Satin Still Finds Work For Idle Hands
Between the stairway
and the stair,
the Soul has sensed the Shadow there
reaching out from somewhere grey;
has felt the sunlight slide away.
Between the window
and the frame
has passed the Rat that has no name
to gnaw and chew and breed and tear
and take your homestead as his lair.
Between the doorway
and the porch
the Arsonist inserts his torch
to spark the threshold with his fire
and make your home your funeral pyre.
Between one thought beam
and a second
Satan’s smoky finger beckoned
and touched the Spirit’s upward flight
to charm it downwards into Night.
poem by Brian Taylor
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
A Poem On Obsequies To A Tear
I with utmost care
Place this tear
On the funeral pyre
Don't look down
Upon a tear shed
Don't you see
Its heart still throbbing?
Its eyes beyond your grasp?
The tear still pulsating
And its breath filling the lungs?
It has many tales to recount
Connecting you to me
And us to him, her and them
Come, pay you respects
Before the pyre is lit
Before another tear is shed
And placed on the pyre.
poem by Indira Babbellapati
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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With Concussion Is His Fire
Resting with concussions I slide with results,
A ceremonious thinking strategy has been applied.
Much to the distaste of enemies, I slide into a room
Where martyrdom has occurred, to feel engrossed in God.
The sight of your blessings causes him to strike fear into Satan,
Those buzzes tear Satan from an understanding of bliss.
Instead, the reality has been concluded
And it has encased him in the ultimate existence of misery - Fire!
Rest and compassion felt good and never do transgressors
Flounder in their handsome paths to the beginning of plenty.
poem by Naveed Akram
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Light My Fire
You know that it would be untrue
You know that i would be a liar
If i was to say to you
Girl, we couldn't get much higher
Come on baby, light my fire
Come on baby, light my fire
Try to set the night on fire
Time to hesitate is through
No time to wallow in the mire
Try now we can only lose
And our love become a funeral pyre
Come on baby, light my fire
Come on baby, light my fire
Try to set the night on fire
Aouh, come on!
Come on, babe!
Yeah! come on!
Come on!
Woaouh! yeah!
It was the greatest night of my life.
Although i still had not found a wife
I had my friends
Right there beside me.
We were close together.
We tripped the wall, we scaled the graveyard
Ancient shapes were all around us.
The wet dew felt fresh beside the fog.
Two made love in an ancient spot
One chased a rabbit into the dark
A girl got drunk and balled the dead
And i gave empty sermons to my head.
Cemetary, cool and quiet
Hate to leave your sacred lay
Dread the milky coming of the day.
Ah, ah, ah, ah!
Ah, ah, ah, ah!
Ah, ah, ah, ah!
Ah, ah, ah, ah!
Ah, ah, ah, ah!
Ah, ah, ah, ah!
Ah, ah, ah, ah!
Aah, aah, aah, aah, aah
Aah, aah, aah, aaah!
Time to hesitate is through
No time to wallow in the mire
Try now we can only lose
And our love become a funeral pyre
Come on baby, light my fire
Come on baby, light my fire
Try to set the night on fire
Know that it would be untrue
You know that i would be a liar
If i was to say to you
Girl, we couldn't get much higher
Come on baby, light my fire
Come on baby, light my fire
Try to set the night on fire
Try to set the night on fire
Try to set the night on fire
Try to set the night on fire!
All right, all right!
All right!
song performed by by Doors
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Lord of Stripes
In my dreams
I take the paws
Of a lonely tiger
And together we dance
My love, I’ll find you
Ablaze in a funeral pyre
We swim together
The tiger and I
Through cities
Made of emerald
My love, I’ll find you
Ablaze in a funeral pyre
Lions watch jealously
As the king of the jungle
Is passed over
For the lord of the dance
My love, I’ll wait for you
Ablaze in a funeral pyre.
poem by Jeffrey McCambridge
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Standing In The Light
A summers day in sixty-eight
Sunlight through a window falls across the page
A young boy tries to concentrate
His mind would rather fly beyond the classroom cage
He can take the teachers voice
Turn it into music from another place
All the other kids dont have that choice
Hanging on to every word the teacher says
Day and night - we will be touched
Standing in the light - dont shadow the genius
So out of school he walks alone
Soon his thoughts are flowing like a golden stream
An empty house he calls his own
This place becomes a temple to a silent dream
Sometimes he will clap and sing
Then deep in meditation he will learn to be
And only birds upon the wing
With upward fascination claim to be so free
Day and night - we will be touched
Standing in the light - dont shadow the genius
Your smile, your freedom
Comes to you from within
Still a child with a reason
Youre afraid but its time to begin
Blow the wind of change
Though the words are strange - to hear
Say whats on your mind
Now is not the time - for fear
A summers day in eight-one
Sunlight through a window falls across the page
A young mans fight has just begun
And rising up inside him is a burning rage
They called his dream a fantasy
A song that every child has sung since time began
But just as long as he believes
Standing in the light hell make them understand
song performed by by Level 42
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Written In Aid Of The Leicester Lunatic Asylum.
Light ye the torch,--
The torch that hath expired;
The light with which was fired
Chamber and hall and porch:
But now the house is dark,
Its inmates rove in vain,
There shines but a bewildering spark:
Light ye the torch again!
Light ye the torch,--
It was a sacred flame,
From God in heaven it came:
All nature ye may search
To find a fire so bright,
And ye shall search in vain:
But quenched is all its glorious light:--
Light ye the torch again!
Light ye the torch,--
The ruthless winds have blown
Its tresses up and down,
Till it did scare and scorch,
Not bless: but one fell blast
Swept howling o'er the plain,
And left all darkness as it past;--
Light ye the torch again!
Light ye the torch,--
And ye shall blessed be:
Till many a bended knee
In chamber and in church
Shall serve ye: merciful,
Mercy ye shall obtain:
Your cup of glory shall be full:--
Light ye the torch again!
poem by Henry Alford
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Cold Grey Morning
Cold grey morning without sunlight ghostly mist on the horizon
Empty visions of a world gone mad paints a picture so revealing
Through my window dark tomorrow I can hear the sirens wailing
For the future we are holding on as the ship of fools is sailing
Such a long time such a long time
We are waiting for a peace that's lasting
Reaching upward sliding downward looks like just another
Cold grey morning
Hardly breathing hope is fading it's the e nd of the beginning
Children playing in the empty streets it's a cold grey morning
song performed by by Kansas
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Lines To A Friend,
ON REMOVING FROM HER NATIVE VILLAGE.
The golden rays of sunset fall on a snow-clad hill,
As standing by my window I gaze there long and still.
I see a roof and a chimney, and some tall elms standing near,
While the winds that sway their branches bring voices to my ear.
They tell of a darkened hearth-stone, that once shone bright and gay,
And of old familiar faces that have sadly passed away;
How a stranger on the threshold with careless aspect stands,
And gazes on the acres that have passed into his hands.
I shudder, as these voices, so fraught with mournful woe,
Steal on my spirit's hearing, in cadence sad and low,
And think I will not hear them--but, ah! who can control
The gloomy thoughts that enter and brood upon the soul?
So, turning from my window, while darkness deepens round,
And the wailing winds sweep onward with yet more piteous sound,
I feel within my bosom far wilder whirlwinds start,
And sweep the cloudy heaven that bends above my heart.
I have no power to quell them; so let them rage and roar,
The sooner will their raging and fury all be o'er;
I've seen Atlantic's billows 'neath tempests fiercely swell,
But O, the calm succeeding, I have no words to tell!
I think of you, and wonder if you are happy now;
Floats there no shade of sorrow at times across your brow?
When daily tasks are ended, and thought is free to roam,
Doth it not bear you swiftly back to that dear old home?
And then, with wizard fingers, doth Memory open fast
A thrilling panorama of all the changeful past!
Where blending light and shadow skip airy o'er the scene,
Painting in vivid contrast what is and what has been.
And say, does not your mother remember yet with tears
The spot where calm and peaceful have lapsed so many years?
O, would some kindly spirit might give us all to know
How much a tender parent will for a child forego!
We prized your worth while with us; but now you're gone from sight,
We feel 'how blessings brighten while they are taking flight.'
O, don't forget the homestead upon the pleasant hill;
Nor yet the love-lit home you have in all our memories still!
Come, often come to visit the haunts your childhood knew!
We pledge you earnest welcome, unbought, unfeigned and true.
And when before your vision new hopes and pleasure rise,
Turn sometimes with a sunny thought toward your native skies!
poem by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
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I Sensed That You Were There
I was sitting at the restaurant table
when I sensed that you were there.
I looked up to see you approaching
and you passed with an elegant air.
I didn't just sense your beauty
or catch the aroma of your perfume.
Your spirit reached out and touched me,
as you walked across the room.
I suppose I could ask the question,
why did your spirit choose me?
Or does your spirit touch everyone
who's in your vicinity?
poem by Orlando Belo
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On My Shadow's Head
You talk about law
You talk about fate
You talk about money
And finally hate
You're bringing me up
You're spinning me round
And I'm dancing now and you're shouting
at me from the crowd
You talk about wars
You talk to the stars
You cry with my soul
From a window with bars
You spirit me out you follow me home
You're walking on my shadow's head
I'm never alone
You martyr the good
Find food for the weak
You nourish the fool
With the wisdom you speak
You're haunting the man
Who shows no remorse
You're walking on my shadow's head
And changing my course
You talk about wars
You talk to the stars
You cry with my soul
From a window with bars
You spirit me out you follow me home
You're walking on my shadow's head
I'm never alone
You mock the sinner
Who's back of the street
Not convinced by his lies
You attack him in sleep
Then you punish the child
Years after the deed
You're walking on my shadow's head
So I never cheat
You talk about wars
You talk to the stars
You cry with my soul
From a window with bars
You spirit me out you follow me home
You're walking on my shadow's head
I'm never alone
You martyr the good
Find food for the weak
You nourish the fool
With the wisdom you speak
You're haunting the man
Who shows no remorse
You're walking on my shadow's head
And changing my course
I thought I could handle myself, but you
raised the alarm.
I was driven by ancient forces, and you
were always with me -
Breathing deeply, laughing freely, beating
evil.
And for ever I can hear and see you,
staring into the eyes of your endless faces
Never looking for escape, just a new shape
Still talking, still talking
Walking on my shadow's head
I will see you when we're all dead
Walking on my shadow's head.
Still talking
Walking on my shadow's head
poem by Pawan Kumar 'Meonlafesta'
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I Took A Trip On A Gemini Spacecraft
I took a trip
On a gemini spacecraft
And I thought about you
I passed through the shadow of jupiter
And I thought about you
I shot my spacegun
And boy, I really felt blue
Two or three flying saucers
Parked under the stars
The winding stream
Moon shining down
On some little town
And with each beam
The same old dream
I took a trip
On a gemini spacecraft
And I thought about you
I shot my spacegun
And I thought about you
I pulled down my sun visor
Boy, I really felt blue
You jumped into your gemini
I jumped into mine
Well orbit the moon
For just one time
Tomorrow night
Tomorrow night
Will you hold hands
With me in the moonlight
I took a trip
In a gemini spacecraft
And I thought about you
I shot my spacegun
And I thought about you
I took
I took a walk in space
Boy, I really felt blue
Well, I peeked through the crack
And I looked way back
The stardust trail
Leading back to you
What did I do
What could I do
Yes what did I do
Well
I thought about you
I thought about you
Took a trip
On a gemini spacecraft
Thought about you
song performed by by David Bowie
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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I Took A Trip On A Gemini Spaceship
Took a trip on a Gemini spacecraft
And I thought about you
I passed through the shadow of Jupiter
(sigh)
And I thought about you
I shot my spacegun
And boy, I really felt blue
Two or three flying saucers
Parked under the stars
The winding stream
Moon shining down
On some little town
And with each beam
The same old dream
I took a trip on a Gemini spacecraft
And I thought about you
Well I shot my spacegun
And I thought about you
Pulled down my sun visor
Boy, I really felt blue
You jumped into your Gemini
I jumped into mine
We'll orbit the Moon
For just one time
Tomorrow night
Tomorrow night
Will you hold hands
With me under the moonlight
Took a trip in a Gemini spacecraft
And I thought about you
I shot my spacegun
And I thought about you
I took, I took a walk in space
Boy, I really felt blue
Well I peeked through the crack
And I looked way back
The stardust trail
Leading back to you
What did I do
What could I do
What did I do
Well
I thought about you
I thought about you
Took a trip on a Gemini spacecraft
And thought about you
song performed by by David Bowie
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Stairway To The Stars
INTRO
There's a silver trail of moonlight leading upward to the sky
And the night is like a velvet lullaby
There's a heaven of blue
And we'll go there, just you and I
Let's build a stairway to the stars
And climb that stairway to the stars
With love beside us to fill the night with a song
We'll hear the sound of violins
Out yonder where the blue begins
The moon will guide us as we go drifting along
CHORUS:
Can't we sail away on a lazy daisy petal
Over the rim of the hill?
Can't we sail away on a little dream
And settle high on the crest of a thrill?
Let's build a stairway to the stars
A lovely stairway to the stars
It would be heaven to climb to heaven with you
Let's build a stairway to the stars
A lovely stairway to the stars
It would be heaven to climb to heaven with you
song performed by by Natalie Cole
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Salve Eternum
I.
Farewell! O soul departed!
Farewell! O sacred urn!
Bereaved and broken-hearted,
To earth the mourners turn.
To the dim and dreary shore,
Thou art gone our steps before!
But thither the swift Hours lead us,
And thou dost but a while precede us,
Salve-salve!
Loved urn, and thou solemn cell,
Mute ashes!-farewell, farewell!
Salve-salve!
II.
Ilicet-ire licet-
Ah, vainly would we part!
Thy tomb is the faithful heart.
About evermore we bear thee;
For who from the heart can tear thee?
Vainly we sprinkle o'er us
The drops of the cleansing stream;
And vainly bright before us
The lustral fire shall beam.
For where is the charm expelling
Thy thought from its sacred dwelling?
Our griefs are thy funeral feast,
And Memory thy mourning priest.
Salve-salve!
III.
Ilicet-ire licet!
The spark from the hearth is gone
Wherever the air shall bear it;
The elements take their own-
The shadows receive thy spirit.
It will soothe thee to feel our grief,
As thou glid'st by the Gloomy River!
If love may in life be brief,
In death it is fixed for ever.
Salve-salve!
In the hall which our feasts illume,
The rose for an hour may bloom;
But the cypress that decks the tomb-
The cypress is green for ever!
Salve-salve!
poem by Edward George Bulwer-Lytton
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A Problem With Living Too Long
A godlier man, there never lived -
My dear old Uncle Fred,
And throngs should fill the funeral home
When word comes that he's dead.
For the numbers at the funeral home
Are a measure of one's worth;
The sum of all the lives one's touched
While here upon the earth.
But few will visit the funeral home
When my Uncle passes on,
For he's lived so long that those he's touched
Are already dead and gone.
The Old House
In through the porch and up the silent stair;
Little is changed, I know so well the ways;--
Here, the dead came to meet me; it was there
The dream was dreamed in unforgotten days.
But who is this that hurries on before,
A flitting shade the brooding shades among?--
She turned,--I saw her face,--O God, it wore
The face I used to wear when I was young!
I thought my spirit and my heart were tamed
To deadness; dead the pangs that agonise.
The old grief springs to choke me,--I am shamed
Before that little ghost with eager eyes.
O turn away, let her not see, not know!
How should she bear it, how should understand?
O hasten down the stairway, haste and go,
And leave her dreaming in the silent land.
Light My Fire
Horace Andy
you know that it would be untrue
you know that i would be a liar
if was to say to you
girl, we couldn't get much higher
come on baby, light my fire
come on baby, light my fire
try to set the night on fire
the time to hesitate is through
no time to wallow in the mire
try now we can only lose
and our love become a funeral pyre
come on baby, light my fire
come on baby, light my fire
try to set the night on fire
the time to hesitate is through
no time to wallow in the mire
try now we can only lose
and our love become a funeral pyre
come on baby, light my fire
come on baby, light my fire
try to set the night on fire
you know that it would be untrue
you know that i would be a liar
if was to say to you
girl we couldn't get much higher
come on baby, light my fire
come on baby, light my fire
try to set the night on fire
try to set the night on fire
try to set the night on fire
try to set the night on fire
try to set the night on fire
song performed by by Massive Attack
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Standing On The Threshold
Standing on the threshold
Of the growing responsibilities,
I stare and peep out of mirror,
Mirrror of shadowed soul,
I look and rejoice my childhood,
Standing on the threshold.
The innocent dreams behold,
Through imagination, the colorful world,
And try to seek some answers,
The answers may be right or wrong.
I look and rejoice my childhood,
Standing on the threshold.
When decency couldn’t be hold,
And being jealous was not off beam,
When there should be a crowd,
Crowd of plays & players around,
I look and rejoice my childhood,
Standing on the threshold.
There were fairies in stories, told
Which looked real & with soul,
And we used to build our own home,
Home exactly like of fairies land,
I look and rejoice my childhood,
Standing on the threshold.
The hands gradually gets fold,
With my fingers in it hold tightly,
For guiding me all the way,
The way that is now lost,
I look and rejoice my childhood,
Standing on the threshold.
The smile that was clear & bold,
Has now turned very wintry,
The unconditional loud laugh,
Now laughs loudly at me,
I look and rejoice my childhood,
Standing on the threshold.
poem by Sudha Pandey
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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For My Father
Reaching upward as I never believed
I could do, not within this moment-
Searching for life’s meaning, heaven sent and
Written across the stone of some unfamiliar despondent
Figure from my past-
Was an invitation for me to follow in your footsteps –
Much less you, my own father who passed away years ago
I can almost hear you calling my name aloud as I
Search for relief from all of the pain-
My stone is waiting and patiently standing- in my dying breath- as
I climb this stairway towards hell- I say-
Father you were a good man with such a zest for life although
Only evil people with no conscience
Burn in hell’s brush fire
In your eyes and mine likewise death is hell
In itself- in our eyes life has always been a challenge,
Life is indeed a gift- while death is a rude awakening-
Perhaps if I climb this ladder I am tenuously holding onto-
I will find you once again when I reach the top-
I remember being your one and only,
As I remember you to be a godsend –
Reaching upward is reaching outward to
Embrace the most gentle, loving and
The most gallant man- in all due respect-
Meeting you face to face once more
Would erase the pain of loss I feel and
In my heart, mind and spirit-
Loss is none but hell and reuniting with you
Will give us both a second chance at life –
- Let hell’s fire burn-if not for just this moment-
It shall light the candle I hold in my hand
Blazing a path before me- until we meet once more-
Much less to be held in your arms-
The heaven of both of our dreams come true-
Love puts out all malevolent fires-as would a fountain of youth or
A cleansing shower- let fondest memories of the good times
We shared turn the hell of death to
A warm rebirth – no matter where that light shall guide us-
That place shall be our one and only heaven-
poem by Claudia Krizay
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The Shadow
The shadow of your threshold is so full
Of meaning, that the stranger knows what home
Is yours, if peace dwell here, or strife, or restless
Unsatisfied ambition. As the tree's
Deep shadow meaneth rest and comfort, or
Is poison, sleep eternal, such the house
That is a home's sweet shadow or a dark
Abode of sin, of lurking lie and danger.
The shadow of your life, that is so small
In bright midday and summer's burning sun,
Begins to lengthen when your evening comes,
And shows the beauty of the tree in outline,
Its graceful forms, its harmony and power;
And never did its beauty strike before,
As now, when lost in thought, you contemplate
The shadow on the lawn. The golden rays
That flood it, make it higher, nobler, and
Its shadow ever greater, till the night
Calls forth the moon, to make it deep and weird
As if unspoken pain had darkened it,
As if the silvery paleness of the moon
Sharpened its features into hardness almost.
Behold the shadow of thy life! Look well if
It be a threshold that reveals the strong
Unbending will, the height of all your aims,
Your passions' darkness, and the harmony
Of all the branches that were put into
Your care! Look at the shadow when your day
Is done, and winter's moon will draw its line
In naked truth, without the flattering leaves
Upon your windingsheet's unruffled snow.
poem by Carmen Sylva
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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