Beauty

. The Tale of Governor Do-as-I-Say-Not-as-I-Do-som It’s funny how Democracy In many states now colored blue Produces rank hypocrisy, A...

. We’re poets first-and-foremost and agree that meter, rhyme and rhythm oft are spurned; the plethora of poetry we see...

.  Brush with Shame In reference to “Couple accidentally paints over $500,000 artwork,” Ben Cost, New York Post, 4/3/21 The...

. O Spring, you’re such a tease, Fickle as a good-time lover; Temptingly, you hover Warm against my cheek, Windless,...

. Martyred daughter of a libeled Czar, You for whom St. Basil’s bells have rung, Condemned to die dishonored and...

. Poet's Note: These poems are non-autobiographical. . When Love is Lost To see the summer sun and wish for...

. You meekly poke your purple heads Through stubborn clumps of snow That yet persist in fallow beds Though balmy...

. Who took the years? Who stole the time away? Where did it go? I just don’t understand. There were...

. I wish I could build me a magic machine, A magic machine that would last, Till the octopus sings...

. Horace, in your guide to painting poems, Bid a poet paint in synchrony. Carve, in sandy caves where writers...

. Is poetry that’s free as free as all That?  Surely it’s the poet who is free Or not.  He makes the...

. Though many scores were lost, those that remain May well be thought the richest heritage Ever bequeathed by one...

    . Dusk Till Dawn  The ocean rainAnd sleep played me—A willing pawn.I dreamt of youFrom nautical duskTill nautical dawn....

. excerpted from the sonnet sequence Philip, Prince of Greece and Great Britain He wore a white gold crown wherever...

. Night Verses The airy rush of thoughts today The evening breeze has whisked away. The wind that spoke to...

. Cherry Blossom Viewing Like someone else, in unaccustomed dress, I choose that silken smoothness graze my skin __As fragile...

. We stick to what we know, what we can touch, Hold in our hands; unable to foretell What lies...

. Ballade of Prayer to Our Lady (in the voice of the poet’s mother) by François Villon (1431-1463), from French...

. Rededication The sullen days of winter Remain a galling splinter Within my thickened skin, So let the games begin!...

. If He came now, God’s only Son, To save a world that’s come undone Would we continue to defy...

. The world is full of suffering and pain; We wait in fear for death to walk our way; We...

. “The strife is o’er, the battle won”—18th c. Hymn As hapless hope and hopelessness collide The mid-day sun looms...

. Praise Him for the lightning in the gale,For balmy winds, for crystals in the snow.Wonder at the gaudy peacock’s...

. Sonnet 181 Jesus had suffered more than we can tell, But when released, His soul at once aspired To...

. I’ve had a nightmare! Let that just man go! You’re right that he’s done nothing wrong. They’re wrong To...

. Behold the Queen of Heaven weeping, seeping __Tears that rend her heart and ours. As one __Who mourns she...

. She burns to bear his burden (take the weight) But he is far beyond her guiding reach. Beyond her...

. The Lovely World Behold the frozen, flaxen fields at morn– The tall grass shining on the hills of clay...

. For the Birds The cardinal in his bold, red cloak; His wife so subtle, so bespoke. In complimentary blues...

. With what perfection are the seasons spun; When we grow tired of the opulent sun, A wind from the...

. Nature's Magic Some say that there is magic in the night,but it holds no more marvels than the day.The...

. Ode to Hidden Splendor I heard your rolling croon beyond my vision Blooming in the balm of winter’s breeze--- A thrilling spill of crystalline precision Amid the Spanish moss draped...

. The candlelight was dim and spare And Claire was there, lost in prayer And slightly swaying to and fro...

. The Parting of the Sea Salvation in the parting of the Sea, Its churning waves pierced by a knife...

. The Bibliophile’s Birth Certificate Marius Michel (1846-1925) was one of the most prominent and gifted bookbinders in France. He...

. “And when I see the blood, I will pass over you.” ---Exodus 12:13 As you have commanded, the blood...

. The path he takes this early day Is dressed in dew and straws of hay. The morning mist obscures...

. Don’t you love the Oxford Dictionary?  When I first read it, I thought it was a really really long...

. Grain If the future were a famine And tomorrow were a blight, Would we close our eyes today in...

inspired by the late John Whitworth’s “The Examiners”  Through the burst of youth and giggles in the balm of budding...