The British
by A. S. J. Tessimond
We are a people living in shells and moving
Crablike; reticent, awkward, deeply suspicious;
Watching the world from a corner of half-closed eyelids,
Afraid lest someone show that he hates or loves us,
Afraid lest someone weep in the railway train.
We are coiled and clenched like a foetus clad in armour.
We hold our hearts for fear they fly like eagles.
We grasp our tongues for fear they cry like trumpets.
We listen to our own footsteps. We look both ways
Before we cross the silent empty road.
We are a people easily made uneasy,
Especially wary of praise, of passion, of scarlet
Cloaks, of gesturing hands, of the smiling stranger
In the alien hat who talks to all or the other
In the unfamiliar coat who talks to none.
We are afraid of too-cold thought or too-hot
Blood, of the opening of long-shut shafts or cupboards,
Of light in caves, of X-rays, probes, unclothing
Of emotion, intolerable revelation
Of lust in the light, of love in the palm of the hand.
We are afraid of, one day on a sunny morning,
Meeting ourselves or another without the usual
Outer sheath, the comfortable conversation,
And saying all, all, all we did not mean to,
All, all, all we did not know we meant.
A few random poems:
- Юргис Балтрушайтис – Элегия (Мысль в разлуке с вещим сном)
- A Woman’s Fancy by Thomas Hardy
- Robert Burns: Complimentary Versicles To Jessie Lewars: On Her Recovery
- Mustard Flowers
- Robert Burns: Lines To A Gentleman,: Who had sent the Poet a Newspaper, and offered to continue it free of Expense.
- Ballade Of Blind Love poem – Andrew Lang poems
- Apology to Delia by William Cowper
- In The Village Of My Ancestors by Vasko Popa
- A Charm by Rudyard Kipling
- Resurgam
- Ode on Solitude poem – Alexander Pope
- Низами Гянджеви – Ради встречи с тобой я до края земли дошел
- Robert Burns: Inscription: Written on the blank leaf of a copy of the last edition of my poems, presented to the Lady whom, in so many fictitious reveries of passion, but with the most ardent sentiments of real friendship, I have so often sung under the name of-“Chloris.”
- Вера Павлова – Твоя хладность
- Incommunicado by Sylvia Plath
External links
Bat’s Poetry Page – more poetry by Fledermaus
Talking Writing Monster’s Page –
Batty Writing – the bat’s idle chatter, thoughts, ideas and observations, all original, all fresh
Poems in English
- Loitering with a Vacant Eye poem – A. E. Housman
- Loitering with a Vacant Eye poem – A. E. Housman
- It Nods and Curtseys and Recovers poem – A. E. Housman
- Into My Heart an Air that Kills poem – A. E. Housman
- In My Own Shire, If I Was Sad poem – A. E. Housman
- In My Own Shire, If I Was Sad poem – A. E. Housman
- If Truth in Hearts That Perish poem – A. E. Housman
- If By Chance Your Eye Offend You poem – A. E. Housman
- If By Chance Your Eye Offend You poem – A. E. Housman
- I Hoed and Trenched and Weeded poem – A. E. Housman
- I Hoed and Trenched and Weeded poem – A. E. Housman
- Hughley Steeple poem – A. E. Housman
- Hughley Steeple poem – A. E. Housman
- Ho, everyone that thirsteth poem – A. E. Housman
- Ho, everyone that thirsteth poem – A. E. Housman
- Here Dead We Lie poem – A. E. Housman
- From Far, From Eve and Morning poem – A. E. Housman
- From Far, From Eve and Morning poem – A. E. Housman
- Fragment of a Greek Tragedy poem – A. E. Housman
- Far In a Western Brookland poem – Alfred Edward Housman
More external links (open in a new tab):
Doska or the Board – write anything
Search engines:
Yandex – the best search engine for searches in Russian (and the best overall image search engine, in any language, anywhere)
Qwant – the best search engine for searches in French, German as well as Romance and Germanic languages.
Ecosia – a search engine that supposedly… plants trees
Duckduckgo – the real alternative and a search engine that actually works. Without much censorship or partisan politics.
Yahoo– yes, it’s still around, amazingly, miraculously, incredibly, but now it seems to be powered by Bing.
Parallel Translations of Poetry
The Poetry Repository – an online library of poems, poetry, verse and poetic works