Lost legion for Friend Thad
The earth beneath the desert sun is baked to shades of brown and dun.
A sea of sand which ceaselessly moves with wind uneasily.
The land marks here are far and few but known by those belonging to the nomad bands who freely roam this sea of sand and call it home.
A people fierce and proud and free who guard their secrets ruthlessly.
Intruders are not welcome here; invaders simply disappear.
Their fate is very seldom known, the desert can protect its own
Whole Roman legions were erased their resting place cannot be traced.
The desert knows but will not speak some bones are found by those who seek
to solve the ancient mysteries. Perhaps rewrite the histories.
To validate their theories of how an army disappears.
without a clues as to their fate. A subject open to debate.
The desert sands move constantly, sometimes revealing teasingly
bleached bones and weapons on the sand which scholars strive to understand.
Does it matter anyway? Why do we seek to know today
what happened to the lost legion. Although the legend lingers on.
The desert will not satisfy our burning curiosity
The desert knows but will not share the scholars find this hard to bear.
The desert lands conceal with ease volumes of untold histories.
Which earnest scholars yearn to read, perhaps one day they will succeed.
But until then the burning sun will bake the earth to brown and dun
Maintaining its long secrecy in brooding silent dignity.
30-Dec-08
http: // blog.myspace.com/poeticpiers
poem by Ivor Or Ivor.e Hogg
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
The Nomad
Like a mirage riding on the desert sand
Like a vision floating with the desert winds
Know the secret of the ancient desert lands
you're the keeper of the mystery in your hands
Nomad rider of the ancient east
Nomad rider that men know the least
Nomad where you come from no one knows
Nomad where you go to no one tells
Undercover of the veil of your disguise
The men that fear you are the ones that you despise
No one's certain what your future will behold
You're a legend your own history will be told
Nomad rider of the ancient east
Nomad rider that men know the least
Nomad where you come from no one knows
Nomad where you go to no one tells
No one dares to even look or glance your way
Your reputation goes before you they all say
Like a spirit that can disappear at will
Many claim of things but no one's seen you kill
Nomad
song performed by by Iron Maiden
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Questions to Desert Wind…
You wonder,
Did the desert wind already forgotten to past?
No dearest, it has always blown so gently…
Crafting this dry open desert,
Shifting mystical sand dunes,
Bringing precious droplets to a thirsty bird,
To comfort her broken heart!
You further asked,
O desert wind…
Why erased my written message in the sand?
So let it be a permanent secret,
Cause I have already engraved it in my heart.
poem by Desert Life
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I Went Down into the Desert
I went down into the desert
To meet Elijah—
Arisen from the dead.
I thought to. find him in an echoing cave;
For so my dream had said.
I went down into the desert
To meet John the Baptist.
I walked with feet that bled,
Seeking that prophet lean and brown and bold.
I spied foul fiends instead.
I went down into the desert
To meet my God.
By him be comforted.
I went down into the desert
To meet my God.
And I met the devil in red.
I went down into the desert
To meet my God.
O, Lord my God, awaken from the dead!
I see you there, your thorn-crown on the ground,
I see you there, half-buried in the sand.
I see you there, your white bones glistening, bare,
The carrion-birds a-wheeling round your head.
poem by Vachel Lindsay
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Philosophers Bones
He’s given them all to a Desert Man
Underdog bitten holes of the head
He’s given them all to a Desert Man
Unleashed sunflower sunward led
He’s given them all to a Desert Man
In windblown power the dinas bled
He’s given them all to a Desert Man
Like tears in the desert rose shed
Stone alone atoned in the last sand clock
Soul alone attained keyed within the lock
poem by Miroslava Odalovic
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The Crying Desert
Each and every sand of desert
Asks me as an expert
Where you were
When she was doing this crime
She left me alone, all alone
In the roaring desert zone
I just wanted her to phone
But she was not in the home
The scene was so horrifying
I searched and every sand
The desert called me crying
She is now in their hand
poem by Vizard Dhawan
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High Stakes for Friend Thad
The sun scorched desert lies in wait.
Implacable but patiently
Its moving contours undulate
moving swiftly but silently.
There are no landmarks men can see
to know exactly where they are
On every side hostility
the desert’s not particular.
They have no way to navigate
across the ever changing sea
of endless dusty real estate
which alters imperceptibly.
The sunlit slopes and shadows change
more quickly than men think they can
The desert’s free to rearrange
the landscape and so baffle man
.
That he despairs surrenders to
the tactics that he cannot fight.
Then as so many travellers do
is lost forever to men’s sight.
Implacable hostility
the desert show the human race
and also its ability.
To erase men and leave no trace.
Though sometimes sun bleached bones appear
by constant friction polished clean
Then just as quickly disappear
almost as if they’d never been.
The sun scorched desert lies in wait
today as it has always done
For foolish men to challenge fate.
Though very seldom men have won.
23-Feb-08
poem by Ivor Or Ivor.e Hogg
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I loved all the love away
I loved all the love away
Left with mine prodigal hand
Mine heart through my fingers play
To soft white sensual sand
In a desert of sheer famine
Bereft of love and love's sea
I scavenge the ground and examine
The desert of what's left of me
Nothing but white sand and shore
Where the moon tide's waves
move rippled sand of desert galore
to taunt and with will depraves
The love I need, but shows the love I had
Lost in the desert delusional I'm utterly mad…
poem by Kevin Michael Murphy
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My Desert Serenade
(words & music by stan gelber)
Come here my serenade, my desert serenade
A lovers melody, to bring you close to me
Its a tender lullaby, born of golden sand and sky
The song is new, and its calling you
Tonight beside the desert palms
Come let me take you in my arms
Come here my serenade, my desert serenade
Wherever lovers dwell, it weaves its magic spell
Soon a thousand dreams will start,
And romance will fill your heart
My lips conceal, love thats warm and real
Give me a chance to hold you near
Youll see a brand new world appear
So come and hear, my desert serenade, my desert serenade,
My desert serenade
song performed by by Elvis Presley
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Dessert
(Carly SimonMike Mainieri)
I was in the desert
Amazed by all that sand
I as in a sea of white
Swimming through the land
Nobody shocked me
Nobody locked me up
Nobody took my time
Nobody shook me up
All that happened was the white night
The endless sand in the moonlight
I was in the desert
In the opalescent moon
Watching the horizon
And waiting for the moon
Nobody talked to me
Nobody looked me up
Nobody walked up to me
Nobody shook me up
All that happened was the white night
The endless sand in the moonlight
I was in the desert
Free to live or die
Looking in the mirror
And seeing just the sky
Nobody got to me
Nobody said what to me
Nobody shoved me
Nobody loved me
All that happened was the white night
The endless sand and the moonlight
song performed by by Carly Simon
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Desert
(carly simon/mike mainieri)
I was in the desert
Amazed by all that sand
I as in a sea of white
Swimming through the land
Nobody shocked me
Nobody locked me up
Nobody took my time
Nobody shook me up
All that happened was the white night
The endless sand in the moonlight
I was in the desert
In the opalescent moon
Watching the horizon
And waiting for the moon
Nobody talked to me
Nobody looked me up
Nobody walked up to me
Nobody shook me up
All that happened was the white night
The endless sand in the moonlight
I was in the desert
Free to live or die
Looking in the mirror
And seeing just the sky
Nobody got to me
Nobody said what to me
Nobody shoved me
Nobody loved me
All that happened was the white night
The endless sand and the moonlight
song performed by by Carly Simon
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Desert Blues
Cant get no this,
And I cant get no that,
Cant get no you know,
I dont even know where its at.
Aint got the smoke and uh, aint no booze,
Got them low down dried out desert blues, yes I do.
Um, a george carlin said I had to go,
Just what he wanted I did not know,
Im over here dug in so far from home,
Lookin all around try and see whats going on.
I got the sand in my collar,
Got the sand in my hair,
Got it in my pockets,
Got it everywhere.
I got sand in my shirt,
Got it in my shoes,
Got them low down dried out desert blues, yes I do, how how how.
Joined up in the army
Where it was hard to find,
End up over here, got my ass on the line,
But Ill be right here until my work is done,
If I get back home I hope I never see no more guns.
Here across the ocean,
I left some of my good friends behind,
I hope somebodys thinking about me,
Especially that sweet little woman of mine.
Cant get no this,
And I cant get no that,
Cant get no you know,
I dont even know where its at.
Sand in my collar,
Got the sand in my hair,
Got it in my pockets,
Got it everywhere.
I got sand in my shirt,
Got it in my shoes,
Got them low down dried out desert blues,
Yes I do.
song performed by by Allman Brothers Band, music by Dickey Betts, Warren Haynes (1991)
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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A Tree in the Desert
A tree in the desert thirsts for water
A tree in the desert gets too much sun
A tree in the desert is alone in the freezing night
A tree in the desert might never be seen
A tree in the desert might never be touched
A tree in the desert may or may not thrive
A tree in the desert struggles to stay alive
poem by Leo Valencia
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Desert Rats
Desert rats
Take cover in the heat,
They know what to toss
And what to keep -
They skillfully hide under big sombreros
And down lots of water,
They've learned well when to sit, and when to quit,
When to stay, and when to scatter -
The desert calls them
Right to the edge of existence;
But, too wise are they, any foolish games to play,
For in the desert they have found the art of survival is patience -
Listen close my friends for the divine desert to call you...
By all means, come and see,
But, with eyes wide open tread slowly
Following the tracks of wise old desert rats...
Just like me.
(this is for my pal Juan O. A fellow 'desert rat'!)
poem by Smoky Hoss
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The Minds eye for M lady Allie
The beauty of the desert lands
Lies in the multi coloured sands
which vary with the light of day.
Only the nomad understands.
By night the dunes look black and grey
but alter when the moonbeams play
across the valleys and the peak.
Creating pictures which cannot stay.
The beauty that the nomads seek
is to the desert lands unique.
Invisible to western eyes
which view the barren sands as bleak.
The beauty of desert lies
in what the viewers mind supplies.
11-Apr-08
Rubaiyat Sonnet
poem by Ivor Or Ivor.e Hogg
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Wild flowers
A speck of Kalahari desert
sun baked and stretching
as far as the eye could see
where winds had blown
red-brown sand before
the air was sweet with the odour
of thousands of wild flowers.
Everywhere were different colours,
shapes and sizes
and nature had set its garden
right there in the desert of Namakwaland
and the miracle that a few showers
of rain brought
stretched out all around me.
poem by Gert Strydom
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My Texas Desert Heaven
There's no tree,
As far as I can see,
The cactus are always green.
There's alot of sand,
But oh man,
This is my Texas desert heaven.
The stars are nice and bright,
The moon shines over desert sky at night,
That's My Texas desert night.
It's like being in Heaven,
When it rains it smells so great.
This is where my heart roams and stays,
This is My Texas Desert Heaven.
poem by Christina Muniz
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A Horse With No Name
On the first part of the journey
I was looking at all the life
There were plants and birds and rocks and things
There was sand and hills and rings
The first thing I met was a fly with a buzz
And the sky with no clouds
The heat was hot and the ground was dry
But the air was full of sound
Ive been through the desert on a horse with no name
It felt good to be out of the rain
In the desert you can remember your name
cause there aint no one for to give you no pain
La, la ...
After two days in the desert sun
My skin began to turn red
After three days in the desert fun
I was looking at a river bed
And the story it told of a river that flowed
Made me sad to think it was dead
You see Ive been through the desert on a horse with no name
It felt good to be out of the rain
In the desert you can remember your name
cause there aint no one for to give you no pain
La, la ...
After nine days I let the horse run free
cause the desert had turned to sea
There were plants and birds and rocks and things
There was sand and hills and rings
The ocean is a desert with its life underground
And a perfect disguise above
Under the cities lies a heart made of ground
But the humans will give no love
You see Ive been through the desert on a horse with no name
It felt good to be out of the rain
In the desert you can remember your name
cause there aint no one for to give you no pain
La, la ...
song performed by by America
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Desert Island
Cast away on a desert island
Me and poor crusoe are sharing the same fate
Cast away on a desert island
With great britain written on its name plate
With my umbrella I go walking
Through all the sands on a building site
Across the shopping malls and motorways
Birds from heathrow fill the
Night with people flying to escape
Friday comforts me and says its pay day
Cast away on a desert island . . .
The game and coconuts is plentiful
You pick em right off of a supermarket shelf
And all the man-eaters are parked away
Down in garages
While their selfish owners drinking to escape
Lord of flies with cocktails in his conch shell
Dont rescue me, no
This is my home sweet home dear
Dont rescue me, no
I am far from alone here
Cast away on a desert island
Me and one nation are sharing the same fate
Cast away on a desert island
With great britain written on its name plate
Cast away on a desert island
song performed by by Xtc
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Sonnet: The Desert-war
Two Eagles want a mouse as Baghdad’s King!
The Desert -Snake is too wily to swoop:
Once he is gone, they can have anything,
From oil and gasoline to camel-soup!
They encircled the Snake in the desert!
The Snake is swift and appears like mirage!
His oil-wells burn the two intruders' heart;
They cannot turn so fast to be his phage!
The Eagles know the Desert-Sun is hot!
They know they cannot bear the heat for long:
They take a risk but don't want to be caught;
They cannot take the country for a song!
The Eagles may be Kings of their own skies!
The Desert-Snake rules, though on belly lies!
poem by John Celes
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Starforsaken
Whipped in the eye by the sand
Malicious have light of day obscured
The sun has burned my skin
Open wounds are licked by sand
To be punished by this vortex of scorn
Wrists and ankles are chained upon this land
Drawn through the desert to be their sacrifice
So this is my golgatha, so this is my grave
The thieves, the liars, the hypocrit scum
Id slay them if I only could
The endless sand, the blackest land
A cyclone of spinecrushing anger
Meant for me
The overlords of the desert
Not one was meant to be
All human force now flee
Rules of anatomy lost
Rage into the extreme
song performed by by In Flames
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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