The Wind in the Hemlock
Steely stars and moon of brass,
How mockingly you watch me pass!
You know as well as I how soon
I shall be blind to stars and moon,
Deaf to the wind in the hemlock tree,
Dumb when the brown earth weighs on me.
With envious dark rage I bear,
Stars, your cold complacent stare;
Heart-broken in my hate look up,
Moon, at your clear immortal cup,
Changing to gold from dusky red --
Age after age when I am dead
To be filled up with light, and then
Emptied, to be refilled again.
What has man done that only he
Is slave to death -- so brutally
Beaten back into the earth
Impatient for him since his birth?
Oh let me shut my eyes, close out
The sight of stars and earth and be
Sheltered a minute by this tree.
Hemlock, through your fragrant boughs
There moves no anger and no doubt,
No envy of immortal things.
The night-wind murmurs of the sea
With veiled music ceaselessly,
That to my shaken spirit sings.
From their frail nest the robins rouse,
In your pungent darkness stirred,
Twittering a low drowsy word --
And me you shelter, even me.
In your quietness you house
The wind, the woman and the bird.
You speak to me and I have heard:
"If I am peaceful, I shall see
Beauty's face continually;
Feeding on her wine and bread
I shall be wholly comforted,
For she can make one day for me
Rich as my lost eternity."
poem by Sara Teasdale
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
The Ballad of God-Makers
A bird flew out at the break of day
From the nest where it had curled,
And ere the eve the bird had set
Fear on the kings of the world.
The first tree it lit upon
Was green with leaves unshed;
The second tree it lit upon
Was red with apples red;
The third tree it lit upon
Was barren and was brown,
Save for a dead man nailed thereon
On a hill above a town.
That night the kings of the earth were gay
And filled the cup and can;
Last night the kings of the earth were chill
For dread of a naked man.
‘If he speak two more words,' they said,
‘The slave is more than the free;
If he speak three more words,' they said,
‘The stars are under the sea.'
Said the King of the East to the King of the West,
I wot his frown was set,
‘Lo, let us slay him and make him as dung,
It is well that the world forget.'
Said the King of the West to the King of the East,
I wot his smile was dread,
‘Nay, let us slay him and make him a god,
It is well that our god be dead.'
They set the young man on a hill,
They nailed him to a rod;
And there in darkness and in blood
They made themselves a god.
And the mightiest word was left unsaid,
And the world had never a mark,
And the strongest man of the sons of men
Went dumb into the dark.
Then hymns and harps of praise they brought,
Incense and gold and myrrh,
And they thronged above the seraphim,
The poor dead carpenter.
‘Thou art the prince of all,' they sang,
‘Ocean and earth and air.'
Then the bird flew on to the cruel cross,
And hid in the dead man's hair.
‘Thou art the son of the world.' they cried, `
‘Speak if our prayers be heard.'
And the brown bird stirred in the dead man's hair
And it seemed that the dead man stirred.
Then a shriek went up like the world's last cry
From all nations under heaven,
And a master fell before a slave
And begged to be forgiven.
They cowered, for dread in his wakened eyes
The ancient wrath to see;
And a bird flew out of the dead Christ's hair,
And lit on a lemon tree.
poem by Gilbert Keith Chesterton
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The Ballad of God-Makers
A bird flew out at the break of day
From the nest where it had curled,
And ere the eve the bird had set
Fear on the kings of the world.
The first tree it lit upon
Was green with leaves unshed;
The second tree it lit upon
Was red with apples red;
The third tree it lit upon
Was barren and was brown,
Save for a dead man nailed thereon
On a hill above a town.
That right the kings of the earth were gay
And filled the cup and can;
Last night the kings of the earth were chill
For dread of a naked man.
'If he speak two more words,' they said,
'The slave is more than the free;
If he speak three more words,' they said,
'The stars are under the sea.'
Said the King of the East to the King of the West,
I wot his frown was set,
'Lo; let us slay him and make him as dung,
It is well that the world forget.'
Said the King of the West to the King of the East,
I wot his smile was dread,
'Nay, let us slay him and make him a god,
It is well that our god be dead.'
They set the young man on a hill,
They nailed him to a rod;
And there in darkness and in blood
They made themselves a god.
And the mightiest word was left unsaid,
And the world had never a mark,
And the strongest man of the sons of men
Went dumb into the dark.
Then hymns and harps of praise they brought,
Incense and gold and myrrh,
And they thronged above the seraphim,
The poor dead carpenter.
'Thou art the prince of all,' they sang,
'Ocean and earth and air.'
Then the bird flew on to the cruel cross,
And hid in the dead man's hair.
'Thou art the sun of the world,' they cried,
'Speak if our prayers be heard.'
And the brown bird stirred in the dead man's hair,
And it seemed that the dead man stirred.
Then a shriek went up like the world's last cry
From all nations under heaven,
And a master fell before a slave
And begged to be forgiven.
They cowered, for dread in his wakened eyes
The ancient wrath to see;
And the bird flew out of the dead Christ's hair,
And lit on a lemon-tree.
poem by G.K. Chesterton from The Wild Knight and Other Poems (1900)
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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The Spice-Tree
This is the song
The spice-tree sings:
"Hunger and fire,
Hunger and fire,
Sky-born Beauty—
Spice of desire,"
Under the spice-tree
Watch and wait,
Burning maidens
And lads that mate.
The spice-tree spreads
And its boughs come down
Shadowing village and farm and town.
And none can see
But the pure of heart
The great green leaves
And the boughs descending,
And hear the song that is never ending.
The deep roots whisper,
The branches say:—
"Love to-morrow,
And love to-day,
And till Heaven's day,
And till Heaven's day."
The moon is a bird's nest in its branches,
The moon is hung in its topmost spaces.
And there, to-night, two doves play house
While lovers watch with uplifted faces.
Two doves go home
To their nest, the moon.
It is woven of twigs of broken light,
With threads of scarlet and threads of gray
And a lining of down for silk delight.
To their Eden, the moon, fly home our doves,
Up through the boughs of the great spice-tree;—
And one is the kiss I took from you,
And one is the kiss you gave to me.
poem by Vachel Lindsay
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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St. Valentine's Day
The South is a dream of flowers
With a jewel for sky and sea,
Rose-crowns for the dancing hours,
Gold fruits upon every tree;
But cold from the North The wind blows forth
That blows my love to me.
The stars in the South are gold
Like lamps between sky and sea;
The flowers that the forests hold.
Like stars between tree and tree;
But little and white Is the pale moon's light
That lights my love to me.
In the South the orange grove
Makes dusk by the dusky sea,
White palaces wrought for love
Gleam white between tree and tree,
But under bare boughs Is the little house
Warm-lit for my love and me.
poem by Edith Nesbit
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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I Watch The Moon From My Maple Tree
As I watch the moon
So quietly
From high above
In my maple tree
I see the stars
That shine all night
They speak to me
Making sure I'm alright
My life is hard
But I'm ok
Watching the show
With nothing to say
As the moon and the stars
Dance the night away
I sit and stare
Like I can't in the day
When I'm up so high
I feel so free
Happy and safe
In my maple tree
The moon is the sun
That shines in the dark
I can see it from bed
Or from way in the park
It helps me a lot
The moon is my guide
And 'I love that old tree'
I queitly sighed
poem by Miranda Van Yperen
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Stars and the Moon
Stars and the Moon
Why do you come so soon?
I lay there unable to shut my eyes
This something I despise
Stars and the Moon
Behind my eyelids there is a dream that awaits
My head spins, but i am not elate
Stars and the Moon
It's a horrible dream
The one about that night just bursting at the seam
My eyes are heavy now
As if I'm forced to obey, at it's feet, I bow
Stars and the Moon
I can feel my body tense
Instantaneously pulled into a trance quite immense
Stars and the Moon
I hear the screams of that night
That abhorrent deed, I tried to put up a fight
Stars and the Moon
I hate when you come
day and sun is my time to feel numb
poem by Naomi Deluca
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Moon Glow
The darkest night, flows with a
wind hush through open blackness.
Ya'ever see the moon glow?
Ya' ever hear the wind whisper?
Rivulets spill with water
across the mountain plains;
as liquid rolls down along the steep slope-
ya'ever see the moon glow?
Ya' ever hear the wind whisper?
Stars glitter through sparkles
of the darkest night.
Wind cold breeze swifts;
swiftly into space.
Laughter engulfs the moon light.
Ya' ever see the moon glow?
Ya' ever hear the wind whisper?
Moon light angles corners,
as sweet melodies swell into air,
of silence.
You ever sight the bird dance,
as shadow flicker
upon the moon?
Ya' ever see the moon glow?
Ya' ever hear the wind whisper?
poem by Celine Berghmans
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Odd thoughts crowd into my mind at night
Follow me, follow my soul breaking this darkness
Can you see it, can you feel me close to you now?
If you're scared, touch me, I've never been so real
all around us makes sense in this sleepy journey
Crazy odd thoughts crowd into my mind at night
sometimes they shine like childish eyes at the zoo
sometimes they weep like old people on a bench
the morning is so tired to start
the night is so short to end
The sun, the moon and the stars
the wind, the sea across the earth
we can go everywhere, we can do everything
all I want is breathing in your breath
Crazy odd thoughts crowd into my mind at night
premonition of good and bad news
bridges between our present lives
stairways to our impending future
silently I'm gathering my broken pieces
Oh please, don't let me down!
can't you see how beautiful is in here?
I wore my hair in a bun for you
I put my evening dress on for this feast day
I'm looking at you and I smile
The sun, the moon and the stars
the wind, the sea across the earth
we can go everywhere, we can do everything
all I want is breathing through your breath
poem by Ilaria Boffa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Wynken, Blynken, and Nod
Wynken, Blynken, and Nod one night
Sailed off in a wooden shoe,--
Sailed on a river of crystal light
Into a sea of dew.
"Where are you going, and what do you wish?"
The old moon asked the three.
"We have come to fish for the herring-fish
That live in this beautiful sea;
Nets of silver and gold have we,"
Said Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod.
The old moon laughed and sang a song,
As they rocked in the wooden shoe;
And the wind that sped them all night long
Ruffled the waves of dew;
The little stars were the herring-fish
That lived in the beautiful sea.
"Now cast your nets wherever you wish,--
Never afraid are we!"
So cried the stars to the fishermen three,
Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod.
All night long their nets they threw
To the stars in the twinkling foam,--
Then down from the skies came the wooden shoe,
Bringing the fishermen home:
'Twas all so pretty a sail, it seemed
As if it could not be;
And some folk thought 'twas a dream they'd dreamed
Of sailing that beautiful sea;
But I shall name you the fishermen three:
Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod.
Wynken and Blynken are two little eyes,
And Nod is a little head,
And the wooden shoe that sailed the skies
Is a wee one's trundle-bed;
So shut your eyes while Mother sings
Of wonderful sights that be,
And you shall see the beautiful things
As you rock in the misty sea
Where the old shoe rocked the fishermen three:--
Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod.
poem by Eugene Field
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The Sky And The Earth
Long ago the sky loved the earth.
But they could not meet,
Because of fear of sun's wrath,
Who paralyzed the earth with heat.
Then the sky cried,
And relieved the earth.
Through the rivers that flew wide
From angry sun's wrath
When at night sun went to sleep,
There was darkness all around.
And the sky used to weep
Until to help him moon and stars came round.
Now the sky could see the earth at night,
For the moon and stars shone bright.
Every thing was right,
Away from sun's sight.
But sun came to know,
And took a vow.
To punish sky and earth,
And asteroids and meteors took birth.
They smashed the earth raising dust cloud.
And the sky bust aloud,
And it wept continuously.
Until earth's scars were filled completely.
Sun became angrier because sky had dared,
To undo the punishment sun had ordered.
And now he shone more bright,
And the whole sky was set alight.
The sky yelped in pain,
But his every try was in vain.
For he had challenged the sun's might,
And got himself into a suicidal fight.
And to this day when the earth is warmed,
The sky weeps relieving earth's pain.
And it seems to meet at horizon,
And after sky weeps a rainbow is formed.
And to this day the sky is waiting
With patience unexhausted.
For the day when the sun will be dead,
And for the day of their meeting.
poem by Anjesh shekhar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Song - Sea of Sand
You sent me to the moon
Across a silent sea of sand
I was reaching for your hand
But you were standing on a hill
You launched me to the moon
Across the wind between the stars
I was reaching through the sand
But I was fading out of view
I was just a photograph
An old fading black and white
Taken by a passer-by
When the sun was out of sight
You sent me to the moon
I caught the desolation bus
There was no-one there but us
I saw your shadow on the sand
You sent me to the moon
Down every road we’ve ever walked
Every place we strayed or talked
When we were higher than the wind
I went searching all the stars
Between the avenues and bars
You were everywhere I went
In a different universe
You sent me to the moon
Across the frozen wastes of old
Where the howling wind blew cold
Where I lost you in the snow
You sent me to the moon
Although I didn’t want to know
But I built myself a home
Between the rainbow and the stones
I was frozen to the bone
In the icy wind of truth
I was free and on my own
In my castle on the moon
You sent me to the moon
Across a silent sea of sand
I was reaching for your hand
But you were standing on a hill
(Thanks to Tailor Bell for 'higher than the wind')
We'll Wish
Put your head on my shoulder
and we'll watch the stars tonight.
We'll wish upon the shooting stars
for heaven's love delight.
We'll rest against the kissing tree
just the two of us, you and me.
We'll watch the moon rise
as night comes to call,
feel the warmth of our bodies
if any cold wind should fall.
5 May 2012
poem by David Harris
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Instant Karma
Three, four...
Instant karmas gonna get you,
Gonna knock you right on the head.
You better get yourself together,
Pretty soon youre gonna be dead.
What in the world you thinking of
Laughing in the face of love?
What on earth you tryin to do?
Its up to you, yeah, you!
Instant karmas gonna get you,
Gonna look you right in the face.
Better get yourself together, darlin,
Join the human race.
How in the world you gonna see,
Laughing at fools like me?
Who on earth do you think you are,
A superstar? well, all right, you are!
Well, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Well, we all shine on,
Evryone, come on!
Instant karmas gonna get you,
Gonna knock you off your feet.
Better recognise your brothers,
Evryone you meet.
Why in the world are we here?
Surely not to live in pain and fear.
Why on earth are you there?
When youre evrywhere, come and get your share.
Well, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Yeah, we all shine on,
Come on and on and on, on, on.
Yeah, yeah, all right,
Ah ha,
Ah.
Well, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Yeah, we all shine on,
On and on and on, on and on.
Well, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Well, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Well, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Yeah, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Well, we all shine on.
song performed by by Yoko Ono
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Six Significant Landscapes
I.
An old man sits
In the shadow of a pine tree
In China.
He sees larkspur,
Blue and white,
At the edge of the shadow,
Move in the wind.
His beard moves in the wind.
The pine tree moves in the wind.
Thus water flows
Over weeds.
II.
The night is of the colour
Of a woman's arm:
Night, the female,
Obscure,
Fragrant and supple,
Conceals herself.
A pool shines,
Like a bracelet
Shaken in a dance.
III.
I measure myself
Against a tall tree.
I find that I am much taller,
For I reach right up to the sun,
With my eye;
And I reach to the shore of the sea
With my ear.
Nevertheless, I dislike
The way ants crawl
In and out of my shadow.
IV.
When my dream was near the moon,
The white folds of its gown
Filled with yellow light.
The soles of its feet
Grew red.
Its hair filled
With certain blue crystallizations
From stars,
Not far off.
V.
Not all the knives of the lamp-posts,
Nor the chisels of the long streets,
Nor the mallets of the domes
And high towers,
Can carve
What one star can carve,
Shining through the grape-leaves.
VI.
Rationalists, wearing square hats,
Think, in square rooms,
Looking at the floor,
Looking at the ceiling.
They confine themselves
To right-angled triangles.
If they tried rhomboids,
Cones, waving lines, ellipses --
As, for example, the ellipse of the half-moon --
Rationalists would wear sombreros.
poem by Wallace Stevens
Submitted by Dan Costinaş
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One More Night
One more night, the stars are in sight
But tonight Im as lonesome as can be.
Oh, the moon is shinin bright,
Lighting evrything in sight,
But tonight no light will shine on me.
Oh, its shameful and its sad,
I lost the only pal I had,
I just could not be what she wanted me to be.
I will turn my head up high
To that dark and rolling sky,
For tonight no light will shine on me.
I was so mistaken when I thought that shed be true,
I had no idea what a woman in love would do!
One more night, I will wait for the light
While the wind blows high above the tree.
Oh, I miss my darling so, I didnt mean to see her go,
But tonight no light will shine on me.
One more night, the moon is shinin bright
And the wind blows high above the tree.
Oh, I miss that woman so,
I didnt mean to see her go,
But tonight no light will shine on me.
song performed by by Bob Dylan
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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An Imagination
intentionally i let my right hand hold my left hand
my left hand holds the branch of a tree that
holds some leaves,
my feet are on the trunk of a tree
beforehand i mentioned
there are clouds getting near us
fog that promise a cover
out there oceans sing
stars hang themselves upon a path of the horizon
all imaginary ceilings
where the moon behaves like one big chandelier
there are moment when stars and moon are simply themselves
as moon and stars without
self-imposed meanings and then all that we describe
is that it is the moon and they are the stars
no sauce for more words
nothing added nothing subtracted
faithful to the phenomenon of the stillness of what we see
to still this restlessness
we focus on what we have
a hand holding another hand
a head that looks upward to the heavens
a foot rooted like the roots of a tree
leaves falling like the wind
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Change
Change
Said the sun to the moon,
You cannot stay.
Change
Says the moon to the waters,
All is flowing.
Change
Says the fields to the grass,
Seed-time and harvest,
Chaff and grain.
You must change said,
Said the worm to the bud,
Though not to a rose,
Petals fade
That wings may rise
Borne on the wind.
You are changing
said death to the maiden, your wan face
To memory, to beauty.
Are you ready to change?
Says the thought to the heart, to let her pass
All your life long
For the unknown, the unborn
In the alchemy
Of the world's dream?
You will change,
says the stars to the sun,
Says the night to the stars.
poem by Kathleen Jessie Raine
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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A Theme On Unrequited Love Via The Moon And Sun
the sun in its might
finds meaning
to the moon and stars
at night
love sought
love not found
and always in its heavens
love is unrequited
for the meaning of his might
and sunshine
is always that pain
and longing
the moon and stars
are waiting
and the sun
always
cannot reach
them
fate and nature has it
on its design
there is no meeting
there is no fulfillment
but come to think about all these
what if one day
when the sun and moon come
and make love
will this earth not burn
with their passions?
will we all still be here
on that fatal day?
will not all the stars explode
with envy?
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Night Sky
Stars aglow in the night sky
Pass so quietly by,
Is it us or them
Who return again?
We to see
And they to stay,
Or possibly tis
The other way.
And who
Really sees who,
In the night so dark
Filled with the deepest blue?
If the moon
Never again shines,
Could it be a sign
Of the end-times?
Or just a loss of sight
On my part?
The result of losing (with cynicism)
The natural vision of wonder, in the human heart.
For to see magic
In the moon and stars,
Is to truly look
Deep and far...
Not simply in a night sky,
Rather into the soul,
Where all good things
Freely come and go.
Even if the stars no longer shown
In my little night sky for to see,
Ever, I'd keep returning
Looking; I for they... and they for me.
poem by Smoky Hoss
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Instant Karma
Instant karmas gonna get you
Gonna knock you right on the head
You better get yourself together
Pretty soon youre gonna be dead
What in the world you thinking of
Laughing in the face of love
What on earth you tryin to do
Its up to you, yeah you
Instant karmas gonna get you
Gonna look you right in the face
Better get yourself together darlin
Join the human race
How in the world you gonna see
Laughin at fools like me
Who in the hell dyou think you are
A super star
Well, right you are
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well we all shine on
Evryone come on
Instant karmas gonna get you
Gonna knock you off your feet
Better recognize your brothers
Evryone you meet
Why in the world are we here
Surely not to live in pain and fear
Why on earth are you there
When youre evrywhere
Come and get your share
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah we all shine on
Come on and on and on on on
Yeah yeah, alright, uh huh, ah
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah we all shine on
On and on and on on and on
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
song performed by by Lennon John
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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