Poem of the Week: October 2019

10/30: Hear the Children Squeal with Fright

10/31: Hold On to What You Know

11/1: Horror Is a Comfort, Isn’t It?

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Hold On to What You Know

October 31, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is Halloween, which is celebrated on October 31.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A Halloween poem about the impossibility of shutting out the monsters within:

Hold on to what you know:

A tiny point of light.

Let the monsters be

Left slithering through the dark.

One by one they go,

Well kept well out of sight,

Even though we see

Each in fantasy.

Nor did they board the ark.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/holdo2.html. For more Halloween poems, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/halloweenpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Halloween

Hear the children squeal with fright,

10/30: Hear the Children Squeal with Fright

10/31: Hold On to What You Know

Hear the Children Squeal with Fright

October 30, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is Halloween, which is celebrated on October 31.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A Halloween poem about children’s enjoyment of Halloween fear:

Anxious pleasure, sheer delight,

Letting go their urge for flight,

Loving fear with all their might,

Old enough to know the rite

Well enough to last the night,

Even though the chest is tight,

Even though the limbs are light,

Now ready for the bliss of blight.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/hearth.html. For more Halloween poems, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/halloweenpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Halloween

10/30: Hear the Children Squeal with Fright

Monday, October 28, 2019

Here Is Neither Here nor There

October 29, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is Halloween, which is celebrated on October 31.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A Halloween poem about truth and dream:

Here is neither here nor there.

A moment’s never now.

Lest you don’t know what this means,

Let your world take wing.

Old verities, beyond repair,

Were neither what nor how,

Each a distillate of dreams,

Enduring hopes, enduring screams,

None can help but sing.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/herei2.html. For more Halloween poems, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/halloweenpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Halloween

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Hinder Not the Hobgoblins

October 28, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is Halloween, which is celebrated on October 31.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A Halloween poem about the psychological benefits of horror:

Hinder not the hobgoblins

As they wander through

Lands deserted, desolate,

Lands forbidden day.

Oh, yes, they’ve sampled mortal sins

We would never do,

Each a horror we create,

Enraged, tight-fisted, choked with hate …

Now let them out to play.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/hinde2.html. For more Halloween poems, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/halloweenpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Halloween

You'll Have to Woo Your Wife Again

October 27, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is marriage.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem about the need for romance after marriage:

You'll have to woo your wife again,

And then again, and then again,

As many times as there are times

A well-worn silence tells you when.

You'll have to play the lover new,

All hot to touch and squeeze and kiss,

All shivery with ecstasy

Unbuttoning the buds of bliss.

You'll have to re-seduce a flesh

Familiar as your own raw nude

With praise and passionate displays

Of need and joy and gratitude.

For you need not give up for life

The pure and simple gift of lust.

A marriage does as marriage is:

The play of pleasure, love, and trust.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/youllh.html. For more poems about marriage, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/marriagepoems.html .

This week’s theme: Marriage

10/25: My Anger Stands Between Us like a Wall

10/26: No Place to Put My Paramour

10/27: You’ll Have to Woo Your Wife Again

Friday, October 25, 2019

No Place to Put My Paramour

October 26, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is marriage.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem about the frustration of desiring love outside of marriage:

No place to put my paramour,

No sea to sail unknown,

Nowhere to bear my love away

That we might be alone.

No life but wife and children who

Must be with me till death.

No passion new nor passion true

That breathes with every breath.

No love but love invincible

That ties me to myself,

For I am why I cannot be

A sly, deceiving elf.

For I am why I cannot be

A person who risks pain,

And so I weep because I keep

My dreams alive in vain.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/noplac.html. For more poems about marriage, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/marriagepoems.html .

This week’s theme: Marriage

10/25: My Anger Stands Between Us like a Wall

10/26: No Place to Put My Paramour

Thursday, October 24, 2019

My Anger Stands Between Us like a Wall

October 25, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is marriage.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem about the need in a marriage to let go of anger:

My anger stands between us like a wall,

Or a river of burning brimstone straight from Hell.

I love you, and I want to love you well;

I call for help, but you can't hear my call.

I love you for the man that you've become

And for the years we've put into this life.

But all the pain I've suffered as your wife

Has left my poor, scarred spirit deaf and dumb.

God help me, please! I need to cross to you

And live the life I never thought we could.

Be patient with my anger, and the good

Within us will my fisted thoughts undo.

I know the fault is mine now, and I'll try

To let go of the wounded, dying past.

For us and for our son this has to last.

And so I bid my angry soul good-by.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/myange.html. For more poems about marriage, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/marriagepoems.html .

This week’s theme: Marriage

10/25: My Anger Stands Between Us like a Wall

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Marriage Is the Closest Kind of Friendship

October 24, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is marriage.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem about the closeness of a married couple:

Marriage is the closest kind of friendship.

Years of traffic wear away the lines

Between two souls with similar designs,

Ending more in unity than kinship.

Separate actors must play separate parts:

They must alone be riveted by need.

Far beneath that soil a single seed

Roots itself, tenacious in their hearts.

In love there is a trust beyond the word.

Each finds peace in each, as though the light

Needed the tranquility of night,

Deeper than what silence can be heard.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/marri3.html. For more poems about marriage, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/marriagepoems.html .

This week’s theme: Marriage

Marriage Is a Turn Towards Innocence

October 23, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is marriage.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem about the innocence of marriage and the need for will to sustain love:

Marriage is a turn towards innocence

As two vow what can only be naïve.

Romantic love, of course, comes more than once,

Returning with the fickleness of sense,

Interring what sweet semblance one would save.

Adults, however, know the story well,

Grasping the harsh truth of higher love,

Embracing what endures but through the will.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/marri6.html. For more poems about marriage, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/marriagepoems.html .

This week’s theme: Marriage

Monday, October 21, 2019

If I Had Married You Instead of Her

October 22, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is marriage.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem about regretting marrying the wrong person:

If I had married you instead of her,

I would not now be seething with regret,

Trapped by children, choked by dreams that were

My hopes before my life turned desolate.

I would not now be seething with regret

For having married more for lust than love.

My hopes before my life turned desolate

Now live but in the darkness where you move.

For having married more for lust than love,

I'm punished with a wife whom I despise.

I live but in the darkness where you move,

My hopes reflected in your azure eyes.

I'm punished with a wife whom I despise,

Trapped by children, choked by dreams that were

My hopes -- reflected in your azure eyes,

If I had married you instead of her.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/ifihad.html. For more poems about marriage, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/marriagepoems.html .

This week’s theme: Marriage

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Families Are the Girders Underneath

October 21, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is marriage.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem about how by creating families, marriages long outlast both husband and wife:

Families are the girders underneath

All the brick and mortar of our lives.

Marriages will rarely end in death:

In sons and daughters long they hold their breath,

Lingering far past the men and wives,

Yet heard in great-great grandchildren's joy and grief.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/famili.html. For more poems about marriage, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/marriagepoems.html .

This week’s theme: Marriage

The Forced Separation of Indigenous Children from Their Parents: Australia

October 20, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day, which are celebrated on Oct. 14.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem for Indigenous Peoples’ Day about the forced separation of indigenous children from their parents, based on passages from the Introduction to Bringing Them Home, the final report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from Their Families, conducted by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission: Confidential submission 318, Tasmania: removal from Cape Barren Island, Tasmania, of 8 siblings in the 1960s:

THE FORCED SEPARATION OF INDIGENOUS CHILDREN FROM THEIR PARENTS: AUSTRALIA

From the final report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from Their Families:

So the next thing I remember

Was that they took us away from there,

And we went to the hospital,

And I kept asking

Because the children were screaming,

And the little brothers and sisters were just babies of course,

And I couldn’t move, they were all around me,

Around my neck and legs, yelling and screaming.

I was all upset and I didn’t know what to do,

And I didn’t know where we were going.

I just thought: Well, they’re police,

They must know what they’re doing.

I suppose I’ve got to go with them.

They’re taking us to see Mum.

You know, this is what I honestly thought.

They kept us in hospital for three days,

And I kept asking,

‘When are we going to see Mum?’

And no one told us at this time.

And I think on the third or fourth day

They piled us in the car,

And I said, ‘Where are we going?’

And they said, ‘We are going to see your mother.’

But then we turned left to go to the airport,

And I got a little panicky

About where we were going.

They got hold of me,

And I got a little baby in my arms,

And they put us on the plane.

And still they told us

We were going to see Mum.

So I thought she must be

Wherever they’re taking us.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/thefor.html. For more poems for indigenous peoples’ day, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/indigenouspeoplesdaypoems.html .

This week’s theme: Columbus Day and Indigenous People’s Day

10/15: The Enslavement of the Caribbeans: Columbus’ Second Voyage

10/20: The Forced Separation of Indigenous Children from Their Parents: Australia

10/17: The Attack of the Romans on the Celts at Ynes Mŏn

10/18: The Ravages of Smallpox: Australia

10/19: The Ravages of Rum: America

Saturday, October 19, 2019

The Ravages of Rum: America

October 19, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem for Indigenous Peoples’ Day about the destruction of the indigenous peoples of America by liquor, based on passages from The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin:

THE RAVAGES OF RUM: AMERICA

From The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin:

As the Indians are extremely apt to get drunk,

And, when so, are very quarrelsome and disorderly,

We strictly forbade selling any liquor to them.

And when they complained of this restriction,

We told them that if they would continue sober

During the negotiations over the treaty,

We would give them plenty of rum

When the business was over.

They promised this, and kept their promise,

Because they could get no liquor,

And the negotiations were conducted

In a very orderly fashion,

And concluded to mutual satisfaction.

They then claimed and received the rum.

This was in the afternoon.

In the evening, hearing a great noise among them,

The commissioners walked out

To see what the matter was.

We found they had made a great bonfire

In the middle of the square.

They were all drunk, men and women, quarreling and fighting.

Their dark-colored bodies, half naked,

Seen only by the gloomy light of the bonfire,

Running after and beating one another with firebrands,

Accompanied by their horrid yelling,

Formed a scene best resembling our ideas of hell.

There was no appeasing the tumult,

And we retired to our lodging.

At midnight a number of them

Came thundering at our door,

Demanding more rum,

Of which we took no notice.

The next day,

Sensible that they had misbehaved,

They sent three of their old counselors to make their apology.

The orator acknowledged the fault,

But laid it upon the rum;

And then endeavored to excuse the rum

By saying, “The Great Spirit, who made all things,

Made everything for some use.

And whatever use he designed anything for,

That use it should always be put to.

Now, when he made rum, he said,

‘Let this be for the Indians to get drunk with,’

And so it must be.”

And, indeed, if it be the design of Providence

To extirpate these savages

In order to make room for cultivators of the earth,

It seems not improbable

That rum may be the appointed means.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/thera2.html. For more poems for indigenous peoples’ day, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/indigenouspeoplesdaypoems.html .

This week’s theme: Columbus Day and Indigenous People’s Day

10/15: The Enslavement of the Caribbeans: Columbus’ Second Voyage

10/17: The Attack of the Romans on the Celts at Ynes Mŏn

10/18: The Ravages of Smallpox: Australia

10/19: The Ravages of Rum: America

Friday, October 18, 2019

The Ravages of Smallpox: Australia

October 18, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem for Indigenous Peoples’ Day about the ravages of smallpox in Australia, based on passages from An Historical Journal of the Transactions at Port Jackson and Norfolk Island, published in 1793 by John Hunter:

THE RAVAGES OF SMALLPOX: AUSTRALIA

From An Historical Journal of the Transactions at Port Jackson and Norfolk Island published in 1793 by John Hunter:

I expressed much surprise at not having seen

A single native on the shore

Or a canoe as we came upon the ship;

The reason of which I could not comprehend

Until I was informed that the small-pox

Had made its appearance a few months ago

Among these unfortunate creatures.

It was truly shocking to go

Round the coves of this harbor,

Which were formerly so much frequented by the natives,

Where, in the caves of the rocks,

Which used to shelter whole families in bad weather,

Were now to be seen men, women, and children

Lying dead.

Some were sitting on their haunches

With their heads reclined beneath their knees.

Others were leaning against a rock

With their heads resting on it.

I saw a woman sitting on the ground

With her knees drawn up to her shoulders,

And her head resting on the sand

Between her feet.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/therav.html. For more poems for indigenous peoples’ day, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/indigenouspeoplesdaypoems.html .

This week’s theme: Columbus Day and Indigenous People’s Day

10/15: The Enslavement of the Caribbeans: Columbus’ Second Voyage

10/17: The Attack of the Romans on the Celts at Ynes Mŏn

10/18: The Ravages of Smallpox: Australia

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

The Attack of the Romans on the Celts at Ynes Mon

October 17, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem for Indigenous Peoples’ Day about the attack of the Romans on the indigenous Celts at Ynes Mŏn, an island just off the coast of Wales, based on passages from Tacitus, Annals, XIV:

THE ATTACK OF THE ROMANS ON THE CELTS AT YNES MŎN

From Tacitus, Annals XIV:

Suetonius Paulinus prepared accordingly

To attack the island of Mona

Which had a considerable population of its own,

While serving as a haven for refugees.

In view of the shallow and variable channel,

He constructed a flotilla of boats with flat bottoms.

By this method the infantry crossed;

The cavalry, who followed,

Did so by fording or, in deeper water,

By swimming at the side of their horses.

On the beach stood an adverse array,

A serried mass of arms and men,

With women flitting between the ranks.

In the style of Furies,

In robes of deathly black and with disheveled hair,

They brandished their torches; while a circle of Druids,

Lifting their hands to heaven and showering imprecations,

Struck the troops with such awe at the extraordinary spectacle

That, as though their limbs were paralyzed,

They exposed their bodies to wounds

Without an attempt at movement.

Then, reassured by their general,

And inciting each other never to flinch

Before a band of females and fanatics,

They charged behind the standards,

Cut down all who met them,

And enveloped the enemy in his own flames.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/theatt.html. For more poems for indigenous peoples’ day, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/indigenouspeoplesdaypoems.html .

This week’s theme: Columbus Day and Indigenous People’s Day

10/15: The Enslavement of the Caribbeans: Columbus’ Second Voyage

10/17: The Attack of the Romans on the Celts at Ynes Mŏn

The Destruction of the Indies

October 16, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem for Indigenous Peoples’ Day based on passages from A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies by Bartolomé de las Casas (written in 1542, published in 1552):

THE DESTRUCTION OF THE INDIES

From A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies by Bartolomé de las Casas (written in 1542, published in 1552):

The settlers would erect long gibbets
To which they would bind thirteen of the Indians at one time,
In honor and reverence, they said,
Of Our Redeemer and the twelve Apostles,
And put firewood around it
And burn the Indians alive.

Another time, because the Indians
Did not give a settler a coffer filled with gold,
They killed countless souls,
And cut off the hands and noses of countless
Men and women, and others they threw
To the savage dogs,
Who tore them to pieces and ate them.

The cacique asked the holy father whether
Christians went to the sky. The priest replied
That they did, but only those who were good.
And the cacique then said that he
Did not desire to go to the sky,
But rather down to hell
So that he would not be where they were
And would not see such cruel people.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/thedes.html. For more poems for indigenous peoples’ day, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/indigenouspeoplesdaypoems.html .

This week’s theme: Columbus Day and Indigenous People’s Day

10/15: The Enslavement of the Caribbeans: Columbus’ Second Voyage

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

The Enslavement of the Carribeans: Columbus' Second Voyage

October 15, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem for Indigenous Peoples’ Day about bringing Indian slaves back to Spain, based on passages from a letter by Michele da Cuneo, who accompanied Columbus on his second voyage and wrote the letter after his return to Italy in 1495:

THE ENSLAVEMENT OF THE CARIBBEANS: COLUMBUS’ SECOND VOYAGE

From a letter by Michele da Cuneo, who accompanied Columbus on his second voyage and wrote the letter after his return to Italy in 1495:

When our caravels were ready to depart,

We gathered 1,600 Indians, male and female,

And on the 17^th of February 1495

Loaded aboard 650 of the best, both men and women.

The rest were offered to whoever wanted them.

And so it was.

When everyone was supplied with slaves,

About 400 were freed to go where they wished,

Among whom were females with nursing infants,

Whom they flung to the ground as they fled,

Fleeing like desperate persons

Seven or eight days from our settlement,

Beyond mountains and great rivers,

So that it would be nearly impossible

Ever to take them again.

As pleased God we had such favorable winds

That we reached the island of Madeira in 23 days.

But by that time some 200 of the Indians had died,

And we cast them into the sea.

Soon after this we reached Cadiz,

Where we unloaded the slaves,

Half of whom were sick.

They are not made for work,

Fear greatly the cold,

And do not live long.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/theens.html. For more poems for indigenous peoples’ day, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/indigenouspeoplesdaypoems.html .

This week’s theme: Columbus Day and Indigenous People’s Day

10/15: The Enslavement of the Caribbeans: Columbus’ Second Voyage

Monday, October 14, 2019

Could I Have Seen the Consequence

October 14, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A Columbus Day poem in which Columbus reflects upon the terrible consequences for indigenous people of his discoveries:

Could I have seen the consequence

Of my bold exploration,

Looking back before I left

Upon my life's creation --

Millions genocidally

Butchered, starved, enslaved,

Under laws and governments

Savage, cruel, depraved --

Despite all this, I would have gone,

And new lands found, and new worlds known,

Yet drawn by what I craved.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/could2.html. For more Columbus Day poems, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/columbusdaypoems.html .

This week’s theme: Columbus Day and Indigenous People’s Day

Sunday, October 13, 2019

The Roots of Hatred

October 13, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is ethical behavior in honor of Yom Kippur, which begins at sunset on Oct. 8 and ends at nightfall on Oct. 9.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A philosophical poem about the need to love oneself whole – both the good and the evil:

The roots of hatred run so deep

We drink their poison in our sleep.

Deep within or deep below,

The roots run deeper than we know.

Day and night, and night and day

We while the precious time away

Hating, writhing, seething, ranting,

All the while new hate seeds planting.

In the mind and in the heart,

In the whole and in each part,

The anger clenches flesh and soul,

Taking a titanic toll.

O love, the wind that winnows well

The hate that holds the heart in hell,

Come and kiss the urge to kill,

And storms abate, and tempests still.

Love comes alone to those who call,

And love themselves along with all,

Love the roots and love the tree,

And know that you are part of me;

And know that I am part of you,

And you become the things I do,

And what I hate is what I am,

Both hungry wolf and slaughtered lamb.

So do not hate the hate within,

But love the love, and love the sin,

Love the beast and love the prey,

For both one word of wonder say.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/theroo.html. For more philosophical poems, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/philosophicalpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Ethical Behavior

10/11: Justin Walks Along His Own Thin Line

10/12: Adrian Knows Well the Unsaid Rules

10/13: The Roots of Hatred

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Adrian Knows Well the Unsaid Rules

October 12, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is ethical behavior in honor of Yom Kippur, which begins at sunset on Oct. 8 and ends at nightfall on Oct. 9.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A philosophical name poem about choosing to shape one’s behavior according to ethical rules:

Adrian knows well the unsaid rules

Demanding that one be what one is not.

Restraining the fierce appetites within,

Interning the insurgents bent on sin,

As he matures, he learns to love his lot,

No longer heeding the laments of fools.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/adrian.html. For more philosophical poems, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/philosophicalpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Ethical Behavior

10/11: Justin Walks Along His Own Thin Line

10/12: Adrian Knows Well the Unsaid Rules

Friday, October 11, 2019

Justin Walks Along His Own Thin Line

October 11, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is ethical behavior in honor of Yom Kippur, which begins at sunset on Oct. 8 and ends at nightfall on Oct. 9.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A philosophical name poem about how one might hide one’s sinful thoughts and feelings from oneself:

Justin walks along his own thin line.

Unselfishly he weighs each consequence.

Subtly bending rays that might reveal

Thoughts he could not knowingly conceal,

Instinctively he guards his innocence,

Not feeling what he fears is not benign.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/justin.html. For more philosophical poems, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/philosophicalpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Ethical Behavior

10/11: Justin Walks Along His Own Thin Line

Thursday, October 10, 2019

If Life Could Be a Court and We Be Tried

October 10, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is ethical behavior in honor of Yom Kippur, which begins at sunset on Oct. 8 and ends at nightfall on Oct. 9.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A philosophical poem about guilt and the need to be loved:

If life could be a court and we be tried,

Our guilt could be determined with precision.

Judges would due punishment provide

And close our cases with some just decision.

But rarely is our guilt so well defined.

Underground it rages unrestrained:

Above, defenses carefully aligned;

Below, no faintest trace of them retained.

For those who have such tragedies to bear

And cannot ever know their share of blame,

There is no court but their own hearts, and there

They are condemned to self-inflicted shame.

Such tender souls are fittest to be moved

By knowing that like all souls they are loved.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/iflife.html. For more philosophical poems, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/philosophicalpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Ethical Behavior

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

You Wish to Live a Long and Healthy Life

October 9, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is ethical behavior in honor of Yom Kippur, which begins at sunset on Oct. 8 and ends at nightfall on Oct. 9.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem for Yom Kippur about the relationship between the individual and the community:

You wish to live a long and healthy life

On friendly terms with everyone around you,

Married to a lovely, loving wife,

Knee deep in the good causes that surround you.

In truth, however, you're not in control,

Planted where you are by wind, not will,

Placed where sun and shade might shape your soul,

Ultimately child of the whole,

Repenting for us all, for good or ill.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/youwis.html. For more poems for the Jewish High Holy Days, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/yomkippurpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Ethical Behavior

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

You Find but Little Solace in Success

October 8, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is ethical behavior in honor of Yom Kippur, which begins at sunset on Oct. 8 and ends at nightfall on Oct. 9.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem for Yom Kippur about the emptiness of conventional success and the feeling of self-importance that so often comes with it:

You find but little solace in success,

On which you long have hung your self-esteem.

Maybe you expected happiness,

Knowing how the self-important seem.

Instead, you feel a gnawing at the heart,

Perhaps because you know where you've gone wrong,

Purporting to be whole when you are part,

Unable yet to simply sing along,

Restored to worship by the grace of song.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/youfi2.html. For more poems for the Jewish High Holy Days, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/yomkippurpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Ethical Behavior

Monday, October 7, 2019

You Cannot Think the Book of Life Will Close

October 7, 2019

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is ethical behavior in honor of Yom Kippur, which begins at sunset on Oct. 8 and ends at nightfall on Oct. 9.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com .

A poem for Yom Kippur about the difficulty of true repentance:

You cannot think the Book of Life will close.

Opportunity must seem a right.

Most days contain a trace of paradise,

Kindling the hope that God is nice

Instead of just or loving or pure light.

Prepare for what is not what you propose:

Perhaps you think your prayers will suffice,

Unburdening your heart with hunger slight.

Repentance takes much more than you suppose.

If you enjoyed this poem, please like, comment on, or share it so that it might be seen and enjoyed by others. To see this poem on my site, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/yomkip.html. For more poems for the Jewish High Holy Days, go to https://www.poemsforfree.com/yomkippurpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Ethical Behavior