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:
- How a Little Girl Danced by Vachel Lindsay
- Владимир Бенедиктов – Ель и берёза
- Robert Burns: Epigrams Against The Earl Of Galloway:
- Wild Dark Love Song by Sharmagne Leland-St. John
- Федор Сваровский – Небесный гость в четыре лепестка
- Asleep! O Sleep A Little While, White Pearl! poem – John Keats poems
- Grow Up: Time to Give Up Your YA Books
- Ecstasy by Sarojini Naidu
- The Rao Of Ilore
- Зинаида Александрова – Таня и волчок
- He Has Lived In Many Houses by Thomas Lux
- Commemoration of Rodney’s Victory by Robert Burns
- Mossbawn: Two Poems in Dedication by Seamus Heaney
- Tim, An Irish Terrier by Winifred Mary Letts
- To a Pupil. by Walt Whitman
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
- Николай Языков – А. Н. Вульфу (Мой брат по вольности и хмелю)
- Николай Языков – А. Н. Татаринову (Здорово, брат! Поставь сюда две чаши)
- Николай Языков – А. Н. Очкину (Было время, мой приятель)
- Николай Языков – А. М. Языкову (Теперь, когда пророчественный дар)
- Николай Языков – А. И. Готовцевой (Влюблен я, дева-красота)
- Николай Языков – А. А. Воейковой (На петербургскую дорогу)
- Николай Языков – А. А. Елагину (Была прекрасна, весела…)
- Николай Тихонов – Ленинград
- Николай Тихонов – Крутили мельниц диких жернова
- Николай Тихонов – Когда уйду
- Николай Тихонов – Когда людям советским
- Николай Тихонов – Как след от весла
- Николай Тихонов – Инд
- Николай Тихонов – И сказал женщине суд
- Николай Тихонов – Гулливер играет в карты
- Николай Тихонов – Другу
- Николай Тихонов – Длинный путь
- Николай Тихонов – Даль полевая, как при Калите
- Николай Тихонов – Берлин 9 мая
- Николай Тихонов – Баллада о гвоздях
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