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The Society of Classical Poets was founded in New York in July, 2012.

‘The Dodo of Mauritius’ and Other Poetry by Peter Hartley

The Society
December 29, 2021
Culture, Humor, Poetry
39 Comments
. The Dodo of Mauritius This island nation scarcely can be proud Of avifauna lacking common sense, Surviving only in the perfect tense, Their right to life, existence disavowed. With beaks immense, these...

‘Fields of Grass’ and Other Poetry by Norma Pain

The Society
December 28, 2021
Beauty, Poetry
14 Comments
. Fields of Grass In youth I ran through fields of grass, Convinced that I could fly, And endless were the days to pass Seen through my guileless eye. Childish thoughts and childish games, The fun went on and...

‘Poppy’ and Other Poetry by A.S. Chuba

The Society
December 27, 2021
Beauty, Culture, High School Submissions, Pantoum, Poetry
7 Comments
. Poppy A vase of poppies on the table there, Twelve years have past, all white is now her hair. A shadow running up the path she sees, Her son has come! Her end to miseries. Twelve years have past all white...

‘Sonnet 1 (In Theory, Real)’ by Hannah Yee

The Society
December 27, 2021
Beauty, Culture, High School Submissions, Poetry
10 Comments
. Sonnet 1 (In Theory, Real) Are dreams confined to stars or stars to dreams? Both full of mysteries and seldom clear, Restrained, yet free to dance in vivid streams Of consciousness, of life and fire and...

‘To Saint John the Evangelist’ by Eustache Deschamps, Translated by Margaret Coats

The Society
December 27, 2021
Beauty, Chant Royal, Culture, Poetry, Translation
14 Comments
. To Saint John the Evangelist by Eustache Deschamps (c. 1346–1406) | translated from French by Margaret Coats Young, perfect, just, in all you had to do, Fresh virile flower of virginity, O man of marvels,...

‘Anyone But You’ and Other Poetry by Anna J. Arredondo

The Society
December 26, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Humor, Limerick, Love Poems, Poetry
7 Comments
. Anyone But You The phone may ring; The call will bring __Anyone but you. The mail will come; It will be from __Anyone but you. A text may buzz; I’m sure it was __Anyone but you. Oh, this is dire; I...

‘My Sonnet as Texted’ and Other Poetry by Carl Kinsky

The Society
December 26, 2021
Beauty, Love Poems, Poetry
11 Comments
. My Sonnet as Texted Her face, uplit as she scrolls through her phone, no feelings shown, she wears light like a mask. Have we two lives we share? Is each one’s own? Afraid that I know, I’m too scared to...

‘A Sentimental Villanelle’ and Other Christmas Poetry by Susan Jarvis Bryant

The Society
December 25, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Poetry, Terza Rima, Villanelle
28 Comments
. A Sentimental Villanelle This year I’m wrapped in Christmases of old--- The tinseled tree and glee of hearts on high. My mood is laced with myrrh and graced with gold. The air is spiced with mulling wine...

Three for Christmas Day: Poetry and Music by James A. Tweedie

The Society
December 25, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Music, Poetry, Song Lyrics
12 Comments
. Introduction Each year I compose or arrange music in celebration of Christmas. This year I have created three arrangements of familiar Christmas music, each introduced by a poem. The organ piece is based on...

‘A Wretch Like Me’: a Christmas poem by Joe Tessitore, set to music by Jack DesBois

The Society
December 25, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Music, Poetry, Video
10 Comments
. https://youtu.be/fx3NidSVFKk . A Wretch Like Me by Joe Tessitore To miss the mark, to lose my way,To choose the dark, on Christmas Day.No star I see, no Virgin Birth,No joy for me, no peace on earth. But...
poem/dickens/ghost

‘A Christmas Carol,’ after Charles Dickens, by Talbot Hook

The Society
December 24, 2021
Beauty, Children's, Culture, Poetry
15 Comments
. . Dramatis Personae: Ebenezer Scrooge: An infamous miser Bob Cratchit: Scrooge’s assistant Mrs. Cratchit: Bob’s wife Tiny Tim: Disabled child of the Cratchits Jacob Marley: Scrooge’s old partner Mr....

‘The Night He Came’ by Martin Rizley

The Society
December 24, 2021
Poetry
12 Comments
. The Night He Came The stench of damp straw mixed with mold, The low moan of the night wind cold, The murky shadows draping all Within a drafty cattle stall--- These were the first things that He sensed The...

‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ by Brian Yapko

The Society
December 24, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
17 Comments
. It's a Wonderful Life The forecast promised luscious, gleaming snow; Instead the sky pours bitter, freezing rain. The lights are strung but half of them won’t glow.Our tree sags like the one in Charlie...

‘The North Pole’s on Lockdown’ by Susan Jarvis Bryant

The Society
December 23, 2021
Covid-19, Culture, Humor, Poetry
31 Comments
. The North Pole's on Lockdown ‘Tis the night before Christmas; it pains me to say--- The North Pole’s on lockdown before the big day. The elves have been furloughed and fester in bed. The toy...

‘The Tunnel to Australia’ by Jeff Eardley

The Society
December 23, 2021
Culture, Humor, Poetry, Song Lyrics
21 Comments
. The Tunnel to Australia It’s raining every day in Merrie England. It’s falling from the sky most every day. But I’ve just heard about a place that’s burning, In a country that’s so very far...

‘The People That Walked in Darkness’ by Paul Erlandson

The Society
December 22, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
17 Comments
. The People That Walked in Darkness The Christmas lights are out tonight, __Early and fierce and brave. The lawns of all suburbia, __A parti-colored nave. Their swollen ranks caused me to think __How changed...

‘Hedge Theory’ by David Watt

The Society
December 22, 2021
Culture, Humor, Poetry
20 Comments
. Hedge Theory The hedge plants are trimmed by a gardener with shears As they have been, like clockwork, for twenty-five years. Yet they push out new shoots in continuing hope Of extending their reach through...

‘This Present Madness’ by Cynthia Erlandson

The Society
December 21, 2021
Culture, Poetry
17 Comments
. This Present Madness “To sleep! Perchance to dream; aye, there’s the rub…..” ---Shakespeare, Hamlet I The daily nightmare hovers; and each night We pray to stay unconscious---not to dream (Perchance...

‘Twelve Chaucerian Limericks’ by Joseph S. Salemi

The Society
December 20, 2021
Chaucer, Culture, Humor, Limerick, Poetry
19 Comments
. Twelve Chaucerian Limericks for Paul Freeman Some pilgrims went riding to Kent, And here’s how the journey was spent: As they traipsed through the dale They each told a tale Of sacred or worldly...

‘Critical Race Theory’ and Other Poems by Russel Winick

The Society
December 20, 2021
Culture, Humor, Poetry
10 Comments
. Critical Race Theory It’s quite amusing when some first Defend it with persistence, Then---feigning that they’ve not reversed--- Deny its whole existence. . . Federal Government Logic The National...

‘Habeas Corpus’ and Other Poetry by C.B. Anderson

The Society
December 19, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
16 Comments
. Habeas Corpus Of those whose job it is to get results It might be asked: to what infernal purpose? Extortion, threats, felonious assaults, And foul deceptions only scratch the surface Of crimes they’re...

‘Journey’s End’ and Other Poetry by Talbot Hook

The Society
December 19, 2021
Beauty, Children's, Poetry, Villanelle
2 Comments
. Journey’s End To Adventuresome Children at Bedtime Mountain, forest, stone, and stream all glisten under sun, While golden morn and midnoon beam call children out to run. But after day has had his say, see...

Two Poems by Bécquer, Translated by Cheryl Corey 

The Society
December 18, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Music, Poetry, Translation
10 Comments
. The Harp  by Gustavo Bécquer | from Spanish by Cheryl Corey Obscured by corner shadows, gathering dust, perhaps forgotten over time—there stands the silent harp. So many hidden notes entombed on muted...

Poems on the Three Fates: Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos, by Cheryl Corey

The Society
December 18, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
9 Comments
. Three Sisters Clotho When mother sat me down, I feared the worst. Her words, however, offered praise instead. “Your gentle hands are motherly,” she said. “That’s why I’ve chosen you to be the...

‘Panic’ and Other Poetry by Peter Hartley

The Society
December 17, 2021
Beauty, Love Poems, Poetry
31 Comments
. Panic What is this feeling that sometimes afflicts Us with awful intensity and fear? A feeling close to panic, very near To dread, to terror; something that constricts The breathing, chokes the throat and...

‘Fool’s Gold’ by Susan Jarvis Bryant

The Society
December 16, 2021
Culture, Poetry
42 Comments
. Fool’s Gold The gutsy suffragettes gained girls the vote--- One bold soul trampled by a monarch’s horse Grabbed patriarchy by the gloating throat. Her ghost changed every voiceless woman’s...

‘A Spider in My Room’ and Other Poetry by Radhika Bianchi

The Society
December 16, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Humor, Poetry
6 Comments
. A Spider in My Room In the corner, there's a spider Between the ceiling and the wall. Its legs are long, its body small, Seeing it there my eyes grow wider, Fearing it to be the kind Of spider I’ve been...

‘Bidenflation’ to the Tune of ‘Tomorrow’ by Will Spiller

The Society
December 15, 2021
Humor, Music, Poetry, Song Lyrics
1 Comment
. . Bidenflation to the finale of “Tomorrow” from the musical Annie Fuel prices go up Tomorrow Bet your shrinking dollar that tomorrow They will soar! Inflation will rise Tomorrow All the things you...

A Poem for Astronaut Michael Collins and Other Poetry by Lawrence Fray

The Society
December 15, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
4 Comments
. Tidal Lock for Michael Collins died (Oct. 31, 1930 - April 28, 2021):, Apollo 11 Command Module Astronaut who saw the dark side of the moon Has one brave man's small step dethroned the moon And brought the...

‘A Flower’ by Alceste De Lollis, Translated by Adam Sedia, and a Sonnet

The Society
December 14, 2021
Beauty, Poetry, Translation
20 Comments
. A Flower for Giannina Milli by Alceste De Lollis (1820-1887) | translated from Italian by Adam Sedia A fragile herb, this blooming flower, I planted with my hand one day; Once more I fed refreshing...

‘Lightning Could Strike’ by Michael Charles Maibach

The Society
December 14, 2021
Culture, Love Poems, Poetry
8 Comments
. Lightning Could Strike Just when hope Is out the door, Has flown the coop, Has said “No more.” Just when "up" You have now "given," Just when life Seems so now riven. In she walks Her smile so...

A Poem for Emily Dickinson, and Other Sonnets by Tamara Beryl Latham

The Society
December 13, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
8 Comments
. Tamara to Emily for Emily Dickinson We viewed the lighted houses well below, whose roads ran serpentine through mounding snow, zoomed in on walls that formed each hollowed room, then juxtaposed the gaiety...

‘There Was a Free Nation That Swallowed a Lie,’ Nursery Rhyme Sung by Jack DesBois

The Society
December 12, 2021
Beauty, Covid-19, Humor, Music, Poetry, Song Lyrics, Video
13 Comments
. There Was a Free Nation That Swallowed a Lie sung to the tune of "There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly" . https://youtu.be/luLcKkCHWFo There was a free nation that swallowed a lie. I don’t know why...

‘Advent Twist’ by James A. Tweedie

The Society
December 12, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
19 Comments
. Advent Twist "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple . . . But who may abide the day of his coming? and who...

‘Sibylline Sonnets for Advent’ by Margaret Coats

The Society
December 11, 2021
Acrostic, Beauty, Culture, Poetry
44 Comments
. Sibylline Sonnets for Advent The sibyls were ecstatic prophetesses active from about 600 B.C. in the Greek coastlands of Asia Minor, and in Greek colonies on the west coast of Italy. A few apparent...

‘Samode Palace Hotel’ by Isabel Miles

The Society
December 11, 2021
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
4 Comments
. Samode Palace Hotel An erstwhile palace, and all wished to claim a former sultan's, not a servants', room. So we drew keys, for all had paid the same and won two turrets and a vast bedroom. But, best,...

‘So Simple’ and Other Poetry by Mike Bryant

The Society
December 10, 2021
Covid-19, Culture, Poetry
23 Comments
. So Simple Lies are told to Balkanize, To disenfranchise, federalize, To bloat the vote. An anecdote, A narrative, a false footnote To cast their spell on sheepish folk, Who swell with pride because they’re...

‘Maria Montessori’ and Other Clerihews by Peter Hartley

The Society
December 10, 2021
Clerihew, Culture, Humor, Poetry
33 Comments
. Maria Montessori Seldom felt hunky-dory. Her vision for education Fell short of inspiring a nation. . King George the Second It has often been reckoned Would have been more fecund Had more mistresses...

A Poem on Hot Flashes: ‘The Devil and the Hounds of Hell’ by Norma Pain

The Society
December 9, 2021
Culture, Humor, Poetry
12 Comments
. The Devil and the Hounds of Hell Over and over in the gloom of night, In degrees of Celsius or Fahrenheit. From deep in the middle of a hard-won sleep, An evil entity begins to creep. A dark, diabolical...

A Fake News Pantoum and Other Poetry by Brian Yapko

The Society
December 9, 2021
Culture, Humor, Pantoum, Poetry, Rondeau
9 Comments
. What Is Truth? a pantoum To keep us blind and riven You falsify the facts. You will not be forgiven--- These are a tyrant’s acts! You falsify the facts Promoting news that’s fake. These are a tyrant’s...
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