Birthday Son Poems

That morning I prayed to flickering exit signs,
to the hum of fluorescent lights,
to anything that would listen
in that sterile room.

Then—
your cry pierced the air
like dawn...

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If they shoot, tell my story

A boy writes a letter to his mother
She will know nothing of it
Until
Something bad happens
But he knows something will
He knows...

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Sorry part 2 
I see you almost everyday. 
I want to put the wrong things right. 
I don’t want you to feel neglected. 
I need...

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To My Son, On His Birthday


Today you stand, a year more bold and bright,
A soul so full of wonder, joy, and grace.
Each dawn you chase...

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Twenty years elapsed since Harriet Harris, née Kuritsky gave up the ghost ~ May 5th, 2004

Often these days
the following genuine sentiment
Matthew Scott Harris
doth wish to...

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Hey Dad!

Hey Dad! Is that you knocking at the door outside?
I'm excited to let you know how great was my first horse ride.
Mom was waiting...

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Now he speaks with words so clear,
His aims increase with every year.
He’s growing up with height and grace,
Yet, gives us all the same embrace.
The world...

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Got my last name, 
It’s Privislav until the day that I die. 
Glass full of pain, 
Paint thinner halves the days I have alive. 
Tomorrow...

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Some years ago a great man was born this week
He was my beautiful son
He had such a big heart that is hard to describe
I saw...

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Mother mother 
You are to me 
All things good that life can be 
This love of life 
You gave to me 
Then let me love...

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Daddy's specter plectrums mercilessly
Fraying my nerves raw
with oxidized guitar strings.
my thoughts relentlessly hemorrhage
onto clay vinyl grooves
s p i n n i n g
endless nights
of
suffocation.

a midnight...

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As you prepare for twenty-three,
We see the man you've come to be,
With so much grace and so much light,
You always soar to a greater height.
Throughout...

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I dreamt last night of my father.
He played on roller-skates, with
grandchildren, more likely great grandchildren,
yet to be born.

It was a family get together,
perhaps his birthday,...

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Ten years of life story…
have brought happiness, sometimes fading joy.
Catching a glimpse of the glory...
keep striving, my brave and resilient boy.

Your remarkable mind can take...

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Marina, Motherina, Baba, Mum!
Reflect upon what your life has become:
Born in Harbin to refugee Russians,
Tossed out by Mao, with mild repercussions.

Aussie girl, country girl, raised...

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