do you think
wallpaper wants to talk
to the people in the room?

don't you think there's wisdom
in wallpaper?
how it absorbs the stories and
the spinning revolving door
of people who come and go

It takes heat to open an oyster,
or a knife(or time).
Humans are enough like oysters, I suppose,
but they don’t need pain to bring out their full potential—
they do need time.
Time takes too long for some,
and pain is an easy alternative;
forgoing sleep and forgetting to eat,
distance from loved ones,
pushing and pushing and pushing and—
a pearl.

you exhale; it is the wind through
the forest; the rising of brittle
brown leaves

into a uniform, twisting thing
of color; our lives bounded
along its length

then it rests; the long brush-
stroke reaches canvas’ edge -  
a clearing

(this is not the end, but as if
only to pause for another
breath)

If I were in pieces Could I grab the phone
and give you a call?
Would you wipe away my tears or care about me at all?
Would you hear my pain if someone dragged a blade across my heart?
Would you stick my pieces together before I fall apart?
Would you for no reason hold my hand and say it'll be okay?
Is it too much ask? Would you like strangers to just stay away?
I don't know you at all but I wish you picked up the phone and said hi.
I've been with too many people who called only to say goodbye.
Sometimes I read this from the dying passion in their eyes
Sometimes from the awkward silence and often from their lies.
Will you sit through my grief long enough that it turns into a smile?
Will you, Will you for once tell me I am strong even though I'm fragile.
I'm in the telephone box now dialing random numbers on an imaginary list
praying in my heart someone like you can still exist.

Ascendant Transcendent
Ascendance Transcendence
by Michael R. Burch

Breaching the summit
I reach
the horizon’s last rays.

This is a poem about unexpectedly glimpsing the raw beauty of the universe, which comes like an unexpected blessing.



Sudden Shower
by Michael R. Burch

The day’s eyes were blue
until you appeared
and they wept at your beauty.



Imperfect Perfection
by Michael R. Burch

You're too perfect for words―
a problem for a poet.



yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #1
by michael r. burch

plagued by the Plague
i plague the goldfish
with my verse



yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #2
by michael r. burch

sunflowers
hang their heads
embarrassed by their coronas

I wrote this poem after having a sunflower arrangement delivered to my mother, who is in an assisted living center and can't have visitors due to the coronavirus pandemic.



homework: yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #3
by michael r. burch

dim bulb overhead,
my silent companion:
still imitating the noonday sun?



Stormfront
by Michael R. Burch

Our distance is frightening:
a distance like the abyss between heaven and earth
interrupted by bizarre and terrible lightning.



Splintering

An unbending tree
breaks easily.
―Lao Tzu, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch



Autumn Conundrum
by Michael R. Burch

It's not that every leaf must finally fall,
it's just that we can never catch them all.



Laughter's Cry
by Michael R. Burch

Because life is a mystery, we laugh
and do not know the half.

Because death is a mystery, we cry
when one is gone, our numbering thrown awry.



Childless
by Michael R. Burch

How can she bear her grief?
Mightier than Atlas, she shoulders the weight
of one fallen star.



New World Order
by Michael R. Burch

The days of the dandelions dawn...
soon man will be gone:
lawn fertilizer.



Translations

I entered the world empty-handed
and leave it barefoot.
My coming and going?
Two uncomplicated events
that became entangled.
―Kozan Ichikyo (1283-1360), translation by Michael R. Burch

“Isn’t it time,”
the young bride asks,
“to light the lantern?”
―Ochi Etsujin (1656-1739), translation by Michael R. Burch

Brittle cicada shell,
little did I know
you were my life!
―Shuho (?-1767), translation by Michael R. Burch

Bury me beneath a wine barrel
in a bibber’s cellar:
with a little luck the keg will leak.
―Moriya Senan (?-1838), translation by Michael R. Burch

Learn to accept the inevitable:
the fall willow
knows when to abandon its leaves.
―Tanehiko (1782-1842), translation by Michael R. Burch

Darkness speaks―
a bat in flight
flits through a thicket.
―Masaoka Shiki (1867-1902), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I’m tired,
so please be so kind as to swat the flies
softly.
―Masaoka Shiki (1867-1902), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Keywords/Tags: haiku, Japanese, translation, transcendent, Oriental, imagery, metaphor, nature, coronavirus, plague, life, death, nature, ascension day, beauty, eyes, perfection, universe

The sun that used to flinch me,
Every morning full of despondency,
Today those same yellow lines felt like a kiss,
That set my spirits free!

The flowers In my little garden,
Were on the verge of absolute wilt,
No water for them, I stand in guilt;
But today I gave them a shower,
And myself I pardon!

The coffee I gulp down within moments
Little Into my mouth,
More on the table in torrents,
Today I savour it
And feel the energy Into my body sprout!

A rainy afternoon,
No longer I rush inside,
No longer through a hole at the world
I glance,
For life  will be over soon,
Today, I choose to dance!

an obstacle
they said of the mountain
its white peak piercing
moonlit tapestry trembled
against the stone,
their complaints nothing but twigs
in feasting campfire.

The last rays of sunlight were purple
on the day the last fat cat died.
     From the street corners
     we saw them chasing
               their tails,
                        bailing water
          that was rising high.

                    It could never
                      last forever,
               whatever they said--
        --Could we ever have prepared
                     for that Fall?
                Call the Springtime.
          No Rewind of Our Discontent.
                  Meant to seize this
          while their machines stalled.

Look alive. Stay with me...

I wanna be there
          when the missiles drop.
Wanna be there when the pavement cracks
and scoop up the last embers of this city
          while you hold my hand.
I wanna be there
          when illusions fail.
Wanna be there when their smirks turn sour.
When the last of all the fat cats starves.
When they see the passing of their hour.

Look alive. Stay with me...

The last rays of sunlight were splitting
off Their glass towers' cracking panes.
     From the bus stops we
     saw them--their faces
               went grey,
                        flailing Dollars
          could not pad their pains.

                     It could never
                      hold forever,
               this Center they bought.
             But they never did prepare
                        for the end.
                Call the Springtime.
          No Rewind of Our Discontent.
                  Meant to shout it
               but the message sent.

Look alive. Stay with me...

I wanna be there
          when the pavement cracks.
Wanna be there when logistics fail.
And two-step on the cinders of this **** heap
           while the masters wail.
I wanna be there
           when their money burns.
Wanna be there when their neckties squeeze.
When the last of all their bonds will merge
When the fat cats die upon their knees.

Wanna be there when the missiles drop
And scoop up the last embers of this city
               while you hold my hand.

                         Look alive...

You drew her in
Like the last breath you'd ever take
Drowning in her eyes
Hitting the blue and silver wakes

She reached for your hand
Shaking you from your slow descent
Her touch like a velvet rose
A warmth without an end

She laughs and you close your eyes
Hanging her smile in your mind
A gallery of your favorite pieces
Her portrait a one of a kind

Toes curl around the precipice,
quivering with fear and anticipation.
Will I be brave enough to take the leap?
Is there anything left for me if I do?

Furious winds shove me away,
echoing the warning they offer to all who trespass:
"You are not welcome here.
Turn back now or face your demise."

Throat clenching, eyes burning, I stare into the void
and it replies, breath hot on my frozen ears;
"You could have eternity, love, freedom,
everything denied to you so far. I have it all."

It purrs it's promises with a silver tounge,
words dipped in honey and roses.
But underneath it all is a mournful refrain,
whispering of a permanent end to my existence.

One last look is all I can offer,
strength draining from my chest.
I know now what I need to do.
Peace stood before me with open arms,

and I turned away.
Propelled by the winds whose advice I had chosen,
I walked into the blinding light of the sun behind me,
stumbling but on my own feet,

continuing my journey
until I could find a better end.
Even if a single jump could give me all I've craved,
the price it would cost was more than I could pay.

I'll just have to make my own peace.