A poem by Alan Dugan
As an American traveler I have
to remember not to get actionably mad
about the way things are around here.
Tomorrow I’ll be a thousand miles away
from the way it is around here. I will
keep my temper, I will not kill the dog
next door, nor will I kill the next-door wife,
both of whom are crazy and aggressive
and think they live at the center of culture
like everyone else in this college town.
This is because I’m leaving, I’m taking off
by car, by light plane, by jet, by taxicab,
for some place else a thousand miles away,
so I caution myself: control your rage,
even if it causes a slight heart attack.
Stay out of jail tonight before you leave,
and don’t get obstreperous in transit tomorrow
so as to stay out of jail on arrival tomorrow night.
Think: the new handcuffs are sharp inside
and meant to cut the wrists. You’re not too old
to be raped in their filthy overcrowded jails
and you’ll lose your glasses and false teeth.
How would you eat, study and be
a traveling lecturer if you got out alive and sane?
So remember to leave this place peacefully,
it’s only Asshole State University at Nowheresville,
and remember to get to the next place peacefully,
it’s only Nowhere State University at Assholesville
and you must travel from place to place for food and shelter.
A few random poems:
- Women’s Song Of The Corn poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- To a son abroad by Sunil Sharma
- By A Norfolk Broad
- Омар Хайям о Боге и религии: Рубаи, стихи Хайяма про Бога – Poetry Monster
- Алексей Жемчужников – Всем хлеба
- Paper Boats by Rabindranath Tagore
- A Ghost in the Shell by Talha Jafri
- Every day I bear a burden by Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi
- On A Goldfinch, Starved To Death In His Cage by William Cowper
- Владимир Бенедиктов – Праздник на биваке
- Sonnet 66: Tired with all these, for restful death I cry by William Shakespeare
- Last Words poem – Amy Levy poems | Poems and Poetry
- The Magi by William Butler Yeats
- Song. Mediocrity in love rejected. by Thomas Carew
- Владимир Вишневский – Из дневника читателя
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
- Hope by Walter William Safar
- Freedom by Walter William Safar
- Forest by Walter William Safar
- Cry of the Betrayed Earth by Walter William Safar
- Christmas Star by Walter William Safar
- Beloved Ireland by Walter William Safar
- American Soil by Walter William Safar
- America by Walter William Safar
- Against All Streams by Walter William Safar
- A window into the world by Walter William Safar
- A Poem to my Beloved by Walter William Safar
- Bound Home to Mount Song by Wang Wei
- Answering Vice-Prefect Zhang by Wang Wei
- At the Lake Pavilion by Wang Wei
- Duckweed Pond by Wang Wei
- Bamboo Adobe by Wang Wei
- Deer Enclosure by Wang Wei
- Farewell to Hsin Chien at Hibiscus Pavilion by Wang Wei
- Farewell by Wang Wei
- For P’ei Ti by Wang Wei
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
Alan Dugan (1923 – 2003) an American poet, a contemporary classic of American poetry.