A Poetry Thread--For Those So Inclined....
Clankeye
Posts: 3,928 ✭
I wrote this poem this morning:
THE HEADS
I dreamed I saw a rancid cat
Come clawing through the gloaming
And in each paw he held a head
That chanted to his roaming
The first head spat "I am the one
Who God and Angels favor"
The second only gazed with hate
Upon his frenzied neighbor
And with each step the great cat took
His mewling became louder
Until he crashed the heads to earth
Reducing them to powder
By Clankeye
This Poem was written by Yeats and is one of my all time favorites:
THE LAKE ISLE OF INNISFREE
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade
And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping
slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket
sings;
There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.
I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.
By W. B. Yeats
I would like it if others would post poems that they enjoy on this thread. If you do not believe this is appropriate for the US Coins forum, my apologies. I'm sorry I don't really have any other commentary about what goes on around here. If you want to tell me where to shove it, I would request that you at least do it in rhyme. Thanks,
Clankeye
THE HEADS
I dreamed I saw a rancid cat
Come clawing through the gloaming
And in each paw he held a head
That chanted to his roaming
The first head spat "I am the one
Who God and Angels favor"
The second only gazed with hate
Upon his frenzied neighbor
And with each step the great cat took
His mewling became louder
Until he crashed the heads to earth
Reducing them to powder
By Clankeye
This Poem was written by Yeats and is one of my all time favorites:
THE LAKE ISLE OF INNISFREE
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade
And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping
slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket
sings;
There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.
I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.
By W. B. Yeats
I would like it if others would post poems that they enjoy on this thread. If you do not believe this is appropriate for the US Coins forum, my apologies. I'm sorry I don't really have any other commentary about what goes on around here. If you want to tell me where to shove it, I would request that you at least do it in rhyme. Thanks,
Clankeye
Brevity is the soul of wit. --William Shakespeare
0
Comments
Call the roller of big cigars,
The muscular one, and bid him whip
In kitchen cups concupiscent curds.
Let the wenches dawdle in such dress
As they are used to wear, and let the boys
Bring flowers in last month's newspapers.
Let be be finale of seem.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.
Take from the dresser of deal
Lacking the three glass knobs, that sheet
On which she embroidered fantails once
And spread it so as to cover her face.
If her horny feet protrude, they come
To show how cold she is, and dumb.
Let the lamp affix its beam.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.
--Wallace Stevens
Clankeye
everyone called him a &$%%##%
when he went to jail to do his time
he found in his cell a 1916-d dime
allthough he had a life sentence or two
he sat and rubbed the dime with nothing to do
upon his appeal they found out this man is for real
they let him out of the front gate
only to see his dime was now a good-8
An open mind will support transformation.
Recognize life is full of change
and celebrate the opportunity.
"There is always a way to collect,Never surrender the hobby"
And by all means, do not let my dour contributions keep anyone from posting something fun.
........two roads diverged in a yellow wood
and sorry i could not travel both
and be one traveler, long i stood
and looked down one as far as i could
to where it bent in the undergrowth;
then took the other, as just as fair,
and having perhaps the better claim,
because it was grassy and wanted wear;
though as for that, the passing there
had worn them really about the same.
and both that morning equally lay
in leaves no step had trodden black.
oh, i kept the first for another day!
yet knowing how way leads unto way,
i doubted if i should ever come back.
i shall be telling this with a sigh
somewhere ages and ages hence:
two roads diverged in a wood, and i-----
i took the one less traveled by,
and that has made all the difference.
al h.
I MUST down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea's face and a grey dawn breaking.
I must down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.
I must down to the seas again to the vagrant gypsy life.
To the gull's way and the whale's way where the wind's like a whetted kinfe;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the lon tricks over.
John Masefield
I will post one more and then let this thread either drift into oblivion or stick around for awhile on its own:
RICHARD CORY
Whenever Richard Cory went down town,
We people on the pavement looked at him:
He was a gentleman from sole to crown,
Clean favored, and imperially slim.
And he was always quietly arrayed,
And he was always human when he talked;
But still he fluttered pulses when he said,
"Good-morning," and he glittered when he walked.
And he was rich - yes, richer than a king -
And admirably schooled in every grace;
In fine we thought that he was everything
To make us wish that we were in his place.
So on we worked, and waited for the light,
And went without the meat, and cursed the bread;
And Richard Cory, one calm summer night,
Went home and put a bullet through his head.
- Edwin Arlington Robinson -
for any ruffian of the sky
your kingbird doesn't give a damn ---
his royal warcry is I AM
and he's the soul of chilvalry
in terror of whose furious beak
(as sweetly singing creatures know)
cringes the hugest heartless hawk
and veers the vast most crafty crow
your kingbird doesn't give a damn
for murderers of high estate
whose mongrel creed is Might Makes Right
--- his royal warcry is I AM
true to his mate his chicks his friends
he loves because he cannot fear
(you see it in the way he stands
and looks and leaps upon the air)
e.e. cummings
Into the distance, a ribbon of black
Stretched to the point of no turning back
A flight of fancy on a windswept field
Standing alone my senses reeled
A fatal attraction holding me fast, how
Can I escape this irresistible grasp?
Can't keep my eyes from the circling skies
Tongue-tied and twisted Just an earth-bound misfit, I
Ice is forming on the tips of my wings
Unheeded warnings, I thought I thought of everything
No navigator to guide my way home
Unladened, empty and turned to stone
A soul in tension that's learning to fly
Condition grounded but determined to try
Can't keep my eyes from the circling skies
Tongue-tied and twisted just an earth-bound misfit, I
Above the planet on a wing and a prayer,
My grubby halo, a vapour trail in the empty air,
Across the clouds I see my shadow fly
Out of the corner of my watering eye
A dream unthreatened by the morning light
Could blow this soul right through the roof of the night
There's no sensation to compare with this
Suspended animation, A state of bliss
Can't keep my eyes from the circling skies
Tongue-tied and twisted just an earth-bound misfit, I
-Pink Floyd-
OK, I know it's a song, but it's still darn good poetry!!!
I'm not, but because I am out of my mind
I'll throw in some drivel (I think that's the word)
On that Open Forum, it's what they preferred!
We find ourselves here on the US Coin Forum
Riddled with coin lore and sometimes decorum.
Light-hearted and helpful the rule of the day
And occasional spats that might clutter the way.
At the core, great collectors - regardless of wealth
Quite eager and willing to help someone else.
"Is this Morgan worth it? How high should I go?"
"Can we see what you picked up at last weekend's show?"
There's always somebody to answer those queries
Who knows every variety, every series.
I'm tempted to read here up to the wee hours
It's like doing a mind-meld with Q. David Bowers!
I love to see newbies come on to the board
No matter their budget, what they can afford
Is precious to them, and we ought to respect it.
After all, it's their choice if they want to collect it.
I thank all of you who share of your knowledge
For my free Ph.D. from US Coin College.
Keep posting those pictures and show off your newps
And I'll watch the For Sale board to buy up your dupes!
Mr. Clankeye's selections he's posted so far
Have been rather somber. To those, au revoir!
I mean no offense, and I hope you don't cry out
But one more like that, and I'll poke your damn eye out!
New collectors, please educate yourself before spending money on coins; there are people who believe that using numismatic knowledge to rip the naïve is what this hobby is all about.
BTW, The Lake Isle of Innisfree is hardly what I would consider depressing.
Edit for spelling
New collectors, please educate yourself before spending money on coins; there are people who believe that using numismatic knowledge to rip the naïve is what this hobby is all about.
Please I don't want you to be mortified, I was kidding. I have two good eyes. My imaginary counter part Clankeye only has one, though.
I asked at the beginning of this (what some would consider unnecessary and ridiculous thread) that if someone wanted to tell me to shove it, they do so in rhyme. Well, you did! And a good job it was too.
I like poetry, I like coins, I like people, and I sometimes like to hear poetry that people I like... like. My own particular effort at poetry, is a sorry excuse, this I do admit. But, some of the other ones people have posted are very good and I have enjoyed reading them. Yours included.
Carl
Camelot
Whose woods these are I think I know his house is the the village though
I don't think he we see me stopping here to watch his woods fill up with snow
My little horse must think it queer to stop without a farm house near
Between the woods and frozen lake the darkest evening of the year
He gives his harness bells a shake to ask if there is some mistake
The only other sounds the easy sweep of wind and flake
The woods are lovely dark and deep but I have promises to keep
and miles to go before I sleep and miles to go before I sleep
Robert Frost
ROSE POGONIAS
a saturated meadow, sunshaped and jewel small,
a circle scarcely wider than the trees around were tall;
where winds were quite excluded, and the air was stifling sweet
with the breath of many flowers-----a temple of the heat.
there we bowed us in the burning, as the suns right worship is,
to pick where none could miss them a thousand orchises;
for though the grass was scattered, yet every second spear
seemed tipped with wings of color that tinged the atmosphere.
we raised a simple prayer before we left the spot,
that in the general mowing that place might be forgot;
or if not all so favored, obtain such grace of hours
that none should mow the grass there
while so confused with flowers.
al h.
Penny, penny
Easily spent
Copper brown and
worth one cent.
Nickel, nickel,
Thick and fat,
You're worth five cents.
I know that.
Dime, dime,
Little and thin,
I remember,
You're worth ten.
Quarter, quarter
Big and bold,
You're worth twenty-five
I am told!
Hark! Methinks I hear a poem
Is it a sonnet or an ode?
Never mind; it's neither of these
Just the chirping of a TOAD.
The Coin
Into my heart's treasury
I slipped a coin
That time cannot take
Nor a thief purloin, --
Oh better than the minting
Of a gold-crowned king
Is the safe-kept memory
Of a lovely thing.
Sara Teasdale
al h.
Your Western heads here cast on money,
You are two that fade away together,
Partners in the mist.
Lunging buffalo shoulder,
Lean Indian face.
We who come after where you are gone
Salute your forms on the new nickel.
You are to us: The past
Runners on the praire: good-bye.
A poem inspired by the Indian Head nickel. That is very interesting and cool. I had not read it until now.
I am hesitant to post again and push this thread back to the top.... If there are those of you who truly are annoyed that it is on the coin forum, I hope that you began ignoring it long ago.
I would like to explain one reason that I wrote that poem "The Heads" and why I started this thread here. I wrote it as a gut response to the anger, the fighting, the miscommunication, the hubris, the egoism and nastiness that had been brewing from the days of It's4Real on.... too much stress was building up for me, because I did everything I could to stay out of those threads, but still was effected by them, nonetheless. Am I guilty of all the aforementioned things? Absolutely. Am I above them? Absolutely not. I wrote "The Heads" as a nonsense poem. A quick little rhyme. But, when I was done it didn't seem like nonsense to me. It seemed like... a picture of anger. So I decided to throw it into the mix out here, on the forum. This is the only forum I go to, and you people, are the people that I have come to make an investment of my time with. Yes, I look at it that way, an investment of my time, and my emotions. In the short time I have been here I have seen relationships with some of you start to grow like small pillars out of the sand. This is a good thing. Sometimes when the board is in chaos and disorder, I feel a personal sense of disorder... to deal with that we all do different things. Snipe a coin... write a poem... it's all the same.
I am X100 too sensitive. And I don't mean that in a complimentary way. Man, I wish things just blew off me. But, they don't. And it's just something I've come to accept.
So all of this has been kind of a long winded explanation (which no one asked for) about why I started this thread. Someone once told me "Never explain." Well, that's not the world I live in.
I find lately, that I am getting gun-shy about what I post. I may regret posting this... but I'm going to anyway. And if there are any who can not see the good will intended in it, I am sorry.
God’s gentle breath
borne,
scarlet orange gold
leaves
willing,
certainly sure
in falling through azure
delightfully heedless
of wither,
but
not
why.
<< <i>I did everything I could to stay out of those threads >>
Clankeye, I am reminded of an Ogden Nash piece.
If called by a panther,
Don't anther.
Then there is RLinn's corollary.
If bummed by a thread,
Don't spread.
But, those threads
I reads.
Did you write that poem? If so, I want to tell you how much I like it. Even if you didn't write it, I want to tell you how much I like it. If you did not, who did?
Carl
I am the author.
Though we are all unique, we have much in common and much that is good and true. Sept. 11 reminded us all of this.
Too often we lose sight of bigger things in the face of meaningless coin squabbles.
<< <i>But, those threads I reads. >>
ROTFLMAO
Shame on you?
Me too!
Your poem has a grace to it. That it was the first thing I read after my post has great significance to me.
Thank you. My wife also thought it was beautiful.
Carl
I Listen
A wholesome poem by Chuck R.
I Listen to the trees, and they say:
"Stand tall and yield.
Be tolerant and flexible.
Be true to yourself.
Stand alone, and stand together.
Be brave.
Be patient.
With time, you will grow."
I Listen to the wind, and it says:
"Breathe.
Take care of yourself --
body, mind, and spirit.
Take time.
Be quiet.
Listen from your heart.
Forgive."
I Listen to the sun, and it says:
"Nurture others.
Let your warmth radiate for others to feel.
Give yourself without expectations."
I Listen to the creek, and it says:
"Relax; go with the flow.
Tend to what's really important,
and let the rest go by.
Keep moving -- don't be hesitant or afraid.
Lighten up -- laugh, giggle."
I Listen to the mountains, and they say:
"Be there.
Be honest.
Be trustworthy.
Do what you say you're going to do.
Be true, genuine, and real.
Speak from the heart.
Don't cheat."
I Listen to the birds, and they say:
"Set yourself free.
Sing."
I Listen to the clouds, and they say:
"Be creative.
Be expressive.
Let your spirit run free.
Let yourself be light and gay,
but let yourself be heavy and sad.
Cry when you feel like it."
I Listen to the sky, and it says:
"Open up.
Let go of the boundaries and barriers
which you have created to protect yourself.
Experience change.
Fly."
I Listen to the flowers and small plants, and they say:
"Be humble.
Be simple.
Respect the beauty of small things.
Respect the beauty of humility and truth.
Let go of perfectionism.
Love yourself as you are; it opens the door to change.
Practice acceptance."
I Listen to the bugs and flying insects, and they say:
"Work.
Be productive.
Use your hands.
Focus on what's in front of you.
Ignore the past; there is only the present."
I Listen to the moon, and it says:
"Love.
Share love.
Make love.
Be romantic -- touch and caress.
Allow yourself to be loved.
Be gentle, kind, and understanding.
Use candles."
I Listen to the stars, and they wink and say:
"Play.
Dance, be silly, have fun."
I Listen to the earth, and it says:
"I am your mother.
I give you life.
Respect all that is around you.
Find beauty in all things -- living and not -- including
yourself; for we are all one -- not separate.
Be especially respectful to the very young and the very old,
for they are both very near God.
Give up the belief that you are a higher form of life;
there is no higher form of life.
We are equal because we are the same.
When you return to me, I will welcome you,
and I will set your spirit free.
Love and nurture your children; cook good food for them,
and hold them very close to you often.
Hold me close to you often as well,
and I will hold you in return; I will support you.
Have faith.