Section: «Poems»
Verse (ancient Greek ὁ στίχος — row, structure), a term in versification used in several meanings:
artistic speech organized by division into rhythmically commensurate segments; poetry in the narrow sense; in particular, it implies the properties of versification of a particular tradition ("antique verse", "Akhmatova's verse", etc.);
a line of poetic text organized according to a certain rhythmic pattern ("My uncle of the most honest rules").
The Tyre
Just how it came to rest where it rested,miles out, miles from the last farmhouse even,was a fair question. Dropped by hurricaneor aeroplane perhaps..
© Simon Armitage
The Hard
Here on the Hard, you're welcome to pull up and stay;there's a flat fee of a quid for parking all day.And wandering over the dunes, who wouldn't..
© Simon Armitage
The Golden Toddy
We hunted, swept the planet pole to poleto capture a glimpse of that rare species.Through a thermal lens we spotted a shoal,picked up the trail of..
© Simon Armitage
It Ain't What You Do, It's What It Does To You
I have not bummed across Americawith only a dollar to spare, one pairof busted Levi's and a bowie knife.I have lived with thieves in Manchester.I..
© Simon Armitage
About His Person
Five pounds fifty in change, exactly,a library card on its date of expiry.A postcard stamped,unwritten, but franked,a pocket size diary slashed with..
© Simon Armitage
Poem
And if it snowed and snow covered the drivehe took a spade and tossed it to one side.And always tucked his daughter up at nightAnd slippered her the..
© Simon Armitage
I Say I Say I Say
Anyone here had a go at themselvesfor a laugh? Anyone opened their wristswith a blade in the bath? Those in the darkat the back, listen hard. Those..
© Simon Armitage
I Am Very Bothered
I am very bothered when I thinkof the bad things I have done in my life.Not least that time in the chemistry labwhen I held a pair of scissors by the..
© Simon Armitage
Understanding
When I was young and frivolous and never stopped to think,When I was always doing wrong, or just upon the brink;When I was just a lad of seven and..
© Edgar Albert Guest
The Price Of Joy
You don't begrudge the labor when the roses start to bloom;You don't recall the dreary days that won you their perfume;You don't recall a single..
© Edgar Albert Guest
The Happiest Days
You do not know it, little man,In your summer coat of tanAnd your legs bereft of hoseAnd your peeling, sunburned nose,With a stone bruise on your..
© Edgar Albert Guest
When Pa Counts
Pa's not so very big or brave; he can't lift weights like Uncle Jim;His hands are soft like little girls'; most anyone could wallop him.Ma weighs a..
© Edgar Albert Guest
The Mother's Question
When I was a boy, and it chanced to rain,Mother would always watch for me;She used to stand by the window pane,Worried and troubled as she could..
© Edgar Albert Guest
As It Is
I might wish the world were better,I might sit around and sighFor a water that is wetterAnd a bluer sort of sky.There are times I think the..
© Edgar Albert Guest
Reflection
You have given me riches and ease,You have given me joys through the years,I have sat in the shade of your trees,With the song of your birds in my..
© Edgar Albert Guest
Life's Slacker
The saddest sort of death to dieWould be to quit the game called lifeAnd know, beneath the gentle sky,You'd lived a slacker in the strife.That..
© Edgar Albert Guest
It's A Boy
The doctor leads a busy life, he wages war with death;Long hours he spends to help the one who's fighting hard for breath;He cannot call his time his..
© Edgar Albert Guest
The Friendly Greeting
Oh, we have friends in England, and we have friends in France,And should we have to travel there through some strange circumstance,Undaunted we..
© Edgar Albert Guest
Why We Fight
This is the thing we fight:A cry of terror in the night;A ship on work of mercy bent—A carrier of the sick and maimed—Beneath the cruel waters..
© Edgar Albert Guest
A Father's Wish
What do I want my boy to be?Oft is the question asked of me,And oft I ask it of myself-What corner, niche or post or shelfIn the great hall of life..
© Edgar Albert Guest
The Things That Make A Soldier Great
The things that make a soldier great and send him out to die,To face the flaming cannon's mouth, nor ever question why,Are lilacs by a little porch..
© Edgar Albert Guest
I'D Rather Be A Failure
I'd rather be a failure than the man who's never tried;I'd rather seek the mountain-top than always stand aside.Oh, let me hold some lofty dream and..
© Edgar Albert Guest
When Mother's Sewing Buttons On
When mother's sewing buttons onTheir little garments, one by one,I settle down contented thereAnd watch her in her rocking chair.She's at the task..
© Edgar Albert Guest
The Blue Flannel Shirt
I am eager once more to feel easy,I'm weary of thinking of dress;I'm heartily sick of stiff collars,And trousers the tailor must press.I'm eagerly..
© Edgar Albert Guest
When Pa Comes Home
When Pa comes home, I'm at the door,An' then he grabs me off the floorAn' throws me up an' catches meWhen I come down, an' then, says he:'Well, how'd..
© Edgar Albert Guest