Learning To Read
Very soon the Yankee teachers
Came down and set up school;
But, oh! how the Rebs did hate it, -
It was agin' their rule.
Our masters always tried to hide
Book learning from our eyes;
Knowledge did'nt agree with slavery -
'Twould make us all too wise.
But some of us would try to steal
A little from the book,
And put the words together,
And learn by hook or crook.
I remember Uncle Caldwell,
Who took pot liquor fat
And greased the pages of his book,
And hid it in his hat.
And had his master ever seen
The leaves upon his head,
He'd have thought them greasy papers,
But nothing to be read.
And there was Mr. Turner's Ben,
Who heard the children spell,
And picked the words right up by heart,
And learned to read 'em well.
Well, the Northern folks kept sending
The Yankee teachers down;
And they stood right up and helped us,
Though Rebs did sneer and frown.
And I longed to read my Bible,
For precious words it said;
But when I begun to learn it,
Folks just shook their heads,
And said there is no use trying,
Oh! Chloe, you're too late;
But as I was rising sixty,
I had no time to wait.
So I got a pair of glasses,
And straight to work I went,
And never stopped till I could read
The hymns and Testament.
Then I got a little cabin
A place to call my own -
And I felt as independent
As the queen upon her throne.
poem by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
Aunt Chloe
.
I remember, well remember,
.
That dark and dreadful day,
.
When they whispered to me, "Chloe,
.
Your children's sold away!" 1.
It seemed as if a bullet
.
Had shot me through and through,
.
And I felt as if my heart-strings
.
Was breaking right in two. 1.
And I says to cousin Milly,
.
"There must be some mistake;
.
Where's Mistus?" "In the great house crying --
.
Crying like her heart would break. 1.
"And the lawyer's there with Mistus;
.
Says he's come to 'ministrate,
.
'Cause when master died he just left
.
Heap of debt on the estate. 1.
"And I thought 'twould do you good
.
To bid your boys good-bye --
.
To kiss them both and shake their hands,
.
And have a hearty cry. 1.
"Oh! Chloe, I knows how you feel,
.
'Cause I'se been through it all;
.
I thought my poor old heart would break,
.
When master sold my Saul." 1.
Just then I heard the footsteps
.
Of my children at the door,
.
And then I rose right up to meet them,
.
But I fell upon the floor. 1.
And I heard poor Jakey saying,
.
"Oh, mammy, don't you cry!"
.
And I felt my children kiss me
.
And bid me, both, good-bye. 1.
Then I had a mighty sorrow,
.
Though I nursed it all alone;
.
But I wasted to a shadow,
.
And turned to skin and bone. 1.
But one day dear uncle Jacob
.
(In heaven he's now a saint)
.
Said, "Your poor heart is in the fire,
.
But child you must not faint." 1.
Then I said to uncle Jacob,
.
If I was good like you,
.
When the heavy trouble dashed me
.
I'd know just what to do. 1.
Then he said to me, "Poor Chloe,
.
The way is open wide:"
.
And he told me of the Saviour,
.
And the fountain in His side. 1.
Then he said "Just take your burden
.
To the blessed Master's feet;
.
I takes all my troubles, Chloe,
.
Right unto the mercy-seat." 1.
His words waked up my courage,
.
And I began to pray,
.
And I felt my heavy burden
.
Rolling like a stone away. 1.
And a something seemed to tell me,
.
You will see your boys again --
.
And that hope was like a poultice
.
Spread upon a dreadful pain. 1.
And it often seemed to whisper,
.
Chloe, trust and never fear;
.
You'll get justice in the kingdom,
.
If you do not get it here. [2] The Deliverance 2.
Master only left old Mistus
.
One bright and handsome boy;
.
But she fairly doted on him,
.
He was her pride and joy. 2.
We all liked Mister Thomas,
.
He was so kind at heart;
.
And when the young folkes got in scrapes,
.
He always took their part. 2.
He kept right on that very way
.
Till he got big and tall,
.
And old Mistus used to chide him
.
And say he'd spile us all. 2.
But somehow the farm did prosper
.
When he took things in hand;
.
And though all the servants liked him,
.
He made them understand. 2.
One evening Mister Thomas said,
.
"Just bring my easy shoes;
.
I am going to sit by mother,
.
And read her up the news." 2.
Soon I heard him tell old Mistus
.
We're bound to have a fight;
.
But we'll whip the Yankees, mother,
.
We'll whip them sure as night!" 2.
Then I saw old Mistus tremble;
.
She gasped and held her breath;
.
And she looked on Mister Thomas
.
With a face as pale as death. 2.
"They are firing on Fort Sumpter;
.
Oh! I wish that I was there! --
.
Why, dear mother! what's the matter?
.
You're the picture of despair." 2.
"I was thinking, dearest Thomas,
.
'Twould break my very heart
.
If a fierce and dreadful battle
.
Should tear our lives apart." 2.
"None but cowards, dearest mother,
.
Would skulk unto the rear,
.
When the tyrant's hand is shaking
.
All the heart is holding dear." 2.
I felt sorry for old Mistus;
.
She got too full to speak;
.
But I saw the great big tear-drops
.
A running down her cheek. 2.
Mister Thomas too was troubled
.
With choosing on that night,
.
Betwixt staying with his mother
.
And joining in the fight. 2.
Soon down into the village came
.
A call for volunteers;
.
Mistus gave up Mister Thomas,
.
With many sighs and tears. 2.
His uniform was real handsome;
.
He looked so brave and strong;
.
But somehow I could'nt help thinking
.
His fighting must be wrong. 2.
Though the house was very lonesome,
.
I thought 'twould all come right,
.
For I felt somehow or other
.
We was mixed up in that fight. 2.
And I said to Uncle Jacob,
.
"How old Mistus feels the sting,
.
For this parting with your children
.
Is a mighty dreadful thing." 2.
"Never mind," said Uncle Jacob,
.
"Just wait and watch and pray,
.
For I feel right sure and certain,
.
Slavery's bound to pass away; 2.
"Because I asked the Spirit,
.
If God is good and just,
.
How it happened that the masters
.
Did grind us to the dust. 2.
"And something reasoned right inside,
.
Such should not always be;
.
And you could not beat it out my head,
.
The Spirit spoke to me." 2.
And his dear old eyes would brighten,
.
And his lips put on a smile,
.
Saying, "Pick up faith and courage,
.
And just wait a little while." 2.
Mistus prayed up in the parlor,
.
That the Secesh all might win;
.
We were praying in the cabins,
.
Wanting freedom to begin. 2.
Mister Thomas wrote to Mistus,
.
Telling 'bout the Bull's Run fight,
.
That his troops had whipped the Yankees
.
And put them all to flight. 2.
Mistus' eyes did fairly glisten;
.
She laughed and praised the South,
.
But I thought some day she'd laugh
.
On tother side her mouth. 2.
I used to watch old Mistus' face,
.
And when it looked quite long
.
I would say to Cousin Milly,
.
The battle's going wrong; 2.
Not for us, but for the Rebels. --
.
My heart would fairly skip,
.
When Uncle Jacob used to say,
.
"The North is bound to whip." 2.
And let the fight go as it would --
.
Let North or South prevail --
.
He always kept his courage up,
.
And never let it fail. 2.
And he often used to tell us,
.
"Children, don't forget to pray;
.
For the darkest time of morning
.
Is just 'fore the break of day." 2.
Well, one morning bright and early
.
We heard the fife and drum,
.
And the booming of the cannon --
.
The Yankee troops had come. 2.
When the word ran through the village,
.
The colored folks are free --
.
In the kitchens and the cabins
.
We held a jubilee. 2.
When they told us Mister Lincoln
.
Said that slavery was dead,
.
We just poured our prayers and blessings
.
Upon his precious head. 2.
We just laughed, and danced, and shouted
.
And prayed, and sang, and cried,
.
And we thought dear Uncle Jacob
.
Would fairly crack his side. 2.
But when old Mistus heard it,
.
She groaned and hardly spoke;
.
When she had to lose her servants,
.
Her heart was almost broke. 2.
'Twas a sight to see our people
.
Going out, the troops to meet,
.
Almost dancing to the music,
.
And marching down the street. 2.
After years of pain and parting,
.
Our chains was broke in two,
.
And we was so mighty happy,
.
We didn't know what to do. 2.
But we soon got used to freedom,
.
Though the way at first was rough;
.
But we weathered through the tempest,
.
For slavery made us tough. 2.
But we had one awful sorrow,
.
It almost turned my head,
.
When a mean and wicked cretur
.
Shot Mister Lincoln dead. 2.
'Twas a dreadful solemn morning,
.
I just staggered on my feet;
.
And the women they were crying
.
And screaming in the street. 2.
But if many prayers and blessings
.
Could bear him to the throne,
.
I should think when Mister Lincoln died,
.
That heaven just got its own. 2.
Then we had another President, --
.
What do you call his name?
.
Well, if the colored folks forget him
.
They would'nt be much to blame. 2.
We thought he'd be the Moses
.
Of all the colored race;
.
But when the Rebels pressed us hard
.
He never showed his face. 2.
But something must have happened him,
.
Right curi's I'll be bound,
.
'Cause I heard 'em talking 'bout a circle
.
That he was swinging round. 2.
But everything will pass away --
.
He went like time and tide --
.
And when the next election came
.
They let poor Andy slide. 2.
But now we have a President,
.
And if I was a man
.
I'd vote for him for breaking up
.
The wicked Ku-Klux Klan. 2.
And if any man should ask me
.
If I would sell my vote,
.
I'd tell him I was not the one
.
To change and turn my coat; 2.
If freedom seem'd a little rough
.
I'd weather through the gale;
.
And as to buying up my vote,
.
I hadn't it for sale. 2.
I do not think I'd ever be
.
As slack as Jonas Handy;
.
Because I heard he sold his vote
.
For just three sticks of candy. 2.
But when John Thomas Reeder brought
.
His wife some flour and meat,
.
And told he had sold his vote
.
For something good to eat, 2.
You ought to seen Aunt Kitty raise,
.
And heard her blaze away;
.
She gave the meat and flour a toss,
.
And said they should not stay. 2.
And I should think he felt quite cheap
.
For voting the wrong side;
.
And when Aunt Kitty scolded him,
.
He just stood up and cried. 2.
But the worst fooled man I ever saw,
.
Was when poor David Rand
.
Sold out for flour and sugar;
.
The sugar was mixed with sand. 2.
I'll tell you how the thing got out;
.
His wife had company,
.
And she thought the sand was sugar,
.
And served it up for tea. 2.
When David sipped and sipped the tea,
.
Somehow it didn't taste right;
.
I guess when he found he was sipping sand
.
He was mad enough to fight. 2.
The sugar looked so nice and white --
.
It was spread some inches deep --
.
But underneath was a lot of sand;
.
Such sugar is mighty cheap. 2.
You'd laughed to seen Lucinda Grange
.
Upon her husband's track;
.
When he sold his vote for rations
.
She made him take 'em back. 2.
Day after day did Milly Green
.
Just follow after Joe,
.
And told him if he voted wrong
.
To take his rags and go. 2.
I think that Samuel Johnson said
.
His side had won the day,
.
Had not we women radicals
.
Just got right in the way. 2.
And yet I would not have you think
.
That all our men are shabby;
.
But 'tis said in every flock of sheep
.
There will be one that's scabby. 2.
I've heard, before election came
.
They tried to buy John Slade;
.
But he gave them all to understand
.
That he wasn't in that trade. 2.
And we've got lots of other men
.
Who rally round the cause,
.
And go for holding up the hands
.
That gave us equal laws, 2.
Who know their freedom cost too much
.
Of blood and pain and treasure,
.
For them to fool away their votes
.
For profit or for pleasure. [3] Aunt Chloe's Politics 3.
Of course, I don't know very much
.
About these politics,
.
But I think that some who run 'em,
.
Do mighty ugly tricks. 3.
I've seen 'em honey-fugle round,
.
And talk so awful sweet,
.
That you'd think them full of kindness
.
As an egg is full of meat. 3.
Now I don't believe in looking
.
Honest people in the face,
.
And saying when you're doing wrong,
.
That 'I haven't sold my race.' 3.
When we want to school our children,
.
If the money isn't there,
.
Whether black or white have took it,
.
The loss we all must share. 3.
And this buying up each other
.
Is something worse than mean,
.
Though I thinks a heap of voting,
.
I go for voting clean. [4] Learning to Read 4.
Very soon the Yankee teachers
.
Came down and set up school;
.
But, oh! how the Rebs did hate it, --
.
It was agin' their rule. 4.
Our masters always tried to hide
.
Book learning from our eyes;
.
Knowledge did'nt agree with slavery --
.
'Twould make us all too wise. 4.
But some of us would try to steal
.
A little from the book,
.
And put the words together,
.
And learn by hook or crook. 4.
I remember Uncle Caldwell,
.
Who took pot liquor fat
.
And greased the pages of his book,
.
And hid it in his hat. 4.
And had his master ever seen
.
The leaves upon his head,
.
He'd have thought them greasy papers,
.
But nothing to be read. 4.
And there was Mr. Turner's Ben,
.
Who heard the children spell,
.
And picked the words right up by heart,
.
And learned to read 'em well. 4.
Well, the Northern folks kept sending
.
The Yankee teachers down;
.
And they stood right up and helped us,
.
Though Rebs did sneer and frown. 4.
And I longed to read my Bible,
.
For precious words it said;
.
But when I begun to learn it,
.
Folks just shook their heads, 4.
And said there is no use trying,
.
Oh! Chloe, you're too late;
.
But as I was rising sixty,
.
I had no time to wait. 4.
So I got a pair of glasses,
.
And straight to work I went,
.
And never stopped till I could read
.
The hymns and Testament. 4.
Then I got a little cabin
.
A place to call my own --
.
And I felt as independent
.
As the queen upon her throne. [5] Church Building 5.
Uncle Jacob often told us,
.
Since freedom blessed our race
.
We ought all to come together
.
And build a meeting place. 5.
So we pinched, and scraped, and spared,
.
A little here and there:
.
Though our wages was but scanty,
.
The church did get a share. 5.
And, when the house was finished,
.
Uncle Jacob came to pray;
.
He was looking mighty feeble,
.
And his head was awful gray. 5.
But his voice rang like a trumpet;
.
His eyes looked bright and young;
.
And it seemed a mighty power
.
Was resting on his tongue. 5.
And he gave us all his blessing --
.
'Twas parting words he said,
.
For soon we got the message
.
The dear old man was dead. 5.
But I believe he's in the kingdom,
.
For when we shook his hand
.
He said, "Children, you must meet me
.
Right in the promised land; 5.
"For when I done a moiling
.
And toiling here below,
.
Through the gate into the city
.
Straightway I hope to go." [6] The Reunion 6.
Well, one morning real early
.
I was going down the street,
.
And I heard a stranger asking
.
For Missis Chloe Fleet. 6.
There was something in his voice
.
That made me feel quite shaky.
.
And when I looked right in his face,
.
Who should it be but Jakey! 6.
I grasped him tight, and took him home --
.
What gladness filled my cup!
.
And I laughed, and just rolled over,
.
And laughed, and just give up. 6.
"Where have you been? O Jakey, dear!
.
Why didn't you come before?
.
Oh! when you children went away
.
My heart was awful sore." 6.
"Why, mammy, I've been on your hunt
.
Since ever I've been free,
.
And I have heard from brother Ben, --
.
He's down in Tennessee. 6.
"He wrote me that he had a wife,"
.
"And children?" "Yes, he's three."
.
"You married, too?" "Oh, no, indeed,
.
I thought I'd first get free." 6.
"Then, Jakey, you will stay with me,
.
And comfort my poor heart;
.
Old Mistus got no power now
.
To tear us both apart. 6.
"I'm richer now than Mistus,
.
Because I have got my son;
.
And Mister Thomas he is dead,
.
And she's nary one. 6.
"You must write to brother Benny
.
That he must come this fall,
.
And we'll make the cabin bigger,
.
And that will hold us all. 6.
"Tell him I want to see 'em all
.
Before my life do cease:
.
And then, like good old Simeon,
.
I hope to die in peace."
poem by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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I read a book
I read a book
Not to enhance my looks
I read a book
Maybe to avoid being a crook
I read a book
Not just to learn how to cook
I read a book
To ascertain how to defend my rights
Not just to acquire knowledge
Reading a book I pledge,
Is one of the roads to the light
I read a book
To understand how a kings territory
Is defended with pieces such as the rook
I read a book
So there will be no questions asked
When I count correctly what you took
I read a book
So that I play not ignorant
Now on life I’ve a different outlook
I read a book
So if I come up with all the right answers
I will know for sure it is not merely a fluke
Copyright 2006 - Sylvia Chidi
poem by Sylvia Chidi
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Listen, Learn, Read On
In ages past when spells were cast
In a time of men in steel
When a man was taught no special thing
It was all done by feel
So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the book of taliesyn
Hear the song of lovely joan
Her sound so sweet and clear
In the courtroom of the king
Among children and the peers
So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the book of taliesyn
now hear ye the words of taliesyn,
On the foaming beach of the ocean,
In the day of trouble,
I shall be of more service to thee
Than three hundred salmon...
The hare he bounds across the page
Past castles white and fair
Past dreaming chessmen on their boards
With a fools mate as a snare
So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the book of taliesyn
three times I have been born
I know this from meditation...
The bird he flies the distance
From pages two to six
Past minstrels in their boxes
To the waters of the styx
So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the book of taliesyn
Dont take the pictures lightly
Listen to their sound
For from their coloured feeling
Experience is found
So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the book of taliesyn
all the sciences of the world are collected in my breast,
For I know what has been, what is now,
And what hereafter will occur...
song performed by by Deep Purple
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Read A Book
Und wenn ich einen Wunsch frei htte
Ich wnschte wrden wir verstehen
Alle Schatten hinter uns lassen
nur weies Licht vor uns zu sehen
No hate, no fight hearts killing
I wish no trouble anymore
There's nothing more to tell about
There's nothing left to be decided
Just read a book
So, read a book about love (reaching love)
Read a book, read a book about love
Und wenn du einen Wunsch frei httest
Ich wnschte, wrdest du verstehen
Nur weies Licht vor uns zu sehen
And if we just should be together
oh, we could feel so warm an tight
All we need is only two of us
to show the world that we've decided to
read a book
to read a book about love (reaching love) ...
Take a look about yesterday
I guess you know
that you're here to stay
Read a book, ...
Read a book, read a book about love (rep many times)
Read a book, ... (rep till fade)
song performed by by Falco
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Doin' What Comes Natur'lly
ANNIE OAKLEY and FEMALE CHORUS:
Folks are dumb where I come from,
They ain't had any learning.
Still they're happy as can be
Doin' what comes naturally (doin' what comes naturally).
Folks like us could never fuss
With schools and books and learning.
Still we've gone from A to Z,
Doin' what comes naturally (doin' what comes naturally)
You don't have to know how to read or write
When you're out with a feller in the pale moonlight.
You don't have to look in a book to find out
What he thinks of the moon and what is on his mind.
That comes naturally (that comes naturally).
My uncle out in Texas can't even write his name.
He signs his checks with "x's"
But they cash them just the same.
If you saw my pa and ma,
You'd know they had no learning,
Still they've raised a family
Doin' what comes naturally (doin' what comes naturally)
Cousin Jack has never read an almanac on drinking
Still he's always on the spree
Doin' what comes naturally (doin' what comes naturally).
Sister Sal who's musical has never had a lesson,
Still she's learned to sing off-key
Doin' what comes naturally (doin' what comes naturally).
You don't have to go a private school
Not to pick up a penny near a stubborn mule,
You don't have to have a professor's dome
Not to go for the honey when the bee's not home.
That comes naturally (that comes naturally).
My tiny baby brother, who's never read a book,
Knows one sex from the other,
All he had to do was look,
Grandpa Bill is on the hill
With someone he just married.
There he is at ninety-three,
Doin' what comes naturally (doin' what comes naturally
song performed by by Irving Berlin
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Mr Paddy's Capers.
Just when she thought
She'd found a place alone
To read her book, Mr Paddy
poked his nose between
Her and the open book, so
That pages are blanked out
By his huge head. Mr Paddy
Go off and annoy another,
She said, but he stood there
Determined to be where he
Was, between her and the
Brown covered book, held
Out in her small hands. Oh
Mr Paddy I cannot see the
Pages. Please go off and run
In the garden or in the kitchen
And steal a bone, she said. But
He wouldn't leave her alone,
He pushed his head against her
Young girl body, his damp nose
Dampening her wrist and her
White dress with blue sash, and
Dribble from his lips was wetting
The pages. Mr Paddy please let
Me be, I'm trying to read can't
You see? Mr Paddy's brown eyes
Scanned the pages, nothing there
But scribbled lines upon white paper,
And still he stood wet mouthed with
Big brown eyes and his silly old caper.
poem by Terry Collett
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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My Education
At school I sometimes read a book,
And learned a lot of lessons;
Some small amount of pains I took,
And showed much acquiescence
In what my masters said, good men!
Yet after all I quite
Forgot the most of it: but then
I learned to write.
At Lincoln's Inn I'd read a brief,
Abstract a title, study
Great paper-piles, beyond belief
Inelegant and muddy:
The whole of these as time went by
I soon forgot: indeed
I tried to: yes: but by and by
I learned to read.
By help of Latin, Greek and Law
I now can write and read too:
Then perish each forgotten saw,
Each fact I do not need too:
But still whichever way I turn
At one sad task I stick:
I fear that I shall never learn
Arithmetic.
poem by James Kenneth Stephen
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Teacher’s Day in India,2010
Teachers teach students to learn;
Teachers show them how to earn;
Teachers guide students to read;
Teachers help them if they need.
Teachers share with pupils, ken;
Teachers show them how to pen;
Teachers train them in most things;
Teachers make them good earthlings!
Teachers mould their character;
Teachers act facilitator;
Teachers are a boon on earth;
Teachers bring students, mirth!
Teachers care for children-wards;
Teachers don’t expect rewards;
Teachers slog throughout life-span;
Teachers make them man / woman.
Teachers are a humble lot;
Teachers make learning, an art;
Teachers perform well their part;
Teachers love students in heart!
Teachers are next to parents;
Teachers are a nation’s wealth;
Teachers make a student great;
Teachers are a must for all.
Revere teachers on this Day;
Thank them truly in some way;
Emulate them, if you may;
‘Give them good health, God’, you pray!
“Happy Teachers’ Day! ”
Most lovingly dedicated to all my teachers,
Living and dead, who made me,
‘What I am, today! ’
Copyright by Dr John Celes 05-09-2010
poem by John Celes
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Happy Teacher’s Day in India,2010
Teachers teach students to learn;
Teachers show them how to earn;
Teachers guide students to read;
Teachers help them if they need.
Teachers share with pupils, ken;
Teachers show them how to pen;
Teachers train them in most things;
Teachers make them good earthlings!
Teachers mould their character;
Teachers act facilitator;
Teachers are a boon on earth;
Teachers bring students, mirth!
Teachers care for children-wards;
Teachers don’t expect rewards;
Teachers slog throughout life-span;
Teachers make them man / woman.
Teachers are a humble lot;
Teachers make learning, an art;
Teachers perform well their part;
Teachers love students in heart!
Teachers are next to parents;
Teachers are a nation’s wealth;
Teachers make a student great;
Teachers are a must for all.
Revere teachers on this Day;
Thank them truly in some way;
Emulate them, if you may;
‘Give them good health, God’, you pray!
“Happy Teachers’ Day! ”
Most lovingly dedicated to all my teachers,
Living and dead, who made me,
‘What I am, today! ’
Copyright by Dr John Celes 05-09-2010
poem by John Celes
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Read The Book
Dolce said to read the book.
Don’t skip any pages though,
Lizzy; I want you to read it
From cover to cover. Ok lover,
You said and examined the
Book’s covers; the hard leather,
The well sewn pages. You knew
He wrote it without his name on
The spine with the title. It was
As he spoke, the words flowing
Across the page, the meaning
Carried on and over and into
Your head. You stopped on page
Nine; he’d written about the night
He’d screwed you five times, although
No name was mentioned, you knew
It was you. Even the bed and room
Were as it had been, written right
Down to the creaking springs and
The man next door banging on the
Wall with his darn shoe. You read on
Carrying that image with you, the way
He’d caught it all with the right words,
Hammered that night right home like
Some crucified butterfly onto the page
And into your head. You paused at page
Twelve. Some paragraph about some
Lark in the bushes in the park after dark.
That didn’t ring true, at least not with you.
Who was the woman? Who was the screw?
You closed up the book; refused to look
Or read anymore; you wondered who it
Was he’d had that night in the bushes
Beneath the moonlight. Maybe it was just
Poetic licence made up to make it sell well
And the cash machines ring loud and true.
But the bitch in the bushes wasn’t you.
poem by Terry Collett
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A book read
At home...
Cheldren
Read book
Waching T.v.
Some of cartoon
Running on t.v
Father was
Sleeping
On bed...
Mother was
Washing clouths...
Children read
The book...
With waching t.v
Book pages was
Fly with
Air...
Read the book
Very fast at fan...
Children watch
T.v. feel free...
Father and mother
Not Free...
poem by Otteri Selvakumar
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The First Poem
The first poem I ever read
is the first words I ever said.
The words I love you
written by this beauty's tongue
turned a heart rosy red from a somber blue
and made me burn for my heart was wrung.
The first poem I ever read
is the first poem I ever said.
On her poetic lips love words refined
and shaped a sonnet on her flesh defined
On those lips I read a poet's song
And knew it was there my lips belonged.
The first poem I ever read
is the first words I ever said.
I love you, I love you
What does it mean?
These words said, to start anew
something pure and something serene.
The first words I ever read
is the first words I ever said.
Those first words she whispered into my ear
And in my heart, her poem stood near
Those are the most beautiful words one ever said
I love you, I love you, will live till its dead.
The first poem I ever read
is the first words I ever said.
I read her lips, I love you, I love you..
now to sleep I go in love's sweet bed.
poem by Kevin Michael Murphy
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Wing Pages Of The Butterfly
at the nursery
while people
are at purchase
and at transactions
a blue butterfly
comes by
and opens its pages to me
swift and quick
and it says to me:
'Read! Read!
Read my pages! '
'I can’t read, '
I say,
amused
at this brash butterfly
'Read and write!
Read and write
about me,
and all flitting butterflies
Read
and write, you silly! '
it commands
And so I read
and I copy
and these are the words
the words from those
pages
the butterfly
holds up to me
poem by Raj Arumugam
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Today I will read
Tap me not on my shoulder
Today I will read
For there is the urgent need
to explore words being soldered
into blissful compact sentences
as my reading commences
Today I will read
In no chronological order
something immoderately ordinary
Consulting the Oxford dictionary
If and when necessary
Today I will read
Knowledge is power and wisdom
a substitute for boredom
Knowledge is a curse
when words used tend to slip off course
In moments of seeking
the understanding of definitions
I will scamper through publications
of columns in newspapers
Absorb the skeptical illustrations
Learn more about this nation
As I feed my own imagination
Today I will read
a book or a novel
I will read articles
and the contents of scripts
doing my research while I search
for the truth
even if its minute
Today I will read
Separating quality from quantity
as I delve into topics
in my encyclopedia
Tap me not on my shoulder
whether you are younger or older
For Today I will read
Copyright 2005 - Sylvia Chidi
poem by Sylvia Chidi
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The Preacher Can't Spell
this is for you, David Harris (LOL)
Have you ever heard of a preacher
who cannot spell?
never heard? oh, yes, i do..he he
were you able to read his notes for his sermons
and the words just scrambled
and the spelling is bad..oh, bad...
nahhh, i have noticed it..LOL
he went to school to learn
how to read and write
and guess what..spell the words right!
still, he can't spell it, his lips so tight
he seeped all the ink in his pen
he told me, that's why
and the pencil, he bite with all his might
see? what a beautiful sight.
his other excuse why he can't spell
is that his false teeth keep falling out
while typing...hmmmmm
and he cannot catch his teeth
and type straight at the same time.. (ok, , noted..he he)
But we love to hang around with this preachewr (preacher!)
Never mind if we will not be able to spell neither
What is important is the substance of his words
Words to live by, words to ponder why
Just love this Preacher, even if he cannot spell.
He is after all...the name that rings a bell....
Thank you for lafing..ehe..laughing...
at least.i made you smile even for a second..rihyt? LOL
And of course, with permayshoon from the prachry, David Harris.(ssshhh)
poem by Meggie Gultiano
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The End Of The Chapter
Ah, yes, the chapter ends to-day;
We even lay the book away;
But oh, how sweet the moments sped
Before the final page was read!
We tried to read between the lines
The Author's deep-concealed designs;
But scant reward such search secures;
You saw my heart and I saw yours.
The Master,--He who penned the page
And bade us read it,--He is sage:
And what he orders, you and I
Can but obey, nor question why.
We read together and forgot
The world about us. Time was not.
Unheeded and unfelt, it fled.
We read and hardly knew we read.
Until beneath a sadder sun,
We came to know the book was done.
Then, as our minds were but new lit,
It dawned upon us what was writ;
And we were startled. In our eyes,
Looked forth the light of great surprise.
Then as a deep-toned tocsin tolls,
A voice spoke forth: 'Behold your souls!'
I do, I do. I cannot look
Into your eyes: so close the book.
But brought it grief or brought it bliss,
No other page shall read like this!
poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar
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The Book Of My Life
Let me watch by the fire and remember my days
And it may be a trick of the firelight
But the flickering pages that trouble my sight
Is a book I'm afraid to write
It's the book of my days, it's the book of my life
And it's cut like a fruit on the blade of a knife
And it's all there to see as the section reveals
There's some sorrow in every life
If it reads like a puzzle, a wandering maze
Then I won't understand 'til the end of my days
I'm still forced to remember,
Remember the words of my life
There are promises broken and promises kept
Angry words that were spoken, when I should have wept
There's a chapter of secrets, and words to confess
If I lose everything that I possess
There's a chapter on loss and a ghost who won't die
There's a chapter on love where the ink's never dry
There are sentences served in a prison I built out of lies.
Though the pages are numbered
I can't see where they lead
For the end is a mystery no-one can read
In the book of my life
There's a chapter on fathers a chapter on sons
There are pages of conflicts that nobody won
And the battles you lost and your bitter defeat,
There's a page where we fail to meet
There are tales of good fortune that couldn't be planned
There's a chapter on god that I don't understand
There's a promise of Heaven and Hell but I'm damned if I see
Though the pages are numbered
I can't see where they lead
For the end is a mystery no-one can read
In the book of my life
Now the daylight's returning
And if one sentence is true
All these pages are burning
And all that's left is you
Though the pages are number
song performed by by Sting
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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So, You Think You've Found Me
I am not here
Not in these words
not on these pages.
I know..
You think if you read
Enough
Of what I write
You'll know me inside and out..
One small problem though
(I say this as I smile)
I am no longer
Who I use to be
When I use to be
The 'She' who wrote this..
I don't publish until I've grown
From the poem I use to be
If I was her at all...
Sometimes the 'She' you read
She isn't me at all
But a friend,
Or a story I read in the paper
Or a conversation I overheard..
The she you're looking for
You'd have to confront
Ask her all the tough questions yourself.
I'm not there..
In the tattered old pages
Of the poetry book you love so much..
If you read enough
Maybe you'll get a glimpse of the girl
The fragile creature I use to be..
That innocent thing who believed
In magical things so easily..
She does make an appearance from time to time..
She was very sweet..
The me you seek, you may not find..
I hide even from myself from time to time..
I grow from day to day
Oops! You missed it,
I've already changed.
Now some things, those are constant..
But, they aren't found here
Where you look for me.
poem by Rabia Minhas
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To Read And Read Again
TO READ AND READ AGAIN
To read and to read again
And to be left empty
By the abundance of words
Whose meanings multiplication
Erases all sense
Of their coherence
And our understanding.
To read and read again
As if in this pretence of learning
Salvation will come
To read and read again
And be forever dumb.
.
poem by Shalom Freedman
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Why Dont You Read The Book
Dont talk to the pilot
When hes flyin
Dont smile at the soldier
Hes on parade
Dont come creeping round, youll
Catch me cryin
No more talkin bout it
Its all been said
You drawn such a fine line baby
Learnin all the rules
Why dont ya read between them sometimes
You wont look such a fool
Why dont you read the book, why dont you read the book
Why dont you read the book, why dont you read the book
Why show all your aces
To the gambler
If he calls your hand
Youre gonna lose
Dont trust first impressions
Of a stranger
Private informations
Just tellin tales
* you draw such a fine line baby
Learnin all the rules
Why dont ya read between them sometimes
You wont look such a fool
** why dont you read the book, why dont you read the book
Why dont you read the book, why dont you read the book
Repeat *
Repeat **
(written and arranged by nazareth)
Copyright 1983 fool circle limited
All rights reserved.
song performed by by Nazareth
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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