Posts filed under ‘PUBLISHED POEM’
PUBLISHED POEMS
In 1983, the year I married Joni, New Worlds Unlimited published two of my poems in Journeys of the Poet Prophet.
RESTORATIONS
The ground trembled and moaned
like some mighty giant stirring from sleep,
like some force gone unnoticed wanting to be known,
And Naples crumbled,
And men died, and women died,
and children would never grow old.
Even dead Pompeii died, died even more that day.
And the earth was changed, and people were changed.
Workmen hurried to rebuild Pompeii
working hard to restore its timeless death.
And people groped in rain filled darkness
trying hard to rebuild shattered life.
And small towns, villages rival Pompeii in their death,
And death is more easily restored than life.
OVERHEAD
Overhead, one by one the light bulbs expire,
Their guts bursting,
And in death their ghosts yield a softer view of life,
Harsh shadows melt away.
Reality fades into the background
and the room’s boundaries sink into infinity.
Another bursts in incandescent death.
Familiar objects take on new shapes
as possessions melt from sight.
A book left open,
the words blur into feelings.
Something calls from the darkness
waiting to be released as the last flame fades.
PUBLISHED POEMS
The year was 1982 and New Worlds Unlimited published two of my poems in their anthology, Dreams of the Heroic Muse.
LOVE VISITED
Love visited me once
on a moonlit night
lasting six months;
I grew,
was nourished
became almost human
as my being sought a home.
I held the moon at arm’s length
and watched it grow small
as its certain cycle
continued to darkness.
The baying of dogs rings untrue,
the sky is empty.
I wrote the following poem in remembrance of my grandmother.
ROSES
Roses were her love,
great flowing rainbows of pink, red and white.
Her children, small strangers would come
and each take home
a fist full of gaily colored affection.
Roses were her love,
And when rest had finally come from roses
roses were hers,
Elegant creations of empty colors
looking out on empty eyes.
Roses were her love,
And now her small garden
has yet to discover
a rose.
PUBLISHED POEM
This will be my last entry for 2010. I wish all my readers a Happy New Year. May you enjoy a new year of health, prosperity and productively.
This poem was published in 1981 by New Worlds Unlimited in Images of the Mystic Truth.
As you can tell, I was not in the best of moods. It was a bad year; the year my mother died. But, if we are lucky, deep sorrow can be followed by intense joy. The following year I met my future wife, Joni. We were married in 1983.
So if your times are hard, hold on. Miracles can happen.
PHANTASY
Sickness pervades this cloistered sphere
this world he calls his own.
Mutterings leap with meanings unclear
crying a message unknown.
Shadowy thoughts revoke the day
God gave his hand, then turned away.
Come see the shell that isn’t a man,
muse at this poor wretched fool.
Look to his eyes a moment and then
Depart his mad vestibule.
PUBLISHED POEM
My reluctant and very few consistent readers,
I sincerely hope that you had a wonderful holiday season. I must tell you that we have a sunroom where I keep a live tree decorated and lit the entire year. Some of us have a hard time letting go of hope and joy.
Now to writing. They year 1980 was a banner year for my poetry published by New Worlds Unlimited; they published two poems. Here they are.
EVERGLADES JOURNEY
Propeller spins,
And engine speaks a staccato song
to water and tree,
Sawgrass streaks by
in a maze of wildlife and nature,
Animals scurry-
Alligators lift their horny heads
And lacking patience with mankind
move on.
Free-
Gliding along a filmy surface of life
where nature exists as a power
not a tool.
I lived in Florida at one time and had an opportunity to ride in an airboat. This was the result of that experience.
HOPE
Hope,
Like tiny bubbles
in the murky depths
of liquid life,
Traveling to the surface
they expand,
Realizing only too late
they have traveled too far
and burst.
Take care my friends.
PUBLISHED POEM
This effort was published in 1979 by New Worlds Unlimited in their anthology, Visions of the Enchanted Spirit.
THE WIND HOWLS
The wind howls a mournful tune,
The winter is deep and the night long,
Frost paints a lacey scene
on darkened windows
as we lay here
with only a single wavering candle
mellowing the room,
We touch, Caress
fighting off the winter chill,
Fighting off life’s hard cold,
Next to you life is summer
on this December night.
The sun grows,
A flame burns on.
We are one.
PUBLISHED POEM
Another ancient effort published by New Worlds Unlimited in 1978.
The title of the anthology, Tracings of the Valiant Soul.
A RAINDROP FALLS
A raindrop falls
its birth uncertain,
Its death
a roadside pond,
The center ripples
and long after the raindrop expires
long after its fate is done
gentle waves are felt
along the shore.
PUBLISHED POEM
My reluctant readers,
Here is another poem from my distant past. It was published by New Worlds Unlimited in an anthology entitled, Whispers of the Unchained Heart, in 1977. God, I love their titles.
Enjoy.
CITY DEATH
Gone-
Murdered by concrete
and polluted air,
Witness to city’s growth.
Yielding shade to sultry summers,
Forming crystalline sculptures in winter,
Morning droned with saws
A barren stump your marker
Death your reward.
PUBLISHED POEMS
My reluctant readers,
Another ‘blast from the past’.
Published by New Worlds Unlimited in 1976. The title of the anthology was, and still is, Reflections of the Inward Silence. They could pick good titles.
JUNKYARD
Lying amongst mud and decay
Spent heaps discarded,
Side by side the mean and misused
Elegant and cherished share the same epitaph,
Pampered and treasured rot alike
In the end measure equal,
Parts torn and corrupted,
Scavengers pick clean
That others survive.
PUBLISHED POEMS
My reluctant readers,
Here is another poem from my past. It was published by New Worlds Unlimited out of Saddle Brook, New Jersey in their anthology entitled, Shadows of the Elusive Dreams, in 1975.
I must tell you, although the urge is great, none of these poems have been altered after publication. As every writer knows, a work is never done, but you have to walk away.
PARK RESIDENT
Winding thru city parks,
Stumbling from a park-bench sleep,
In the uncertain light of dawn
He wanders;
Eyes brimmed with despair-
Blessed with yet another day
His mind recalls vague dreams,
The dreams of his youth
Gone to mist;
Less often now come dreams
Unknown to park-bench beds,
Night brings only cold,
Thoughts void of future.
PUBLISHED POEMS
My reluctant readers,
As promised, here is another published poem.
For fifteen years a small press in Saddle Brook, New Jersey selected one or two of my poems to be published in their annual anthology. This poem was the first, published in 1974 in the anthology, Echoes of the Unlocked Odyssey
The Distant Jewel
Shimmering diamonds in the distance,
Gleaming pearls on an ebony sea,
The city lies ahead
Made lovely by the night and the span of miles,
Those who know her close
Have seen her decay,
Known her avenues littered
The debris of progress
The broken spirit of man.
Distance lends to a hazy beauty,
Close inspection
Horror.
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