Walking Poems

Footsteps and Friendships

Step by step we walk along,
Breathing in the air so strong.
The sky above the ground below,
Our hearts are light, 
Our spirits grow.

Side by side we laugh, and talk,
The road stretched forward as we walk.
Steps complete the mind feels clear,
Calm and balance free of fear. 

As we walked, the journey flows,
Stronger still, our friendship grows .
Grateful

walking stick

The walking stick and Elon Musk

I was a galley-boy on an old tankship 
that docked in Liverpool for repair 
I think it was in May, and I was sixteen 
at a second-hand shop, near the docks
I bought a walking stick and happily used it
the stick going ashore to the pub or 
to buy fish and chips, unaware of how odd
I must

As Kyle was Walking Down the Aisle

as Kyle was walking down the aisle
he tasted disgusting salty green bile
looked up and saw a weird smile on Lyle
Feeling vile, he started to dial.

His bride Wilhemina was dressed in style.
she outclassed him by a city mile
he ran, jumping a massive wood pile
did not return for quite a while

in the meantime, the groomsman named Lyle
wooed

Walking and Breathing

I walk and breathe 
And breathe and walk. 
Listen to the sounds
Of children and chalk. 

I smile at the pictures
Drawn with great care
Pink and purple flowers
In pixies' sidewalk lair.

I smell at the rain
That surely soon falls 
And listen to the birds 
Singing their calls. 

The sun is warm, 
And thaws my old bones
Today it's welcome

Fukuda Chiyo-ni Haiku Translations 4

Fukuda Chiyo-ni Haiku Translations 4

The next seven autumn moon translations are dedicated to Stephen I. Hsu, who suggested the Chiyo-ni poems to me.

Keywords/Tags: autumn, moon, bright, walk, touch, nature, absence, angst, loneliness, solitude, understanding, distance, nearness

Bright autumnal moon,
but no matter how far I walked,
unreachable.
—Fukuda Chiyo-ni, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Bright autumnal moon,
but no matter

The Walking Dead

Walking dead. Zombies.
Drones looking for sustinance.
Hungry with blank eyes.
Living no life and loveless.
Aimlessly forging ahead.

Walking dead. Zombies.
Reminds me of the living.
No life, yet still here.
Sit in front of screens and die;
Wasting away to nothing.

Walking dead. Zombies.
Perhaps, we are the dead ones.
Not truly alive;
Missing all-important things.
Killing off our connection.

Tanka Triptych Poetry Contest
Sponsor: John Anderson
Entered:08/17/2025

a walking void

lost to my sight 
In a world of noise, we move 
In endless plains, shadows lie
Footfall echoes n dies
Sounds travel past my night
A void endless inside
Walking trail of broken stars 
Cast in darkness deep n beyond 
Beautiful n terrifying 
A walking void of oblivion’s
Objects defining all as it was 
The light cascades, heavenly charade
A void

Still, Love Keeps Walking Barefoot

Still, love keeps walking barefoot, though the sky is in shreds,  
and the baker swears softly while counting his breads,  
though the dogs in the square bark at storms in their dreams,  
and the saints in the church spill their wine into streams.  

The moon,  like a coin someone lost

Instructions For Walking Away

feet tracing ruts
softened by the weight of others

the path was worn
    polished
not by insight
but by generations
unquestioning the same direction

a weed split the sidewalk
where my foot hesitated

they handed us maps
already marked, folded
creased at the routes
they wanted us to traverse

walls hung with heirlooms
no one claimed
shadows
longer than the rooms

classrooms’ chalkboards of certainty
offices pressed flat with

TAKE A HIKE

There were times when I was young…when I got on my parent’s nerves…
when I did things they did not like…
when they wanted me out of their hair they might tell me, “Go take a hike”

Of course that meant to stop bugging them…to let them be…to go away…
to read a book, watch TV or go outside

Walking through grief

Wide awake
mind racing
silent, dark world
new day emerging
should I go ahead
and jump into the day
or lay here letting my
thoughts and worries
take over?

Choosing an early start,
I make an attempt
to tame the worries
and frustration
running on repeat
in my mind and
breathe deeply 
and pray that today
will be a better day

I was frustrated with myself
when I let a hard situation
cause tears

Tightrope Walking

It's 
all 
a 
balancing
act.

Known professionally as

We were parallel walking
she asked if I found [famous person] attractive
I sucked a thoughtful tooth (as if)
and said I'm not one to fawn over
minor celebrities
she said fawn I said yes fawn 

But if [famous person] was here now
I'd attach myself to her legs and let her
drag me through the mud
like an I don't know what
the

Walking Away

It’s not easy walking away
Its not harder to feel alone
I have words with no way to say
There is a world and just my home

I did not look back
I did not want to say goodbye
Courage perhaps or wisdom lack
Without words… can I still lie?

Each step… each thought
Brings me closer and further
I’m free yet caught
Was walking away

Walking Miles in the Dollar Store

For three hours, I wait.
Is patient the word?
A friendly face, too soon?
Still, when your old
you have no time

for particulars, need to tell
your story to who will listen;
and walk miles and miles
of aisles in the dollar store
where your friend
never goes; and you tell

her about the rose;
and eventually
Mary and Martha meet,
having never crossed paths
before, and
probably nevermore this

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