Your Favorite Poems

[FeminineAllure]

“Being happy doesn't mean that everything is perfect. It means that you've decided to look beyond the imperfections.”

[BestButchBoy]

Death is not the end
Death can never be the end.
Death is the road.
Life is the traveller.
...
The Soul is the Guide
...
Our mind thinks of death.
Our heart thinks of life
Our soul thinks of Immortality.

By: Sri Chinmoy

[Mitmo01]

The Passionate Shepherd to His Love
Christopher Marlowe


Come live with me and be my love,
And we will all the pleasures prove
That valleys, groves, hills, and fields,
Woods or steepy mountain yields.

And we will sit upon the rocks,
Seeing the shepherds feed their flocks,
By shallow rivers to whose falls
Melodious birds sing madrigals.

And I will make thee beds of roses
And a thousand fragrant posies,
A cap of flowers, and a kirtle
Embroidered all with leaves of myrtle;

A gown made of the finest wool
Which from our pretty lambs we pull;
Fair lined slippers for the cold,
With buckles of th purest gold;

A belt of straw and ivy buds,
With coral clasps and amber studs:
And if these pleasures may thee move,
Come live with me and be my love.

The shepherds' swains shall dance and sing
For thy delight each May morning:
If these delights thy mind may move,
Then live with me and be my love.

[Mitmo01]

When you are old
a poem by William Butler Yeats



When you are old and grey and full of sleep,
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true,
But one man loved the pilgrim Soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face;

And bending down beside the glowing bars,
Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.

[Tucker]

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly, and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant; they too have their story. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love - for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace wit...h God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labours and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.- Max Ehrmann

[Strappie]

This wasn't supposed to happen
Thoughts, Feelings, emotions ...

For months I've longed
Wondering what it would feel like
Your touch, your kiss, your soul
To know and to feel you
Completely

Warmth, comfort, safety
Things that I've found in you
Your smile, your laughter, your beauty are
a thousand sensations

A moment away seems like a thousand
Anxiousness, excitement, longing
Then the moment comes
What it would be like with you
Warmth, comfort, safety
Wrapped around you
Flooding thoughts of
Fear, sadness, heartbreak

Reality hits me hard
How could I feel so much in such a little time?
But it did
And here is where I'll stay
Wanting to give you more
Even though
This wasn't supposed to happen

Author: Unknown

[Mitmo01]

THE BIG HEART

"Too many things are occurring for even a big heart to hold."
From an essay by W. B. Yeats

Big heart,
wide as a watermelon,
but wise as birth,
there is so much abundance
in the people I have:
Max, Lois, Joe, Louise,
Joan, Marie, Dawn,
Arlene, Father Dunne,
and all in their short lives
give to me repeatedly,
in the way the sea
places its many fingers on the shore,
again and again
and they know me,
they help me unravel,
they listen with ears made of conch shells,
they speak back with the wine of the best region.
They are my staff.
They comfort me.

They hear how
the artery of my soul has been severed
and soul is spurting out upon them,
bleeding on them,
messing up their clothes,
dirtying their shoes.
And God is filling me,
though there are times of doubt
as hollow as the Grand Canyon,
still God is filling me.
He is giving me the thoughts of dogs,
the spider in its intricate web,
the sun
in all its amazement,
and a slain ram
that is the glory,
the mystery of great cost,
and my heart,
which is very big,
I promise it is very large,
a monster of sorts,
takes it all in--
all in comes the fury of love.


Anne Sexton

[Strappie]

I need and want to talk
You don't see anything to talk about.

I long to touch you, caress you
You don't need my touch

I ache to hold you, feel your heat
You don't need my arms

I have a desire that burns
You don't have the desire

I wish to speak to your soul
You don't need my wishes

I dream of your passion
You don't need my dreams

I would love all of you
You don't need my love

I want to be your lover
You want to be my friend

Can you feel my passion
You can't feel me

I can see your heart and soul
You don't want to see mine

But I will forever see her's

[Semantics]

Tragic Rabbit


Tragic rabbit, a painting.
The caked ears green like rolled corn.
The black forehead pointing at the stars.
A painting on my wall, alone

as rabbits are
and aren’t. Fat red cheek,
all Art, trembling nose,
a habit hard to break as not.

You too can be a tragic rabbit; green and red
your back, blue your manly little chest.
But if you’re ever goaded into being one
beware the True Flesh, it

will knock you off your tragic horse
and break your tragic colors like a ghost
breaks marble; your wounds will heal
so quickly water

will be jealous.
Rabbits on white paper painted
outgrow all charms against their breeding wild;
and their rolled corn ears become horns.

So watch out if the tragic life feels fine –
caught in that rabbit trap
all colors look like sunlight’s swords,
and scissors like The Living Lord.


Stan Rice
Some Lamb

[Fancy]

I open my mouth in astonishment.
Praises fall forth with my every breath.

I bless that I am not the first,
nor shall I be the last,
to wonder under the stars that everything is.

I bless that everything is,
and that I am part of it all.

I bless that no one has any final answers,
and that no name
can be the final name for ultimacy.

I bless that it will still be possible on my deathbed to
grow deeper.

I bless that only the painful work of forgiveness
allows for any real joy in this life.

I bless that what is fractured
still dares to dream of wholeness.

I bless that there is enough to go around
if we give, not grab.

I bless that distance
can usually give way to intimacy.

I bless that justice is only just
if it transforms me
as well as the world outside me.

I bless that the good
are not those who strive to do good,
but those who allow their hearts to be vulnerable
to the inherent dignity of others.

I bless that peace
can never be declared impossible,
even in the Middle East.

I bless that ruined cities and ruined lives
can often be rebuilt.

I bless that prayers like this
are not foolish incantations,
but invitations to bless, question, and praise
as often as possible.

I bless that there is no place in the whole universe
that is not as sacred as any temple.

I bless that my breathing
can be a kind of thanking.

I bless the peace that takes nourishment
at the breast of justice.

I bless that both singing and silence are possible.

~Mark Belletini

[femmedyke]

Self Portrait

It doesn't interest me if there is one God
Or many gods.
I want to know if you belong -- or feel abandoned;
If you know despair
Or can see it in others.
I want to know
If you are prepared to live in the world
With its harsh need to change you;
If you can look back with firm eyes
Saying "this is where I stand."
I want to know if you know how to melt
Into that fierce heat of living
Falling toward the center of your longing.
I want to know if you are willing
To live day by day
With the consequence of love
And the bitter unwanted passion
Of your sure defeat.
I have been told
In that fierce embrace
Even the gods
Speak of God.

~ David Whyte ~

[Gráinne]

Two from e.e.cummings:

i carry your heart with me



i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear
no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

[Gráinne]

And...

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)


i like my body when it is with your

i like my body when it is with your
body. It is so quite new a thing.
Muscles better and nerves more.
i like your body. i like what it does,
i like its hows. i like to feel the spine
of your body and its bones, and the trembling
-firm-smooth ness and which i will
again and again and again
kiss, i like kissing this and that of you,
i like, slowly stroking the, shocking fuzz
of your electric fur, and what-is-it comes
over parting flesh ... And eyes big love-crumbs,

and possibly i like the thrill

of under me you so quite new

[daisygrrl]

"To my Dear and Loving Husband"

If ever two were one, then surely we.
If ever man were lov'd by wife, then thee.
If ever wife was happy in a man,
Compare with me, ye women, if you can.
I prize thy love more than whole Mines of gold
Or all the riches that the East doth hold.
My love is such that Rivers cannot quench,
Nor ought but love from thee give recompetence.
Thy love is such I can no way repay.
The heavens reward thee manifold, I pray.
Then while we live, in love let's so persevere
That when we live no more, we may live ever.


p.s. I love how she defied contemporaneous (and modern) expectations of women writers--how she candidly discusses love, domestic experiences, and trauma without rationalizing it or justifying it (via religious or any other means).

[MrSunshine]

When things go wrong as they usually will

and your daily life seems all up hill

When funds are low and debts are high

and you try to smile but can only cry

and you really feel like you want to quit

don't come to me I don't give a shit.

[femmedyke]

Ithaka
Constantin Cavafy

As you set out for Ithaka
hope the voyage is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
angry Poseidon—don’t be afraid of them:
you’ll never find things like that on your way
as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,
as long as a rare excitement
stirs your spirit and your body.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
wild Poseidon—you won’t encounter them
unless you bring them along inside your soul,
unless your soul sets them up in front of you.

Hope the voyage is a long one.
May there be many a summer morning when,
with what pleasure, what joy,
you come into harbors seen for the first time;
may you stop at Phoenician trading stations
to buy fine things,
mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
sensual perfume of every kind—
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
and may you visit many Egyptian cities
to gather stores of knowledge from their scholars.

Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you are destined for.
But do not hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you are old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.

Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you would not have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.

And if you find her poor, Ithaka won’t have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,
you will have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.

**this was read by Maurice Templesman at Jacqueline Kennedy's funeral
and I love it so.

[femmedyke]

A Dream of Trees

There is a thing in me that dreamed of trees,
A quiet house, some green and modest acres
A little way from every troubling town,
A little way from factories, schools, laments.
I would have time, I thought, and time to spare,
With only streams and birds for company,
To build out of my life a few wild stanzas.
And then it came to me, that so was death,
A little way away from everywhere.
There is a thing in me still dreams of trees.
But let it go. Homesick for moderation,
Half the world's artists shrink or fall away.
If any find solution, let him tell it.
Meanwhile I bend my heart toward lamentation
Where, as the times implore our true involvement,
The blades of every crisis point the way.
I would it were not so, but so it is.
Who ever made music of a mild day?
––Mary Oliver

and I dedicate this poem, to me.