"uprights" poems - Hello Poetry

What does wind think of the encampment on North 7th as it moves under the overpass, the bright blue nylon riffling, work shirts on a rope, the entry flap breathing, an old man’s head bent over a chessboard, a rook tipping over? What does wind know? Easy to say: nothing, to say it knows nothing sweeping the day’s trash down the avenue. The crawl says: fires in the West; men with AR-15s; a mother and child face-down in the river; children in cages; the rise of this, the fall of that. We say the wind knows nothing as it drives fire like a blowtorch across the land. We blame the grid, the lineman, the line, though we know better. We say the rain inside the wind knows nothing, as mud swallows houses, houses fall to sea, floods push through cities, the ocean takes back land. We say wind and rain know nothing. We say there’s nothing to do. The wind passes through us and goes on. A gust pushes in. A tarp snaps. A rook tips. The old man uprights it, and waits for the next turn.

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Aug 17, 2025

Aug 17, 2025 at 5:54 PM UTC

William-A-Gibson

The Wind Takes Its Turn

What does wind think of the encampment on North 7th as it moves under the overpass, the bright blue nylon riffling, work shirts on a rope, the entry flap breathing, an old man’s head bent over a chessboard, a rook tipping over? What does wind know? Easy to say: nothing, to say it knows nothing sweeping the day’s trash down the avenue. The crawl says: fires in the West; men with AR-15s; a mother and child face-down in the river; children in cages; the rise of this, the fall of that. We say the wind knows nothing as it drives fire like a blowtorch across the land. We blame the grid, the lineman, the line, though we know better. We say the rain inside the wind knows nothing, as mud swallows houses, houses fall to sea, floods push through cities, the ocean takes back land. We say wind and rain know nothing. We say there’s nothing to do. The wind passes through us and goes on. A gust pushes in. A tarp snaps. A rook tips. The old man uprights it, and waits for the next turn.

18

Once upon a millenium I scrawled in awkward letters Straining for an undiscovered profundity Not so different From an upright creature Some ages past Who stroked upon An empty page With what he thought Were poignant truths And monumental metaphors Like uprights love to leave So as to titillate Their future discoverers While stretching unabashedly To be a candidate Future philosophers will doff With certain validation For unique truisms..... I am recorded here Wow, I said admiringly To myself In my true language Hey, dat's sump'm Eat ya heart out, Aris

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Nov 10, 2010

Nov 10, 2010 at 6:39 AM UTC

louisbrown

I Am Recorded Here

Once upon a millenium I scrawled in awkward letters Straining for an undiscovered profundity Not so different From an upright creature Some ages past Who stroked upon An empty page With what he thought Were poignant truths And monumental metaphors Like uprights love to leave So as to titillate Their future discoverers While stretching unabashedly To be a candidate Future philosophers will doff With certain validation For unique truisms..... I am recorded here Wow, I said admiringly To myself In my true language Hey, dat's sump'm Eat ya heart out, Aris

25

I miss handwritten letters from days before correspondence degraded to LOL’s And MHO’s; when families gathered to revel in the love that settled on each page. The dimpled envelope, carefully slit with a paring knife, passed under every nose. Each one savoured the lavender scent and touched the waxen seal as though it were gold. We leaned into mother’s shoulders as she read each word aloud, as though something unexpected might flutter off the page. The penmanship intrigued us, flowing cursive uprights, t's that streaked across the page, like the train that took us to New York when grandma got sick and her letters stopped.

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Sep 28, 2010

Sep 28, 2010 at 3:50 PM UTC

bridget-becker

News From Home

I miss handwritten letters from days before correspondence degraded to LOL’s And MHO’s; when families gathered to revel in the love that settled on each page. The dimpled envelope, carefully slit with a paring knife, passed under every nose. Each one savoured the lavender scent and touched the waxen seal as though it were gold. We leaned into mother’s shoulders as she read each word aloud, as though something unexpected might flutter off the page. The penmanship intrigued us, flowing cursive uprights, t's that streaked across the page, like the train that took us to New York when grandma got sick and her letters stopped.

21

Atom open born energy fragrance atmosphere bay embraces pactis'd origin heard youth procreant *** uprights soul proof vexes familiar stealthy fancied wondering Backward abased loose plunged scabs full flags, handkerchiefs babe Sprouting hair Tenderly, faint perceive hints old somewhere collapses die manifold companion lips Undrape! silently red-faced sprawls clinking doors atop mountains settle round luxuriant slave friendly handsome owns I laughing wet bodies spray sharpens lithe steady giant for Oxen tread consider wild sharp-hoof'd foot growing easiest pure I resist cannot riddle grass music battles dead fail'd set press.

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Dec 7, 2014

Dec 7, 2014 at 8:51 PM UTC

wordvango

words recycled

Atom open born energy fragrance atmosphere bay embraces pactis'd origin heard youth procreant *** uprights soul proof vexes familiar stealthy fancied wondering Backward abased loose plunged scabs full flags, handkerchiefs babe Sprouting hair Tenderly, faint perceive hints old somewhere collapses die manifold companion lips Undrape! silently red-faced sprawls clinking doors atop mountains settle round luxuriant slave friendly handsome owns I laughing wet bodies spray sharpens lithe steady giant for Oxen tread consider wild sharp-hoof'd foot growing easiest pure I resist cannot riddle grass music battles dead fail'd set press.

18

Too many expectations that too from humans Bring miseries to life with lot of sheer remorse Movements are disjointed with strayed actions A whirlwind where one loses path in discourse Downtrodden rascals play with norms of society Uprights are loser at times just on certain stages But fortune determines their path being fair and free The bad ones with their tricks earn ***** and wages A drama is being staged a circus is being played Like monkeys people are on just different ropes Justice is prevalent justice denied is justice delayed Some humans are open and some are in envelopes Col Muhammad Khalid Khan Copyright 2016 Golden Glow

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Aug 31, 2016

Aug 31, 2016 at 3:59 AM UTC

col-muhammad-khalid-khan

Humans in Envelopes

Too many expectations that too from humans Bring miseries to life with lot of sheer remorse Movements are disjointed with strayed actions A whirlwind where one loses path in discourse Downtrodden rascals play with norms of society Uprights are loser at times just on certain stages But fortune determines their path being fair and free The bad ones with their tricks earn ***** and wages A drama is being staged a circus is being played Like monkeys people are on just different ropes Justice is prevalent justice denied is justice delayed Some humans are open and some are in envelopes Col Muhammad Khalid Khan Copyright 2016 Golden Glow

14

20 minutes before midnight strikes, the heart is racing for it's dear life you're standing on the side of the road watching me run away from my problems The rats cling to the streets, their bellies full of spite for the uprights A shadow takes in all the detail from outside the light Holy, as it were Holy, as it shall be forevermore My head rests on the desk; I pretend it's the ***** of my lover; and I weep, and weep, and weep, until the scar riddled wolf is ready to eat.

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Sep 28, 2016

Sep 28, 2016 at 1:51 AM UTC

afinitecreature

After Moon Delight

20 minutes before midnight strikes, the heart is racing for it's dear life you're standing on the side of the road watching me run away from my problems The rats cling to the streets, their bellies full of spite for the uprights A shadow takes in all the detail from outside the light Holy, as it were Holy, as it shall be forevermore My head rests on the desk; I pretend it's the ***** of my lover; and I weep, and weep, and weep, until the scar riddled wolf is ready to eat.

29

Squeeze the spire. Steal it of breath. And then hear it gasp. Pull the green over its head.

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Apr 6, 2020

Apr 6, 2020 at 11:05 AM UTC

db817

Uprights, Mars, Violet and Blue, Arthur Dove, 1946

Squeeze the spire. Steal it of breath. And then hear it gasp. Pull the green over its head.

5

When powered up in operation mode A structure rotates like a merry-go-mad At the cylinder’s cone, and further back Uprights rectilineal pulse in place A slender tube poised for flight, it seems, All sinister and sleek, ready for launch - But purposed for what? Electrification Of dental hygiene for The People’s teeth Our Man in Havana has sent us the pix: The Atomic Toothbrush is our dental fix!

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Mar 18, 2018

Mar 18, 2018 at 8:32 AM UTC

lawrence-hall

Wormold’s Strange Machinery in Oriente Province

When powered up in operation mode A structure rotates like a merry-go-mad At the cylinder’s cone, and further back Uprights rectilineal pulse in place A slender tube poised for flight, it seems, All sinister and sleek, ready for launch - But purposed for what? Electrification Of dental hygiene for The People’s teeth Our Man in Havana has sent us the pix: The Atomic Toothbrush is our dental fix!

11