Saturday, March 17, 2007

Un Pedacito Minúsculo Del Pусский

If only I were a shock-worker,
how well would I live
or so my little bit of Russian would say
scraps of the first class, all that is left
remains of two semesters
of a language with a different alphabet
strange characters, home of
wonderful literature, rich culture
tormented Lost Souls,
where the great rivers ran
and symphonies roar
Oh to remember a scrap of the learning
so long ago, when I learned
“Как живут ударники?
Ударники живут хорошо.

How do shock-workers live?
Shock-workers live well.”


March 17, 2007 16:37
http://www.languagehat.com/archives/002512.php


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Down by the River

Down by the river,
we played, dreamed, explored
alone and together,
bikes left by the rock piles,
Climbing, hiking, claiming land
wading, splashing, damming
the river, catching tiny fish
dirty water, runoff water,
scales of gray muck
undulating in the current
slippery under foot
Rafts, bombs (well rocks actually),
testing the mettle
of the GI Joe’s
their armies across
the wide stream
Generals, scouts,
Lewis and Clarks
in the making
being kids, being boys
down by the river



March 17, 2007 12:18
down by the Little River in Westfield, MA,
below Squawfield Road


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

White Sands

Dunes of white
greet my gaze
from my office window
snow drifted in the lee
of the third story,
the slate roof,
down on the roof below
white dunes, calling
squirrel surfers
reptilian, snakes
to course across it
like in nature films
of the dry deserts
around the globe
caught in moving
sands of white
in the building,
shifting winds
after the Nor’easter
brought a joke
a challenge
this St. Patty’s ‘morn



March 17, 2007 11:38



All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Dance of the Bubbles

A watched pot,
beginning to boil
growing bubbles in the dimples
the Teflon surface
called to the ball,
to dance, merge, join
with each other,
twirl and whirl,
glide and slide
across the floor
to the syncopated tempo,
frantic motion,
frenetic energy,
ready to rise
to swirl to the surface,
explode free,
up into the air



March 17, 2007 10:42
Dance of the Bubbles
(Ray and Ruth – for the title)

All of my poems, photographs, and videos are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss (raymondafoss@gmail.com) for usage. See all 42,170+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Thursday, March 15, 2007

A Harvest of Figs

Some much meaning
layers of meaning
in the words of a fruitless fig
bearing fruit in the minds
of the readers, the saints
over the millennia,
those who followed
the earliest listeners,
those who heard his words
his parable for them
for us too
a harvest of fruits
in the learning, the study
the unraveling of
the mystery of parable
for each one a journey
bearing fruits
all along the way


March 15, 2007 14:24
Luke 13:6-9


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 20,770+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

A Different Fig Tree

A different messiah
without armies or power
came to be planted
in the soil of the owner
given love and care
by the gardener
who served the owners
of the land, the land
given by the gardener
Impatient for change
ready to give up
to cut down
to cast off
the humble
fruitless
tree
Reprieve
only temporary
before the roots were cut
with the ax, the nails, the thorns, the crown
the cross on the hill, at the end of
the temporary reprieve
because the owners
were impatient
and they
wanted
instant
fruit


March 15, 2007 14:09


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 20,770+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Parable Reading

Different messages,
interpretations, well up
within the readers, messages
ideas, thoughts, imagery
of prophets and law givers
of owners, trees, gardens
and gardeners
who are the parts
really about
who is the story for
and will they listen
for the deeper meaning
behind the parables



March 15, 2007 13:58
Luke 13:6-9


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Fig Tree

Oh change your ways
you dead, dying tree
turn from your thoughts
law alone, hear, heed
the new soil, the prophets,
the way, the new soil
new food, the gardener gives
feel the new message,
new call, new food
feed your trunk,
your branches
your flowers, your leaves
bear fruit of the new soil
new covenant
new food


March 15, 2007 13:54
Luke 13:6-9


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 20,770+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

The Faithful Gardener

An unhappy owner
a fallow tree
a worthy gardener
not giving up
not yet, on his charge
to care and to nurture
to feed and to water
prune and prepare
for another chance to grow
to respond to the
food in the message
to turn from the past
to grow in the light
respond to the care
of the gardener
before the judgment
by the owner
and the fire


March 15, 2007 13:47
Luke 13:6-9


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

The Chosen Fig Trees

Fruitless figs
in the yard of the landowner
ready for the ax
not living to their potential
with loving hands
hands of the gardener
they were given reprieve
a chance, to live
bear fruit again
before the ax and the fire
if they stayed fruitless
after further feeding



March 15, 2007 13:42
Luke 13:6-9


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

I am a Fig Tree

I need the gardener
to feed my roots,
to bring water and light
protection from the
owner of the yard,
where I am planted
More help, care
to bear good fruits,
in the place where
I have been planted,
placed by the owner
needing the gardener
to thrive


March 15, 2007 13:36
Luke 13:6-9

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 20,770+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

A Fruitless Tree

A tree, not bearing fruit
A landowner impatient,
ready to pass judgment,
A gardener, ready to work,
asking for more time,
to nurture and feed
the fruitless tree
Who are the players,
the actors in the parable
the tree, the landowner,
and the gardener?
We aren’t told,
but it is a very telling story
for the lessons it can teach
about so many things



March 15, 2007 13:22
Luke 13:6-9

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Whoa!

Whoa!
or so she said
in that perfect
five-year old way,
“that’s a lot of peanuts!”
she marveled,
in her way, showing
just the right amount
of shock and awe,
as her little arms
hoisted the 5 pound bag
of “jumbo” peanuts
for our friends the squirrels
down from the counter
“They’re heavy!”
she said, as she lugged them
to the closet,
before the first feeding
of our particular squirrels,
out in the warming yard


March 15, 2007 13:15

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 20,770+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Ready Daddy for Picture Day




All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

In the Lee

Around town,
as the snow melted in the yards,
by the streets,
browning white
Pristine white remained
cloistered, away from arms’ reach
high above,
in the lee of dormers,
crevasses in roofs, the lee of the
angles, pitch, on the flashing
high above, pockets
of clean white snow


March 15, 2007 9:17

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 20,770+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Poetry that gave commentary to a picture

Here is a link to someone who saw a photograph they knew in one of my poems:

http://flickr.com/photos/lynnmorag/396422577/





All of my poems, photographs, and videos are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. All rights are reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss (raymondafoss@gmail.com) for usage. See all 45,340 of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Fisheye - commentary

Below are a copy of links to people out on the web in other countries and other languages who have analyzed one of my photographs:

http://forums.megatokyo.com/index.php?showtopic=1721291

http://www.psychedelic.be/forum/archive/index.php/t-25631.html


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Sunday, March 11, 2007

A Tale of Two Tuesdays

It was a great day, it was a lousy day
to be in the academy
She snarled, they barked
at the other
would
that the answer
was clear to naked eyes
on whose perception was real
which view of the facts held water
Where fault lies dark, eluding
definition, conclusions
or where it boldly asserts
its sway over the facts of the day
the truth to be discerned, like tea leaves
read by the sages, unraveling tangled
tortured logic in the argument left
unresolved, unmet needs
hang heavy in the air
begging for solution
clarity, ending
where it began
with opinion,
perception
of Tuesday



March 10, 2007 14:42,
edited March 11, 2007 23:09


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Urban Ornaments

Sneakers on wires,
trash in trees
urban ornaments
overhead
drawing eyes upward
away from the litter,
the flotsam and jetsam
of the city landscape
behind the buildings
in the alleys
by the dumpsters
forgotten exteriors
behind the facades
of renewal
open for all to see
The unmet needs
the hidden reality
with homeless,
those who look
for aluminum cans
behind the veneer
in the city, below
the urban ornaments


March 11, 2007 23:06




All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 28,820+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Closer and Closer

He seemed so complacent
in the hot August sun
on the barrier islands
not moving at all
basking in the warm air

A cameraman without much sense
approached his quarry
without real stealth
much less guile

Focusing as best he could
the leathery skin coming into view
a lens for bringing in close
the further away

But that didn’t last long
as the image grew and grew
even as I crab-walked backwards
up the embankment
as fast as I could move

So I wouldn’t be his lunch



March 11, 2007 22:12
An agitated Alligator
Hilton Head Island, August 1988



All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Dust on the Pictures

Memories fade,
distances grow,
dust builds
on the pictures,
the moment of our lives
accumulate, separate
our pasts from our present
life picks up the pace
each day less of our life’s journey
moving quicker and quicker
as each day fills
dust on the pictures
of our lives
on the mantle,
the wall, the table
in our hearts
Pull them out,
dust them off
reflect and remember
maybe give a call
send a letter
to the loved ones
in the pictures


March 11, 2007 22:04



All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 26,370+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

A Broken Loaf

On the altar of His table
as the pastor held up His cup
Two halves of
the broken loaf
the torn, rent, bread
a symbol of the pain,
His sacrifice
for our saving
on the cross
Causing reflection
remembrance
Brining Christ once more
into our presence
Before we come
to His table



March 11, 2007 21:55


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,320+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Pizza for Dinner

On another night, the choice,
the decision, would not seem so odd
pizza for dinner, what could be wrong
But, where we were, when we were
that made the difference,
calling our choice into question,
at odds with the common view,
the meal of choice, that night
For the place was the coast
in summer, on vacation,
and we chose pizza,
pepperoni pizza
rather than the red,
clawed and tailed,
crustaceans
everyone else devoured
that night
We weren’t
that hungry


March 11, 2007 15:40


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,120+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

A Crystal Radio

It sat carefully
on the one-inch thick
pine board
Dials and coils and resistors
combined to catch sound
from the ether
crackling, fleeting sound
Something he had made
long before
with his own hands,
kept and held for other fingers
to see the sunlight again
out in our backyard
marveling at his industry
his skill, to tease music
from the air


March 11, 2007 15:29


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,120+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

A Lobster Pot

A lobster pot
tossed by the sea
onto the rocks
wedged in the jetty
between the boulders
of the breakwater
pristine, but barnacled,
seaweeded, lost, adrift
crashed where we found it
in the jagged wet rocks,
on the Maine coast
that long ago summer
climbing down among the stones
to bring it up, into the light
no minor feat
Lug the dead weight
down the jetty,
to the beach
abandon our find,
our catch
to true owners
claiming their rights
as we left the rocks
and touched the sand


March 11, 2007 15:23



All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,210+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.