Richard Poems | Examples

Richard Cory: The Other Perspective

Richard Cory
Edwin Arlington Robinson

I stood there in awe,
Every time I saw him,
The best gentleman we ever saw,
Always clean and slim.

He rarely spoke a word,
But to our surprise,
His voice was soft as the song of a bird,
And caught the whole town’s eyes.

He was wealthier than a king,
Understood things that the smartest person couldn’t understand,
The whole town thought he had everything,
All saying, “I wish I could be that man.”

Every husband worked all day,
Each woman was a full time housewife,
But one morning, we heard them say,
That Richard took his own life.

Richard Milhouse Nixon

Richard Milhouse Nixon
his enemies he played tricks on
he sealed his own fate
when he authorized Watergate

For Richard

Somewhere, way out there
I know of souls who grapple 
With the Big Questions
The ones I only hear echos of.

Here on Earth, in my little nest,
I play parlor tricks of the mind
Looking for emptiness
And finding it winking back
As everything and everyone.

But I don’t fool myself
Into thinking it is significant
Or somehow adds anything 
To what a single human
Can and does do to further the whole.

Meanwhile there are souls I know
Struggling with their embodiment
The tenuous hold
Of dust swirling around spirit 
A cyclone with such a center.

And it is to these rare beings
Although they may curse the burden
That the gifts of fecundity
Have been heaped.

Somewhere out there 
I know of great souls
Who grapple with the Big Questions
Not because they want to
But because they must.

And in my own humble way
I wish them well
And lend them strength 
As the dust settles
To be only, always, this.

(2/27/25)

i'm dancing to cliff richard in the attic

there's no one around you see
it's just me and cliff
ear buds help cushion the volume 
my smartphone warns me 

it could damage my ears
i put it at full volume
it's 9:40pm and the family are asleep
this could go on all night

cliff said he was proud he never adopted a 
hedonistic rock and roll lifestyle and never wanted
to trash a hotel room

i've just trashed the attic

Richard

This time of year I'm fondly 
reminded of Richard the 
old guys playing chess on 
lakeshore drive watching the 
cities shoreline freeze over 
popcorn stands chestnuts 
warms the hands on state 
street the Irish river at a 
stand still as the  
center prepares for the 
giant douglas fir tree hawks 
perch on ledges as the lions 
roars on the steps at the 
du sable museum cornerstone 
outreach paints the faces of 
children parents help out in 
the soup kitchens homeless 
are actually singing Christmas 
Carols as Richard wearing 
a plaid scarf approaches 
Merry Christmas 
Chicago and to all a good night

The Years, The Days, The Instant of King Richard III

your king speaks look there 
what say you ~ horses sire ~ too 
many tend to it

vicar ~ golden rule
stay in school claim and rule a 
kingdom ~ not a horse

The Late Richard Franklin

It was a day that classic Doctor Who fans would certainly hate.
We said goodbye to the man who starred as Captain Mike Yates.
His death was even more sad because he died on Christmas Day.
Millions of his fans have missed him ever since he passed away.
People loved his performances and Richard Franklin was his name.
Now that he's deceased, fans of Doctor Who will never be the same.
He starred in one episode of "Harry" and nine episodes of "Crossroads".
When he starred in "Emmerdale Farm", he starred in over thirty episodes.
He was a British actor with talent and that's something people can't deny.
It was sad and heartbreaking when his fans were forced to say goodbye.


[Dedicated to Richard Franklin (1936-2023) who died on December 25, 2023]

Don't Call Me Richard

What happened Richard?

You used to be a nice guy.

Now they call you Dick!

Mother Catches Richard in a Lie

Richard denied a romantic relationship with his neighbor
His mother found her lipstick mark and a sexy message on his bedroom mirror
Glad now she had accidentally snooped in there

The Late Richard Moll

People are sad because of the death of Richard Moll.
He was a talented actor who stood six feet eight tall.
People will be liars if they say that he was short.
Moll starred in all nine seasons of "Night Court".
He starred twice in "The Dukes of Hazzard" as "Milo".
For many people, his death was a devastating blow.
In addition to starring on television, he also starred in movies.
He was a famous thespian who has died at the age of eighty.

[Dedicated to Richard Moll (1943-2023) who died on October 26, 2023]

Associate Professor Emeritus Richard D Slick, Phd

"Associate Professor Emeritus
Richard D. Slick, PhD"


ahhh 
ohh
not
an
ode
to a
once
known
dare i say
friend but
professor

the
hours
i went
and
spent
during
office
hours
for his
were not
his but ours

materialistic 
decisions
& Lit at
it's
best best
discussed
face to face
without traces of
but one mistake made
when others would
enter and say:

"Excuse me 
Doctor Slick"
... and with
that that's
when
he
would
say, "Please,
I'm not a M.A.S.H.
surgeon or even general
practitioner. Not a doctor. Just

Dick
Slick

Christ Like Richard Is Now a Troll

When my cousin Lulu fell in love
Richard was her king, the man of her dreams
An angel, a saint, Christ-like, marvelous, fabulous, wonderful.
The gushing compliments never ceased.
They were saccharine, soapy, goo-goo gargantuous.
She put all of her clothes in Richard’s closet, he was the top of the mark.

Seven years later, Lulu is divorcing Richard, her king.
Except now he is Beelzebub, despicable, deplorable, loathsome
She has no idea what she ever saw in this troll.
He is a deviant bottom-feeder.
A user, a swindler, a thief, a clown.

None of our family is surprised.
We recognize Lulu’s pattern.
She finds a prince
In seven years she drops him
So far there has been Jerry, Tom, Jim, Fred, Max and Pete.
Oh, and now Richard.
Don’t worry grandma says.
In a few more years Lulu will run out of rocks to look under.

Persecution of Richard Vobes

Richard Vobes, a gentle man with measured tones
Helpful content broadcast to many, inventive mind
Makes often light; on 'you tube' of dark designs palpable as night
Airless, almost we feel, and hear see bad actions 
Observe distrust and fear, documented intentions
Of hostile vein, tenseness in multitudes inherent strain
90% the target say just a few, less to share with me.and you ' entitlement averice honed, affluent genre grasps
Sanity is sidlined, health reverseal oxeygenless gasps
Deny life support, its now percived wisdom do you know?
Intellectual nhillisam is systemised, yes savagery is
Suited is tailored, its wretchedness is at a euglogy, despicable action is festering, dispersed worldwide.'
 Dear, God keep Richard sane and whole, guide him
Teach him, let more reality be told.'

Lovng Day

Loving Day

When Richard and Mildred fell in love,
their fate was decided by a judge.
For he was white and she was black,
their marriage broke Virginia's Integrity Act.

Forced to move to Washington DC,
they opposed the ruling in 1963.

In 1967, a supreme court ruled that Richard and Mildred Loving could live together,
as an interracial married couple in their own state of Virginia,
and declared that the law prohibiting this was unconstitutional.

June 12 is National 'Loving Day', when many Americans continue to celebrate the freedom to marry a person of another race.
Festivals, barbecues, parties are held, 
to show that love knows no bound.

Richard Thomas Barden

* It’s been three years, Dad, and it hurts like yesterday … I don’t know why I was the one to walk you home, but it will forever be my bittersweet blessing, and an honor I didn’t deserve. I miss you very much. *

               ~

( 9.18.26 - 10.27.19 )


for that bright rose of his honor
those edged thorns of sacrifice
to the steeds he’d left unbroken
and the chimes, a-pealing thrice

to the statues, still in marbled earth
countless draughts thus never spilt
to that knight left rusting in the rain
the steadfast bridges that he’d built

to the jester in his dancing court
the somber conscript left behind
for his queen midst her devotions
and his swords of heart and mind

for the master, mate and martyr
who we laud now with our breath
and the God he loved with graces
who has grieved us with his death

may we wear his garland shining
with the charms that he’d impart
and ne’er let his laurels wilt there
but bloom bright within our heart.

son, brother, husband, father, friend ...

kanpai.






Copyright (10/27/20) © Gregory R Barden, rewrite, October 27, 2022

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