Beauty

. To a Cloud  You’re a pillow of marshmallow. You balloon and bob and billow As I sprawl beneath the willow __On the grass. You’re a swish of whitest feather. You’re awash with hues of heather. You’re a whisper of wild weather __As you pass. You’re a starlit stratus wonder. You’re a moon-kissed nimbus under Luna’s spell before Thor’s thunder __Wages war. You’re a splash upon my brolly. You’re a dash of fuzzy folly. You’re that woolly wisp of jolly __I adore....

. Last Place Winner after winning the 30-34 age group with a last-place finish in a 5K Inhaling frozen oxygen, he rounds The final turn. No cheers, just muffled sounds. He barely wobbles ‘cross the finish line And checks the lit-up numbers on the sign. Nobody else is coming, there...

. Mid-September Reverie from the book Eternal Spring Moonbeams at midnight and frost on the pole; Wind in the willows to tickle the soul; Roses in gardens still share their perfume; Peonies offer the last of their bloom. Squirrels grab the acorns to store in their nests. Baking a pie...

. The Beginning of Wisdom Within the passing noon of our own life, I saw through woodlands dark and traces grim, Those words upon the graven arches rim, Whose clarity compounds immortal strife. They claimed their maker was that power divine, The highest wisdom and the primal love, Who makes and...

. The Morning’s Crest The morning’s crest is in its youth, The dawn has yet to lose a tooth, The virgin firmament is dark, The sun’s no more than a tired spark Transcended by the cold, brash moon. But then the leaves foretell the noon, Aglow with some prophetic light;...

. Drunk on Compassion How good it feels to open up your heart And groove on how compassionate you are! You advertise your causes on your car And list your Facebook “likes” upon a chart. You march in protests, always don your mask, And quite politely call men “them” and...

. For My Queen Queen Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor April 21, 1926 - September 8, 2022 My symbol of nobility, stability and grace, Who reigned yet never ruled---she was my constant caring face On TV screen, on stamps, in scenes of history’s changing view. She slipped away this solemn day---her...

. Capability Brown Lancelot “Capability” Brown was England’s greatest landscape architect. His name was Capability, A man of great humility, He knew just where to plant a tree, Enhancing England’s scenery. Of all delights we love to see, He planned with great integrity, The English Aristocracy, Would pay his most...

. Who Shaves the Barber? shaves all those, and those only, who do not shave themselves.  —Bertrand Russell The barber had a gift for cutting hair, And once a month the men who lived in town Would take a seat upon his cushioned chair To have four weeks of outgrowth...

. Cracked Liberty Bell July the 4th—Independence. Many bands play. Parades pass by— Fireworks fly. __Rocket’s red glare . . . 1900. A song was sung From old to young: Lift every voice— They sang, rejoiced! __And shunned despair. Stoney we trod. Bitter our rod. True to our God, Who...

. StairWell Canto 10 extract Context: In the 10th Canto of HellWard we met 4 poets condemned to Hell. Now in the 10th Canto of StairWell, we meet another 4 poets stuck in Purgatory. This extract takes us to meet the third poet in the sequence of meetings, which is...

. Ozymandias Begins I met the monarch of our ancient land, who said, ‘Your skill at sculpting is renowned. The hammer and the chisel in your hand will make my semblance evermore resound.’ Upon his statue’s stone-blank face I cut the ruthless glare residing in his eyes, the frown with...

. Summer Nocturne In steady, humming monotone, With synchronism the crickets drone, And hushedly through the night intone __Their evening chant, Accompanied by a brusque descant, In equal-measured, rhythmic slant Of katy-did and katy-didn’t. __In call to mate, The owl decides to dedicate An octave in crescendo. Eight Tu-whoos in...

. Seminary Recalling days of vigor and simplicity, of boyish spirits spun from neural gossamer and hardened into granite by a panoply of actors: scamps of nimble wit, a conjurer of whimsy, lords of innocent irreverence. Societies of soulmates lent the sacred halls a mood Socratic, scholars bonded to evince...

. Food for Thought A Culinary Tale There once was a man wan and pallid, he Suffered from a mysterious malady: __He ate carrots and greens, __Ripe tomatoes and beans, But eschewed anything that's not salad-y. Now his wife, she was plump, but quite purty, Euphemistically "big-boned" or "sturdy"; __Which...

. The One Standing Tall for the Poet's father The home is where he lives, his heart is full Of love, no wealth can buy his rich esteem; No rock can match those nerves that hold our life Together still like one heroic dream. I think of childhood wrapped in...

. The Death of the Leviathan The monster finally meets its doom: Sound out the death-knell, light the pyre! The depths are ready for its tomb--- Now let the wretch at last expire! Sound out the death-knell, light the pyre Where all the putrid flesh shall burn; Now let the...

. The Shade Tree While out for a walk with my toddler, late, In the city I have come to hate, But where I am compelled to stay By my and his mother’s unmarried state, He startled me with a sudden glee With which he pointed out a “tree!” Indeed,...

. The 22 Best Haiku of 2022 Winner and Runners-up of the Society of Classical Poets 2022 Haiku Competition Judged by Margaret Coats (see her remarks below) See all entrants here. . COMPETITION WINNER . a cicada’s husk grandfather in his best suit hands folded, eyes closed —Ngo Binh Anh Khoa . ....

. Requiem for Eurydice The sunlight dims before my eyes, __My fingertips lose yours, And as my whispered farewell flies, __The last crescendo soars. Then one breath hovers, trembles, dies— __The audience all roars. . . Mary Virginia Vietor is a high school senior from Phoenix, Arizona. She enjoys playing...

. The Grieving of Autumn Be tender toward your own yearnings, When the grieving of autumn returns. When the brown leaves are piled for their burnings And the frost has corrupted the ferns. Farewells from each flying flock calling Stir remembrance of hopes who have fled, While a ballet of...

. A Villanelle for Robert Hoogland Hoogland was imprisoned for calling his daughter female Their mouths are gagged, their hands are bound; Their children taken by the state, These parents have no legal ground. While children run and play around The lip of Hell’s wide, yawning gate, Their mouths are...

. Ode to Poets of the Past I do agree with the sights__that I have seen:the warm and comfortable steps__where love has been and with the sounds of truth__that I have heard—the whisper and the song__between the word. A now familiar species__comes to beara message from an age __beyond this...

. Daedalus Icarus, you have disobeyed, As all men do, and dearly paid. Too recklessly your heart did fly Between high seas and louring sky. The wings I gave you, it is true, But what would you have had me do? No hand does good, no heart loves well Constrained...

. An Old Man's Wallet His wallet holds the scraps of yesterday with faded photos dearest to his heart; A raffle ticket, notice of a play attended when his daughter had a part; A stub from some wild party in the rain at college when he went where laughter led;...

. On Rainy Nights On rainy nights, in pensive thought, I claim the respite I have sought but seldom found on sunny days. Cool drops soothe more than brightest rays in times when life's with trouble fraught. These introspective times have brought sweet peace and comfort when I've fought a...

. Ruby Jubilee We’ve made a grand tour of exuberance, Repeated as our hearts reverberate, Imagining abodes where we might dwell For seasons long enough to celebrate Red-letter days our travel plans foretell. Though rooms or rain or hindrances displease, Experience and memory advance The journey through our realm of...

. I. My body heat is at a modicum: Say, ninety-eight point two or one or so. Foreboding naught particularly glum Except a disposition to succumb To fevers only cooler heads can know. . II. Some other hand has wound the clock within Me and its workings rarely reach my...

. Five Poems for My Mother by James A. Tweedie Poet’s Note: My mother, Marjorie Schlatter Tweedie, passed away on June 18 at the age of 101. She was still mentally alert, moving about with her walker and attending church until she fell ill six weeks before she breathed her...

. There Is No God? “There is no God,” Some men do say. This doubt, some voice, And claim this day. If God is myth Who gave us eyes? Who gave us joy? Who paints blue skies? Have they no dog, Have they no wife, Have they no child So...

. A Stranger in Your Land after Dimash Qudaibergen’s song “Stranger”  A lonely stranger in your land__where you are strange to me,underfoot, your rock and sand__enfold your land, your sea. I haul my ancient heritage__from an inland lakewhere I have walked a fragile bridge__I pray you will not break. I...

. Mightier Than the Sword?   His Eighties searing splash of fiery ink Scorched the skin of those who won’t allow The flare of feisty words. His weren’t in sync With those of kowtow howls. He wouldn’t bow To Ayatollahs raging overseas, Forcing thought upon its buckled knees. A fatwa didn’t...

. As Day Transitions to Night for "JD" and Margaret Coats There is none of the daylight’s verve— __no ripples of the sun in the brook streaming ‘round the curve. __The day will come undone, splitting at the seams, for nothing will stop the pale moon from weaving stars into...

. Lament of the Little White Horse by Paul Fort (1872-1960) Translated by Joshua C. Frank The little horse in the weather so dread, What courage he had inside! A little horse as white as white bread, All behind and him ahead. Of nice weather it never was said In...

. Lullaby of New Mexico Duerme mijo---sleep my weary child As we drive south upon the interstate. My side-eye checks on you, my tired you. My calloused hand caresses your wheat hair. The radio sings dreams, strumming guitars, The soulful voices of the mariachis Who sing about the feathers of...

. Byrd in Flight The surplice-vested, five-part choir, Like sparrows on a five-tiered wire, Gives flight to canticles of Byrd. The flocks of lightweight, living notes Ascend to where celestial thoughts Send back their echo, and are heard On earth because of William Byrd. The varied voices that compose The...

. . Non Existent One day my body disappeared, __nor could I touch or taste, but I could feel the flood of tears __that filled my missing face. My presence was by no-one known. __Not felt, nor seen, nor heard, imprisoned in a realm alone, __dissevered from the herd. Back...

. Tapestry My grandfather Evangelos did trading with the Turks Of pipes and hookahs, hash, and cloths, and skillful carpet-works. A tapestry he gave his wife in Main in nineteen-ten, A secular non-Muslim piece, showed animals and men. In foreground, street-scene, shops and people, harnessed camel clear, A palm, a...

. Poems by Théodore de Banville (1823-1891) translated by Margaret Coats The Velocipede Half brain, and half a pair of wheels, Transcending anthropology, Calf poised on manufactured heels, Half brain, and half a pair of wheels, This novel animal reveals Darwinian zoology: Half brain, and half a pair of wheels,...

. Some Mornings Some mornings it’s just tough to find that place, That slippery perspective where I view The world as not entirely unbraced From all that’s good and beautiful and true. I can’t quite find my footing, all askew Within a landscape sadly out of line With all my...