"kimchi" poems
National Liberation Day Of Korea
Freedom means August 15, 1945.
Koreans celebrate their day of liberation.
Freedom is like a Magpie,
Flying in the morning sky,
Above the ancient palaces of Seoul,
Freedom is like the Rose of Sharon,
Growing in "The land of morning calm."
Freedom is like a river named Han,
Unstoppable!
Freedom means flying the Taegeukgi.
Outside and high!
Freedom is Lively,
Freedom is President Moon Jae-in
President of South Korea,
Freedom is vibrant!
Freedom is festivals,
Freedom is unhindered!
Freedom is a Buddhist monk,
Everland!,
Freedom is unbound!
Freedom is tasty Kimchi,
Deoksugung Palace!
Freedom is lively parties,
Freedom is dancing,
The greatest Palaces of Seoul!
Freedom is treasured!
Freedom is a green bottle,
Soju!
Freedom is Arirang!
Korea's song,
A gift to the world from Korea,
Freedom is Queen Min; Still remembered,
Resting under a cherry blossom tree,
Freedom is Seoul!
A wonder to be seen on the Han River!
Freedom is luminous,
Busan Nightlife,
Changdeokgung Palace!
Freedom is unchained!
Freedom is sports,
Jeju-do!
Freedom is escape!
Freedom is honor!
Battle of Inchon!
Freedom is rising in the sky,
One of the most dynamic cities,
Seoul!
Freedom is no longer
Imprisoned,
Freedom is camping,
Freedom is priceless!
Freedom is one's honor!
Deoksugung Palace!
Freedom is treasured!
Freedom is the miracle,
Seoul!
Freedom is food,
Freedom is Kimchi,
Freedom is hopeful,
Freedom is Yu Gwan-sun!
Long live Korean independence!
Freedom is a Buddhist monk writing,
Freedom is thinking about your dreams,
Not looking behind your back!
Freedom is a child going to school,
Freedom is ultra-modern,
Seoul!
Freedom is escape!
Freedom is music,
K-POP!
Freedom is Arirang playing,
Freedom is essential,
White Day!
Freedom, people, shining in the sun,
Freedom is loved,
Yuna Kim!
Freedom is essential,
Freedom is "The March 1st Movement",
Yu Gwan-sun!
Freedom is shopping,
Freedom is walking our dogs,
Freedom is writing what you think,
Freedom is Sejong the Great!,
Hangul!
Freedom is bringing your dreams into the world,
Freedom is poetry,
Yun Dong-ju!
Freedom is traditions,
Freedom is wearing Hanbok.
Freedom is being empowered!
Freedom is.
Freedom is.
Freedom is.
A United Korea!!!
Copyright © 2013 - 2017 Ronald J Chapman All Rights Reserved.
Dec 3, 2014
Dec 3, 2014 at 6:00 AM UTC
The Buddha slept under the night sky on His back
eyes open; fearless love looked up. humbling the majesty
of the Void's gift.
eyes fixed... both peerless.
first among equals.
but transcendent.
The Buddha,
wearing grass-stained robes
chose a blank spot
for a blank stare
" Nowhere Girls are EveryWHERE "
He thought, astonished.
a moment after
where once He stood
there Was No
spoon.
[ PART ii ] NOT THE KOAN BUT THE KOAN THAT YOU GOT
on the X-ray zen splints were clearly spidered webs in ghost bone... how should I feel that my sensei saw the X-ray first?
life is where the answer to this question is a real thing draped in ominous clarity like a town fool, the beggar foreclosing
on your house of cards, the winged swine and some guy named Patrick having a smoke in your face; the mailman, who
always looks so serious about your trivia in a blue hat... who always trips over your precious dying very potted plants!
yes, all that, or maybe not. saute some fresh green kale in olive oil with fresh garlic
[ give it to me ] and i'll tell you that was very thoughtful, and right then;
it would also be
true.
for a minute there... you and i were typing you reading this part.
these are the diamonds.
my exposure to the radiation is everlasting in the middle of it's brief long duration
my ghost bones wear new flesh like iPod headphones, don't hate the player
[ better yet ]
make a macaroni necklace. go wild. be reckless.
it'll cost you an ounce of real kimchi
from the motherland
with the ugly
sister.
i wouldn't put it pass you. cause that would be clairvoyance, and you already know!
a loose tooth entrenched in candy apple can't taste your stupidity but has bad dreams!
some people will always look at you the wrong way and appreciate
how you sat perfectly still for hours; you only took a break to suggest
a better room with southern exposure to eastern thought.
when you threw in a Tripod, they knew you were somekinda somethin'.
and they knew it all along
but juuust wasn't
sure.
and kumquats are quantumly eaten.
Jun 7, 2013
Jun 7, 2013 at 2:22 PM UTC
She took my stash,
slapped my ***
and grabbed my vinyls,
took them for another.
She ate my kimchi,
and ate my ****
and ate my grub.
She reminded my of Morgan,
and sometimes she acted.
Jun 8, 2014
Jun 8, 2014 at 8:36 AM UTC
A llama mama who is ever so special
A swimmer glides through the water with so much grace
Artistically inclines, genius by birth; slacker by choice
Music.Lit.Bio.Lovely girl whom I very much admire
Strong girl who makes use of every opportunity
Another swimmer with heart and face so lovely
An elephant - the light o' every lil' chat
Candy- words so wise; heart so warm
Another brave girl; lots in common; in every way beautiful
Eloquent speaker And A Violinist
Another swimmer with such a laugh!
Our dear walking dictionary; never fails to put a smile on my face
Runner and fighter ALL THE WAY
Vettypoop aka my spirit animal
Smiling dolphin
Laughing cheerful pop ****
Artyfarty girl with so much poise and grace
Artyfarty and a swimmer? Ooh la la
Cute and sweet and everything else with a tinge of the kpop
Disciplinarian and nice
1Der with a twinned soul
A cutie pie with a such a heart
Strange girl this one is but I love the way she talks and writes.
Strange laughter and even stranger words you say
Motherly touches
My lovely leader, with such a beautiful core
Craycray, stay craycray bubu
Smiler and such a high toned shriek
You my bestie; my listening ear
Ordinary Me
Meangirl99 at first sight, lovelygirl99 at the second
KimChi such a hard-worker
Another hard worker with a positive glow
A dancer on a note of sarcasm
Heart of gold; Mind of snow
Naughty naughty
so this is my class of 36
every girl
a wonderful light
and this 36 beautiful souls
make up the beautiful beautiful class
of
203
With varying teachers and varying situations,
we have stood by each other
With much faith I have in all of you
Let's soar to the skies
Pull each other
to soar
and
soar
and soar
to heights never known
never reached.
I know we are going to make
2013
our year
203's year to
amaze people like never before.
Prove every teacher we are the awesomest class on earth.
Trust me.
We will.
Every strength and weakness binded together;
203 is going to
ROCK THE HOUSE TONIGHT! :)
Sep 9, 2013
Sep 9, 2013 at 10:01 AM UTC
In that place of dreams, where my hopes and fantasies lie,
You will always find my Spirit smiling,
Looking at the sky, where magpies soar high,
Lifted by a calm morning breeze,
Listening to the music of a busy city,
Listening to cars, trucks and buses of many colors,
As they pass by,
In that place of dreams, where my hopes and fantasies lie,
You will always find my Spirit wanting to, taste the food of
An Eastern city,
Ooh! I'm hungry for Kimbap, Kimchi, ooh! I've,
Always wanted to taste Egg Toast,
The aroma of coffee is heavenly,
In that place of dreams, where my hopes and fantasies lie,
I will meet my hungry Spirit in Seoul someday...
Copyright 2015 © Ronald J Chapman All Rights Reserved
Mar 4, 2015
Mar 4, 2015 at 9:41 AM UTC
The night we went to that club in Seoul
And danced with Hot Toby
We got back to the hostel and we were staying in the
Basement that night
I was so sick, needed to pass out
And proceeded to use a shirt
As a snot rag throughout my sleep
I woke up and the shirt had turned to solid concrete
Boogers cement
We had to wake up early
We went to go look at temples
I didn’t wash that shirt
I just wore it
And I remember needing to pass out
All day; so sick I couldn’t taste anything
Not even Kimchi
And I said to myself
"I just need to party"
So we went out that night
I didn’t change
My clothes
Mar 7, 2013
Mar 7, 2013 at 11:43 PM UTC
You’re like an ocean for you always look calm.
But I know behind it is a girl on fire in town.
A woman who is being idolized by everyone;
For you got your word voiced out even if it’s troublesome sometime.
Your personality is like your favorite seaweed.
Spicy yet it gives something to cherish.
You’re like your favorite ramen noodles.
Mind with worries feels like doodled.
You are the sweetness to my bitterness.
By just your wiggling eyebrows, it causes happiness.
You are the chili to every made kimchi.
Always looks fine even if it’s orangey.
Your mood somehow blends with your favorite colors;
You have adopted the calmness of the blue sky; the balancing aura of gray;
The peacefulness of white; brown’s friendliness in a simple way.
These interesting sides of yours will always be remembered.
You are the sour taste in a homemade sinigang.
The happiness I felt in every chocolate’s bite.
You are the coldness in my ice cream;
That balances the feeling that is in warm.
Your dramas are amazing just like your Korean films.
Those songs I love to hear whenever you start to hymn.
You’re proving enough that there is this thing called forever.
I would miss your cheerful smiles and long your crazy laughter.
© Quenniebells, 2015
Apr 11, 2015
Apr 11, 2015 at 6:31 AM UTC
The remote control looks different
Television has 20 new channels
The side table is not on the right side of the long bench anymore
Her favorite mug is now a vase
Her spoon and fork are not in the drawer
No cookie crisps in the cupboard
No kimchi in the fridge
Things were different from when she still lived here
Things were different from three years ago
Everyone is soundly sleeping upstairs
Her old room is now her cousin's
Her old bed is now her sister's
She will sleep on the floor
But she couldn't find the mattresses
She doesn't know where to look
But she looks everywhere
She couldn't find it
Exhaustion and frustration seeps in
“Where are the mattresses?"
She screams in her head
Tears start streaming down her cheeks
She wants to sleep now
She wants to rest
She wants to feel home.
But she doesn't. She couldn't.
She doesn't know where the sheets are
She couldn't find where the sheets are.
“I don't live here anymore. This is not home."
May 12, 2015
May 12, 2015 at 10:45 PM UTC
hydrochloric salt
flavored kimchi noodles
make me favorite I'll
miss u in past-tense
tense tense kiss tense
lip tense wrist tense
lovely lava leave me
tense tense tense man
wat u doin' wat u wearin'
wat u wantin' wantin' crave
crave lead lost iris-tilted
desire
Jan 1, 2015
Jan 1, 2015 at 4:22 AM UTC
warm weathers with a warmer heart:
i stretched out my arms
and embraced her with all i am.
this girl threw an ocean of words,
of images, of emotions, and even of silence at me
over a mango shake, kimchi fishcake,
and a pair of hot matcha lattes.
she challenged me to a doodle dare
when i told her i don't draw humanity,
as much as i wanted to draw her right there on the spot.
let's draw those people on that side of the cafe
ah, a people-watching activity!
just our kind of hobby that immerses us within society
while being in our own little world!
i noticed she draws people first
then the background according to the proportions of the persons;
yes, a people-watcher observing another people-watcher
unlike me who starts off with the walls and furniture of the space.
she drew the ovals for body proportions;
her pencil marks done gently, focused and magnified,
much like how she holds herself up.
thus we were satisfied with unfinished sketches
and incomplete acapella song covers;
and it definitely was a finished day–
complete with her presence,
photographs taken with cameras and our memory's eyes,
inside jokes about boys and talks about life outside.
the sun is getting lower
as the hour hand is getting higher.
Time continues but we paused.
So I'm up for another round with you, Lou.
Aug 13, 2017
Aug 13, 2017 at 8:00 AM UTC
bicultural but not totally bilingual
kids will understand
the sheer embarrassment of having to copy-paste
what your parents text you
in their native language
into Google Translate
detect language
yes, to English, because it's the only thing
I truly understand
because I don't actually really know
what Mom's saying at the end
Do I really get the weight of each word she crafts
lovingly into characters I've learned
but words I don't quite string together
or meanings I don't quite grasp
I swear I do it's just I don't understand one hundred percent and if I could just
g e t those last few phrases
sometimes the entire paragraph she sends me
rather than rely on a gray text editor that spits back
in solid, black, unfeeling English alphabet
"Coming home is always welcome"
that's not my Mom's voice, with her smiling, sympathetic expression and
steaming rice and kimchi stew, warm laundry, and squeaky slippers
that's the translator mincing her words,
chopping and scrambling them into something
familiar to the brain but foreign to the heart
I know she means "I'm always welcome to come home"
but why
couldn't I have gotten that immediately
"I eat food well and I have to buy spring clothes."
No, Google, I'm sure
she means that I will eat her food well
and buy spring clothes with her
but machine learning algorithms aren't
perfect
not my mom
so how would I really know
I wish language could be copy-pasted into English in my mind
so that I didn't have to go through this
bland, unwilling, frugal third-party
that knows nothing about my culture
I am a copy-paste of my parents' DNA
in flesh and blood
so why is it that physically
I am connected
but mentally, intangibly,
I've lost connection
to the internet, and some features of Google Translate may be lost. Try again?
Mar 12, 2019
Mar 12, 2019 at 5:45 AM UTC
Like tossing a pebble into a pond,
My long ago memories reflected slowly,
In each ripple of sunshine,
A Fresh breeze whispering lovely songs to me,
From times long past,
Every misty morning sunrise brings hazy memories;
Memories that traveled from a distant time and place,
With eyes wide shut, I dream of times long ago,
Thoughts of today's sadness and yesterday's happiness,
Seasons' change, the fragrance of kimchi and coffee remain,
Waiting some day for the sun from my past to warm my Soul,
It's just like, daydreams of your first lover,
I'm waiting to touch you again,
That we can make new happy memories; Memories that will last for eternity.
Copyright © 2016 Ronald J Chapman All Rights
Feb 17, 2016
Feb 17, 2016 at 8:25 PM UTC
lunching on kimchi
spilt it on poetry
doubt that
simic is happy
May 29, 2015
May 29, 2015 at 8:18 AM UTC
I HAD A TUSSLE WITH A GREEN LIPPED MUSCLE,
AND THEN OMEGA THREE BECAME A MYSTERY,
I TRAVELLED OVER THE SEVEN SEAS,
ATE ROYAL JELLY WITH HELP FROM THE BEES,
YOU COULDN'T HELP THINKING CHONDROITIN WAS JUST
A TRY - ON AND GARLIC WAS NOTHING TO RELY ON,
GLUCOSAMINE WAS NEVER THE SAME AS
SOMETHING THAT TOOK AWAY THE PAIN;
ST. JOHN'S WORT MADE ME WANT TO ABORT
EVERYTHING THAT TOOK AWAY THE ACHES,
HOW MANY, HOW MANY WERE REALLY FAKES?
AND NOW IT'S KIMCHI, SUITS ME, SUITS YOU,
DON'T TAKE ANY ****** WHATEVER YOU DO.
Feb 4, 2016
Feb 4, 2016 at 1:33 AM UTC
The path from Tauts-to-talks
are paved with food intentions
Four -piece meal for peace has
nothing to see here, you scab
Chilli crab - ain't your usual crap
are good gut check with no mishap
Bourbon and Sujo cocktail blend
beats sermon anytime, we'll show you
Summitwich - both sides have agreed
on buttermilk chicken and kimchi
Don you miss it, is Un-believable!
gimmickers seal it with their kisses
oh, and don't forget from the host too
Pandan cake to pudding on the table
no details are too minutiae, they're able
those circling the summit must march
to disarm the hunger and overcome pride
of King-me Dotard and Lil'Rocket Man
Now that's plenty to deal with it, so get real.
Jun 8, 2018
Jun 8, 2018 at 12:17 PM UTC
Ladybug lovesongs, shorts, longs, Genghis Khans
It's raining outside, warm and gentle
Fresh lentil soup, rearrange, regroup the thinking piece
Find peace part in parcel, gray zone embargo, let's go
Swing the *** down the row, break your back for it
No **** take a hit and pass it along, left or wrong
The Khan is coming out now, stomping through the mud
A cow chews her cud, the sky turns ice eyeball blue, Bailey
Hate me, I deserve it, tell me, I've probably heard it
Spit, throw your salt over your shoulder, shift that boulder
Mold over the wet bread slice, kimchi and rice
Sugar, spice, and everything spicy, like me, jalapeno tattoo'd on my arm
Does good, some harm, sound the alarm
Break the strong arm and be free
Self conscious in me, oh say can you see
By the setting of the sun, ants, plants, trails
Quails in flight, saying poison out of spite
Change your thoughts and change your life
Ladybug love songs, sing to me in your silence
Try this, I want your voice lifted to it
A note to hit, high point, max ordinate, advocates
Words of hate, washed clean with bar soap
Some hope, at this point, concise and contradictory
Dissect the diction, resurrect the dialect
Stand ***** in the face of flooding flashes
To make it in this country you need cash, kid.
Smoke a **** Winston down to the filter
Jul 7, 2019
Jul 7, 2019 at 5:08 AM UTC
# The Hostess
Crowned in Afro-tribal headdress,
On her chest a Slavic tunic;
Appearing as a prophetess
Or a schizophrenic ******
On her wrists ring Irish bangles—
Wrapped round her waist a bright sarong;
On her breast a pendant dangles
Like some Oriental gong.
Multi-kulti represented
As a woman, weirdly dressed.
Every ethnic group is feted
On arrival to the West.
The Dinner
Everybody bring your dish!
The ethnic potluck has begun.
Afterwards your guts will wish
Your culture had remained as one.
Foods collide and almost mingle
In the cultural melting ***
Yet it’s hard to find a single
Way to describe this mixed-up lot.
Curry mingles with Kielbasa
Chinese dumplings, Jello, slaw
Deviled eggs, the odd samosa
Beans and rice, cheap sushi raw.
Soul food, Kimchi, Spanish rice,
Pad-Thai, grits, potato salad;
Gastronomic paradise?
Or a nauseating ballad . . .
Out of many, not quite one—
You bravely burp. It’s quite diverse . . .
But as your stomach comes undone
Digestion goes from sad to worse.
E pluribus to Alka-Seltze®
Groaning in your bed at three:
Let it fizz and hope it helps, sir
Lest you doubt diversity…
I’m Diversity. I am strength!
Sings the undigested food.
Perhaps we all shall know, at length
If global change was for the good.
Apr 29, 2023
Apr 29, 2023 at 3:52 PM UTC