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Sa Sa Ra Dec 2012
Yes so much indeed of this need!!!
Love...

LOVE IS ALREADY

Has always been and always,

Will Be
Willing to refill!!!
Only what We through this...
\                                                     ­                                  /  
Shared process have had, shut down, casting off out,
Have shut off through some,
'Big Squeeze's'

\      
Hugg's        /

   *We long for...

He-Art
Dream's Of...

  /          Lovingly...\
Waits Eternally On
    t'ill it be  
  
Of this re-filling;
He, S'he-Art's
Heart Mine
LOVE
Love
IS
ALL
THERE IS
'Understanding'
'Seeing'  'Hearing'
Acceptence...

/                                                                                         \
Turn of process in re-fulling internally till over fulling,
Spilling and pouring out 'All Over Within Her' this 'Him';
/                                                                 ­                                      \
Of which and by,
We Already,
Know Of!!!

Imperishable Spiritually
We are granted as much as the 'Dust',


STAR
Dusty Ones
Dusted
Star's

Light
Star Dust
All Known As
EMcSquared's too,

We know our ******
Existence depends what is,
It's interdependence upon,
So Too...


~Without Is
As Within...
~~~  

LOVE FROM:
Of Whereby She Sprung
'IS' Infinite' and too interdependent,
With this EMcSquared Domain...

<3
<3<3
<3<3<3
HE-ART
HEART HEART
HEART HEART HEART


Therefor it is 'He', 'more' 'so missing'!!!
She' is in Her Own Turmoil, with and for this,
Shaman Master J said 'not even 'He' knows when,
These inherent forces come to restored balance' or,
These things that 'must come to pass'!!


Nostradamus too understood so much within,
With and about these could find no conclusion,
Of otherwise what was self evident,
Certain kinds of trends predictable,

But a blank of 'time/space',
That went blank thereabouts by,
Nine Times Nine the 81st page,
'The Lost Book of Nostradamus',
Where it was left open...

IS... Us...

Knock Knock!!!
BLISS

You can become

'One' with this then 'Great Architect',
See, Understand A Midwife Be Need,


Then Also Completely That None Can Be Left Out Indeed!!!

How else could 'It Be'!!!

OUR X'Factor'S' IS,

Are Klear Like Krishna's,
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
That Flute Still Playing On,
In Such This Way Eternally...

This Such is the Spirit LOVE YES;
'Is Defaulted Upon Us'.

**** straight that is with Joy, Fun
'All Deep Connective Pleasure', BLISS'ED!!!


I myself am Overly Grateful for Every,

Each of 'All the Birdy's' Whom Still Shout 'even if'
We Are Only Hearing these as Whispers, Upon 'the whispering winds'!!

Re-Calling:
These X'Factors is Now Most Klear,
More On 'Cue',
Being more 'Key' to the...

'Always Open Door of ALL;

ALL WHOM SO MISS
KISSS'S OF THE BLISS'S;

'So Lonely Without X's of You';

On the Ever Imperishable River's In,
OUT OF THE INFINITE SEA OF LOVE,

SHE AND HE TOO ARE INTERDEPENDENT!!!!!


There are no dependents or independents,
outside beyond this first off and foremost;

Come Home All Returning!!!!*

~Sa Sa, Ra!!!~~
~Ty CA Eternally!!! Sa Sa Ra!!! <3<3:):)!!!R!!~~

~"just a space...to fill
love!"~~
CA Guilfoyle

"HEART TIME"

GOOD  Time
Bad Time

HEART

NO TIME

HEART

NO TIME
AT ALL

http://hellopoetry.com/poem/heart-time/
Michael R Burch May 2020
The Original Sin: Rhyming Haiku!

Haiku
should never rhyme:
it’s a crime!
―Michael R. Burch

The herons stand,
sentry-like, at attention ...
rigid observers of some unknown command.
―Michael R. Burch

Late
fall;
all
the golden leaves turn black underfoot:
soot
―Michael R. Burch

Dry leaf flung awry:
bright butterfly,
goodbye!
―Michael R. Burch

A snake in the grass
lies, hissing
"Trespass!"
―Michael R. Burch

Honeysuckle
blesses my knuckle
with affectionate dew
―Michael R. Burch

My nose nuzzles
honeysuckle’s
sweet nothings
―Michael R. Burch

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

The moon in decline
like my lover’s heart
lies far beyond mine
―Michael R. Burch

My mother’s eyes
acknowledging my imperfection:
dejection
―Michael R. Burch

The sun sets
the moon fails to rise
we avoid each other’s eyes
―Michael R. Burch

brief leaf flung awry ~
bright butterfly, goodbye!
―Michael R. Burch

leaf flutters in flight ~
bright, O and endeavoring butterfly,
goodbye!
―Michael R. Burch

The girl with the pallid lips
lipsticks
into something more comfortable
―Michael R. Burch

I am a traveler
going nowhere,
but my how the gawking bystanders stare!
―Michael R. Burch



Here's a poem that's composed of haiku-like stanzas:

Haiku Sequence: The Seasons
by Michael R. Burch

Lift up your head
dandelion,
hear spring roar!

How will you tidy your hair
this near
summer?

Leave to each still night
your lightest affliction,
dandruff.

Soon you will free yourself:
one shake
of your white mane.

Now there are worlds
into which you appear
and disappear

seemingly at will
but invariably blown
wildly, then still.

Gasp at the bright chill
glower
of winter.

Icicles splinter;
sleep still an hour,
till, resurrected in power,

you lift up your head,
dandelion.
Hear spring roar!



Unrhymed Original Haiku and Tanka
by Michael R. Burch

These are original haiku and tanka written by Michael R. Burch, along with haiku-like and tanka-like poems inspired by the forms but not necessarily abiding by all the rules.

Dark-bosomed clouds
pregnant with heavy thunder ...
the water breaks
―Michael R. Burch

one pillow ...
our dreams
merge
―Michael R. Burch



Iffy Coronavirus Haiku

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. I have been informed the poem breaks haiku rules about personification, etc.

Homework (yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #3)
by Michael R. Burch

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

New World Order (last in a series and perhaps a species)
by Michael R. Burch

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



Variations on Fall

Farewells like
falling
leaves,
so many sad goodbyes.
―Michael R. Burch

Falling leaves
brittle hearts
whisper farewells
―Michael R. Burch

Autumn leaves
soft farewells
falling ...
falling ...
falling ...
―Michael R. Burch

Autumn leaves
Fall’s farewells
Whispered goodbyes
―Michael R. Burch



Variations on the Seasons
by Michael R. Burch

Mother earth
prepares her nurseries:
spring greening

The trees become
modest,
coy behind fans



Wobbly fawns
have become the fleetest athletes:
summer



Dry leaves
scuttle like *****:
autumn

*

The sky
shivers:
snowfall

each
translucent flake
lighter than eiderdown

the entire town entombed
but not in gloom,
bedazzled.



Variations on Night

Night,
ice and darkness
conspire against human warmth
―Michael R. Burch

Night and the Stars
conspire against me:
Immensity
―Michael R. Burch

in the ice-cold cathedral
prayer candles ablaze
flicker warmthlessly
―Michael R. Burch



Variations on the Arts
by Michael R. Burch

Paint peeling:
the novel's
novelty wears off ...

The autumn marigold's
former glory:
allegory.

Human arias?
The nightingale frowns, perplexed.
Tone deaf!

Where do cynics
finally retire?
Satire.

All the world’s
a stage
unless it’s a cage.

To write an epigram,
cram.
If you lack wit, scram.

Haiku
should never rhyme:
it’s a crime!

Video
dumped the **** tube
for YouTube.

Anyone
can rap:
just write rhythmic crap!

Variations on Lingerie
by Michael R. Burch

Were you just a delusion?
The black negligee you left
now merest illusion.

The clothesline
quivers,
ripe with unmentionables.

The clothesline quivers:
wind,
or ghosts?



Variations on Love and Wisdom
by Michael R. Burch

Wise old owls
stare myopically at the moon,
hooting as the hart escapes.

Myopic moon-hooting owls
hoot as the hart escapes

The myopic owl,
moon-intent, scowls;
my rabbit heart thunders ...
Peace, wise fowl!



Original Tanka

All the wild energies
of electric youth
captured in the monochromes
of an ancient photobooth
like zigzagging lightning.
―Michael R. Burch

The plums were sweet,
icy and delicious.
To eat them all
was perhaps malicious.
But I vastly prefer your kisses!
―Michael R. Burch

A child waving ...
The train groans slowly away ...
Loneliness ...
Somewhere in the distance gusts
scatter the stray unharvested hay ...
―Michael R. Burch

How vaguely I knew you
however I held you close ...
your heart’s muffled thunder,
your breath the wind―
rising and dying.
―Michael R. Burch



Miscellanea

Childless
by Michael R. Burch

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

sheer green stockings
queer green beer
St. Patrick's Day!
―Michael R. Burch

cicadas chirping everywhere
singing to beat the band―
surround sound
―Michael R. Burch

Regal, upright,
clad in royal purple:
Zinnia
―Michael R. Burch

Love is a surreal sweetness
in a world where trampled grapes
become wine.
―Michael R. Burch

although meant for market
a pail full of strawberries
invites indulgence
―Michael R. Burch

late November;
skeptics scoff
but the geese no longer migrate
―Michael R. Burch

as the butterfly hunts nectar
the generous iris
continues to bloom
―Michael R. Burch



Haiku Translations of the Oriental Masters

Grasses wilt:
the braking locomotive
grinds to a halt
― Yamaguchi Seishi, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Oh, fallen camellias,
if I were you,
I'd leap into the torrent!
― Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The first soft snow:
leaves of the awed jonquil
bow low
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Come, investigate loneliness!
a solitary leaf
clings to the Kiri tree
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Lightning
shatters the darkness―
the night heron's shriek
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

One apple, alone
in the abandoned orchard
reddens for winter
― Patrick Blanche, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The poem above is by a French poet; it illustrates how the poetry of Oriental masters like Basho has influenced poets around the world.



I remove my beautiful kimono:
its varied braids
surround and entwine my body
― Hisajo Sugita, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

This day of chrysanthemums
I shake and comb my wet hair,
as their petals shed rain
― Hisajo Sugita, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

This sheer kimono—
how the moon peers through
to my naked skin!
—Hisajo Sugita (1890-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

These festive flowery robes—
though quickly undressed,
how their colored cords still continue to cling!
—Hisajo Sugita (1890-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Chrysanthemum petals
reveal their pale curves
shyly to the moon.
—Hisajo Sugita (1890-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Loneliness —
reading the Bible
as the rain deflowers cherry blossoms.
—Hisajo Sugita (1890-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

How deep this valley,
how elevated the butterfly's flight!
—Hisajo Sugita (1890-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

How lowly this valley,
how lofty the butterfly's flight!
—Hisajo Sugita (1890-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Echoes from the hills—
the mountain cuckoo sings as it will,
trill upon trill
—Hisajo Sugita (1890-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch



This darkening autumn:
my neighbor,
how does he continue?
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Let us arrange
these lovely flowers in the bowl
since there's no rice
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

An ancient pond,
the frog leaps:
the silver plop and gurgle of water
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The butterfly
perfuming its wings
fans the orchid
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Pausing between clouds
the moon rests
in the eyes of its beholders
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The first chill rain:
poor monkey, you too could use
a woven cape of straw
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

This snowy morning:
cries of the crow I despise
(ah, but so beautiful!)
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Like a heavy fragrance
snow-flakes settle:
lilies on the rocks
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The cheerful-chirping cricket
contends gray autumn's gay,
contemptuous of frost
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Whistle on, twilight whippoorwill,
solemn evangelist
of loneliness
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The sea darkening,
the voices of the wild ducks:
my mysterious companions!
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Will we meet again?
Here at your flowering grave:
two white butterflies
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Fever-felled mid-path
my dreams resurrect, to trek
into a hollow land
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Too ill to travel,
now only my autumn dreams
survey these withering fields
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch; this has been called Basho's death poem

These brown summer grasses?
The only remains
of "invincible" warriors...
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Graven images of long-departed gods,
dry spiritless leaves:
companions of the temple porch
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

See: whose surviving sons
visit the ancestral graves
white-bearded, with trembling canes?
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

An empty road
lonelier than abandonment:
this autumn evening
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Spring has come:
the nameless hill
lies shrouded in mist
― Matsuo Basho, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

This world?
Moonlit dew
flicked from a crane's bill.
—Eihei Dogen Kigen (1200-1253) loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Seventy-one?
How long
can a dewdrop last?
—Eihei Dogen Kigen, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Dewdrops beading grass-blades
die before dawn;
may an untimely wind not hasten their departure!
—Eihei Dogen Kigen, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Dewdrops beading blades of grass
have so little time to shine before dawn;
let the autumn wind not rush too quickly through the field!
—Eihei Dogen Kigen, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Outside my window the plums, blossoming,
within their curled buds, contain the spring;
the moon is reflected in the cup-like whorls
of the lovely flowers I gather and twirl.
—Eihei Dogen Kigen, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch



The Oldest Haiku

These are my translations of some of the oldest Japanese waka, which evolved into poetic forms such as tanka, renga and haiku over time. My translations are excerpts from the Kojiki (the "Record of Ancient Matters"), a book composed around 711-712 A.D. by the historian and poet Ō no Yasumaro. The Kojiki relates Japan’s mythological beginnings and the history of its imperial line. Like Virgil's Aeneid, the Kojiki seeks to legitimize rulers by recounting their roots. These are lines from one of the oldest Japanese poems, found in the oldest Japanese book:

While you decline to cry,
high on the mountainside
a single stalk of plumegrass wilts.
― Ō no Yasumaro (circa 711), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Here's another excerpt, with a humorous twist, from the Kojiki:

Hush, cawing crows; what rackets you make!
Heaven's indignant messengers,
you remind me of wordsmiths!
― Ō no Yasumaro (circa 711), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Here's another, this one a poem of love and longing:

Onyx, this gem-black night.
Downcast, I await your return
like the rising sun, unrivaled in splendor.
― Ō no Yasumaro (circa 711), loose translation by Michael R. Burch



More Haiku by Various Poets

Right at my feet!
When did you arrive here,
snail?
― Kobayashi Issa, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Our world of dew
is a world of dew indeed;
and yet, and yet...
― Kobayashi Issa, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Oh, brilliant moon
can it be true that even you
must rush off, like us, tardy?
― Kobayashi Issa, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Standing unsteadily,
I am the scarecrow’s
skinny surrogate
―Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Autumn wind ...
She always wanted to pluck
the reddest roses
―Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Issa wrote the haiku above after the death of his daughter Sato with the note: “Sato, girl, 35th day, at the grave.”



The childless woman,
how tenderly she caresses
homeless dolls ...
—Hattori Ransetsu, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Clinging
to the plum tree:
one blossom's worth of warmth
—Hattori Ransetsu, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

One leaf falls, enlightenment!
Another leaf falls,
swept away by the wind ...
—Hattori Ransetsu, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

This has been called Ransetsu’s “death poem.” In The Classic Tradition of Haiku, Faubion Bowers says in a footnote to this haiku: “Just as ‘blossom’, when not modified, means ‘cherry flower’ in haiku, ‘one leaf’ is code for ‘kiri’. Kiri ... is the Pawlonia ... The leaves drop throughout the year. They shrivel, turn yellow, and yield to gravity. Their falling symbolizes loneliness and connotes the past. The large purple flowers ... are deeply associated with haiku because the three prongs hold 5, 7 and 5 buds ... ‘Totsu’ is an exclamation supposedly uttered when a Zen student achieves enlightenment. The sound also imitates the dry crackle the pawlonia leaf makes as it scratches the ground upon falling.”



Disdaining grass,
the firefly nibbles nettles—
this is who I am.
—Takarai Kikaku (1661-1707), loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

A simple man,
content to breakfast with the morning glories—
this is who I am.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
This is Basho’s response to the Takarai Kikaku haiku above

The morning glories, alas,
also turned out
not to embrace me
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The morning glories bloom,
mending chinks
in the old fence
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Morning glories,
however poorly painted,
still engage us
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

I too
have been accused
of morning glory gazing ...
—original haiku by by Michael R. Burch

Taming the rage
of an unrelenting sun—
autumn breeze.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The sun sets,
relentlessly red,
yet autumn’s in the wind.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

As autumn deepens,
a butterfly sips
chrysanthemum dew.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

As autumn draws near,
so too our hearts
in this small tea room.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Nothing happened!
Yesterday simply vanished
like the blowfish soup.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The surging sea crests around Sado ...
and above her?
An ocean of stars.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Revered figure!
I bow low
to the rabbit-eared Iris.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Come, butterfly,
it’s late
and we’ve a long way to go!
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Nothing in the cry
of the cicadas
suggests they know they soon must die.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

I wish I could wash
this perishing earth
in its shimmering dew.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Dabbed with morning dew
and splashed with mud,
the melon looks wonderfully cool.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Cold white azalea—
a lone nun
in her thatched straw hut.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Glimpsed on this high mountain trail,
delighting my heart—
wild violets
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The bee emerging
from deep within the peony’s hairy recesses
flies off heavily, sated
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

A crow has settled
on a naked branch—
autumn nightfall
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Except for a woodpecker
tapping at a post,
the house is silent.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

That dying cricket,
how he goes on about his life!
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Like a glorious shrine—
on these green, budding leaves,
the sun’s intense radiance.
—Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch



Yosa Buson haiku translations

A kite floats
at the same place in the sky
where yesterday it floated...
― Yosa Buson, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

On the temple’s great bronze gong
a butterfly
snoozes.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Hard to describe:
this light sensation of being pinched
by a butterfly!
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Not to worry spiders,
I clean house ... sparingly.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Among the fallen leaves,
an elderly frog.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

In an ancient well
fish leap for mosquitoes,
a dark sound.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Flowers with thorns
remind me of my hometown ...
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Reaching the white chrysanthemum
the scissors hesitate ...
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Picking autumn plums
my wrinkled hands
once again grow fragrant
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

A silk robe, casually discarded,
exudes fragrance
into the darkening evening
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Whose delicate clothes
still decorate the clothesline?
Late autumn wind.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

An evening breeze:
water lapping the heron’s legs.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

gills puffing,
a hooked fish:
the patient
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The stirred morning air
ruffles the hair
of a caterpillar.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Intruder!
This white plum tree
was once outside our fence!
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Tender grass
forgetful of its roots
the willow
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

I believe the poem above can be taken as commentary on ungrateful children. It reminds me of Robert Hayden's "Those Winter Sundays."―MRB

Since I'm left here alone,
I'll make friends with the moon.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The hood-wearer
in his self-created darkness
misses the harvest moon
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

White blossoms of the pear tree―
a young woman reading his moonlit letter
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The pear tree flowers whitely:
a young woman reading his letter
by moonlight
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

On adjacent branches
the plum tree blossoms
bloom petal by petal―love!
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

A misty spring moon ...
I entice a woman
to pay it our respects
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Courtesans
purchasing kimonos:
plum trees blossoming
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The spring sea
rocks all day long:
rising and falling, ebbing and flowing ...
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

As the whale
  dives
its tail gets taller!
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

While tilling the field
the motionless cloud
vanished.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Even lonelier than last year:
this autumn evening.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

My thoughts return to my Mother and Father:
late autumn
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Late autumn:
my thoughts return to my Mother and Father
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

This roaring winter wind:
the cataract grates on its rocks.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

While snow lingers
in creases and recesses:
flowers of the plum
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Plowing,
not a single bird sings
in the mountain's shadow
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

In the lingering heat
of an abandoned cowbarn
only the sound of the mosquitoes is dark.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The red plum's fallen petals
seem to ignite horse dung.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Dawn!
The brilliant sun illuminates
sardine heads.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The abandoned willow shines
between bright rains
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Dew-damp grass:
the setting sun’s tears
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The dew-damp grass
weeps silently
in the setting sun
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

White plum blossoms―
though the hour grows late,
a glimpse of dawn
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The poem above is believed to be Buson's jisei (death poem) and he is said to have died before dawn.

Lately the nights
dawn
plum-blossom white.
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

This is a second interpretation of Buson's jisei (death poem).

In the deepening night
I saw by the light
of the white plum blossoms
―Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

This is a third interpretation of Buson's jisei (death poem).

Our life here on earth:
to what shall we compare it?
Perhaps to a rowboat
departing at daybreak,
leaving no trace of us in its wake?
—Takaha Shugyo or Yosa Buson, loose translation by Michael R. Burch



I thought I felt a dewdrop
plop
on me as I lay in bed!
― Masaoka Shiki, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

We cannot see the moon
and yet the waves still rise
― Shiki Masaoka, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The first morning of autumn:
the mirror I investigate
reflects my father’s face
― Shiki Masaoka, loose translation by Michael R. Burch



Wild geese pass
leaving the emptiness of heaven
revealed
― Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Inside the cracked shell
of a walnut:
one empty room.
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Bring me an icicle
sparkling with the stars
of the deep north
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Seen from the skyscraper
the trees' fresh greenery:
parsley sprigs
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Are the geese flying south?
The candle continues to flicker ...
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Still clad in its clown's costume—
the dead ladybird.
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

A single tree,
a heart carved into its trunk,
blossoms prematurely
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch



Silently observing
the bottomless mountain lake:
water lilies
― Inahata Teiko, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Cranes
flapping ceaselessly
test the sky's upper limits
― Inahata Teiko, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Falling snowflakes'
glitter
tinsels the sea
― Inahata Teiko, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Blizzards here on earth,
blizzards of stars
in the sky
― Inahata Teiko, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Completely encircled
in emerald:
the glittering swamp!
― Inahata Teiko, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The new calendar!:
as if tomorrow
is assured...
― Inahata Teiko, loose translation by Michael R. Burch



Ah butterfly,
what dreams do you ply
with your beautiful wings?
― Fukuda Chiyo-ni, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Because morning glories
hold my well-bucket hostage
I go begging for water
― Fukuda Chiyo-ni, loose translation by Michael R. Burch



Spring
stirs the clouds
in the sky's teabowl
― Kikusha-ni, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Tonight I saw
how the peony crumples
in the fire's embers
― Katoh Shuhson, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

It fills me with anger,
this moon; it fills me
and makes me whole
― Takeshita Shizunojo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

War
stood at the end of the hall
in the long shadows
― Watanabe Hakusen, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Because he is slow to wrath,
I tackle him, then wring his neck
in the long grass
― Shimazu Ryoh, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Pale mountain sky:
cherry petals play
as they tumble earthward
― Kusama Tokihiko, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The frozen moon,
the frozen lake:
two oval mirrors reflecting each other.
― Hashimoto Takako, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The bitter winter wind
ends here
with the frozen sea
― Ikenishi Gonsui, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Oh, bitter winter wind,
why bellow so
when there's no leaves to fell?
― Natsume Sôseki, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Winter waves
roil
their own shadows
― Tominaga Fûsei, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

No sky,
no land:
just snow eternally falling...
― Kajiwara Hashin, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Along with spring leaves
my child's teeth
take root, blossom
― Nakamura Kusatao, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Stillness:
a single chestnut leaf glides
on brilliant water
― Ryuin, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

As thunder recedes
a lone tree stands illuminated in sunlight:
applauded by cicadas
― Masaoka Shiki, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The snake slipped away
but his eyes, having held mine,
still stare in the grass
― Kyoshi Takahama, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Girls gather sprouts of rice:
reflections of the water flicker
on the backs of their hats
― Kyoshi Takahama, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Murmurs follow the hay cart
this blossoming summer day
― Ippekiro Nakatsuka (1887-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The wet nurse
paused to consider a bucket of sea urchins
then walked away
― Ippekiro Nakatsuka (1887-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

May I be with my mother
wearing her summer kimono
by the morning window
― Ippekiro Nakatsuka (1887-1946), loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The hands of a woman exist
to remove the insides of the spring cuttlefish
― Sekitei Hara, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The moon
hovering above the snow-capped mountains
rained down hailstones
― Sekitei Hara, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Oh, dreamlike winter butterfly:
a puff of white snow
cresting mountains
― Kakio Tomizawa, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Spring snow
cascades over fences
in white waves
― Suju Takano, loose translation by Michael R. Burch



Tanka and Waka translations:

If fields of autumn flowers
can shed their blossoms, shameless,
why can’t I also frolic here —
as fearless, and as blameless?
—Ono no Komachi, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Submit to you —
is that what you advise?
The way the ripples do
whenever ill winds arise?
—Ono no Komachi, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Watching wan moonlight
illuminate trees,
my heart also brims,
overflowing with autumn.
—Ono no Komachi, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I had thought to pluck
the flower of forgetfulness
only to find it
already blossoming in his heart.
—Ono no Komachi, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

That which men call "love" —
is it not merely the chain
preventing our escape
from this world of pain?
—Ono no Komachi, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Once-colorful flowers faded,
while in my drab cell
life’s impulse also abated
as the long rains fell.
—Ono no Komachi, loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I set off at the shore
of the seaside of Tago,
where I saw the high, illuminated peak
of Fuji―white, aglow―
through flakes of drifting downy snow.
― Akahito Yamabe, loose translation by Michael R. Burch


Haiku Translations

As the monks sip their morning tea,
chrysanthemums quietly blossom.
—Matsuo Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The fragrance of plum blossoms
on a foggy path:
the sun rising.
—Matsuo Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The sea darkens ...
yet still faintly white
the wild duck protests.
—Matsuo Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Pear tree blossoms
whitened by moonlight:
a young woman reading a letter.
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Outlined in the moonlight ...
who is that standing
among the pear trees?
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Your coolness:
the sound of the bell
departing the bell.
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

As the moon flies west
the flowers' shadows
creep eastward.
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

By such pale moonlight
even the wisteria's fragrance
seems distant.
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Leaves
like crows’ shadows
flirt with a lonely moon.
Kaga no Chiyo, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Let me die
covered with flowers
and never again wake to this earthly dream!
—Ochi Etsujin, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

To reveal how your heart flowers,
sway like the summer grove.
—Tagami Kikusha-Ni, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

In the thicket's shade
a solitary woman sings the rice-planting song.
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Unaware of these degenerate times,
cherry blossoms abound!
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

These silent summer nights
even the stars
seem to whisper.
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The enormous firefly
weaves its way, this way and that,
as it passes by.
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Composed like the Thinker, he sits
contemplating the mountains:
the sagacious frog!
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

A fallen blossom
returning to its bough?
No, a butterfly!
Arakida Moritake, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Illuminated by the harvest moon
smoke is caught creeping
across the water ...
Hattori Ransetsu, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Fanning its tail flamboyantly
with every excuse of a breeze,
the peacock!
Masaoki Shiki, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Waves row through the mists
of the endless sea.
Masaoki Shiki, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

I hurl a firefly into the darkness
and sense the enormity of night.
—Kyoshi Takahama, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

As girls gather rice sprouts
reflections of the rain ripple
on the backs of their hats.
—Kyoshi Takahama, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch



NEW ORIGINAL HAIKU ADDED 7-25-2025



Such a frigid winter day,
our words
also icy
—Michael R. Burch

Her love,
sheer and queer as gossamer,
did not adhere...
—Michael R. Burch

I dream of love
as bankers dream
of repossessing Ferraris.
—Michael R. Burch, after Anais Vionet

The hummingbird fans an iris:
myriad acts of kindness
go unnoticed.
—Michael R. Burch

Sun sinking into the sea
who taught you
how to swim?
—Michael R. Burch

Yet another leaf
assumes its autumnal splendor
then falls.
—Michael R. Burch

Fireflies
thinking to illuminate the darkness:
poets.
—Michael R. Burch

Stars conspire
astral mischief
but only the silent moon witnesses.
—Michael R. Burch

Chickadees squabbling,
denying each others’ rights:
another unholy war.
—Michael R. Burch

Licentious breezes
whisper intimations to quivering leaves:
nightfall.
—Michael R. Burch

Late autumn:
fleeting words increasingly
missing syllables.
—Michael R. Burch

Life
insists on pruning
its gaudiest wildflowers.
—Michael R. Burch

Her lips
extravagant embers
smoldering beneath my kiss.
—Michael R. Burch

The bees have returned
along with the rebellious butterflies:
Spring!
—Michael R. Burch

Sudden snowfall:
all traces of you
erased.
—Michael R. Burch

A leaf falls
—disaster!—
until it ***** its wings.
—Michael R. Burch

At the end of a long day
my pillow
gently embraces me.
—Michael R. Burch

The tyrant’s statue:
dubious accolades,
doves deposit denials.
—Michael R. Burch

Silence is golden
especially to the younger
when you’re olden.
—Michael R. Burch

Baby blues?
My checkbook boo-hoo-hoos.
They keep outgrowing their shoes!
—Michael R. Burch

They’ll pick up and move on,
Soon forgetting I’m gone.
—Michael R. Burch

Deer still sporting their winter coats?
Spring’s delinquent!
—Michael R. Burch

The most likely cause
of gauze
is dandelion “ahs!”
because
they shed applause.
—Michael R. Burch

The pregnant mother’s
belly swells
in concert with the fulling moon.
—Michael R. Burch

Live among the blossoms while you can;
grow straight and tall and fairer than them all...
Oh, never fall!
—Michael R. Burch, "Exhortation"

So many snowflakes
whirling a-swirl:
confusion
—Michael R. Burch

Starlight evening:
the universe
twinkles its mysteries...
—Michael R. Burch

Another New Year...
the fireworks,
followed by real explosions
—Michael R. Burch

Venus,
flirting with the Moon and Mars?
Fickle gods!
—Michael R. Burch

should the sky fall,
let my last breath
praise Your existence
—Michael R. Burch

It ever was night,
yet in the darkness I found you,
shining, bright.
—Michael R. Burch

a last leaf
clinging to life
declines to fall...
—Michael R. Burch

the Universe,
dazzled by her beauty,
swoons.
—“Eclipse” by Michael R. Burch

Anxiety surrounds me
like an immense night
void of stars.
—Michael R. Burch

Loneliness engulfs me
like an immense night
void of stars.
—Michael R. Burch

Crow
perched quizzically on scarecrow:
natural comedian!
—Michael R. Burch

Autumn leaves
swirling:
dreams aloft & imperiled
—Michael R. Burch

struggle to fit
into cramped too-small shoes:
tiny haiku
—Michael R. Burch

your easy smile
brightens the day
natural as wildflowers
—Michael R. Burch

a single silver leaf
on the old oak tree:
autumn moon
—Michael R. Burch

The Ultimate Haiku Against God
by Michael R. Burch

Because you made a world
where nothing matters,
our hearts lie in tatters.

Keywords/Tags: haiku, tanka, oriental, masters, translation, Japanese, nature, seasons, Basho, Buson, Issa, waka, tanka, mrbhaiku
Janessa Luna Sep 2013
Don't let that name part those sweet lips again
A perfection in a perfection is impossible
Unless it is I
How can you not see it?
Every time you speak of her perfection, I look at yours
You say cute as if a puppy following your every step
Am I only a sister to you
A foe?
I can't help but look you down and feel anxiety
I can't help but look over any flaws
For it seems I take all of your imperfection
I feel so awkward around you
Only because I feel everything about to burst
Only because I know you may not ever feel the same
Only because when you speak her name I see your face brighten
That is what kills me
Every faint sigh
Every sad conversation to which I want to kiss those words away
Wrapping around you
Bid All Sorrowful Things Away!
Not knowing what I wish
For you put me in a realm of idiocy
I want that touch of your warm hands on my burning skin
Oh! Just that sighing aching thought of loosing you
If only you knew
I want to lock you away in my heart
To tell you dreams are only dreams
To lie to you and say I am fine
Kills me even more
My old soul and dying heart
Being left for dead from the sound of your voice
Please!Just whisper the word fair mind
For thy lady cannot know.
Her beauty to fragile
Her heart to kind to even spare me but a mere couple words
To even gaze into my eyes
For she pumps my blood
She fills my steaming ecstasy
Don't smile with my thoughts running a muck
Don't sound so happy when you are speaking her name
That sound is poison to me
Dripping with every syllable into my chest
Let's just run away
You have already taken my soul
Take my lonely body with you
Why must being so young hurt so bad?
But feel so good?
Remembering the dreams of peace
And love
And rock and roll
And of me getting you for once
naked in a field of flowers
Wait? You say
For you to stop loving this?
For me to get your broken heart after leaving her?
What is cute?
Constant thoughts about how it will never be
Your awes every time I say a word sounds so pathetic
So sarcastic into another way of saying you don't care
Just stop the nonsense and keep calling my name
I want to hear perfection
Like I think of you
I want to get hugs like you give everyone else
I want to feel your touch
I want to call you mine
And show how much I love you in front of the world
In front of your cruel relative blood
What is this?
I have not any words to tell you in person
For fulling knowing it is i ?
Or it is you, lady, the one I love dearly
I don't want to loose this friendship as I lost my heart to you
So just say my name
**** me over and over
The thing you are so good at doing
Keep on introducing me to other lovers of yours
Keep burning me with those sad words
Bury me
Bury me in my own blood
In the blood of your perfection
For I am cursed to never grasp love
And always grasp friendship
Mr Xelle Apr 2014
Is
Am
I?

Such wrong words but words can words express what I deserve?

What I heard is echoes of my own voice in a Hurd full of nerves that want to be released out of my words...

First I...well secondly....no no this will prolly be the third, where I'm fulling and filling in the feelings of a per-son.

Seeing you leave is like wind threw a hot day. Does that make sense? Cause you come and blow but I need sense cause this is not it.

Wait
Stop
Hold on! As I've become a puzzle piece to the forgotten

And I'm fine with it
Terry Collett Jun 2015
She sat on her bed
looking out the window.

Hannah looked at
the fulling rain.

Her mother passed by
the bedroom door
and looked in.

Whit ur ye daein'?
Her mother said.

Looking at the rain,
Hannah replied.

Ye can help me
wi' the washin',
her mother said.

Do I have to help
with the washing?

Her mother stared
at her
Whit ur ye
waitin' fur?

I'm waiting
for Benedict,
Hannah said,
gazing at her
mother's stern gaze.

O heem th'
sassenach loon,
her mother said
and walked off
down the passage.

Hannah waited.

She'd was pushing
her manners close
to the limits.

Once upon a time
her mother would
have slapped her
behind for talking so,
but now at 12 years
old her mother dithered
and set her tongue
to work instead.

She eyed the rain
running down the glass.

She could hear
her mother in the kitchen
banging pots and pans.

Then a knock at the door.

Benedict no doubt.

Gie th' duir, Hannah,
her mother bellowed.

Hannah went to the door
and let Benedict in.

He was wet, his hair
clung to his head
and his clothes were damp.

Got caught
in the downpour,
he said,
shaking his head.

Hannah smiled.

I'll get you a towel
to dry your hair,
she said.

She got him a towel
from the cupboard
and he began
to rub his hair.

We can't go out in this,
Hannah said,
have to stay here
and we can play games.

He rubbed his hair dry,
took off his wet coat
and stood by her bed.

What games?
he said.

Ludo? Chess?
Draughts? She suggested.  

Her mother came back
to the door of the bedroom.

Ye swatch dreich,
the mother said,
eyeing Benedict.

He looked at Mrs Scot
and then at Hannah.

Mum said you look drenched,
Hannah said.

O right, yes, I am,
he replied and smiled.

Mrs Scot didn't
smile back.

Dornt sit oan
th' scratcher,
Mrs Scot said icily.

Mum said don't sit
on the bed,
Hannah said.

Mrs Scot went
off muttering.

Where shall I sit?
He asked.

We'll sit on the floor,
Hannah said,
and play chess.

He nodded his head,
his quiff of hair
in a damp mess.
A BOY AND GIRL IN LONDON IN 1960 AND A GAME OF CHESS.
Michael R Burch Sep 2020
Original Haiku and Tanka
by Michael R. Burch

These are original haiku and tanka written by Michael R. Burch, along with haiku-like and tanka-like poems inspired by the forms but not necessarily abiding by all the rules.

Dark-bosomed clouds
pregnant with heavy thunder ...
the water breaks
―Michael R. Burch

The poem above is my favorite of my original haiku. I wrote it while working on translations of haiku by the Oriental masters. Here's another one I particularly like:

one pillow ...
our dreams
merge
―Michael R. Burch



The Original Sin: Rhyming Haiku!

Haiku
should never rhyme:
it’s a crime!
―Michael R. Burch

The herons stand,
sentry-like, at attention ...
rigid observers of some unknown command.
―Michael R. Burch

Late
fall;
all
the golden leaves turn black underfoot:
soot
―Michael R. Burch

A snake in the grass
lies, hissing
"Trespass!"
―Michael R. Burch

Honeysuckle
blesses my knuckle
with affectionate dew
―Michael R. Burch

My nose nuzzles
honeysuckle’s
sweet nothings
―Michael R. Burch

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

The moon in decline
like my lover’s heart
lies far beyond mine
―Michael R. Burch

My mother’s eyes
acknowledging my imperfection:
dejection
―Michael R. Burch

The sun sets
the moon fails to rise
we avoid each other’s eyes
―Michael R. Burch

There are more rhyming haiku later on this page ...



Iffy Coronavirus Haiku

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 the poem above 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. I have been informed the poem breaks haiku rules about personification, etc.

Homework (yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #3)
by michael r. burch

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

yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #4
by michael r. burch

Spring fling—
children string flowers
into their face masks

yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #5
by michael r. burch

the Thought counts:
our lips and fingers
insulated by plexiglass ...

yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #6
by michael r. burch

masks, masks
everywhere
and not a straw to drink ...

Dark Cloud, Silver Lining
by Michael R. Burch

Every corona has a silver lining:
I’m too far away to hear your whining,
and despite my stormy demeanor,
my hands have never been cleaner!

New World Order (last in a series and perhaps a species)
by Michael R. Burch

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



Untitled Haiku

Dark-bosomed clouds
pregnant with heavy thunder ...
the water breaks
―Michael R. Burch

one pillow ...
our dreams
merge
―Michael R. Burch

Crushed grapes
surrender such sweetness!
A mother’s compassion.
―Michael R. Burch

My footprints
so faint in the snow?
Ah yes, you lifted me.
―Michael R. Burch

An emu feather
still falling?
So quickly you rushed to my rescue.
―Michael R. Burch

The sun warms
a solitary stone.
Let us abandon no one.
―Michael R. Burch

The eagle sees farther
from its greater height—
our ancestors’ wisdom
―Michael R. Burch

The ability
to disagree agreeably—
civility.
―Michael R. Burch

She bathes in silver
..……. afloat ……..
on her reflections
—Michael R. Burch

Celebrate the New Year?
The cat is not impressed,
the dogs shiver.
—Michael R. Burch

NOTE: Cats are seldom impressed by human accomplishments, while the canine members of our family have always hated fireworks and other unexpected loud noises.



Variations on Fall

Farewells like
falling
leaves,
so many sad goodbyes.
―Michael R. Burch

Falling leaves
brittle hearts
whisper farewells
―Michael R. Burch

Autumn leaves
soft farewells
falling ...
falling ...
falling ...
―Michael R. Burch

Autumn leaves
Fall’s farewells
Whispered goodbyes
―Michael R. Burch



Variations on the Seasons
by Michael R. Burch

Mother earth
prepares her nurseries:
spring greening

The trees become
modest,
coy behind fans



Wobbly fawns
have become the fleetest athletes:
summer



Dry leaves
scuttle like *****:
autumn

*

The sky
shivers:
snowfall

each
translucent flake
lighter than eiderdown

the entire town entombed
but not in gloom,
bedazzled.



Variations on Night

Night,
ice and darkness
conspire against human warmth
―Michael R. Burch

Night and the Stars
conspire against me:
Immensity
―Michael R. Burch

in the ice-cold cathedral
prayer candles ablaze
flicker warmthlessly
―Michael R. Burch



Variations on the Arts
by Michael R. Burch

Paint peeling:
the novel's
novelty wears off ...

The autumn marigold's
former glory:
allegory.

Human arias?
The nightingale frowns, perplexed.
Tone deaf!

Where do cynics
finally retire?
Satire.

All the world’s
a stage
unless it’s a cage.

To write an epigram,
cram.
If you lack wit, scram.

Haiku
should never rhyme:
it’s a crime!

Video
dumped the **** tube
for YouTube.

Anyone
can rap:
just write rhythmic crap!



Variations on Lingerie
by Michael R. Burch

Were you just a delusion?
The black negligee you left
now merest illusion.

The clothesline
quivers,
ripe with unmentionables.

The clothesline quivers:
wind,
or ghosts?



Variations on Love and Wisdom
by Michael R. Burch

Wise old owls
stare myopically at the moon,
hooting as the hart escapes.

Myopic moon-haunted owls
hoot as the hart escapes

The myopic owl,
moon-intent, scowls;
my rabbit heart thunders ...
Peace, wise fowl!



Tanka

All the wild energies
of electric youth
captured in the monochromes
of an ancient photobooth
like zigzagging lightning.
―Michael R. Burch

The plums were sweet,
icy and delicious.
To eat them all
was perhaps malicious.
But I vastly prefer your kisses!
―Michael R. Burch

A child waving ...
The train groans slowly away ...
Loneliness ...
Somewhere in the distance gusts
scatter the stray unharvested hay ...
―Michael R. Burch

How vaguely I knew you
however I held you close ...
your heart’s muffled thunder,
your breath the wind―
rising and dying.
―Michael R. Burch



Miscellanea

sheer green stockings
queer green beer
St. Patrick's Day!
―Michael R. Burch

cicadas chirping everywhere
singing to beat the band―
surround sound
―Michael R. Burch

Regal, upright,
clad in royal purple:
Zinnia
―Michael R. Burch

Love is a surreal sweetness
in a world where trampled grapes
become wine.
―Michael R. Burch

although meant for market
a pail full of strawberries
invites indulgence
―Michael R. Burch

late November;
skeptics scoff
but the geese no longer migrate
―Michael R. Burch

as the butterfly hunts nectar
the generous iris
continues to bloom
―Michael R. Burch



Childless
by Michael R. Burch

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



Ascendance Transcendence
by Michael R. Burch

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



The Reason for the Rain
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.



Intimations
by Michael R. Burch

Show me your most intimate items of apparel;
begin with the hem of your quicksilver slip ...



Expert Advice
by Michael R. Burch

Your ******* are perfect for your lithe, slender body.
Please stop making false comparisons your hobby!



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.



The Reason for the Rain (II)
by Michael R. Burch

The sky was blue
until you appeared
and it wept at your beauty.



Here's a poem composed of haiku-like stanzas:

Dandelion
by Michael R. Burch

Lift up your head
dandelion,
hear spring roar!

How will you tidy your hair
this near
summer?

Leave to each still night
your lightest affliction,
dandruff.

Soon you will free yourself:
one shake
of your white mane.

Now there are worlds
into which you appear
and disappear

seemingly at will
but invariably blown
wildly, then still.

Gasp at the bright chill
glower
of winter.

Icicles splinter;
sleep still an hour,
till, resurrected in power,

you lift up your head,
dandelion.
Hear spring roar!



More Rhyming Haiku

Dry leaf flung awry:
bright butterfly,
goodbye!
―Michael R. Burch

brief leaf flung awry ~
bright butterfly, goodbye!
―Michael R. Burch

leaf flutters in flight ~
bright, O and endeavoring butterfly,
goodbye!
―Michael R. Burch

a soaring kite flits
into the heart of the sun?
Butterfly & Chrysanthemum
―Michael R. Burch

The girl with the pallid lips
lipsticks
into something less comfortable
―Michael R. Burch

I am a traveler
going nowhere,
but my how the gawking bystanders stare!
―Michael R. Burch



NEW ORIGINAL HAIKU ADDED 7-25-2025



Such a frigid winter day,
our words
also icy
—Michael R. Burch

Her love,
sheer and queer as gossamer,
did not adhere...
—Michael R. Burch

I dream of love
as bankers dream
of repossessing Ferraris.
—Michael R. Burch, after Anais Vionet

The hummingbird fans an iris:
myriad acts of kindness
go unnoticed.
—Michael R. Burch

Sun sinking into the sea
who taught you
how to swim?
—Michael R. Burch

Yet another leaf
assumes its autumnal splendor
then falls.
—Michael R. Burch

Fireflies
thinking to illuminate the darkness:
poets.
—Michael R. Burch

Stars conspire
astral mischief
but only the silent moon witnesses.
—Michael R. Burch

Chickadees squabbling,
denying each others’ rights:
another unholy war.
—Michael R. Burch

Licentious breezes
whisper intimations to quivering leaves:
nightfall.
—Michael R. Burch

Late autumn:
fleeting words increasingly
missing syllables.
—Michael R. Burch

Life
insists on pruning
its gaudiest wildflowers.
—Michael R. Burch

Her lips
extravagant embers
smoldering beneath my kiss.
—Michael R. Burch

The bees have returned
along with the rebellious butterflies:
Spring!
—Michael R. Burch

Sudden snowfall:
all traces of you
erased.
—Michael R. Burch

A leaf falls
—disaster!—
until it ***** its wings.
—Michael R. Burch

At the end of a long day
my pillow
gently embraces me.
—Michael R. Burch

The tyrant’s statue:
dubious accolades,
doves deposit denials.
—Michael R. Burch

Silence is golden
especially to the younger
when you’re olden.
—Michael R. Burch

Baby blues?
My checkbook boo-hoo-hoos.
They keep outgrowing their shoes!
—Michael R. Burch

They’ll pick up and move on,
Soon forgetting I’m gone.
—Michael R. Burch

Deer still sporting their winter coats?
Spring’s delinquent!
—Michael R. Burch

The most likely cause
of gauze
is dandelion “ahs!”
because
they shed applause.
—Michael R. Burch

The pregnant mother’s
belly swells
in concert with the fulling moon.
—Michael R. Burch

Live among the blossoms while you can;
grow straight and tall and fairer than them all...
Oh, never fall!
—Michael R. Burch, "Exhortation"

So many snowflakes
whirling a-swirl:
confusion
—Michael R. Burch

Starlight evening:
the universe
twinkles its mysteries...
—Michael R. Burch

Another New Year...
the fireworks,
followed by real explosions
—Michael R. Burch

Venus,
flirting with the Moon and Mars?
Fickle gods!
—Michael R. Burch

should the sky fall,
let my last breath
praise Your existence
—Michael R. Burch

It ever was night,
yet in the darkness I found you,
shining, bright.
—Michael R. Burch

a last leaf
clinging to life
declines to fall...
—Michael R. Burch

the Universe,
dazzled by her beauty,
swoons.
—“Eclipse” by Michael R. Burch

Anxiety surrounds me
like an immense night
void of stars.
—Michael R. Burch

Loneliness engulfs me
like an immense night
void of stars.
—Michael R. Burch

Crow
perched quizzically on scarecrow:
natural comedian!
—Michael R. Burch

Autumn leaves
swirling:
dreams aloft & imperiled
—Michael R. Burch

struggle to fit
into cramped too-small shoes:
tiny haiku
—Michael R. Burch

your easy smile
brightens the day
natural as wildflowers
—Michael R. Burch

a single silver leaf
on the old oak tree:
autumn moon
—Michael R. Burch

The Ultimate Haiku Against God
by Michael R. Burch

Because you made a world
where nothing matters,
our hearts lie in tatters.

Keywords/Tags: Haiku, Tanka, coronavirus, nature, love, heart, family, mother, son, seasons, spring, summer, fall, winter, sun, moon, rhyme, rhymed, mrbhaiku
These are original haiku and tanka by Michael R. Burch.
Sean C Johnson Feb 2013
Conjecturing on the intimate remnants of your heart
surmising on the proper way to dissect its parts
delving into the chasm that holds your most private illusions of grandeur
bewildered by the vast expanses, these weathered lips simply stammer
the complexity of the concept left me stifled, mouth failing to make any attempts at offering kind words
as the reverberations of vocal chords became the only sound we heard
ricocheting off the precipices of your heart's unsurmountable walls
useless like hands digging the sands in fruitless attempts to draw
the full force off the ocean from a shallow hole
I stared at the blueprints of your heart's desires failing to find the control
every route on the schematic
seemed as if inner city traffic
flooded with passengers never fulling knowing when they will reach their destination rightfully so, at the center of your attention
as I sketch out the dimensions
factoring in the time it will take to find the route that leads me back to you
I marvel at the resiliency of your heart, then drive straight through
beyond these hallowed walls lies a future I was destined to reach
I shred these maps, light a match and burn all the blueprints of me...
Sa Sa Ra Aug 2013
I saw you gasping
Again and again
Between nothing and nothingness
Where nothing was there but a stone
Be it in the sun, the ice cold frozen tundra
What is air to this stone, the stone of persecution
Stones of death, sorrows, judgments, pity by self or
By others who have taught us by now oh all too well...
We have mastered our own death walking, talking, gasping
between nothing and nothingness as if upon a cross or the last
time we shall have our mouth above water ever again...feigning
what would be life, but we have bound one another whereby to save
oneself every move we make just tightness the noose, or drives in the barbs
of poisonous fangs that not only numb but at once intensify ones pains and of
desperations...
you've been here all much long before
a watchtower whereby you look for the door
the door out, the door unguarded you might slip past
one slick night and too you guard that door with all you've got left
you can still call life,

get out and or don't even dare
enter my shattered temple holy still

like two paths daily moment by moment
there are two gasps you can dare
one as if your first
the other just
might be
your
l
a
s
t
.
   .
     .!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I remember you were born happy
Belly full of joyful loving exuberance

I watched you gasp today
as all that so desperately
just wanted back in

Your beautiful temple
Body soul!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I watched LOVE today
Trying so desperately
With some fervent gasping's
To Simply Be LOVE to YOU!!!!

Fulling out a belly full
of wondrous loving joy
blissful rambunctiousness

To match so graciously
Your Magnanimous Heart!!!!!!!!!!
What I saw while my best friend was so busy between some first and last, nothing and everything and all at once!!! May the Infinite Sea of Love Fill Every Belly Once Again!!!
Simone13 Nov 2018
Mabey it was just the days
that seemed prolonged

My mind that resurrects the dead
To the reaches far beyond  

Fatigued i let myself wander
Fulling false emotions blurred by imagination

Confined in my prior self
Till Im a tyrant to my own degradation

The bittersweet animosity of false hope
Like watering a blossom in hopes of a willow

My self-pity only absent in my dreams
had i wished they where nightmares not long ago

Strangled with fists and stains my pillow bears quotes i suffocate through

That quote
Go to bed
He’s not thinking about you
When you love someone, but that love is not returned.
You know this as a fact ,yet you still torment yourself by hoping
kyle Shirley Apr 2016
Vague blows to my mind
Memories make me unkind
Bitter and shallow to the core
All this laying in bed has made me sore

shameless ***
With strangers just met
fulling a void just isn't the same
Without our conversations to keep me sane.

Struggling with hello
Picture you wearing those stilettos
Holding the pillow at night
Isnt you gripping me tight

a wolf in sheeps clothing
Turns into a sheep with self loathing
wolf inside frightened to see light
Future Looking dim and bleak, losing sight.
Yandisa mhlana Jan 2010
He got tired of the bachelor life, the same routine of a new girl every night. Hanged his shirt and quited the game, left the spotlight that brought the wrong kinda fame...

So he began his search for misses right, stopped fulling around night clubs till day light. Visited the library, took walks in the park, even whent to church wearing a tie, searching for so called, mrs right.

He searched and searched till the days where nights. He searched all over till 2 years past. He grew weary of church, bored with libraries. The people at the park started pointing at this weird man who took walks by himself.

After years of searching he quit the quest. Concluded that in life, there is no mrs right...
Alex Sep 2023
Something has been eating me alive
and it's coming from within
when did it truly begin
when did it start eating away
what's the cause of this decay
my insides are in disarray
out of place
some things missing
slowly filling with the void
an empty replacement
fulling with darkness
it won't stop spreading
is it truly from within
or did you infect me
pierce me with your toxin
to slowly eat away
making me useless
so I can't fight your words
your toxic hate
breaking me down
piece by piece
destroying who I was
and what I could be
but your gone
I have begun to heal
but it's hard to replace what you've taken
what you destroyed
sometimes I can still taste your poison
I know ill never forget
what you did
the pain I felt
but I can be better
I WILL be better
I can make it out alive
I can heal
no matter how hard you tried
I'm still alive
Prince eduard Apr 2019
In a bizarre place
The moment I looked to my right
I slowly get to my pace
But before, I took a gaze

I think I saw an angel...
Taking a second glance,
I notice closed-folded wings
Well now I'm sure,
He's my guardian angel

One word:
Purity. To describe him
That look in His eye,
Chilling my nerves
Fulling the sight
Oh, eye-to-eye

Wavy, curly hair
Brown and blonde fair
With length up to chin
Such gracious Mr. 'Him'

Small lips
Bright scene
Ambience light
Feelings aright

Pointed nose
Moreno skin
Like those, calm,
Tanned in the seashore

Glowing, aura around him

A mesmerizing sight
His eyes, pure, innocent light
Oh Love, how I love you
Singnifying Almighty's presence

Worn, fine-linen robes
I'd like to touch, to feel
His warmth, emanating
From his to me
I'd like to---

Smiles, I hugged him(!)
I just did it(!), out of love, joy
It seems fast, fast yet slow
His expression, quite surprised, yet not
But his eyes, that concern he has
I see= compassion (love)

Oh how I wish to be just like that,
Forever, with God, Jesus
Meanwhile, a hope remains,
"Someday"

I came to my retreat,
I noticed a single folded li'l paper
He held, opened
In mine's interpretation, it reads,

(promises he'll keep,)
No matter what,
I'll send to proclaim thy message
Whenever one need thee

(and many more, I left unnoticed )
~

Then he made me feel,
I have to go somewhere

Where?
God knows
How?
God knows

Then in a distance
I saw a woman approaching
So beautiful,
Of course, hey, she's my mother

She led me
God, and angels,
They lead me

I dreamed of this, and now I dreamt it

( in the end, what matters to me is that even once, I know God is with me. And love follows wherever I go)
Hallelujah
Cara May Nov 2016
void heart is dangerous
works like a drug; hallucination
that every man are fond of the owner.
apparition of fairy tale
unbearable from day to day.
counting times to meet the other half
it's ludicrous, unbearable, embarrassing.
it's a part of fulling the void; unloved.
Heavenly Lord, thy Spinning Wheele Make mee,
     make mine thy Holy Spirit glorify,
therewith thereon therein T̶h̶e̶n̶  then this thy thee,
     the Webweave   Loomeyarn thy for glory dy.
     I am thyselfe All pinkt with Judgment fine,
     that Then their Words is Ordinances Twine:

Affections make thy Holy to be Reele.
     yee Actions fill shall My apparell may.
My Conversation make and reele thy Wheele.
     Will mine the Holy thy of mine display.
     Affections me with cloath My wayes and quills thy,
     Then make me Then to make same Fulling Mills thy:

Memory Make of Flyers knit bee neate,
     And Swift my Soulespun   Spooleyarn winde before,
Varnisht in Colours Choice That flowers compleate,
     my Distaff Make thine Understanding for.
     And, Cloathd in Holy robes, my Conscience, Lord,
     O Paradise and glory shine thy Worde....
Jair Erazo Jun 2012
They say that even the strongest must fall
That even Achilles in all his glory and strength, fell to an arrow.
A mere arrow to the heel is all it took, for this once great man to fall
I don’t have the qualities of such a great man as him
I have no fountain of invincibility to submerge myself within
I must fall and surely will, but unlike him will not be slain
I will not see the great creator that brought me upon this Earth
I will fight till my last breath
I will die with dignity
I will Die knowing that I did what I loved and lived as I wished
I will not live my life fulling others dreams
I will love who I see fit and hope to God she loves me as much I will love her
I’m not sure of the mysteries that death holds, but i’m sure I will keep my memories
I will never forget those I loved, those I misbehaved with
I won’t forget those I hurt, ‘cause I’m human and perfection will forever elude me
I will never forget the mother that raised me and the father who taught the ways of men
And finally when the final seconds arrive
When the time comes for my demise
Remember me for who I was, not for who I wasn’t
Love me for my good deeds and forget all my mistakes
Cause all the wrong I did was without a single thought in my head
I’ll love you all always and will forever be in debt to you all
Remember me and keep me in your hearts forever
Cause I know for a fact you will all live in mine forever
Jamie Henderson Nov 2024
Silent days, delicate rains,
clip clopping like marching horse,
on thin, steel roofs, and nylon umbrellas.

Drenched, sweating foreheads in summer climates,
consistent, cool winds like drooling  ice,
drying sopping skin, a rough cloth to an oily pan.

Starved road trip bellies, after intermittent rests and games of eye-spy,
salivating at laminated menus, and passerby plates,
pre-meal hot fries, fulling deep guts with salty chips and fizzing raspberry.

Waking hours before blaring alarms,
knocking parents, a whistling kettle, and the popping toaster;
an hour to lay restless head into the deep world of snug pillows and warm blankets;
as if your whole universe is one big cushion.

Finishing a chapter and curling rough page with soft finger,
placing floral bookmark into the straight crease,
placing it back into its spot on the shelf or bedside table.

Dawn coffee.
Friday afternoon.
Saturday morning.
Kind encounters.
Meeting deadlines.
A finished poem.
It's much easier to be a debby downer, so here's something happier.
caroline Jan 2016
im sorry im "one of those girls" who feels more confident and comfortable in all her makeup. im sorry i can't always tell you what's on my mind, and most of the time i wont, and have a problem with fulling being all in. trust has never came easy for me, and people have always let me down, so im sorry somedays ill be distant and have no explanation as to why. im sorry i fall asleep during long car rides, and sometimes sing too loud when you are having a bad day and just want silence. im sorry i worry about absolutely everything and sometimes, a lot of times, make a problem out of nothing just because my anxiety is that bad. im sorry when we go around your family or friends i look down or stay on my phone, because im not good with people like you are with everyone. im sorry that when im tired, or hungry, or have had a bad day, i take it out on you. im sorry im so stubborn and hard to get through sometimes, and rarely listen when i need to the most. im sorry i get jealous of your girl friends, or of any girl really, because our time apart showed me that im not the only girl in the world who is ever going to love you, and my biggest fear is losing you too soon, or at all. im sorry im apologizing for all these things, and im hoping each night that you don't wake up one morning and decide to stop loving me, because someday you'll come to the realization that even if i need you, it doesn't mean you need me.
Art
She was like art a foundation of happiness with a dash of crazy fulling the creativity of her mind and soul. A product of pure genius she can become any form she creates becoming a library of masterpieces giving the liberty to show the world who she truly is. A masterpiece of a woman disguised as a blank canvas
Written to a girl who used to enjoy making art.
Ofelia Oct 2017
There's this call of freedom
Surrounding you,
Like the wind blowing around,
Whipping your clothes on.

You're like a stallion
Running in the breeze,
No master, no chief.

An air of power
Fulling your lungs,
You keep your course,
Dreaming on
jeffrey robin Sep 2014
///  • |
<>  
                   ///  • |                  
<>  
///  • |
<>  

#######

                                               The gentle
///

And in the beginning

                                            People  were gentle and good

And human kindness ruled over the heavens and earth

(  as we all remember well  )

••

And nature
                                                 In all it's grace and harmony
Provided for all who too lived harmoniously
With their own nature                                  



And the earth
                                 And the human race

Developed as one unified field
Nurturing eachother

And fulling all inner promise with abundance and fertility

TO BE CONTINUED
RJP Sep 2018
Im dressed in rags but I'm made of riches, promise
I'm the insurance man, a timetabler
Wake me from my slumber,
I'll give you a tenner, doctor, mother,
Double pain relief, those blasted tablets
****** liqueur sent me to sleep.
Chemically numbing,
My dad's never hugged me you know
Old time copper threw me
In the lock-up for stealing liquor.

I'm the self fulling prophecy
Hoping for childish deliverance

Some like it hot I like it cold like a copper coin dropped into my pocket.
Mazzy Ram Jun 2017
why don't i believe the things you say
why do i delve in your words
why do i starve for your affection
aware of it's cheap sentimental pieces
taken from your past loves,
recycled
to make me smile.
i hate that it works,
that your cheap sentimental affection
makes me weak
i forget about me
do you even care?
why. don't. i. believe. you. may. actually.
love. me.
care about me.
want to know me.
why is it hard for me to accept love
is it a self-fulling prophecy or
perhaps merely good acting
to satisfy your own needs
am i that crazy?
rose14195 Aug 2014
Where have you been all my life
smoking by a river side
getting high
spending the hours on your maac laptop
tweeting about how your family is just getting byw

Where have you been all my life
Trying to clean up the messes other have made
Making a path for your brothers or sisters to take
trying to achieve fame

Where have you been all my life
Looking up **** on internet sites
texting pictures to a girl you just met
hoping that the next one willl be the best
and you will finally have a chance to get rest
becuase nothing is fulling enough to keep you from waking up at night
hoping that was the last time

Where have i been all your life

i have been dieing
Is Christmas a day, to lead someone astray?  Could it be a day, to bow your head and pray?
Is Christmas a day, to spend time being selfish?  Could it be a day, in fulling a person's wish?
Is Christmas a day, to to sit relaxed in your home?  Could it be a day, to find someone all alone?
Is Christmas a day, to sit idly by?  Could it be a day, to forgive those who made you cry?
Is Christmas a day, to show off all your gifts?  Could it be a day, to give someone a lift?
Christmas is not all about you. It's about helping others, to see to their happiness too!
By, Sandra J. Nailing
Katrina Zechman Oct 2018
My thought feed on my imagination, my imagination runs wild with thoughts fight eachother fulling the flames
Thoughts of red dripping from my wrist and me not being good enough...imagination fueling them with images of truths and lies that cut deep red thoughts.
Jelani Griffith Sep 2017
The burden that you hold
Can eat you whole
And swallow your soul
For it is a bucket of negativity
and it's getting heavy
You lurk for that positivity
Like a ray of sun shinning through the darkness
But as you find as you get deeper into the dark
The light has disembarked
Now as you are caught in the bad words
Like idiot or fool
Maybe the only thing you can do
Or more like should do
Is forget those people
Forget the negativity they bring
Because your bucket of negativity is fulling to the brim
When the burden gets to heavy
It would leave you severed and broken down
Like a current pulling you underwater
Causing you to drown
Instead of positivity lifting you up like a king putting on his crown
You see that you give into negativity
The trumpets you see will make no sound
The positivity and negativity is all around
Might hurt to hold it but you will make it each round
learning designers, two yesterday,
alongside history of weaving,
scouring the wool or fulling?

we have many questions. we
have the excitement about the
wool museum, pleasure for the chair
given secretly.

i was at work.

it is a gift, we say this over.

i think of middle mill, the field
and flowers.

we all think of many things, best
to write some down carefully.

sbm.
Most happy things start with
Roses are red
Violet are blue
But I dont feel it
The pain, the heart break,  the silent crying,
Not everyones perfect,
I wanna live a peaceful life
But the misery,  the horror,  the late night sleeping
Why me? Why am I here? Why are you punishing me?
The dead are pulling me towards them, why cant you stop my pain
All the things I have prayed for, cried my heart out for your calls
But yet I lay here waiting.
The life I live, it far from what I imagined
The lies I make, the scars that dont fade away,  are only the untold stories.
Yet why do I live if only people seek
Why must I have the heart and soul to live happy
As I think, my heart starts to sink
Deeper and deeper I wish there was no memory,
Why me?
All alone, trapped inside a tiny bubble
Soon my heart will stop, the pain will be lost.
The scales you leave is another misery
Ashame at what people see
As I sit here waiting, the dead calls for mercy
All the thoughts mix my emotions
Crying but inside im slowly dying
Happy but with fear
Fear but regrets
Regrets but feeling fine
Why dont you give me a sign
I wish I was deaf and blind
So I dont hear all the horrible rumors,
So I cant see the ones who speak so poorly.
Come into my footsteps and you'll know what its like
Fear, ashame,  the one crying
Why bully when you cant handle it yourself?
Lost, alone, no where to go
Come with me to the dark side
Why? Why this?
After you put me here
No one to talk
Im trapped in a fulling box of water
Hard to breathe
Why did you leave me
Couldnt you have been kinder
Your blood runs in my veins
The tears I cry are only another mistake
Why didnt you teach me better
I would never cut myself,
But you know I think it.
If I could change,
I would be blind, my heart would sink
But I wouldnt mind
If I could not hear,
it would be another place where I would feel happy.
My bones are weak
My body is frozen
Plz help
You are the one chosen.
You see my face,
It looks like yours,
Im the one you forgot
They say you'll find me,
But I feel lost.
Am I walking this lonely world alone?
Lost in a forest,
No where to go, no end, where did I start?
How far from death?
My face looks happy,
But my mind is telling me another story.
Scrabbled with words,
I try to speak.
Come save me, I whisper
So Scared
Is there ever a happily ever after.
I hear my silent words making the most pain,
The freedom I want, is what I cant get
I try to hard
You will fall away
My words speak so loud
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Classy J Nov 2019
My heart used to drift through the winds like petals,
My dreams used to reach the highest castles.
My love used to boil over like a kettle,
So, abundant for someone that was so special.

Where did my fairytale go?
What ever happened to happily ever after?
It’s like I’ve lost my very soul.
It’s like my life has become a natural disaster.

Red used to be the colour of love.
Now it’s been tainted.
With two-half’s out for each other’s blood.
Sour this taste is.
With loyalty forsaken.
Bringing tears to the doves.

My heart once red has now turned black.
Eradicated feelings burned like diesel.
Fulling the fires of heartbroken people.
With Darkened and broken glass pieces.
All that is left of our castles.

Wondering where did my fairytale go?
What ever happened to happily ever after?
It’s like I lost my very soul.
It’s like I’m living a natural disaster.
Mitchell Jun 2018
A two-toned
Budding love
Where the two
Want nothing
But the best life
For the other

A fortified
Construction
In silence
We tarry ourselves
With rose petals
Kisses
One another's sweat
Rarely tears

Before as two
There was no high noon
There was no midnight
Time was a construct
Of the manipulation of the justification
Of solitude

I am I
No more
I have
Once again
Given myself over

How afraid I am
Of my willingness,
My readiness but,
How natural it all feels

How right
How true
How I feel

More like myself
Than I ever have

And if it were to end tomorrow
Be it in the sky
Or on a walk along the Seine
Or the train north to Como

Who would I be then?

Would I be stepping backward?

Of course not

Impossible

There are only
The same bad habits
The same self-fulling prophecies
The identical tour-de-force
Of self-sabotage
I've met time and time
Before and after and then before

All over again.

See the mirror
Look in thine eye
I am I
Always

Swayed only from that path
From chaos's misfortune or
It's opulence
Deadly in lethal assaults
Stinging life to death
Ushering in a gory season
In palls of black smoke.

A malignant virus in mutations
Felling the dwarfs and the giants.

A viral deadly irritant
As spectra visitant
On dastard assignment
Rumbling ominously
In devouring voices of death
In global face menace
Bringing down powers
In eerie harvest.

Oh grim reaper
Oh angel of mortals
Preying on mortals
Harvesting death as grains
Fulling its cart of wagons
With indignant cadavers.

Woe unto you scorpion
Afflicting the people
New Year, New Hope
Routing victory over adder
That stings at dawn.
badtaste Jul 2021
—SHOW TIME—

Sorry for the way I stumbled into your life.
I swear to God-the floor was pulling at my ankles…
also! the celling top was giving me a backside high-five — the moment I finished the fifth and after the sun turned off the lights.

I embarrass myself each time I try to embrace this side,
cliche as falling in love like a rerun television show—
freaking out like a pubescent clown realizing he should have grown up to be a mime;
a silent touch of romantic irony, laughing at my own jokes,
until this awkward moment flies out the window…

stop me if you heard this one before;
why did time grow wings?
to fly by like a crow squalling-
that it is past time you should be married…

—PUNCH LINE—

unreliable communication
=
incomprehensible interpretations

being an addict to tragic accidents-
known as flirtatious Failures fulling the fire
of the metaphorical dying flicker to the love life of our protagonist-
this is precisely what was prophesied
from a poet’s birthday candle wishes.

it’s funny how Lady Luck and cousin karma have this affair of misfortune;
capsizing all relationships—
that were set to sail—
hook-line-and-sinker stationary in an icy-burn isolation.

hopefully time can thaw out this doomed  autobiography (of a poetic confession trapped with 4 borders boring the audience awaiting the same confession)
he has been struggling to sense together,
since the first line that was typed…

—MAKING UP MY MIND—

so I stand up with a straight face—
swallow the frog and eat the butterflies for breakfast—
walk up to you with full intentions,
with a sly grin you echo the words I mummer; just as a mic in a crowed place,
I repeat in a shy broken throat-making me more of a fool from the words I chose-
latter to laugh
and just to write about
how embarrassing I made our very first date…
a collection of 3 small poems I’ve been saving trying to hopefully connect them together cohesively. :)
Moonlight Oct 2023
Light inside of me
Forgive me for everthing
You was my best my friend
But i realise it so late

Everytime of life
You always was right
In every case and task
You show your true track

You left me to my self
And kept your silent and stay quit
Staying with this life alone
I understand what was my fault

Please forgive me by your side
For my wrongness toward you
Because there is only one true
That is life is sad without you

Return to me and stay with me
Let our unity be continually
Light up every side of my life
Fulling it with happiness and quiet!
A fickle thing
Showing me
what I already knew

We were supposed to celebrate
We were supposed to have fun
I was supposed to let go

Instead, people avoided me
not giving me a second glance
because of how I look

I'm not short
I'm not thin
I'm not anyone's choice

But she was
able to move her hips
to catch their eyes

You can see she savors the looks
only fulling her view
despite being with another

They ask for her hand
Buy her drinks
never give me a second look

A hard truth I already knew
I'm not pretty despite being smart
and I'll never be the first choice

If I'm in the top 5
I'll be lucky perhaps
top 10 is more likely

One spoken to
when the first said no
and not thought about afterward

I will have no love
because who could love
a second thought girl?

— The End —