Poetry Meditations: Recent Episodes
Easton E
Welcome to Poetry Meditations where I read you short stories and poems about whatever I like. Narrated by Easton E.
A frog goes into a bank and approaches the teller. He can see from her nameplate that the teller's name is Patricia Whack. So he says, "Ms. Whack, I'd like to get a loan to buy a boat and go on a long vacation." Patti looks at the frog in disbelief and asks how much he wants to borrow.
The frog says $30,000.
The teller asks his name and the frog says that his name is Kermit Jagger, his dad is Mick Jagger, and that it's OK, he knows the bank manager.
Patti explains that $30,000 is a substantial amount of money and that he will need to secure some collateral against the loan. She asks if he has anything he can use as collateral.
The frog says, "Sure. I have this," and produces a tiny pink porcelain elephant, about half an inch tall, bright pink and perfectly formed.
Very confused, Patti explains that she'll have to consult with the manager and disappears into a back office.
She finds the manager and says "There's a frog called Kermit Jagger out there who claims to know you and wants to borrow $30,000. He wants to use this as collateral." She holds up the tiny pink elephant. "I mean, what the heck is this?"
The bank manager looks back at her and says: "It's a knick knack, Patti Whack. Give the frog a loan. His old man's a Rolling Stone"
As the Sun Stands Still Waylander
Arise in glory, feel the power of the Sun The land sparkles like emeralds With every progeny of green I can feel the grass grow, Beneath my feet. I can smell the bounty, Yet to yield. And the night fades so fast, In a pre dawn sky, Golden Lúgh, Eternal eye.
Leap through the flames of The fire upon the hill. Today is the day when The sun stands still. May the rays of the sun Energise, light your way Feast, make marry, On the longest day.
Dance skyclad by firelight From dusk until dawn. Celebration of life Worship the Sun. Partake of the gifts The fruits of the land As the God of the Sun Walks with Anú, hand in hand.
The shadows shorten, The sun climbs high, Not a cloud to be seen, In the bluest of skies. Spirits of the land Spirits of this place Hear our call Hear our cry. I am the fire, That burns within your soul, I am the flame within, That will never die. I am the sacred light, That makes your whole, I am the mighty sun, That will never rise.
Ingredients * 1 quarter ham boneless, pre-cooked or smoked, refrigerated - ours was about 4 lbs. * 1/2 c pineapple juice or fresh orange juice * 1 c brown sugar * 1/2 c honey * 1/4 c water cold * 3 tbsp cornstarch * 1 onion sliced * 4 sprigs fresh thyme * 4-5 whole cloves optional Instructions * Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Place your boneless, sliced, quartered, pre cooked/smoked ham cut side down into your dutch oven. * Slice your onion and sprinkle into pot. Push whole cloves into your ham if you want to add these for flavor. * Whisk together your brown sugar, pineapple juice, and honey well and pour this on top of your ham. * Lay fresh sprigs of thyme on top and around ham. * Put lid on and put into oven. Bake a smoked ham for 15 minutes per pound approximately or until internal temp. taken in the middle of your ham reaches 145 degrees. (refer to cook time chart in post, time depends on type of ham you have). Baste half way through if you're able. * Take ham out and put on to a cutting board, allow it to rest while you are making ham glaze. * Take out and discard sprigs of thyme. Take onions out and put into a bowl to serve on the side. * Put dutch oven on your stovetop on medium heat (or pour liquid into a small pot if you'd rather). In a small bowl combine 1/4 c. cold water and 3 tbsp of cornstarch. Whisk together. * Once ham liquid bubbles consistently, pour your cornstarch mixture into the pot and stir. * Continue to stir as it thickens (won't take much longer than a minute or so to reach a thick consistency once it's continually bubbling). Remove from heat and pour into a gravy boat to serve on the table and pour on top of ham slices. * Slice your ham if it isn't already and serve along side ham glaze and onions.
Dear Loser. [Chris!!!!! I thought you liked me you said it yourself I hate you People only say you asked me out because you needed a date fo the dance and that after the dance you would dump me well guess what basterti dumped you cause you were thinking that i cheated on you i didnt so like idiots that you guys are and so smart that you are you called me a slut. I hung up on you cause you tol me it on the phone because i guess you werent man enough to tell me it in my face lI hate you and als. guess what my mother hates you to that she the one who put me to do this , you come to breakfast every moming and I aint stupid you try to sit next to me and my lil bro who only 7YRS old hates you to and dont even know what you did and is always blocking your chair hahalI went out with another boy after you and after we were over you an idiot dares you even tried to ask me out again i didnt break up with him for you OKI I hate you ive always hated you spreading to everyone that i cheated on you when you just got jealouse that i used to talk to your friends to your so jealouse you automatically think i like them well guess maybe i do maybe i dont gotta problem you aint my boyfriend anymore I dont have to tell you who i like or who iam with and why got it i dont like you anymore the other day you told me that I have to tell you who I like or who Iam thinking of going out with its none of your buisness got that to you loserlI hate you an I know you still like me but i dont like you i dont care what your stupid friends say you make me touch your hands for stupid reasons u accidentally say you hugged me i will never like you again I HATE YOU I HATE YOU MORE THAN ANYTHING IN THIS DAMN WORLDDDDDDDDDD id rather date a spider or rat den u ur soooo waly and fat I!!!!!!||! And then saving that i loooooooved you pleassssel!!!!!||I/Your such n ass wipe n bastert!! I HATE Y0000000000U Well bi vou piece of shit i have more things to do right now then remember YOU
I drive up and down Harlem blocks Iced out watch Knots in my socks Cops think I'm selling rocks Pulling me over to see if I'm drunk But I'm sober They wouldn't fuck with me if I drove a Nova Listen Columbo you're mad because your money come slow And what you make in a year I make in one show Now you wanna frisk me and search my ride Call me all kinda names try to hurt my pride You're just mad cause I'm a young cat, pockets dumb fat Talkin' bout: Where the gun at? I been there and done that I'm through with that illegal life, I'm stayin legit I love to see cars come cruisin' bye and playin' my shit I walk around with six thou' without a pist-ol, my whole cliques wild I'm rich pal, no more sticks I'm makin hits now I drink Cristal, I'm through breakin' laws I don't sell coke anymore, I do tours So get that flashlight out of my face To bring me down them Jakes'll do whatever it takes Word up them federals got my phone and my house tapped Praying that I fall for the mouse trap, I doubt that Why do I end up in so much shit? I done came way too far to be callin' it quits Jake wanna lock me up, even though I'm legit They can't stand to see a young brother pockets get thick
Love's Coming By Ella Wheeler Wilcox She had looked for his coming as warriors come, With the clash of arms and the bugle's call; But he came instead with a stealthy tread, Which she did not hear at all. She had thought how his armor would blaze in the sun, As he rode like a prince to claim his bride: In the sweet dim light of the falling night She found him at her side. She had dreamed how the gaze of his strange, bold eye Would wake her heart to a sudden glow: She found in his face the familiar grace Of a friend she used to know. She had dreamed how his coming would stir her soul, As the ocean is stirred by the wild storm's strife: He brought her the balm of a heavenly calm, And a peace which crowned her life.
The Thunder Mutters by John Clare The thunder mutters louder & more loud With quicker motion hay folks ply the rake Ready to burst slow sails the pitch-black cloud & all the gang a bigger haycock make To sit beneath—the woodland winds awake The drops so large wet all through’ in an hour A tiny flood runs down the leaning rake In the sweet hay yet dry the hay folks cower & some beneath the wagon shun the shower.
Old love by D.W. Rodgers Our fire, which once shone brightly through the night, whilst tempered by age, is no less warm and still burns slow with cherry embers bright to keep us safe and sheltered through life’s storm. Our light may dim, yet always kept its mark though summer doldrums, winter’s icy gale to show our path and guide us through the dark hold steadfast to our course let love prevail. In time, our flame gave rise to three new sparks to nurture, guide and teach of worldly ways and then release to find their own true arcs and bear this fire to yonder days. Face lined, flesh soft, and hair now grey together love we greet each coming day.
The Loss of Love by Countee Cullen All through an empty place I go, And find her not in any room; The candles and the lamps I light Go down before a wind of gloom. Thick-spraddled lies the dust about, A fit, sad place to write her name Or draw her face the way she looked That legendary night she came. The old house crumbles bit by bit; Each day I hear the ominous thud That says another rent is there For winds to pierce and storms to flood. My orchards groan and sag with fruit; Where, Indian-wise, the bees go round; I let it rot upon the bough; I eat what falls upon the ground. The heavy cows go laboring In agony with clotted teats; My hands are slack; my blood is cold; I marvel that my heart still beats. I have no will to weep or sing, No least desire to pray or curse; The loss of love is a terrible thing; They lie who say that death is worse.
Storms by Chubbie Bunny Dark clouds roll in over the calm waters Winds howl and signs tilt and totter As I sit and watch the big storm roll in Waves crash hard onto the sandy beaches Bright lights strike fast on the water it reaches As I sit and watch the big storm begin From the black sky, mounds of rain start to pour And boom crashes fill the open shore As I sit and watch the big storm hit peak Lights begin to dim, thunder grows quiet As nature starts to storms the storms riot As I sit and watch the big storm grow weak The seas calm and the black clouds disappear A sight of beauty to all who are near As I sit and view the storms creation
Apple Crate 6850 Vineland Avenue Bldg. M North Hollywood, California 91605 Document NDP 101A
Once There Was a Love
Once the world around me was beautiful and serene and my life was filled with fiery passion and desire. But those flames are becoming embers in my memories, in reveries of a lost love for which I desperately yearn.
It's become such a ponderous burden, leaving deep scars upon my wounded heart. When in the gloom of night, I see his handsome face, waves of emotions rise and fall inside of me, for when his visits end, I'm left alone upon the shore.
With haunting thoughts of all that we once shared, I wake with lingering images of being held in his arms. Never have I been willing to accept the emptiness I feel. Pensively, I search the horizon expecting him to appear. It’s with misplaced hope that I imagine him there.
I walk the beach at dawn and to the ocean I confide my wish to be with him, if God would close His eyes. Hindered by knowing it's not the course I should take, but feeling as though I'm drowning within an abyss, A bottomless pit from which I will never escape.
Once, there was a great love, yet sometimes it seems it was but a dream, and now all traces of us are fading, for each time I draw his name with mine in the sand the tide rushes in and quickly washes them both away. By Jenny Logan https://www.poetrysoup.com/poem/once_there_was_a_love_1495507
On the night we dug up your father’s body (for reasons I can no longer remember) we took turns with the shovel as we passed a bottle of Whyte & Mackay back and forth. You didn't say anything until we opened his casket: looking at his corpse you said, “He’s smaller than I remembered” and then walked away, leaving the scotch and the shovel behind. The next day, when the police came to the apartment, they didn't say anything— really— even though we were covered in dirt and stunk of death. After they left, you made breakfast, and we watched black-and-white movies until it was time to go to bed.
By James Millhaven
When you are old and grey and full of sleep, And nodding by the fire, take down this book, And slowly read, and dream of the soft look Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep; How many loved your moments of glad grace, And loved your beauty with love false or true, But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you, And loved the sorrows of your changing face; And bending down beside the glowing bars, Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled And paced upon the mountains overhead And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.
I got you stuck off the realness, we be the infamous You heard of us, official Queensbridge murderers The Mobb comes equipped for warfare, beware Of my crime family who got 'nough shots to share For all of those, who wanna profile and pose Rock you in your face, stab your brain with your nose bone You all alone in these streets, cousin Every man for they self in this land we be gunning And keep them shook crews running, like they supposed to They come around but they never come close to I can see it inside your face, you're in the wrong place (yo, who that?) Cowards like you just get they whole body laced up (who that right there? I don't know, son) With bullet holes and such (we gon' get 'em though) Speak the wrong words, man, and you will get touched (you see him? Aight) You can put your whole army against my team and I guarantee you it'll be your very last time breathing Your simple words just don't move me, you're minor, we're major You're all up in the game and don't deserve to be a player Don't make me have to call your name out Your crew is featherweight, my gunshots'll make you levitate I'm only nineteen but my mind is old And when the things get for real my warm heart turns cold Another- deceased, another story gets told It ain't nothing really, ayo Dun, spark the Philly So I can get my mind off these yellowbacked- Why they still alive? I don't know, go figure Meanwhile back in Queens the realness and foundation If I die, I couldn't choose a better location When the slugs penetrate, you feel a burning sensation Getting closer to God in a tight situation Now, take these words home and think it through Or the next rhyme I write might be about you Son, they shook 'Cause ain't no such things as halfway crooks Scared to death and scared to look, they shook 'Cause ain't no such things as halfway crooks Scared to death and scared to look Living the live that of diamonds and guns There's numerous ways you can choose to earn funds (funds) Some brothers get shot, locked down and turn nuns Cowardly hearts and straight up shook ones, shook ones He ain't a crook, son, he's just a shook one For every rhyme I write it's twenty-five to life Yo, it's a must, in gats we trust, safeguarding my life Ain't no time for hesitation, that only leads to incarceration You don't know me, there's no relation Queensbridge and we don't play, I don't got time For your petty thinking mind, son, I'm bigger than those Claiming that you pack heat but you're scared to hold And once the smoke clears you'll be left with one in your dome Thirteen years in the projects, my mentality is what, kid? You talk a good one but you don't want it Sometimes I wonder, "Do I deserve to live Or am I gonna burn in Hell for all the things I did?" No time to dwell on that 'cause my brain reacts Front if you want, kid, lay on your back I don't fake jax, kid, you know I bring it to you live Stay in a child's place, kid, you outta line Criminal minds thirsty for recognition I'm sipping, E&J got my mind flipping I'm bugging, digging my ways out of holes by hustling Get that loot, kid, you know my function (function) 'Cause long as I'm alive I'ma live illegal And once I get on I'ma put on all my people (yo, yo) React quick, spit lyrics like MACs, I hit your dome up When I roll up, don't be caught sleeping 'cause I'm creeping Son, they shook 'Cause ain't no such things as halfway crooks Scared to death and scared to look, they shook (he just a shook one) 'Cause ain't no such things as halfway crooks Scared to death and scared to look, they shook (We live the life that of diamonds) 'Cause ain't no such things as halfway crooks Scared to death, scared to look, they shook 'Cause ain't no such things as halfway crooks Living the live that of diamonds and guns There's numerous ways you can choose to earn funds (funds) Some brothas get shot, locked down and turn nuns Cowardly hearts and straight up shook ones, shook ones He ain't a crook, son, he's just a shook one
You sit in the forgotten bone-dry hills surrounded by sand and sagebrush above Buffalo Pound Lake.
A day and a night, and then three more days and nights. Do not mark the hours. Just sit until the prickly pear raises its bloom.
A pale thing, translucent moon, sea anemone, the first thin veil of a cataract that will lead a man to the necessity of seeing with another kind of eye.
Can you birth a thing like this flower? Elemental, composed of water and light. The concentrated effort of pure will.
The blossom wilts and drops without sadness, nothing resembling nostalgia or regret.
He wants to be a brutal old man, an aggressive old man, as dull, as brutal as the emptiness around him,
He doesn’t want compromise, nor to be ever nice to anyone. Just mean, and final in his brutal, his total, rejection of it all.
He tried the sweet, the gentle, the “oh, let’s hold hands together” and it was awful, dull, brutally inconsequential.
Now he’ll stand on his own dwindling legs. His arms, his skin, shrink daily. And he loves, but hates equally.
A half-hour.
Thirty minutes.
One thousand eight hundred seconds.
They sat.
Protest is not supposed to be comfortable.
Civil disobedience does not fit into pristine conformist ideals of opposition.
You are supposed to feel something.
Upset?
Was your perfect day ruined?
Good.
That's the point.
Laugh, and the world laughs with you; Weep, and you weep alone; For the sad old earth must borrow its mirth, But has trouble enough of its own. Sing, and the hills will answer; Sigh, it is lost on the air; The echoes bound to a joyful sound, But shrink from voicing care.
Rejoice, and men will seek you; Grieve, and they turn and go; They want full measure of all your pleasure, But they do not need your woe. Be glad, and your friends are many; Be sad, and you lose them all,— There are none to decline your nectared wine, But alone you must drink life’s gall.
Feast, and your halls are crowded; Fast, and the world goes by. Succeed and give, and it helps you live, But no man can help you die. There is room in the halls of pleasure For a large and lordly train, But one by one we must all file on Through the narrow aisles of pain. More About this Poem Related
There, Robert, you have kill'd that fly — , And should you thousand ages try The life you've taken to supply, You could not do it.
You surely must have been devoid Of thought and sense, to have destroy'd A thing which no way you annoy'd — You'll one day rue it.
Twas but a fly perhaps you'll say, That's born in April, dies in May; That does but just learn to display His wings one minute,
And in the next is vanish'd quite. A bird devours it in his flight — Or come a cold blast in the night, There's no breath in it.
The bird but seeks his proper food — And Providence, whose power endu'd That fly with life, when it thinks good, May justly take it.
But you have no excuses for't — A life by Nature made so short, Less reason is that you for sport Should shorter make it.
A fly a little thing you rate — But, Robert do not estimate A creature's pain by small or great; The greatest being
Can have but fibres, nerves, and flesh, And these the smallest ones possess, Although their frame and structure less Escape our seeing.