The Herder
Words are racing by as a yacht making blue water white.
Should I now think in nautical terms, say, a bad seascape
painting of crested waves, which looks like clotted cream?
When I’m thinking of sheep that feed on sun yellow grass
on a field dotted with olive trees? Bedouins unlike cowboys
feel no disgrace looking after them. Biblical peace, that is
before walls were erected and common land absorbed in
the name of nationhood. I know naught, land has changed
hands for thousands of years and will do so again, but I pity
the olive tree it takes a long time bearing fruit, when it does
the walls will be used as building stuff for modest homes.
Peace will be restored, but not forever humanity is, even if
it talks about it, not made for peacefulness. The man with
the biggest flock of sheep will always want more land.
poem by Oskar Hansen

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Related quotes
The Occupiers
The Occupiers
They came, the huddled masses, victims
of a war and pogrom far from our shores;
we gave them room at the inn, and on
our common land they could graze sheep.
They have now taken over the inn, stolen
our common land, bulldozed our villages
and uprooted olive trees to build roads we
cannot use, erected walls to keep us out.
They want us to leave to roam the world
as they did; we will not, we shall stay here
near our ancestors and the land and wait,
yes, wait till they uproot again and leave.
poem by Oskar Hansen

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In a distant land many years ago, there lived a black sheep. It was executed by firing squad. A century later, the grieving flock erected an equestrian statue in honor of the slain sheep that looked very nice in the park. In the years that followed, every time a black sheep appeared, it was executed so that ordinary sheep could practice sculpture.
Augusto Monterroso in The Black Sheep and Other Fables (1969)

Submitted by Dan Costinaş
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Cultivated Is My Valley
Cultivated Is My Valley
Peaceful is the landscape and the lane that meanders
amongst olive trees, stone walls neatly divide the land
a bit for everyone, but not enough to make you rich.
Here dogs only bark at night have cowardly, yellow eyes
there is no wolf left in these subjugated canines.
In Stockholm when spring comes ice shards fall off roof
tops, split brains in half, gore on snow. On paradise
islands too one has to look out for falling coco- nuts
they can so easily kill a man; but here, in my valley, only
petals of the almond tree flower fall.
Birdsongs and breeze that caresses olive trees, now that’s
peace, ok, so should I not be happy as I contemplate
a carob tree? I see a woman bending down, weeding her
potato field, clouds on the sky are as soft as the mustachio
on a Romanian girl’s upper lip. All this herald peace so
why shouldn’t I be happy, when seeing a flock of cows
with full udders ready to be milked at five? Yet I dream of
galloping horses on the pampas of Argentine, flying mane,
flaring nostrils. This place I tell myself lacks passion, it’s
too tame, or is it me that has been restrained by age?
poem by Oskar Hansen

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Lamentable
Lamentable
Behind my cottage there was an olive grove
someone came knocked down the trees for
a better view, but it wasn’t true they built
four thousand dwellings instead and called
it a security zone. And then they built a wall
so I can’t see my lost olive grove.
The world agree with me this is all wrong,
but tells me I, for the sake of peace, must
understand and give way. I have understood
for sixty years and given way so many times,
and I know now I made a mistake to let their
cattle graze on our common land
poem by Oskar Hansen

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Portugal In May
These rounded hills surrounding my valley is lush
green with yellow flowers, wish I were a horse, no
jutting military granite jaws around here; God, when
making Portugal, had women in mind.
A flock of sheep eagerly graze have no time to look
up and see the blue spring sky, doomed as they are
to produce wool and meat for Irish stew, watched
over by the shepherd who sits in the shade of a carob
tree and wonders what's for tea.
Pretty red tractors plough soil around olive trees,
perfume of newly mowed grass and roses hang in
translucent air as sun filters through a mystic veil
of aromatic mist of history. Yet, a slight discord in
the day lingers, the donkey is absent, the last one,
a grey jenny, was given to a sanctuary. That is sad,
the long eared made the scenery more peaceful.
poem by Oskar Hansen

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To The Land
To the land of bribes,
To the land of telephones,
To the land of corruptions,
To the land of trains,
To the land of shops,
To the land of thieves,
To the land of connections,
To the land of drugs,
To the land of trucks,
To the land of cats,
To the land of Banks,
To the land of dogs, To the land of footballers,
To the land of dragons,
To the land of hope,
To the land of ice-cream,
To the land of potatoes,
To the land of chocolates,
To the land of tomatoes,
To the land of apples,
To the land of coffee,
To the land of lights,
To the land of ships,
To the land of birds,
To the land of tigers,
To the land of carpets,
To the land of pillows,
To the land of lions,
TO the land of toys,
To the land of horses,
To the land of beds,
To the land of roses,
To the land of love,
To the land of passion,
To the land of romance;
I never new women do snore until i married one.
poem by Edward Kofi Louis

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Whose Country Is This?
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of snakes;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of many waters;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of thieves! !
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of people;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of oil;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of earthquakes!
Whose country is this?
it is a land full of lovers;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of volcanoes!
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of beautiful flowers;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of hansome men;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of beautiful women;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of roses;
Whose country is this?
it is a land ruled only by men;
Whose country is this?
It is a land without rainfall;
Whose country is this?
It is a land ruled by a woman;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of corruption!
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of pirates! !
Whose country is this?
It is a land ruled by law;
Whose country is this?
It is a land controlled by rebels!
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of ice;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of pregnant women;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah!
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of singers;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of troubles;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of war! !
Whose country is this?
It is a land with the biggest cemetery in the wolrd!
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of desert;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of trees;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of pregnant teenagers!
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of timber;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of hatred;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of love;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of care;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of peace;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of smokers!
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of businesses;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of harlots;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of wise people;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of idiots!
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of gold;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of cocoa;
Whose country is this?
It is a alnd full of crabs;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of evil;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of rainfalls;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of ants;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of horses;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of pigs;
Whose country is this?
It is a land full of statues;
Whose country is this?
it is a land full of birds;
And so on, and so forth!
Because nature had made them so as we see them around us,
But the wise and fool live together on this earth.
poem by Edward Kofi Louis

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If I Got To Speak At The Capital
If I got to speak at the Capital
I would give it my best and it goes like this;
Republicans, Democrats, and Independents too! !
we need to get the red, white, blue on the move
Party divides do not work, our people need to work,
medicare, SSI for the old and the needy
we all can not survive on the needs of yesterday
the needs of today will affect the needs for tomorrow
the old paved our way, the young needs to make waves
The U.S. is the land of opportunity and the free
Here in the nation's Capital I beg to you
It's time we move on to New beginnings
remember what our fore fathers have taught us
To treat each other equal, not by race, money or religion
work together to create a better life for all
for now we need it most, at no cost
Save us from the debit of our predecessors
recreate a partisan place, and save grace
We can't take it so much longer
It was the poor who for so hard to make this country
The rich to found and nourish this great land
it took the old to make the U.S. Great
Now it takes the young to make it stronger and wiser
between you and me, we all can make it better
just the walls need to crumb down.
no more rich, no more poor, bring on the brotherhood
for we are one great land, from here to there, we are one
So break these walls and save this land
come one, come all
Times have changed, now we must change
no more battles in the house, let's make peace
start over from the beginning
a new start and a strong fight
Republicans, Democrats, Independents too
break the walls down and come together for the good ol' USA
poem by Michael Peterson

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A Word To Parasites
Some spend themselves and never groan
Unlike some plagued with greed
They deem God’s money not their own
Whilst Jesus’ sheep they feed
Vampires though peruse God’s house?
Devouring hoards of gold
Sucking blood like a canine louse
Whilst scriptures are unrolled
God’s sheep in faith stretch for their hand
In gratitude and love
With offerings and tithes as planned
By He who reigns above
These parasites in pompous frock
Who bumper crops would reap
Intermingle with Heaven’s flock
Fleecing The Father’s sheep
They’ve earned they say because they teach
The gold and silver’s theirs
Stealthily cool and like a leach
They’ll plunder Heaven’s wares
For building up a church supreme
For greed or personal fame
They’ll eat the fat and drink the cream
Without a trace of shame
With fancy jets and lavish cars
With lucre massed in hand
Like rich Hollywood movie stars
They cruise most every land
Have these been saved or still deceived?
They thrive as common tare
Too blind to know The Lord God’s grieved
Or even fail to care
poem by Michael P. Johnson

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A Land Of Peace
A land of peace is here
It is also there, everywhere
Quiet and eerie
No wails, no tears
No sound, no footstep noise
Forever slumber, in a line
A land of no fuss
A land of peace
Tenants without a lease
It is known, with overgrown
Open gates without hate
No master, no slave, no colour
A land of no sleaze
A land of peace, total peace
Sunday,7th June,2009
Huyton, Liverpool, UK
poem by Isaac Maliya

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A Visit
To the male and the female,
And among the people of my race;
But Abraham had two sons,
One by a slave woman and the other by a free woman!
Glad tidings,
A Malak from heaven brought me the news! !
And like a visit to Syrai and Cilicia,
But the land of gold is now free at last.
Peace and quietness,
To the land of goats and sheep!
Peace and tranquility,
To the land of rivers and lakes!
And today you are like the headless body after war,
But how do you carry things on your heads?
I am set apart from my mother's womb,
So why do you spy on my liberty?
For it only takes a visit for you to know my name,
And like the children of Abraham in the land of joy.
poem by Edward Kofi Louis

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Jerusalem / Land of God
Jerusalem
Home of Saints and Prophets
All of them prayed there
with tears
I Pray
Yester
was last day
in the last year
All people
thinking
about themselves
and their families
myself
thinking of you
Because I love you
I love Jesus
the merciful
and i love you
I prayed
that you be
land of God
Land of Peace
Town of Love
Land of Jesus
Town of Jesus
The merciful
Land of Mary
The Innocent
Land of Moses
The well bred
The highly mannered
I want to pray
in your Mosque and Temple
Prayers of Love and Peace
Prayers of Forgiveness
for all the blood shed
here and there
Please give Peace
to my world
the small one
then the big one
Because you are the Most Generous
Then Suddenly
Hope came
and it comes suddenly
Like Life
Jerusalem Again
I love you
I love You So
Your air and Beauty
Your Past and Future
Please be Land of God
Land for God
Land of innocence
Land for Innocence
Land of us
Land for us
of you
for you
of me
for me
of us
for us
of Peace
for Peace
Landing
Landing
Landin g
Toward Peace/
Toward Peace/
Justice/
Prevail/
poem by Eman Elbadawi

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A Highly-Colored Romance
Ben Green was a New-Hampshire boy,
Who stood full six feet two:
A jovial chap this same Ben Green,
Though he had oft been blue.
He loved a girl named Olive Brown,
Who lived near Bixby's pond,
And who, despite her brunette name,
Was a decided blonde.
"A Highly Colored Romance."
A pink of rare perfection she,
The belle of all the town;
Though Ben oft wished her Olive Green,
Instead of Olive Brown.
And she loved Ben, and said that nought
Should mar their joy serene;
And, when she changed from Olive Brown,
'Twould surely be to Green.
She kept her word in-violet,
And vowed, ere she was wed,
Although when Brown she had Be(e)n Green.
When Green she'd be well read.
But, ah! her young affections changed
To Gray, a Southern fellow;
And Green turned white the news to hear,
Though first it made him yell, oh!
Says he, " How can you lilac this,
When you vowed to be true?
I'll take your fine young lover, Gray,
And beat him till he's blue."
Then Olive Brown to crimson turned,
And said, "Do as you say:
The country long has wished to see
'The Blue combined with Gray.'"
Ben Green to purple turned with rage,
And black his brow as night;
While on the cheek of Olive Brown
The crimson changed to white.
"O cruel Olive Brown!" says Ben,
"I've been dun-brown by you:
Let this 'Grayback' his steps retrace,
And take Greenback, — oh, do!"
Poor Olive Brown, what could she say,
To sea-Green look so sad ?
And so she rose, and said to him,
"I'll go and ask my dad."
. . . .
The years rolled by: Ben's raven locks
For silver did not lack;
And Olive, with her hair of gold,
Was glad she took Greenback.
poem by Charles Follen Adams from Yawcob Strauss and Other Poems

Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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The Biggest Flood
The Biggest Flood
Pakistan, the biggest flood ever recorded the newscaster tells me,
has he forgotten about the biblical flood and Noah?
I could be that after years of flooding in Noahland that he got
the idea of building a boat, big enough for his family and cattle.
Of course his neighbours thought he had lost it, his sons too were
skeptical but helped their father building a wide hulled boat;
in the inn at night they often got into fist fights, when funny
remarks were made about their father’s crazy venture.
After weeks of rain he boarded and boat and it didn’t sink.
When the rain stopped and the sky was clear all Noah could see
was water everywhere. Not a navigator Noah just drifted about
hoping to find land; and as water level fell he hit a reef which
turned out to be a grassy mountain slope. The biblical story is
certainly true, if it isn’t it is still worth thinking about its wisdom.
poem by Oskar Hansen

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When A Child Is Born
A ray of hope flitters in the sky
A shiny star lights up way up high
All across the land dawns a brand new morn
This comes to pass when a child is born
A silent wish sails the seven seas
The winds have changed whisperin the trees
And the walls of doubt crumble tossed and torn
This comes to pass when a child is born
A rosy fume settles all around
Youve got the feel youre on solid ground
For a spell or two no-one seems forlorn
This comes to pass when a child is born
(spoken)
And all of this happened
Because whe world is waiting
Waiting for one child
Black, white, yellow, no one knows
But a child that would grow up and turn tears to laughter
Hate to love, war to peace
And everyone to everyones neighbour
Misery and suffering would be forgotten forever
Its all a dream and illusion now
It must come true, sometimes soon somehow
All across the land dawns a brand new morn
This comes to pass when a child is born
All across the land dawns a brand new morn
This comes to pass when a child is born
When a child is born
song performed by by Boney M.

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Likeness
When I came forth this morn I saw
Quite twenty cloudlets in the air;
And then I saw a flock of sheep,
Which told me how these clouds came there.
That flock of sheep, on that green grass,
Well might it lie so still and proud!
Its likeness had been drawn in heaven,
On a blue sky, in silvery cloud.
I gazed me up, I gazed me down,
And swore, though good the likeness was,
'Twas a long way from justice done
To such white wool, such sparkling grass.
poem by William Henry Davies

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Avalanche-the White Death
The land is white
The name of the land brings you
to the land of nothing
The name is white
The white is dead
Sun shines pale, the land shades full of pain
Avalea doesn't bloom and fall in this drain
I'm going back alive again
But no one's crying for the dead
The land is still white
Ice and snow are still the same as yesterday
But the wind is stronger in the sorrow
The land is white
The white is dead
They weep wherever they blow
Forever love, cursed land
Forever goodbye, my lovely land
No more tears falling in this land
Even the sand doesn't know
why he doesn't round to anywhere
The land has frozen like stone
The air is blowed dead
The land is white
The name is white
The land called white is dead
poem by Maria Sudibyo

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The Promise
Our of the mouths of babies and out of the mouths of love,
Plant trees and get fruits in their seasons;
For the den of theives is like the tongue on fire!
To the land of grain and wine and,
To the land of bread and vineyard;
A little fire kindles the forest.
Of works done in meekness,
And of the unchangeable act of your mind on this love;
But this world is full of iniquity.
Obtain the promise after endurance,
For i have seen your tears on this side of the river;
And it was not without an oath.
Life is like the golden stick with the spices,
And like the law of the olive groves and honey;
But try to separate the sheep from the goat.
He who does not love does not love the Creator,
For Enoch was the seventh fro Adam;
So keep yourselves into the hands of love,
But situations had made it possible now for me to call you my uncle.
poem by Edward Kofi Louis

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Kick Down The Walls
Took the long way to the shortcut, and the walls were made of stone
Took the low road to the highground, had to feel it in my bones
Everybody wants some heaven, but nobody wants to die
Its been brought to my attention
Youll be dead a long time, now aint that a crime
Chorus:
Kick down the walls, shake down the building, help me bust out of this cage
Kick down the walls, shake down the building, must be time for a change
I went driving in the moonlight, there was no place left to go
I went digging in my coalmine, when I hit the motherload
If this world could work together, like a big old human clock
It would run on till forever, it would never have to stop, never have to stop
Chorus
(instrumental break)
You cant buy no protection, dont care who you are
Spreading out in all directions, now its no hold barred
Everybody runs for cover, from the sun and sex and sin
If you think you got the answers, buddy just you come on in, step right in
Chorus repeats 2x
Kick down the walls, shake down the building
Kick down the walls, shake down the building
Kick down the walls, shake down the building
Kick down the walls, shake down the building
song performed by by Toto

Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Sea Song of the Exiles
Dear land, farewell!
Waves surge and swell.
Dear land, farewell, --
Blue sky!
Farewell, white cot whence the ripe grapes fall,
Gold blooms that bask on the mossy wall!
Dear land, farewell!
Hill, plain, and dell!
Dear land, farewell, --
Blue sky!
Dear land, farewell!
Waves surge and swell.
Dear land, farewell, --
Blue sky!
Farewell, betrothed, with the pure, pale brow;
'Neath sombre heaven dark billows we plough.
Dear land, farewell!
In thee our loves dwell;
Dear land, farewell, --
Blue sky!
Dear land, farewell!
Waves surge and swell.
Dear land, farewell, --
Blue sky!
Our eyes, whose tears all brightness blot,
Leave the dark wave for a darker lot!
Dear land, farewell!
In our heart's a knell.
Dear land, farewell, --
Blue sky!
poem by Victor Hugo

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