"gangway" poems
Sleep, sleep,
still your breath
and just sleep.
Sleep through
the drum-circle,
the neighbour's garden,
sleep through
the fever,
the sentence,
and the eventual pardon.
Sleep, sleep,
blot your eyes
and just sleep.
Sleep through
her hands touching,
the solemn submit;
sleep through
the wastelands,
the war-zones,
and sleep with the deficit.
Sleep, sleep,
in the castle keep, sleep.
Sleep for the potions,
the poisons,
the crimes you commit.
Too steep is the gangway
to an easier life,
too far is the leap
and too impossible, the wife.
Sleep, sleep,
still your mind
and just sleep.
Keep to
the sidelines,
with intellect deep;
fall to sleep
in the limelight
of your day,
for you have
earned your rest,
you have found your way.
Sep 28, 2014
Sep 28, 2014 at 9:10 PM UTC
The Plane from Bangkok touched down,
Bouncing hard, jarring nerves
And bones alike.
We emerged into the
Hot damp breeze,
Smoky Sun light glare,
Our eyes squinting,
Fumbling then for dark glasses.
Descending the gangway steps,
As if into a different world.
A new fragrance of foreign things
Of a mystical persuasion,
Hung heavy in the air.
I quickly breathed it all in,
My mind racing in anticipation.
For years I had dreamed of this land.
A country of fabled mystery,
Legend and contradictions.
Reading enough to admire the richness
And sheer wonder of place and people,
All to know and see better for myself.
A land so different from my own,
Being there seemed almost surreal.
Taxi and PedalCab rides into the City.
In every direction, where ever I looked,
New sites, sounds and perceptions observed.
More people in one place,
Than I had ever seen, 10 million in number,
All in that single city.
Most it appeared to be on foot.
All moving with individual purpose,
Seeming to flow all in different directions.
What at first looked like chaos to me,
Apparently worked for them.
Calcutta by Western standards,
Could be judged an urban mess.
Old British style colonial buildings,
Crumbling to bits and ruins,
Yet still very much in use,
Relics of a bye gone age,
Lingering still,
A visual reminder of what was,
Of a another culture,
And people gone home,
No doubt to where they belonged,
With all the riches they could carry.
Leaving more than a trace,
Behind in their wake.
A Kaleidoscope of movement and colors,
Best describes what I was seeing,
Cows and monkeys in the city streets,
Along with multitudes of moving people
All in traditional dress.
The very images and grist of the works of
Western writers and photographer’s attempts,
To capture and relay for over two hundred years.
Fascination best describes my impressions.
Captivating wonderment cascading,
An unstoppable vast Human River,
Churning and ever rapidly flowing,
Ethereal and emotionally stimulating.
Attractive people, dark eyes staring,
At the specter of our Western selves,
We as unfamiliar to them,
As they appeared to us.
Two distinct worlds meeting head on,
Learning, growing from the encounter.
India, timeless and magnificent.
Never felt more excited or alive,
Loved everything about it.
Feb 12, 2014
Feb 12, 2014 at 10:59 PM UTC
Maidens, gather not the yew,
Leave the glossy myrtle sleeping;
Any lad was born untrue,
Never a one is fit your weeping.
Pretty dears, your tumult cease;
Love's a fardel, burthening double.
Clear your hearts, and have you peace--
Gangway, girls: I'll show you trouble.
1.4k
They like walking on the highway
Highways highways
But they push harder to be alive tommorow
They are usually criticized as insane boys
But they keep blowing side ways
Some of them are afraid of what might be insight while they're flyer than a flight
They love strolling on the highway
Highways highways
And they keep with passage ways
But they sometimes go where they want to
They like walking on the highway
Highways highways
But they push harder to be alive tommorow
They are usually criticized as insane boys
Insane boys insane boys
They want to live together
They think life is just a lousy freeway
Freeway freeway
They get ridiculed into the gangway
Later on they try to break away
But they went down the wrong pathway
The think life is a freeway
They like walking on the highway
Highways highways
They like walking on the highway
Highways highways
They like walking on the highway
Highways highways
They like walking on the highway
Highways highways
But will they survive tommorow?
Jul 31, 2015
Jul 31, 2015 at 9:40 PM UTC
Mary was a carrack around two hundred in size
Having a cargo space and five masts with lateen sails.
The men climbed to the top of the mast to front the skies.
Loaded the cargo and prepared it for heavy gales.
This ship had a main mast with a square sail for speed
And triangular sails for maneuverability.
Being eager to eat, to drink and to smoke their ****
To load brocade and silk, they got the ability.
They had to purchase these goods of China to Lisbon,
Where they could exchange it for some Portuguese silver.
The crates were quite heavy, and Frederick asked Brisbon
To hire men, 'cause ‘’at time, the goods they must deliver.’’
Brisbon hired sailors from Istanbul for the crew.
They carried the crates, one by one, into the cargo.
Sulim came and said that the gangway was damaged, too.
‘’What else? ’’‘’Three crates of goods and Abseil’ hands, ’’ said Fargo.
''We have to get to Gibraltar before September
In order to be able to pass through the mousetrap.
There is a strong current, which can be our ship's dismember.
It flows in the opposite direction. Here's the map! ''
Sam said, ''captain, how fast are the currents through this strait? ''
''The water at the surface flows between 2 - 4 knots.
The Autumn current can make us strain as through Hell's Gate.
Losing knots in speed, we can die; life is in my thoughts.''
'' The merchant wants to leave and doesn't know what to do, ''
Said Sam. Frederick and two men went into port to seek
Someone, who could repair the gangway and someone who
Could treat Abseil’ hands, because to sail he was too weak.
Geraldine was in the kitchen to prepare some food
For the ****** ''Where do you go? '' She asked Frederick.
''A man's job! You're too jealous. I don't mean to be rude.''
''At noon, they drink.'' She laughed. ''My time is always metric.''
Frederick descended quickly into the boat with
Sulim and Suaram. They went ashore and went up
In northeastern outskirts of the town, where the fifth
House was an unfinished jewel under the sky's cup.
After two hours, they brought a few craftsmen the gangway
To repair. Finally, all the goods were brought on deck.
When the men started to eat, 'twas the end of the day.
'' The water swallows the sun; it's time for the dreams' trek.''
Said Sam while eating bread. ''And darkness engulfs the day.''
On the deck, the lanterns' light made the place enchanting.
They ate in silence. The water sprayed wet pearls away.
Frederick said, ''Now, the timeless our sleep is granting.''
(to be continued....)
Poem by Marieta Maglas
Jun 14, 2015
Jun 14, 2015 at 6:16 PM UTC
There were so many faces
Faces recognised and known so well
It was bitter sweet; a setting for
The last look, gathered up in best
Frocks with fine hair and cloth
A head full of alcohol like a wrecking ball
Pivotal, with eyes watching as she set
Alight her feelings, burning bright and loud
We knew and understood the intensity
But were guarded. Young and fragile
Was her step away from this family
Raw emotion careering and spilling
Outward, her head could take no more
We took up the night, our souls leaning
Laughter setting aside reality for now
Early hours confronting us, we stayed
Awake and sat round savouring our last
Thoughts; holding on to one another
Some will never blink in time with us
Or look for us once more. The grain
Slowly slipping into tomorrow
Through the tunnel of night
The building becomes sad in its silence
Un-trodden carpet quiet, rooms release
Their challenges replaced by emptiness
Stripped bare, waiting to meet a new voice
The finality beckons strength, stillness
Of emotion. Calm us will you? Stretch out
With me to face another gangway. Throw a
New ball so I can catch and return …….
Reaching out!
Aug 24, 2012
Aug 24, 2012 at 5:57 PM UTC
My man-o'-war lies anchored
silent after crossing endless seas
as I stand on the gangway
bathed in midday heat.
The olive trees on the hillsides
grown ten times taller
since I left you here
to seek my worth
in battles with strangers.
Heavy coats of chainmail
have worn maps into my shoulders
those engines of the trickster's axe.
Though no man or beast has won me
not a queen I have not taken from her king
I still fear to stand before you
unarmored and vulnerable
before your patient inexorable love.
Your pure love
is my greatest adversary
yet you carry no sword.
You challenge me everywhere
yet you sail no ocean.
You know I am weary
yet you do not mock.
You have simply waited
for my hard road to end.
My heart stops
in mute surrender
as I lift off the last battered chest plate,
undo the sterling braces from my legs
steel falling like glass
around the pirate's helmet
tarnished at my feet.
Though a lifetime of war
has crippled my gait
I run with reckless abandon
to that open door
on the welcome street
the place I left
for no good reason
where you have endured all these years
holding the only blade
that can sever
the lover from the rogue.
May 11, 2014
May 11, 2014 at 10:57 AM UTC
No matter the hour, from windows night is smoky lilac.
Every bright spot in the distance a pair of eyes menacing.
They approach innocently enough as if fireflies waltzing. When close, eyes again, nefarious seeping from shadow, Chucks "murdered out" steel hearts black as death, no, no, I mean black as evil. They cross from one side of an alley to the other silent like dreaming, now into backyard of a house that in the dark appears like a hunch shoulder minion overseeing...
Down the throat of the gangway,
At the mouth of gangway
They appear, hands raising, with cold shiny institutions, take aim, but above barrels opening. Hangs a sign like over a door that reads," leave all hope and dreams behind". I imagine inside this gun mindless, heartless, hopeless, locked behind bars, are children. I know they are there, bullets at the ready, then screaming and thunderous from barrel ablaze, now cooling and destroyed in the street, sea is pooling, rivulets of blood running like a river and then the smoke from the gun's barrel raising dancing fading .
Aug 7, 2015
Aug 7, 2015 at 3:38 PM UTC
Return late at night
34mph on the gangway
Decimated and tired
rotated and unstoppable
When I come back around the cul-de-sac
the green candle shines my return
Flag hangs big and ogreish
Waiting for something more
I replaced my turntable
Black and wood on wood desk
Grains matched unintentionally
On one speaker I placed my snowglobe
Big Ben tall and wide
Snow stirs when I play
On the other The Capitol
Big heavy white dome
Smaller and wider but still just as lost
Blizzard of turning particle
What mood do i turn to?
Daft and electronic
Queen of hearts and misery
Dance of mad villainy?
33.333333 repeating
An album cover to cover
slip safely in between
read the inherent vibrative tone
glide my eaten fingernail
And sing the songs through my teeth
33.33333 repeating
Songs forever maintained
Never compressed, just expressed
Saved into physical form
33.3333 repeating
Round and round Fibonacci of doom
Spiral totally in control
There is another side to this story I never knew
33.333 repeating
They were going to make movies on vinyl screens
with vinyl tape and vinyl face
Then we got cable
33.33 repeating
Mesmerized by the glide of the needle
softer than a lover's touch
sharper than an atomic clock
33.3 repeating
It will be time to flip sides
Soon I will know no evil
Only the darker satellite
33 repeating
I repeat:
Listen closely and find the spot
Queue it up and fall apart
May 27, 2018
May 27, 2018 at 1:38 AM UTC
He ran like the wind up the gangway
saw the door still open
ahead near the door stood four Port attendants
gasping for breaths he reached them
with hands outstretched they stopped him
No, No, No, he cried
I've got to get on, I've got to get on
Sorry sir too late, their voices rang out
I'm afraid Sir, you're too late
What! look the door is still opened
Please, let me in, pleasee for heaven's sake
let me in, I've got to get on board
Sorry Sir, against the rules, you are just too late
but the door is still opened,please I beg you let me in
Afraid can't do that,you are just too late,
just too late today
What Jobsworth you lot are
how inconsiderate can you lot be
the ****** door is still open,why are you being so obstructive
isn't your job to help passengers,isn't that what you're paid to do
do you realize how inconvenient this is, do you realize what this
will cost me'
Sorry Sir, we are only doing our job
You are too late for this flight,go back to the departure Lounge
They'll help get you on a later flight,sorry but Rules are Rules
And with that the plane doors were closed
Oh..how he hated these ********* ****** unhelpful inconsiderate
Jobsworth, ****** idiots, the whole lot of them, arseholes!
Dejectedly,he walked back to the ****** Departure Lounge
Fuming, dragging his ****** attache case, he sought out the
help desk
Cursing and muttering, he rued the ******* two minutes delay
that cost him this flight.
Angrily, he marched to the Air Ethiopia Check in desk
Sullenly he explained his plight!
Its a two hour wait for the next flight out, they informed him.
Still upset, he handed in his ticket and they did the necessary
Handing back his ticket, he walked away and sat in Departure
why, oh why did this happen to me, he muttered angrily
He sat miserably, he cursed again under his breath. **** God!
He had been sitting for about an hour when he noticed
people suddenly running around, something was happening
There was a real air of panic around, Officials were running
helter skelter, people were huddling in pockets, he saw
Police Official barking orders and Airport Staff talking excitedly
He heard some people shouting in a group to his right
He stood up alarmed
he stated walking towards a group to his left
Then he saw one of the Jobsworth that had stopped him from boarding his flight, the Jobsworth had a look of utter alarm
on his face, he was also sweating.
What's happening, what's wrong, he asked him, now alarmed himself.
Oh Sir, ooh Sir...the Jobsworth exclaimed, looking at him wide-eyed.
That Plane you missed has just crashed, killing everybody on board.....!!!
Mar 16, 2019
Mar 16, 2019 at 12:37 PM UTC
Love story
Eva Braun was a Greenland seal lived in an aquarium Herr ****** Liked animals
his dog loved him truly. Dog lovers are supposed to be kind. Love on first sight.
So perhaps there was a call for a loving word that was denied in his childhood;
by the fireside and on his lap the dog sat and he whispered sweet words into
the dog’s ear a moment when his mind was not contaminated by Jewish blood.
In the country, I lived in there were many islands most of them have
a bridge now and no longer feels like islands. Nevertheless we were standing
by the gangway of a ferry you were going to see your sister, I knew you were
getting away from me. My love for you were total, yours were not, you just left
without telling me why. Distances I beginning to feel but my unhappiness was
an annoyance, you gave me a phone number too, but it didn’t work, gurgling noises
a phone dropped into a fish tank, but I heard repressed laughter
You were married to a sea master golden rings on is uniform and that is ok;
you and the master of the sea never got children. Widow a childless woman
your dishonesty bothers me, Eva Braun’s fish tale was as phony as
your love for me was.
May 25, 2015
May 25, 2015 at 8:41 AM UTC
Getting chased down this never ending hallway
Spilling al-a on the dragway; obnoxious
Spittin unrequited, unconscious
Up n attem
Up n attem
Up n attem
Up n attem
Repawn
Reborn unlike its conception
Buckle when i’m straight steppin
In mosh pit
Meshing in a bog and
Lulling while crossing
the freeway, naked
Firing rounds like a space head
In this deleterious continuum
A requiem of the song birds
Pickin at my elbows
While my skull burns
Spilling salt spray on the gangway
Thats what the soul yearns
That’s when my heart burns
When i’m told that i’m too old
To be actin out
To only be enveloped
In the never ending clout
Of the melodramatic
Of the existential actor
that flows as a passenger:
acting like he doesn't know
what'll set you free is control
in this finite time of a man in the flesh
Sep 22, 2017
Sep 22, 2017 at 7:52 PM UTC
When you mean
What you overstate
There comes
A gap that some o your friends
Won't rate
Cos they clearly
Don't care for
Where you
Head for
The gate
And dive
Through.
Jan 4, 2025
Jan 4, 2025 at 6:38 PM UTC