Outnumber Poems

Rat Fink Pie

The biggest "Rats" eat 90% of the "Cheddar!"

That only leaves one slice for billions of "Mice!"

But does that make the "Rats" better than the "Mice?"

Maybe it's time for the "Mice" to "EAT" the "Rats!"

Wouldn't that be nice? The "Mice" outnumber those "Finks!"

If the "Mice" were willing to pay the price..."Free Drinks!"

I'd even dine with "Swine" to see the "Rats" fry!

Hey "Folks," how 'bout a "Fat" slice of "Rat Fink" pie?

Killick

As I sail through this life, adrift, unmoored,
I wonder where the current will take me. 
I know I'll have to traverse rough water, 
smooth water, calm, even rapids on this journey.
I hope to find love along the way, along with
happiness and joy. I hope that the days over
troubled water do not overwhelm me nor 
outnumber the days of calm. I want to see 
the sights as I drift along, feel the current
on my feet. 

I want to travel, to see nature,
to feel the breeze. I want to experience all
the wonders of this life. I want to spread
happiness and joy. I want to mean something 
to someone. I want to create, I want to read,
I want to write, I want to see, to just be. 
I want to soar with the clouds, sing a melody 
with the sea. I want to feel, to touch  
and hear everything I can before the killick 
must moor me.

Sailors and Locals

Sixteen sailors strode into a pub,
Then a group of them left to get some grub.
Those who remained got into a fight,
With some locals who drank there every night.

Although the sailors did outnumber,
The locals (who were also dumber)
Two sailors shy of a ratio of two-to-one,
They (the sailors) had lost and the locals had won.

But then exactly half who had left for food,
Returned to the pub in a foul mood.
One local had left, a man named Tor,
Until the ratio was the reverse of what it was before,
Even though the beaten sailors couldn't fight,
The fresh sailors versus the locals, all right!

Don't ask me how it went,
For I will remain forever silent.
But could you determine how many sailors 
Could be considered failures,
Because they went to get grub
And didn't return to the pub
Never swinging a punch nor taking a fall, 
Against the locals at all?

Enjoy The Ride

Some days are diamonds, some are stone
To quote an old John Denver hit
Truer words were never spoken
The “stone days” (not stoned days!)
Are only sent to us to test our resolve
And to appreciate the “diamond days” even more
To prove, that as dark or as difficult as life can get
There is ALWAYS a silver lining
Otherwise we'd all be candidates for the looney bin
Trust me, have I ever lied to you before?
Okay... well only a couple of times
And I was under the influence???
The influence of WHAT, you may ask
Uh, I take the fifth... okay here are some examples
Now let me see, watching a pretty girl go by
Or the government sending me an unexpected refund
Of a couple of hundred dollars YEEHAW
Maybe sitting down to my favourite meal
With my lovely spouse I've adored
Since the two of you were dreamy-eyed sweethearts
In grade school right up to the present
And now happily married with a couple of wee ones
Don't get me wrong, I do have days of stone
But my diamond days far outnumber them
So the bottom line is
Live, love, laugh and be happy
You only get one chance to travel life's highway
So ENJOY the ride!!!

Tryptic

Botticelli takes a warm bath.
Springtime in arcadia,
The Grace chicks are a threesome.

I tend to ignore the other stuff that's going on.

For triplets
they each have their subtle differences
The girls are demure,
yet they seem to be hoofing a sexy gavotte.

We need a Maypole,
I guess the Italians outnumber the English
in Elysium.
They are as soft as a pillow dream.
I wonder if they ever pillow fight -
a pajamaed affair designed
to arouse Pan and all his
goat faced minions.

It's lambing time
and the ladies
are bouncing merrily.

One day I might take note
of what else is happening
in the painting,
pull it all together
with a few well-chosen observations.

Probably, even then
there will be some odd twigs,
or bendable twists of green
I can't weave together,
no matter how hard I try.

DAILY GRATITUDE LOVE

This Valentine’s day I’m grateful for love
I believe a majority of people in this world have a kind and loving heart
Which makes me wonder:
Why are we allowing those whom we outnumber
to keep us all apart?

Independence From The Herd

The herd will outnumber you 
with an opinion you’re equal too
the echo chamber is hollow 
so those ego chasers follow 
as they parrot the sheep 
opinions they can keep 
because safety means acceptance 
and popularity has importance 
so they’re finally fitting in 
and it soothes the soul within 
that’s when you can walk alone 
stronger than the herd have known 
thinking for yourself 
as they copy someone else

In Still the Night

In still the night, the beaks slumber.
The weary wings, of great number,
In lightest twitch, upon the dark
Etching on oak, wait for dawn’s hark.
In common sleep - sigh encumber.

The scented air, lilacs cumber
With bluebird-lull, silent slumber.
No need to coax the dormant bark,
In still the night.

Quickly, stars found in low number.
Red guitar pick awakes slumber.
Birds nestle under branches’ ark.
A cloudy mist sets off a spark.
Storm’s cajole -  raindrops outnumber,
In still the night.

As Cruelly As People React

Always control your temper,
don't explode in fits of anger;
not all appreciate kindness.
There are a few good people
and there are lots of bad ones
with different moods and tones:
there are those who worry less,
all they do is fair and noble!

As cruelly as people react, 
don't take on their madness;
the more irrational they act:
the greater is their foolishness!
 
It's not the age of saints,
too widespread is insanity;
don't expect true honesty:
sinners outnumber angels!

As cruelly as people react,
stop them cold in their tract;
let your gathered wisdom reveal:
that being wise is an arm of steel!

There's a tendency in some of us
to fall prey to the remorseless liars: 
not understanding what's truly right,
not being aware of wrong conduct!

As cruelly as people react,
it can have a drastic impact; 
judge them with a godly insight:
they will see your shiny light! 

When compassion is not felt,
when evil replaces goodness
we honor darkness, not light;
so distant is forgiveness,
so pathetic is humanness!

What's Cookin' in the Old Crone's Cauldron?

the old crone’s dome boiled
skull scalding, full of trouble and toil
oily face, razorburn neck 
my eyes the type to scan
salamander like
darting here to there
wondering where to next 
where to next?
I tire of the comfort in
mom’s crockpot, I'm hungry
for another bite of syringes
in the soil
slippery like a leech, i suck
blood because its richer than what
I'm loyal to
needlepoints outnumber the steps
I cant walk a mile in these shoes
another affair with the fairy dust
apothecary that swindles all
all i have left is the
nothing that i have to lose

Do not let go of your dreams

Do not let go of your dreams, my friend
Do not let them fade into the night
Though the world may seem dark and cold
And the stars may hide their light

Do not let go of your dreams, my friend
Do not let them slip away from your sight
Though the road may be long and hard
And the journey may fill you with fright

Do not let go of your dreams, my friend
Do not let them die without a fight
Though the odds may be against you
And the foes may outnumber your might

Do not let go of your dreams, my friend
Do not let them wither in the blight
Though the time may be running out
And the end may be in sight

Do not let go of your dreams, my friend
Do not let them perish in the night
For they are the spark that ignites your soul
And the fire that burns so bright

As Long As

As long as God is Head
There shall be a roof over our heads
Where we shall bake our bread

As long as God is Love
There shall be enough to have
In, around, over and above

As long as God blesses
There shall be excesses
In our threshing floors and winepresses

As long as God is alive
The Heavens are an oozing hive
Dripping the sweetness of our thrive

As long as God is for us
We outnumber any legion in mass
And surpass any etiquette in class

K. Muitherero

Silver Lining

Combing through the carnage
Questions outnumber answers
Derailed if dwell on the details 
Will we forfeit all our advances?

Easy to get singularly focused 
On second guessing decisions 
Better to not ruminate on regrets
Since the past has no revisions 

Power in pivoting to the present 
As a new path has been charted 
Final destination still unknown
But in a better place than we started

Firearm Requiem

(In memory of the 19 children and two adults killed by gun violence in Uvalde, Texas on May 24, 2022…as well as the countless others who have and who will suffer similar fates.)

Firearm Requiem

By Mark Stucky
In the U.S., guns outnumber people
and sales outpace population growth.

Guns under beds.
Guns in closets.
Guns in cars.
Guns in trucks.
Guns in purses.
Guns in holsters.
Guns in forests.
Guns in offices.
Guns in classrooms.
Guns here.
Guns there.
Guns everywhere.
Guns pointing at them.
Guns pointing at me.
Guns pointing at you.

Why let so many fingers on so many triggers?
Why protect guns more than lives of children?
Why choose gun wrongs over gun laws?
Why is America the monarch of mass shootings?

Did gun rights come from Mt. Sinai,
written by God’s own fingers?
Did (not) guns (once again)
make America great(ly pained)?

When will we as a nation
collectively have courage
to save generational blood
and beat guns into plowshares?

(First published in Agape Review, 15 June 2022. See also my poems “Hate Vacuuming” and “Weapons of Wonder.”)

Concrete Forms

It seems
The poetic forms
Outnumber the norms
Of rhythm, pace and meter
As if meeting an old acquaintance
But didn’t want to meet her

I prefer the Iamb
With fingers counting ten
Thus, with the joy of every line
I count them all again

The Etheree
Confuses me
It takes so long to get there
With but one line of ten
And then my eager fingers
Don’t get to  count again

Then there are the echoes
of lines that slip and slide
as somewhere in their mystery
a hidden rhyme abides

Thus, I count, and scream and write
Pour word concrete into forms
Knowing that when left alone
My dreams will slowly turn to stone.

John G. Lawless
©7/10/2023

• Short Outnumber Poems
• Famous Outnumber Poems
• Best Outnumber Poems
• Read Outnumber Poems
• Long Outnumber Poems
• Outnumber Quotes