Poems in the Tackroom
Poems in the tackroom
Getting dusty
And old.
Books, tales, stories,
And legends.
Some have never been told.
Legends of warriors long ago,
Tales of pirates bold.
Stories of love and mystery.
Maps and books of history,
And poems of the arctic cold.
Pamphlets, scrolls, papers,
And things
Nestled on the saddle.
Pictures of galley slaves,
Whipped and forced to paddle.
Writings of knights
And
Courtiers,
Inscriptions of secret heirs
Burned into a bridal.
Paintings scarred, ripped,
And tore.
Carvings of peace
And war,
Ancient manuscripts
Containing information,
Of many a long-dead
Civilization.
Countless scrolls
Of
Hocus-Pocus,
Let it not
be
Your focus.
Many things yet
To
Be discovered.
Many Riddles,
Not yet
Uncovered.
Treasure upon treasures,
Sunlight hovered.
Wax seals, ties,
And locks
To be undone,
Who will be,
The
Chosen One?
poem by Macy Dvirnak

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History?
Has history taught us nothing
but tales and ancient lies?
All wrapped up in stories
not told us by the wise?
Told by the vicars who consecrated death
Told by the rulers
with power in their breath.
Passed on in written words
in books the masses read,
never questioned, never disputed
in the minds they lead.
Slanted stories still present
right to our present day.
Foes of peace seen as heroes
in ungodly ways
and as we live the history writers
will pen each blazing act
as benificent for these difficult times,
more fiction than true fact.
So those who follow in our steps
will read our history book
and what they read will be fantasy
with a different look.
poem by Edwina Reizer

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What if it were true?
Hector, Ajax and Hercules
and other heroes such as these.
All suffered from the same disease.
They thought they were invincible.
Now every one of them is dead.
I know this from the books I’ve read.
Unlike my ancient Uncle Fred.
Who thought it might be possible.
To find a way to stay alive
a certain method to survive
Towards this end then he would strive
Although it seemed improbable.
A coward too afraid to die.
Although he was clever guy
well versed in ancient history.
He thought he could be comfortable.
If he could find a vampire who
he thought could be persuaded to
make him into a vampire too
and grant him immortality.
I half believed when I was small
My uncle often came to call
but always late after night fall.
Which made me feel uncomfortable.
But now I take a different view.
I don’t believe his tales were true
Nor do I think my siblings do.
I think it is impossible.
By bright sunlight I am certain
but after dark I think again.
What if my uncle Fred did gain
his wish for immortality.
I hoped that he was telling lies
and so it came as no surprise.
To find one single rule applies.
Vampires do not seek publicity.
Real vampires do not advertise
They consider it’s not wise.
Although my uncle really tries
his stories cannot convince me.
I know my uncle’s very old.
And that he cannot stand the cold.
From stories that my parents told
concerning his longevity.
My father says he will not die
My mother says that’s all my eye.
But still I wonder sometimes why.
He’s lived so long. It seems to me.
Just possible he’s told the truth.
The secret of eternal youth
springs from some ancient vampires tooth.
The bite of immortality.
I know that in reality
vampires are just a fantasy.
That people can live naturally.
Far longer than seems possible.
No body knows the reason why.
Examined scientifically.
It seems that everyone must die.
No one can live eternally.
But Uncle Fred refuses to.
I can’t believe his tales are true.
He sleeps all day as vampires do.
at his age it’s permissible.
I tell myself it makes no sense
for Fred to keep up this pretense.
I have to do in self defence.
I find it much preferable.
To believing Uncle Fred
Is exactly as he said
A member of the living dead.
That would be truly terrible.
18/08/2009
http: // blog.myspace.com poeticpiers
poem by Ivor Or Ivor.e Hogg

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Without Context - So Absurd
Who has the money to publish elaborately
illustrated children's books with over 350
stunning paintings and artworks, another
with drawings, glossy and inviting; impar-
ting no knowledge whatsoever?
The book on symbols, signs and visual
codes informs the underage reader door-
ways symbolise entrances and the hearth
is a symbol of safety and comfort - well,
hallelujah, nobody knew!
The broom is a symbol of removal - no way,
I thought it a symbol of magical midnight
trips for witches & wizards from Hogwarts;
curtains symbolise separation, oh wow,
insight indeed!
The book of Myths and Legends recounts
each story on two pages accompanied by
several pictures stating the stories explain
the world and our place in it - thus stylised
accounts of precession
And world cataclysms in which ‘gods'
swallow their children are supposed to
explain the meaning of life? No, myths
and legends are illogical - only when
seen as relaying
Ancient knowledge of science and astro-
nomy in codes where natural forces are
depicted as persons; do the tales have
meaning, otherwise they are without
context - so absurd…
poem by Margaret Alice Second

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Be Not The Characters
Be not the characters,
Of fictitious and romantic tales,
And alluring folk legends;
How can we elope,
To the shadowy sheltering world,
Far away from the indifferent community,
All fatally against the lovers,
How can we escape from the net,
Woven around with the lacerating thread,
Of customs;
Romantic characters only suit,
To the dreamy books, films and fictions,
Or they are the substance of folk tales;
But in the world of reality,
Those who follow the counsel,
Of the unbridled hearts are lashed,
Flogged, whipped and thrashed,
And have to suffer nothing but pangs.
poem by Shahida Latif

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Maps & Legends
Hes not to be reached, hes to be reached.
Hes not to be reached, hes to be reached.
Called the fool and the company,
On his own where hed rather be.
Where he ought to be, he sees what you cant see,
Cant you see that?
Maybe hes caught in the legend,
Maybe hes caught in the mood.
Maybe these maps and legends
Have been misunderstood.
Down the way the roads divided,
Paint me the places you have seen.
Those who know what I dont know
Refer to the yellow, red and green
Maybe hes caught in the legend,
Maybe hes caught in the mood.
Maybe these maps and legends
Have been misunderstood.
Hes not to be reached, hes to be reached. (4 times)
The map that you painted didnt seem real.
He just sings whatever hes seen
Point to the legend, point to the east,
Point to the yellow, red and green
Maybe hes caught in the legend,
Maybe hes caught in the mood.
Maybe these maps and legends
Have been misunderstood, been misunderstood.
(maps and legends)
(maps and legends) is he to be reached?
Hes not to be reached.
(maps and legends) is he to be reached?
Hes not to be reached.
(maps and legends) is he to be reached?
Hes not to be reached anymore.
song performed by by REM

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Maps And Legends
He's not to be reached he's to be reached.
He's not to be reached he's to be reached.
Called the fool and the company
On his own where he'd rather be.
Where he ought to be he sees what you can't see can't you see that?
Maybe he's caught in the legend
maybe he's caught in the mood.
Maybe these maps and legends
have been misunderstood.
Down the way the road's divided
Paint me the places you have seen.
Those who know what I don't know
refer to the yellow, red and green
Maybe he's caught in the legend,
maybe he's caught in the mood.
Maybe these maps and legends
have been misunderstood.
He's not to be reached, he's to be reached. (4 times)
The map that you painted didn't seem real.
He just sings whatever he's seen
Point to the legend, point to the east,
Point to the yellow, red and green
Maybe he's caught in the legend,
maybe he's caught in the mood.
Maybe these maps and legends
have been misunderstood, been misunderstood. (Maps and legends)
(Maps and legends) Is he to be reached? He's not to be reached.
(Maps and legends) Is he to be reached? He's not to be reached.
(Maps and legends) Is he to be reached? He's not to be reached anymore
song performed by by REM

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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My Friend Oliver
My name is Roberts,
a reporter I used to be;
until one day I was sent to interview
an interesting man
whose name was Oliver Cyriax.
It was many year ago
that I first met him
and much to my surprise
he asked me to be his official biographer.
He stood against a fireplace
with his briar pipe in his hand.
He then went to tell me
stories from distant lands.
He wasn’t adventurer, but a ghost hunter of sorts.
I sat there in amazement
at all the things he said.
Those stories weren’t for recording,
at least not yet.
They were told to explain to me
of the kind of life he lead.
His career if you want to call it that
started in the middle 1800’s
on a Tramp Steamer
and lasted for more than half a century.
The strange things he saw
at times made my blood run cold.
He seemed a very quiet man
who was content with his life.
He did not appear to be someone
you would expect for the job that he did.
He smiled when he spoke
of a couple of amusing tales
he had been involved in
and looked sad at others
which had taken something from his life.
He related tales of horror,
which made you, shiver when he spoke.
He related tales of mystery
of which some were never to be solved.
He told me how he had lost friends
with their encounter with the unknown.
When he finished speaking,
I told him I would be honoured
to become his official biographer.
Therefore, started a thirty odd year friendship
that I hoped would never end.
From time to time, we would meet
and fresh new stories he would tell,
right up until the time
he retired and moved away.
I got a letter yesterday
to say he was happy now.
He was far away
from any ghostly goings on.
I write this as an introduction
to a character I’m going to write about
as I delve into his casebook
and tell the world
about the strange things that he did see.
poem by David Harris

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My uncle was born at the end of the Edo era and was a great authority on the various bizarre and gruesome legends that were so popular in those days: tales of haunted houses with rooms no one dared enter; tales of the souls of scorned women, still living, tormenting an unfaithful lover; tales of ghosts unable to relinquish an attachment to their former lives... Yet he took great pains to deny there was any truth to these legends, repeating the lesson of his samurai education that "a true warrior does not believe in ghosts."
Kido Okamoto in The Ghost of Ofumi (1930), translated by Ian MacDonald

Submitted by Dan Costinaş
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Bag Otales
Its easy to believe some people dont care. believe a gift is to be given but never shared. when your clothes are stripped you got what you got. when you drive your car to heaven there aint no
Ing lot. another builded up, another undone. like every day dawn becomes another setting sun. I still believe you came to see. bet you thought Id comprehend. you wish for me, you wish to be. but Im a hero who cant pretend. I should have riches after all that Ive been through. should have some peace of mind, I should shave somebody new. a silver locket or a painting just for you. but all I gots a big old bag of tales. I tell the stories, I write by my hand. the things Ive felt another could never understand. better to have lived and loved than never because. its not the things it could have been, its that that never was. I should have riches after all that Ive been through. should have some peace of mind, I should have somebody new. a silver locket or a painting just for you. but all I gots a big old bag
Of tales.
song performed by by Toto

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The History Poems Have Not Been Written
The history poems have not been written
The poems after Milosz
The Wallace Stevens poems will never be written
I can’t come close
I have tried the Blake poems
But of course I am not near them either
I would like to the ironic intellectual poems
I might be able to do them
I could do a kind of surrealistic association mind poem a prose poem
But I don’t like that very much
The poems of Jerusalem have not been good enough
Poems of propaganda are awkward and unacceptable
The small poems that tell of my life
They are for me the chance at real poetry
And I will continue as best I can with them
The American poems I have not yet found the idiom for
I can be epigrammatic in Emerson Thoreau fashion
But not with the hard New England observing eye
Borges poems I love
And the stories of mind and literature
Making the drama of a life of a storyteller
Interest me
But I doubt I could truly do them well
Imitation can only take one so far
And through it one may lose one’s way entirely
I can really do only what I am
Not the Dickinson poems nor the Hopkins poems nor the Wordsworth poems nor the Keats poems nor the Amichai poems nor the poems of many others whose poetry I love
The Biblical poems have been tried
The poems of cosmic and scientific reflection
I could try to improve them
There are too many different kinds of poems to write
And I cannot write almost all of them
This is another poem about poems and poetry
I have written many for a long time now
Perhaps I need to go elsewhere and write in a new way
A way I have not dreamed or even remotely understood possible before.
The poems of the unknown poetry await me
I will go on but I am not sure now I know in which wa
poem by Shalom Freedman

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By Those Interested In War History
By those interested in war history war history is read
But the winners write the war history or so it is said
That is how it is and will always be
What is true to one is not to another that's how it seems to me
Of war and war heroes many stories are written and many poems to recite
And mostly of war winners that war writers stories do write
And readers believe what they want to believe
And the mothers of the war dead for their dead children grieve
In war as in life 'tis the winners who count
And the stories of losers to little amount
For the dead war heroes many a parade
And far too many films of war have been made
And 'tis mostly the winners write the war history
That is how it is and always will be.
poem by Francis Duggan

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The Legend of Legends written by Cornelia Păun Heinzel
The Legend of Legends written by Cornelia Păun Heinzel
One day, God called St. Peter to him and said :
– St. Peter, I want you to go around the world to see how the people are doing. I gave them the Bible full of lectures to be a teacher and a model in their lives. I gave them great writers to create stories for kids, religious stories or even about history inspired by the history of their beloved nation. I gave them poets to delight them with the magic of their lyrics. I gave them musicians to bless them with their music. I gave them bards and singers to sing and imitate their lovely creations. I gave them actors to perform with talent the beautiful creations of the play writers. I want to know if they’re enjoying my gifts and if these gifts straight from my pure heart have really changed the way they live in a good way and my work wasn’t for nothing.
St. Peter quickly embarked on a long journey. He climbed some of the tallest mountains, he went down to the beaches filled with golden sand, he listened to the music of the fishermen. He went through cities and villages, heard the wisdom of proverbs and popular sayings and looked at various occasions, being charmed by the spiritual wealth of the ceremonies. He went with people to church to religious services. He participated with them in prayers, and St. Peter’s journey was over.
He went straight back to heaven with much to say about what he has seen. He presented before the Holy God:
– Holy God, he said, I have searched the whole world. I have listened to the beautiful lyrics of people and their great songs. I went and prayed with them at the church. I participated in their charming celebrations. I saw great theater plays. I heard stories that made my ears rejoice. I read with pleasure books for kids that were magical, fantastic, historical, philosophical, religious, romantic, and satirical. But, I still have a problem. I don’t know what sort are those stories that contain fantastic or unthinkable, embroidered on the background of a historical reason, or something totally different never heard of before that describes something or even a creature. The different character, someone historical, or a hero that has been proven to be a myth or even a phenomenon, those stories are different from the truth and they should have a different name.
– You spoke the truth, St. Peter. I thought long ago of something like this. I meditated long enough and I want from now, these different stories to be named legends, God said.
– God, then this must be the legend of legends because it narrates how legends are created, said St. Peter.
poem by Cornelia Păun Heinzel from The Alternative Canada (2017), translated by Filip Enache

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The Legend of Legends
The Legend of Legends written by Cornelia Păun Heinzel
One day, God called St. Peter to him and said :
– St. Peter, I want you to go around the world to see how the people are doing. I gave them the Bible full of lectures to be a teacher and a model in their lives. I gave them great writers to create stories for kids, religious stories or even about history inspired by the history of their beloved nation. I gave them poets to delight them with the magic of their lyrics. I gave them musicians to bless them with their music. I gave them bards and singers to sing and imitate their lovely creations. I gave them actors to perform with talent the beautiful creations of the play writers. I want to know if they’re enjoying my gifts and if these gifts straight from my pure heart have really changed the way they live in a good way and my work wasn’t for nothing.
St. Peter quickly embarked on a long journey. He climbed some of the tallest mountains, he went down to the beaches filled with golden sand, he listened to the music of the fishermen. He went through cities and villages, heard the wisdom of proverbs and popular sayings and looked at various occasions, being charmed by the spiritual wealth of the ceremonies. He went with people to church to religious services. He participated with them in prayers, and St. Peter’s journey was over.
He went straight back to heaven with much to say about what he has seen. He presented before the Holy God:
– Holy God, he said, I have searched the whole world. I have listened to the beautiful lyrics of people and their great songs. I went and prayed with them at the church. I participated in their charming celebrations. I saw great theater plays. I heard stories that made my ears rejoice. I read with pleasure books for kids that were magical, fantastic, historical, philosophical, religious, romantic, and satirical. But, I still have a problem. I don’t know what sort are those stories that contain fantastic or unthinkable, embroidered on the background of a historical reason, or something totally different never heard of before that describes something or even a creature. The different character, someone historical, or a hero that has been proven to be a myth or even a phenomenon, those stories are different from the truth and they should have a different name.
– You spoke the truth, St. Peter. I thought long ago of something like this. I meditated long enough and I want from now, these different stories to be named legends, God said.
– God, then this must be the legend of legends because it narrates how legends are created, said St. Peter.
poem by Cornelia Păun Heinzel from The Alternative Canada (2017), translated by Filip Enache

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Absence
I keep myself occupied
by searching for a job
on the Internet,
writing stories and poems,
taking care and feeding the animals
and sometimes I carry things
to the garage and back
and measure instinctively
about every step
and wonder why
I still care so much for you,
read stories and poetry books
and try to learn
something from other writers.
There are white arum lilies
that grows wild at the river
and on strange places
I see flowers
as if life makes opportunities
for the outcasts
and there are simple things
that I keep me busy with
to try and forget
how empty and painful
your absence becomes
and when we are together
things sometimes get muddled,
but without you
it’s the darkest night.
poem by Gert Strydom

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I Wrote My Last Romantic Love Poem A Long Time Ago
I wrote my last romantic love poem a long time ago-
Now I write quieter poems
Poems of the pleasure of the old-
A walk in the morning
A sudden turn of sunlight on a cold cold day
A small kindness I may do
Or someone may do for me
Poems of love for my family
And of sadness at the sickness of my friends
Quiet poems
That do not know the wildness of passion
The bitterness of love disappointed
The up and down motions
Of when she does and when she doesn’t
And all her yeses and nos-
I write quiet poems
And I live happily in them
And I sometimes think with sadness
Of the great passion there was once-
But I am old now
And happy and quiet in small things
Grandchildren, among the best of them.
poem by Shalom Freedman

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A Myriad Heroines
Tonight sheer ecstasy and bliss, first discovered Strictly
Come Dancing, I lose myself in those dancing heroines,
Vin Diesel in the movie XXX stole the show encouraging
the individual to make a difference, Wizards of Waverley
Place had Alex experience romance in a magical journal
I have many brilliant stories also, never featuring me, there
is a myriad heroines - based on the stories I loved when I
was a kid, books I like get assimilated into it - every noble
thought integrated in a kaleidoscope that encompasses
more than this universe, after this great Sunday night
I am convinced whatever sacrifice or endurance tomorrow
requires, I am safe in an inner bauble of wonderful dreams,
need not send my own self anywhere as an infinite number
of heroines can go all over the world to do the magnificent
things suggested by myths, parables and legends
poem by Margaret Alice Second

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The Age Of Chivalry
Back in the days of old
when knights were bold
who with a sword or lance
in armour sought romance.
It was the age of chivalry
long ago in man’s history
when to fight for a righteous cause
one did gain considerable applause.
It was mainly for show, love and glory
they deemed themselves being worthy
to capture the heart of some fair maiden
which was the most desired prize laden.
Oh, they would strike heavy blows
on all of their opponents and foes
in a one to one combat defying death
as crowds watched with abated breath.
Yes, it was far back in those days of yore
that courage and strength came to the fore
where there was this life and death struggle;
such issues at hand the knights would juggle.
And in fighting for their country, faith and king
noble impressions on people’s minds would ring
that even through the ages are held in high esteem
those knights in shinning armour do now all seem.
There are many legends based on their heroic exploits
a legacy of tales which have been told with much adroit
highlighting aspects of human wisdom related to virtue and vice
and the lessons to be learnt are those of goodness and sacrifice.
History usually repeats itself time and again
as it often happens a situation comes when
we’re asked to do something for a just cause
and acting with chivalry we shouldn’t pause.
poem by George Krokos

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Poems About.
There are poems that you will never see
Marked in a folder titled 'privacy'
Poems of hate and anger and personal pain
Poems about greed and hunger and personal gain
Poems about people I would love to see dead
Poems about women I met
Poems about relationships that have gone bad
Poems about issues with mom and dad
Poems about me, the person no one knows
Poems about places where only my soul goes
Poems I wish I could place in the clouds for all to read
Poems about lust, selfishness and greed
Poems I know will hurt those I hate
Poems I write by complete mistake
Poems I have hidden in my heart and my head
Poems about things that are better left unsaid
Poems I want to share and poems I want to retract
Poems of shame and how others might act
They stay in my psyche, they are a part of me
These poems I write, but you will never see.
poem by Mahfooz Ali

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Captured Memories
Captured memories from the past
At the Oklahoma History Center
You’ll be surprised and impressed
The very moment you enter
It’s such a treasured museum
One you will truly enjoy
Early railroad pictures
That has so many stories
A one room school house
Really takes you back
Railroad in the early stages
So different from the Amtrak
Teepees from the past as well
Oil once called Black gold
An oh, the stories and the tales
So many to be told
So take some time and visit
The Oklahoma History Center
You’ll be so glad you did, folks
The very moment that you enter!
poem by Marilyn Lott

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Spin Doctors for friend alex
In days of yore long, long before
the spoken word took written form.
The Bards, the guardians of the lore.
In Great Men’s halls they would perform.
Their epic tales from history
to entertain the listening host.
With tales of war and mystery
and heroes which their race could boast.
Each teller added something to,
adjusted what they had been told.
By teachers who had altered too
the ancient tales they had retold.
Each myth and legend seems to be
a twisted version of some tale.
Which was quite true originally
Our search for truth is doomed to fail.
There’s little evidence to find.
Although we can extrapolate
from different versions left behind.
These fragments we appreciate.
Contain some truth enwrapt in lies,
Driven by curiosity
embark upon an enterprise,
The ultimate futility.
Though we can guess, we cannot know.
Our theories could be correct
Events which happened long ago
change with each telling I suspect.
03/06/2009
http: // blog.myspace.com/poeticpiers
poem by Ivor Or Ivor.e Hogg

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