By: Gert Strydom

 Hovering I saw a redbreast and a wren,
who were both very scared of men
and to me both birds had some lovely charm,
as innocents to which I meant no harm.

Fluttering some cooing wild doves came down
making my small garden their very own
some pecked bread or landed on my arm,
as innocents to which I meant no harm.

Pecking some hoopoes landed in my yard
and the two of them was never apart,
fleeing in their scared heart throbbing alarm
as innocents to which I meant no harm.

Gert Strydom


Daily Quote: slimsy \SLIM-zee\, adjective:
Flimsy; frail.
Example:
"Nice girl . . ." he mused, "but sort of thin and slimsy and delicate, not robust and hearty like the kind of girl you ought to have on a farm."
-- Bess Streeter Aldrich, A White Flying Bird

Linguist Corner-FRENCH: être dans la lune
: to be lost in one's thoughts, to be absent-minded ("to be on the moon")

Enjoy these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Posted by V. Mahfood - 2012

By: Francis Stella

 An October’s windrowed field,
And on my hike I have to yield
When from the path you launch your lark
Then settle pressed against some bark.
A question for you, question mark:
How was it you were so designed
With beauty not foremost in mind?
You share the sugar maples’ mood
Like all your red-orange autumn brood,
But soon you’ll seek to winter where
With wings together as in prayer
You’ll haunt some crevice and forbear.
And why that trial by snow and ice—
Should not a chrysalis suffice?
Your wings when you will not confide
Show us their dullish woody side—
And that mark that can be coy,
That silver ringlet trompe l’oeil,
For which your Adam did anoint
You an interrogation point.
Then how you warn us story-lovers
Of judging books just by their covers,
For with one vivid respiration
You part your Book of Revelation,
That splendid text of ash and fire
Whose secret wisdom we desire!
And as you breathe who are the sages
That turn unseen your burning pages—
Can I become an intimate
Of Lepidoptera Holy Writ?
Your wings as well are so curvaceous,
Their flowing margins violaceous,
Like leaves in dreams, and hereupon we
Have to ask, this kirigami:
Who plied the shears with all this craft,
And where then are you autographed?
And shouldn’t such perfection’s hours
Be wiled away in minding flowers?
And yet you crave what can’t invite us,
Felled rotting fruit and such detritus—
Between your flying-circus stunts
That fling you everywhere at once:
You’re like a flaming paper plane
Inside a private hurricane!
Is dread alone what makes you start?
(The thought of that can break the heart.)
Or is your romp that’s so erratic
The raptures of an Earth ecstatic—
WITH schooling in the Eleatic,
When since so often it’s your plan
To end up right where you began?
O question mark, you midair dancer,
Is silence then your only answer?
There’s so much I would like to know
But now I see you have to go
And leave me mostly in the dark
On matters of the question mark.



Francis Stella


Daily Quote: "Gardening is all about optimism.
I put a seed in the ground.
I consistently tend it,
confident I will see the results, in time,
of the nurture I have provided."
- Mary Anne Radmacher

Linguist Corner-FRENCH: soutien
English translation: support
Part of speech: noun
Example sentence:
French: Le gouvernement envoie de plus en plus de patrouilles de police en soutien.
English: The government is sending more and more police patrols as a backup.

Enjoy these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Posted by V. Mahfood - 2012

The sun rather feebly struggled to shine,
Causing fractions of sky to light up.
Flowers pushed heavy heads out of the soil,
Drunk with sweet water from nature's own cup.


The grass sparkled and glimmered - a carpet of emeralds,
Drops of water reclined on silk petals of rose.
Trickling down to the ground as a gentle, cool breeze,
Spread the heady perfume throughout orchard groves.


Birds shook sodden wings and  soft feathered heads,
Rejoicing in the golden, warm sunshine.
Their sweet tunes travelled throughout the air,
As they wove their love nests with dried twigs and twine.


The sun transformed to a ball of orange flame,
Was merciless soon in its sphere of fierce heat.
Shining in all its supreme glory down,

On the freshly-washed world now ready to greet.

V. Mahfood
Coffee Table Poetry For Tea Drinkers



Daily Quote: "I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use."
-Galileo Galilei


Linguist Corner-SPANISH: semanal, adjective /weekly, per week
- Hay un mercado semanal.
There’s a weekly market.
- Como media, los uruguayos trabajan 38 horas semanales.
On average, Uruguayans work 38 hours per week.





Posted by V. Mahfood - 2011

By: Robert Anderson

shadows aggravate

my heart,

love seems so far away --

so far, so far

and i am lost

beneath the blue veil

of my dreams


i'll linger awhile,

torn, lost without

everything

i never actually knew yet

fantasied of

constantly


no matter how

elegance no longer laces

through all i once held near

i'll wander through and search

for you


'til breath becomes the chill

the air accumulates through

its pale frigidness and

tears fall while

memories loom


i'll sit here and watch

the craving earth

endure

the fragmented rain

and want more

to escape

my very breath of life


ever... and again



Robert Anderson


Daily Quote: The jump is so frightening between where I am and where I want to be.
Because of all I may become, I will close my eyes and leap.
- Mary Anne Radmacher

Linguist Corner-ITALIAN: tenere: to hold / verb.
Example sentence: Se lo tieni così stretto, l'uovo si rompe.
Translation: If you hold it too tightly, the egg will break.

Enjoy these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Posted by V. Mahfood - 2011

the sun slowly rising
creeping upward
ever so slowly
light streaking across
the sky
mingled in with
scattered clouds
bits of pink and orange
playing hide and seek
nature starting its
stretch
morning yawn
still a chill
in the air
muffled sounds
of the waves
rolling to the shores
soft cries of the birds
as they search
for their daily food
circling overhead
the sight of a fish
breaking the water
the quiet movement
of people slowly
making way to join others
in a singular way
along the sands
looking forward
to a new day
looking for change
or continuation
of what has been
bestowed upon them
for some
the search goes on

the sun heavy with
a full day behind it
slowly gathering
downward heading
reaching for the horizon
the expectations
of the day
maybe fullfilled
the darkness creeping
from behind
pushing at the colors
of the soon
night time sky
a quiet time begins
birds flutter about
searching for the nest
energy of the day
all but expelled
fish drift off to sleep
to the depths
they call home
some do gather
chairs for sand
drink in hand
slowly settle in
to watch nature's show
a stillness returns
words not uttered
lost in thought
light turns to dark
the cycle to return
the day wish to continue
or the hope for
a new begining

what is your wish?

Raymond Denzel
R. Jacob Post



"A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are for."
~John A. Shedd


Visit these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Coffee Table Poetry's GUEST BOOK is a division of Coffee Table Poetry for Tea Drinkers, and is updated often. The easiest way to enjoy the selections from talented fellow poets is to select E-mail or RSS Reader. Also, come follow us on Twitter. We look forward to sharing your own beautiful poetry with the world.

By: Judith Viorst

One by one the petals drop
There's nothing that can make them stop.
You cannot beg a rose to stay.
Why does it have to be that way?

The butterflies I used to chase
Have gone off to some other place.
I don't know where. I only know
I wish they didn't have to go.

And all the shiny afternoons
So full of birds and big balloons
And ice cream melting in the sun Are done.
I do not want them done


Judith Viorst


Daily Quote: You know that you have fully experienced love
when you turn into love -
that is the spiritual goal of life.
- Deepak Chopra

Linguist Corner-ITALIAN: quadro: painting / noun
Example sentence: Furono rubati due quadri, uno di Raffaello e uno di Caravaggio.
Translation: Two paintings were stolen: a Raphael and a Caravaggio.

Enjoy these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Posted by V. Mahfood - 2011

By: Marcus Hades

How others thought I could never think
my thoughts being far from civilization's sanity brink;
Like others felt I could rarely feel
My joys far away from cultures appeal

The sun was always only half seen,
and dried the mornings summer dew
By ways of others, thrilled I have few times been,
since adolescence I slept through nights very few

Bewildered and rather poignant was my atmosphere;
the inquiry how to handle; my conscious was not sincere
Though in trance like state of the inevitable I sought refuge
Bizarre, shaky was my resolve; drown I would in its deluge

The shore of the sea kept restricted cool sand
as I stood in them, my soul finally begun to stand
I wonder why when the waters hit my feet,
I looked at the ocean, the sheltered land may have felt defeat

For long the land struggled, for me to be stable
But now I knew it was the ocean I would always resemble
The land burned from mores at the surface and ashes at the conscious core;
But the waters ran deep, alone, a cool, silent and mysterious store


Marcus Hades


Daily Quote: Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Linguist Corner-SPANISH: bajo, adjective / soft, faint
Example:
- una silla muy baja
a very low chair
- su tono bajo y pausado
his soft, measured tone


Enjoy these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Coffee Table Poetry's GUEST BOOK is a division of Coffee Table Poetry for Tea Drinkers, and is updated often. The easiest way to enjoy the selections from talented fellow poets is to select E-mail or RSS Reader. Also, come follow us on Twitter.



Posted by V. Mahfood - 2010

By: Alexis Gostelow
 The earth shakes
The moon walks
And the stars
Oh the stars shine

The clouds in
Colors so plain
Turn the darkest sky
To a lighter heaven above

They fly when the moon
Only walks
They draw near
As the stars twinkle
For the destined meeting

And the earth rumbles
When they amass
It seems they
The color within dull darkness
Burst and fight

Smaller things see
When they stare to
Witness the walking moon
And shining stars

As each come
A devil and dragon
Bewitching an angel with
Black wings

A bearded god carrying a wand
Long and thin
Drowns monsters
So ugly none could
Think gods created
Such things

In the starry sky
As the moon walks
Across dark, dull sky
Clouds rein above

Showing stories
Of battles
And struggles
Older than death


Alexis Gostelow


Daily Quote: It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.
- e. e. cummings

Linguist Corner-Italian: rispondere: to reply / verb
Example sentence: Non abbiamo risposto alla tua mail perché ce ne siamo dimenticati.
Translation: We did not reply to your e-mail because we forgot to do it.

Enjoy these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Posted by V. Mahfood - 2011

By: M. J. Duggan
  


In the ultra earth-shine a reflection

Summer’s host rides with the ills of silence,

a hunched weeping muse collects her tears

like the frequent pebbles that span a beach.

In the dead fields of weathered corn

she rests well under dapple skies of canvas,

in prayer she weeps for songs of hope

from the Gods and ghosts that glisten the night.

The evening hoaxer rustles laggardly

in the illusory eye of her sleep,

the wise musings of nomadic wildlife

guardians to the languisher of dreams.

The night carried the idle day away

she could hear the day slowly dwindling

the resurrected whispers of his words

enchanting the woodlands with his return.


M. J. Duggan
Poetry of MJ Duggan
TAKEN FROM ‘UNDERWORLD’ ( a collection of sixteen poems)


Daily Quote: Nothing I say can explain to you Divine Love
Yet all of creation cannot seem to stop talking about it.
- Rumi

Enjoy these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Posted by V. Mahfood - 2011

By: Kathryn Merry
 

I dreamt that I fell into a tidal sea whose mean little waves rolled brown into their white foam crest.
Dirty little waves, tumblingheadlong into a pebble rock shore.

I walk buoyantly, stubbornly, inside a swirl of water who doesn’t understand footsteps and wants to carry me away.
Wants to give its greatest gift,
wants to cast its favorite spell.
Wants to take the weight from me and let me float.

But I reject,
and dig my toes further into glass crystal sand, push my weight against an ocean army advancing in waves to take me down & under.
It is unmoved by my oxygen dependence.
It smiles at my finless form, my primitive lungs that can’t separate 2O from H.
I am a fish out of water, and the water wants to make me swim.

And in my dream, when I found ground & began to walk again- when I was still in water, but not swimming-
I felt a net of salt adorning me, I shimmered like a diamond.
And as the water lapped weaker and lower, petting my calves, ankles, toes-
I felt a silky seaweed mass that hung from my head like a train.
My hair had grown back, long & thick down my back, while I was slowly opposing the current.

In that dream way, it felt like years, but was only a day.
In that real way, it means nothing but is all of me, just the same.


Kathryn Merry

Daily Quote: Angels can fly because they can take themselves lightly.
- G. K. Chesterton

Enjoy these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Posted by V. Mahfood - 2011

By: Raymond J. Denzel

early morning rise
stepping outside
gather up the paper
glancing up
at the sky

not a cloud
to cover
the star studded
night
someone had mixed
a bucket of
sparkles and tossed
upward picturesque
against the black
ink of nothingness

like twinkling
christmas lights
some bright
others not
quite beautiful
thousands to see

what did the ancient ones
wonder as they sought
to reach and touch
beyond their grasp

always there
always changing
with the seasons
after all these
years still amazes
the beauty of nature

Raymond J. Denzel

Daily Quote: We are not held back by the love we didn't receive in the past,
but by the love we're not extending in the present.
- Marianne Williamson

Enjoy these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Posted by V. Mahfood - 2011

The waves are raucous at night, like they're
trying harder to make up for a lack of blue
against white. What there is of sky is more
the colour of absence- of sleeping eyes from
the inside- than the colour of a destined life.
My feet are operating like Newton's cradle:
rocking from heel to toes, from lurching legs
while trousers billow, while weather undulates-
(it's recording emotion; it's mourning imprecision).
All ghosts of clouds gather around the lamps
that line the promenade. They descend for eyes,
meeting glances with misty breath like passers-by.
And I ponder (as the meeting of the cold and
my skin creates a cloak between me and the
wind) whether I've ever stared through nightfall
without the moon resembling your eyes and the
stars resembling mine- all at the height that future's
lovers look up to and from which all weather falls.

S. Rankin
My Mirrored Pool of Thought




"All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on."
~Henry Ellis

Visit these other unique locations:

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

Coffee Table Poetry's GUEST BOOK is a division of Coffee Table Poetry for Tea Drinkers, and is updated often. The easiest way to enjoy the selections from talented fellow poets is to select E-mail or RSS Reader. Also, come follow us on Twitter. We look forward to sharing your own beautiful poetry with the world.

By: C. Richard Miles


The cherry blossom’s out to brighten city streets
And daffodils all shout that spring is here to greet
The trees, about to burst in bud and leaf and bloom,
That bring us all relief from winter’s hateful gloom.

The cherry blossom’s out and scattered in a drift
All down the busy road, a welcome petalled gift
Resembling winter snow, all soft and white and light
But not so cruel and cold, this cheerful, happy sight.

The cherry blossom’s out, so simple clean and pure
Before it starts to fall upon the road’s rough floor
But even in the crush of traffic’s trundling wheels
Its bloom brings us a blush of beauty, which appeals.

The cherry blossom’s out and floats upon the breeze
Which toys with every branch upon the cherry trees
In cheerful playfulness on this soft, spring-like day
An early splash of white before the buds of May.

C. Richard Miles
Poems of C. Richard Miles



And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.
-Anais Nin

Enjoy these other unique locations:

Coffee Table Poetry's GUEST BOOK is a division of Coffee Table Poetry for Tea Drinkers, and is updated often. The easiest way to enjoy the selections from talented fellow poets is to select E-mail or RSS Reader. Also, come follow us on Twitter. We look forward to sharing your own beautiful poetry with the world.
Posted by V. Mahfood - 2011