Brown Paper Bag
Brown paper bag
Squalid incomplete
slumped to the side of the street
Like unwanted sacks of garbage
She left her track her smell
And like the brown paper bag
She had travelled well
She had a whole world in her head
Her first love
The man she wed
And the drink and the smoke
And the four o clock bloke
That returned with a bottle in a brown paper bag
And better days before
When she had carried her first round fruit
When the brown paper bag was waxed new
And he carried his bride to the door
Then the four o clock bloke
Full of stale wine and stale smoke
With a bottle in a brown paper bag
How he called her a hag
And that first punch to the floor
And the brown paper bags fell by her side
Crumpled and stained
And the liquor cans and the four o clock man
Who never spoke
Left her broke
Bones shattered in pieces
Flesh bare to the wind
Body out on the street
Skin tanned dirt brown
Hair matted locks
And two brown paper bags tied with string to her feet
yvette m smith 11.2.09
poem by Yvette Smith
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A Paper Boat On A Murky River
on your hand is a paper boat
you made last night
on a rainy day like this
you put on a gray rain coat
the river rises
perfect for your scheme
you put the boat gently
on the brown water
white paper boat
carried by this murkiness
your hands push
the paper boat leaves
tonight you sleep on
the wooden floor
it is mahogany brown and you
become the paper boat
sailing inside your dream
the floor becomes the big river
your thoughts become the wind
your eyes become two moons
the room is as dark as the night
the dream is so alive like a mother's song.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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The brown bag, of course, had its imperfections. While some kids carried roast beef sandwiches, others had peanut butter. I have no way of knowing if all of those brown bags contained 'nutritionally adequate diets.' But I do know that those brown bags and those lunch pails symbolized parental love and responsibility.
quote by Charles Mathias, Jr.
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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a poem for Rosie
the castle of paper
that we create from a
sheet of white
bond paper
stands on the brown
table
tall and proud so
they say
but we know Rosie
that this is just plain
creativity
could be a way of
expressing your
self's discontent of the
surroundings
the foul air
the heavy rain that
seems not to stop
the muddy path
to the market and the
church
betraying fate
and foolish friends
but you know Rosie
very well that nothing
lasts forever
the water paper
the paper castle
gathers dusts
and soon we are fed up
on this
i am going away and
you too
but we shall not
be together for i also
get fed up
on you as you shall soon
to me.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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Upon this paper my life is written
Upon this paper my life is written,
a tree doubled over in pain.
The red ink flows over the skin,
full stops and commas are hair and stars:
eyes of sea left on ships,
destroyed houses, rusting girders.
This paper is as black as the storm,
destroyed villages where there is no fiesta.
This paper burns as reason does,
lightning in the sky flashes in its millions.
This paper is a sky where there is no God,
this paper is alone…
this paper does not fly…
this paper… it is I.
poem by Menotti Lerro from The Poetry of Menotti Lerro (2011), translated by Andrew Mangham, Maria Rosaria La Marca
Submitted by anonym
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Paper Boy
Roy orbison
I walk down to the blue side of town
Where there's no happiness, no joy
Down at the end of a long dark street
I saw a little paper boy
Paper boy paper boy
I've got bad news for you
Paper boy paper boy
Me and my baby are through
She was my love my one and only
I feel so bad i'm oh so lonely
I'm looking for my love
I've got my own headlines for today
They've been the same since she went away
"one dark haired angel disappears
She's been missing for a million years"
Paper boy paper boy
So long goodbye
Paper boy paper boy
Thanks for listening while i cry
I feel a little better now that someone knows
But i will go on looking forever, i suppose
I'm looking for my love
Extra extra read all about it
My baby's gone and i wanna shout it
I'm looking for my love
I'm looking for my love
I'm looking for my love....
song performed by by Roy Orbison
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Nut-Brown Ale
THE nut-brown ale, the nut-brown ale,
Puts down all drink when it is stale!
The toast, the nutmeg, and the ginger
Will make a sighing man a singer.
Ale gives a buffet in the head,
But ginger under-props the brain;
When ale would strike a strong man dead
Then nutmeg tempers it again.
The nut-brown ale, the nut-brown ale,
Puts down all drink when it is stale!
poem by John Marston
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Paper In Fire
She had a dream
And boy it was a good one
So she chased after her dream
With much desire
But when she get too close
To her expectations
Well the dream burned up
Like paper in fire
Chorus:
Paper in fire
Stinkin up the ashtrays
Paper in fire
Smokin up the alleyways
Whos to say the way
A man should spend his days
Do you let them smolder
Like paper in fire
He wanted love
With no involvement
So he chased the wind
Thats all his silly life required
And the days of vanity
Went on forever
And he saw his days burn up
Like paper in fire
Chorus:
Paper in fire
Stinkin up the ashtrays
Paper in fire
Smokin up the alleyways
Whos to say the way
A man should spend his days
Do you let them smolder
Like paper in fire
Theres a good life
Right across the green fields
And each generation
Stares at it from afar
But we keep no check
On our appetites
So the green fields turn to brown
Like paper in fire
Chorus:
Paper in fire
Stinkin up the ashtrays
Paper in fire
Smokin up the alleyways
Whos to say the way
A man should spend his days
Do you let them smolder
Like paper in fire
song performed by by John Mellencamp
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Brown Skin
Brown skin, you know I love your brown skin
I cant tell where yours begins, I cant tell where mine ends
Brown skin, up against my brown skin
Need some every now and thenoh hey
Where are your people from? maybe mississippi or an island
Apparently your skin has been kissed by the sun
You make me want a hersheys kiss, your licorice
Every time I see your lips, it makes me think of honey-coated chocolate
Your kisses are worth more than gold to me
Ill be your almond joy, youll be my sugar daddy
Brown skin, you know I love your brown skin
I cant tell where yours begins, I cant tell where mine ends
Brown skin, up against my brown skin
Need some every now and thenoh hey
Every time you come around, something magnetic pulls me and I cant get out
Disoriented, I cant tell my up from down
All I know is that I wanna lay you down
Every time I let you in, abracadabra magic happens as we swim
Higher and higher finally we reach heaven
Come back to earth and then we do it all again
Yeah..
Brown skin, you know I love your brown skin
I cant tell where yours begins, I cant tell where mine ends
Brown skin, up against my brown skin
Need some every now and thenoh hey
Skin so brown, lips so round
Baby how can I be down?
Beautiful mahogany, you make me feel like a queen
Tell me whats that thing you do that makes me wanna get next to you, yeah
Brown skin, you know I love your brown skin
I cant tell where yours begins, I cant tell where mine ends
Brown skin, up against my brown skin
Need some every now and thenoh hey
Brown skin, you know I love your brown skin
I cant tell where yours begins, I cant tell where mine ends
Brown skin, up against my brown skin
Need some every now and thenoh hey
song performed by by India Arie
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Paper And Pen
Paper and pen
Trying to write a song again
Paper and pen
Paper and pen
Paper and pen
Trying to write a song again
Paper and pen
Paper and pen
Can’t think of anything to say today
Can’t think of anything to do
Can’t think of anything to play today
Minds gone blank
Leaving me here, just sitting here
Listening to my hair grow
Paper and pen
Paper and pen
And I look towards you
For an inspiration or a word or two
I try but I find
Every road only leads me back to these lines
Paper and pen
Paper and pen
Paper and pen
Piano, guitar
I try but don't get very far
Paper and pen
Piano, guitar
Paper and pen
Trying to write a song again
Paper and pen
Paper and pen
Copyright Colin Coplin 1985 / 2010
poem by Colin Coplin
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Of Our Own Bias And Prejudice
he is proud
to be brown all over
not raw
neither overcooked
arrogance does not
however
make him brown
as in hardcore
ideologist
for he too loves
the blackness of the night
the orangeness of the sunset
the redness of the rose
the whiteness of
glossy paper
he loves brown
because that is what he is made of
humanity in shades
of rainbow colors
this, too, he loves to see
when it rains
and when the sun shines
early morning
between two cliffs
with a waterfall between
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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Brown Baby
Oscar brown jr
Brown baby brown baby
As you grow up I want you to drink from the plenty cup
I want you to stand up tall and proud
And I want you to speak up clear and loud
Brown baby brown baby brown baby
As years go by I want you to go with your head up high
I want you to live by the justice code
And I want you to walk down freedoms road
You little brown baby
So lie away lie away spleeping lie away singing
Lie away sleeping lie away safe in my arms
Till your daddy and you mama protect you
? nd keep you safe from harm
Brown baby
It makes me glad you gonna have things that I never had
When out of mens heart all hate is hurled
Sweetie you gonna live in a better world
Brown baby brown baby brown baby
song performed by by Nina Simone
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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One Of My Happiest Days
father and mother that time
split
like a bamboo unable to take
the sway anymore of the
wind's selfish dance
and you sister
remembered my birthday and
you gave me this gift:
a brown sweatshirt inside
a brown box
wrapped with brown manila paper
cool earth i touched, the place where all my roots are
and you are there as i poured it with tears
not the sad ones my dear sister
but tears of joy for your kind remembering
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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A Forty-Year-Old Virgin
She stood well out from the crowd
a brown paper bag over her head
with four holes cut out
for her eyes, nose and mouth.
She proclaimed she was a virgin
and you could very well see why.
Imagine going out with someone
who resembled the man in the iron mask.
Her clothes were old fashion,
hand-me-downs from her great grandmother.
Other women got into trouble
but it will never happen to me,
everyone agreed it would never happen to her.
She said she was waiting for Mr Right to come along.
From the state of her, it would be a long time coming to,
so everyone remarked and thought.
Then the impossible happened,
she met a man with a paper bag on his head.
It was love at first sight.
Right away, she knew this was the man for her.
They married on the thirteenth,
as neither was superstitious.
The photographer at the wedding asked them to take off their bags. Slowly they removed them and everyone gasped,
no one could believe their eyes.
They looked like two butterflies
emerging from their cocoons.
Both were what you pictured
the perfect couple should be.
He was ruggedly handsome
and she could have outshone any beauty queen.
As for the paper bags
they lived happily ever after as well.
13 September 2009
poem by David Harris
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Brown Baby
(oscar brown jr.)
Brown baby
Brown baby
As you grow up
I want you to drink from the plenty cup
I want you to stand up
Tall and proud
I want you to speak up
Speak up clear and cloud
Brown baby
Brown baby
As years roll by
Walk with your head held high
I want you to live by
Live by the justice code
I want you to walk down
Walk down the freedom road
Brown baby
Brown baby
Now baby
Lie away
Lie away sleeping
Lie away here in my arms
While your mommy and daddy protect you
And keep you save from harm
Brown baby
Brown baby
It makes me so glad
That you will have things
Ive never had
When out of mens hearts
All the hate is hurled
Youre gonna live
Youre gonna live in a better world
Brown baby
Mmammamama
Brown baby
Mmammamama
Sweet thing
Lie away sleeping
song performed by by Diana Ross
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Warning to Children
Children, if you dare to think
Of the greatness, rareness, muchness
Fewness of this precious only
Endless world in which you say
You live, you think of things like this:
Blocks of slate enclosing dappled
Red and green, enclosing tawny
Yellow nets, enclosing white
And black acres of dominoes,
Where a neat brown paper parcel
Tempts you to untie the string.
In the parcel a small island,
On the island a large tree,
On the tree a husky fruit.
Strip the husk and pare the rind off:
In the kernel you will see
Blocks of slate enclosed by dappled
Red and green, enclosed by tawny
Yellow nets, enclosed by white
And black acres of dominoes,
Where the same brown paper parcel -
Children, leave the string alone!
For who dares undo the parcel
Finds himself at once inside it,
On the island, in the fruit,
Blocks of slate about his head,
Finds himself enclosed by dappled
Green and red, enclosed by yellow
Tawny nets, enclosed by black
And white acres of dominoes,
With the same brown paper parcel
Still untied upon his knee.
And, if he then should dare to think
Of the fewness, muchness, rareness,
Greatness of this endless only
Precious world in which he says
he lives - he then unties the string.
poem by Robert Graves
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Jackie Brown
Is this your life, jackie brown?
Poorly educated and forced to live on the poor side of town.
Is this your daughter, jackie brown?
This pretty little girl
In the worn out clothes
That have been hand-me down.
Is this your wife, jackie brown?
With sad blue eyes, walking on eggshells so you dont see her frown.
Is this your family, jackie brown?
Dream of vacationing on a mountain stream
And giving the world more than it gave you.
What ugly truths freedom brings
And it hasnt been very kind to you.
Is this your life, jackie brown?
Is this your meal, jackie brown?
Barely enough, Ive seen people throw away more than this out.
Is this your home, jackie brown?
This three room shack
With no running water
And the bathroom out back.
Is this your grave, jackie brown?
This little piece of limestone that says another desperate man took
Himself out.
Is this your dream, jackie brown?
Going nowhere and nowhere fast
We shame ourselves to watch people like this live.
But who gives a damn about jackie brown?
Just another lazy man who couldnt take what was his.
One helluva life jackie brown.
Forevermore, jackie brown
Amen and amen - jackie brown?
song performed by by John Mellencamp
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Flypapers at Auntie's House.
Flypapers hung in the kitchen
Of Auntie’s house. Death traps
For flies that buzzed at their ends
Or buzzed noisily from surface
To surface unaware the brown
Sticky strips were there to trap.
You stared at the long brown strips
Covered in flies, some buzzed fruitlessly,
Others were quiet and still, having
Given up the will to buzz or make noise
Just hanging there black corpses on
Brown paper, a graveyard swaying in
The draught from the wide open door
To buzz and fly and irritate no more.
poem by Terry Collett
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If.... (A Man)
if i shed a tear,
and wrapped it in brown paper...
and left it on your pillow,
would you hear the ocean?
if i laid my body down,
and became the wind....
that blew out your candle,
would you hear my heart?
if i chose to die,
for one moment of living...
and gave it to you without regret,
would you fly for a moment?
and if i loved you,
enough to turn deserts into rivers...
enough to turn brown leaves to green,
would you listen, would you listen?
and if i touched you,
with hands of fire and storm...
and my tongue undressed your eyes,
would you see me... a man!
poem by Eric Cockrell
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Sweet Georgia Brown
NO GAL MADE HAS GOT A SHADE
ON SWEET GEORGIA BROWN,
TWO LEFT FEET, OH, SO NEAT,
HAS SWEET GEORGIA BROWN!
THEY ALL SIGH, AND WANT TO DIE,
FOR SWEET GEORGIA BROWN!
I'LL TELL YOU JUST WHY,
YOU KNOW I DON'T LIE, NOT MUCH:
IT'S BEEN SAID SHE KNOCKS 'EM DEAD,
WHEN SHE LANDS IN TOWN!
SINCE SHE CAME, WHY IT'S A SHAME,
HOW SHE COOLS THEM DOWN!
FELLAS SHE CAN'T GET
MUST BE FELLAS SHE AIN'T MET!
GEORGIA CLAIMED HER, GEORGIA NAMED HER,
SWEET GEORGIA BROWN!
NO GAL MADE HAS GOT A SHADE
ON SWEET GEORGIA BROWN,
TWO LEFT FEET, OH, SO NEAT,
HAS SWEET GEORGIA BROWN!
THEY ALL SIGH, AND WANT TO DIE,
FOR SWEET GEORGIA BROWN!
I'LL TELL YOU JUST WHY,
YOU KNOW I DON'T LIE; NOT MUCH:
ALL THOSE GIFTS THOSE COURTERS GIVE,
TO SWEET GEORGIA BROWN,
THEY BUY CLOTHES AT FASHION SHOWS,
WITH ONE DOLLAR DOWN,
OH, BOY! TIP YOUR HAT!
OH, JOY! SHE'S THE CAT!
WHO'S THAT, MISTER? 'TAIN'T A SISTER!
SWEET GEORGIA BROWN!
song performed by by Louis Armstrong
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Ballad Of Go-go Brown
If thats why they call him go-go brown
Hed say (? )
If thats why some people put him down
Hed say it costs his name as go-go brown
All the girls in town
Used to follow him around
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
All the boys would sing
Were gonna make this go-go king
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
Go-go brown is the smartest guy by far
A brand new girlfriend and a brand new car
The girls all thought that he was heaven-sent
one day this boy will be a president
All the church bells ring
When that go-go used to sing
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
Here the people say
hes gonna be someone someday
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
Then one day some bad men came to call
And go-go knew its time to take a fall
Hes been smoking since the age of ten
He took some crack, he sold some smack
And now hes in the pen
All the girls in town
Used to follow him around
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
All the boys would sing
Were gonna make this go-go king
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
He raised them all
Yes he do
He faced the wall
Yes he did
He stood tall
Yes he do
Who did he let down
Just one man thats go-go brown (? )
All the church bells ring
When that go-go used to sing
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
Here the people say
hes gonna be someone someday
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
All the girls in town
Used to follow him around
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
All the boys would sing
Were gonna make that go-go king
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
All the girls in town
Used to follow him around
Go-go brown
Go-go brown
song performed by by Heaven 17
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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