
 it's time to abandon "ship"-does it stare you in the  
falseface and wipe your browmemory clean cool of
fun classics,  milling around in poor daylight
low...

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She remained silent amidst the squeaks of the bats
Sleeping on the hostel bed, she dreamt of winging like a dove. 
Her tears were blended with the blood of her chopped childhood. 
Her mother's lap seemed...

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the walking wo/man in the crowd
who protests the wrongs of the place in which 
s/he lives
will never be heard of again
& the wo/man in the factory 
who labors to feed her/his family & tries to...

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I - Night falls

At death of day long shadows form,
drawn blinds at dusk exclude the world,
tight-shut 'til long past dawn.

Night time is the worst time to want
of sleep, but sleep is host of dreams
and dreams...

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Did you even note;
an imposter is in our midst!
And our beloved Tube is the originator.
Faithless beast, merely nipping
at our consciousness for many years
and now the unsuspecting weather man
is the infected carrier, flipping forth
without a care--unconsciously,
the...

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He pledged not his love
N more happy she couldn have been
For love is more than jus pledges..
Love is a breath of the unseen!

Days many, too many, flitted past..
Unmarked, uncelebrated, an unspoken of affair..
She walked the...

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The bird chirped on a twig,
Nice little home bird,
That we find around us in numbers large,
Neat little bird,
That goes about its business wide and far,
Its puny body, thin legs and soft wings,
Have a simple running...

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 FATHER 

Jim Beam, Johnny Walker, Jack Daniels
friends with them all.
Miller, Busch, Ballantine, Schimidt
you held them close.

So busy with your “friends” 
no time for baseball games,
fishing, hunting, talking. No
father-son adventures.

Only bond in smoke thickened
bars, playing...

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You were diligent, honest, and keen
when you first joined our ranks.
Your efficiency was a quiet marvel,
your integrity is a sturdy backbone.

I, the head, was blind to your worth,
too caught up in flashier performances.
Your steady hand...

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vulnerable & helpless
weak & powerless
defenseless & exposed
open to attack

and i am..

flagarant & blatant
barefaced & overt
brazen & brash
audacious & outrageous
undisguised & unconcealed
transparent & immodest
indecorous & unabashed
unashamed & unblushing
unrepentant & unforgiving

and i am..

bold & brave
courageous & intrepid
valiant...

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Written: January 21, 2025, for contest Sponsored by: Brian Strand

                         ...

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I walked into the woods 

To come out from the womb

A single ray of sun

Entered the darkest room I ever lived.

The lullaby of an unsung mother 

Gives me rebirth

The uncelebrated birthdays 

Gives me a new...

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Pale stilly winter,
 
Unfazed, undaunted sea songs,
 
Uncelebrated-
 
Her freedom; nameless & green.
 
Olive ocean pearl,
 
Lost amongst th' coral throngs,
 
Undiscovered-
 
Her beauty; frozen & preen'd.
 
...
 
Her medley of winds,
 
Carry a fond...

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