I'm going to a birthday party for a five-year-old tomorrow, one of my students. His mom said not to bring a present, but I was hoping to put something fun in the card. I love A.A. Milne's poem Now We are Six and I'm wondering if anyone knows of a similar poem about turning five.
posted by easy_being_green on Nov 20, 2009 - 5 answers

Trying to track down a poem I remember reading at school. [more inside]
posted by fearfulsymmetry on Nov 12, 2009 - 2 answers

PoemFilter: They exhumed the bones of Lincoln in order to re-inter him elsewhere, and the former president spoke of being tired, tired of the packing and unpacking and packing again. Do you know the poem? [more inside]
posted by Slap Factory on Nov 6, 2009 - 4 answers

Seeking a poem that relies on the concept of namesaking (ie being named after another person). Maybe in its subject matter, or is by the poet to his/her namesake. It's for my sister, whose daughter is named after our grandmother, to use in a present for our grandmother, so Willa Cather's "The Namesake" is entirely inappropriate (being about a boy soldier!). Could also be a song, or short prose. Ideally a classic poem, ie out of copyright or if not, by someone relatively famous for their poetry. Any ideas?
posted by aeschenkarnos on Nov 5, 2009 - 3 answers

Help me identify a poem in a specific introduction to a specific copy of Kate Chopin's The Awakening. [more inside]
posted by DeltaForce on Oct 31, 2009 - 3 answers

poemfilter: looking for a poem I read 15 years ago in an anthology borrowed from a friend. Thought it was Atwood, but haven't found it. [more inside]
posted by chuke on Oct 19, 2009 - 3 answers

Tell me of your favorite poem to welcome the autumn. [more inside]
posted by jammy on Sep 20, 2009 - 22 answers

Looking for a poem or story about a desperate mother, her many children and a visit from the angel of death? [more inside]
posted by Arbac on Sep 15, 2009 - 1 answer

I'm trying to remember a poem I read about a man's character. Or was it about leadership? [more inside]
posted by BirdD0g on Sep 11, 2009 - 3 answers

What are some good poems to read aloud, that take the form of direct address? [more inside]
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur on Aug 12, 2009 - 37 answers

Can someone help translate a poem from French to English? [more inside]
posted by twirlypen on Jul 25, 2009 - 18 answers

Unique and beautiful poems/quotes/lyrics regarding seeds and or wildflowers. [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Jun 24, 2009 - 19 answers

Tell me of your favorite poem to welcome the summer. [more inside]
posted by jammy on Jun 19, 2009 - 13 answers

TranslationFilter: Can you help me track down a particular translation of Cavafy's poem 'Ithaka'? [more inside]
posted by collectallfour on Jun 9, 2009 - 2 answers

Searching for short poetry (or prose?) appropriate to send 2 close friends who have had sudden family deaths shake their foundations. [more inside]
posted by malibustacey9999 on May 20, 2009 - 19 answers

Back in high school, my German language teacher recited this little poem that I never forgot... [more inside]
posted by monospace on May 7, 2009 - 7 answers

My SO and I have completely opposite work schedules, so often the only way we can communicate for days at a time is through notes and text messages. I'm looking for cute and unique little poems and phrases to send him throughout the day to send him. My favorite examples are inside: [more inside]
posted by chara on Apr 18, 2009 - 12 answers

I once read a poem, or possibly a quote, about a bee pollinating flowers and how it was so beautiful and I think they even maybe connected it to sex and/or the essence of life. Does anyone know the name or author of this?
posted by ascetic on Apr 16, 2009 - 12 answers

I'm looking for inspiring short readings (poems? selections from essays?) loosely organized around the themes of freedom from oppression. Bonus points if they're fun to read and hear, building to a nice crescendo. [more inside]
posted by jeffmshaw on Apr 8, 2009 - 8 answers

Can anyone remember a silly "poem" that has the line: "and then they fell from the floor up to the balcony and broke the front side of their back" [more inside]
posted by mbatch on Mar 26, 2009 - 5 answers

A poem in which the 5th season is mortality? [more inside]
posted by Gucky on Mar 23, 2009 - 1 answer

Looking for an anti-war poem I saw years ago; it started with two soldiers fighting and ended speculating that if they met in a pub they'd have a pint. [more inside]
posted by caphector on Mar 21, 2009 - 2 answers

Help me think of a pun or a short poem about barbecues, meat, and love. [more inside]
posted by k8lin on Feb 13, 2009 - 18 answers

What's the name/origin of this poem/song? "There's a good time coming, be it ever so far away, that's what I says to myself, I says, jolly good luck hooray." I think it may originate in one of the World Wars. I've Googled, and all I can find are references to a song used by a UK football team.
posted by ScarletPumpernickel on Jan 2, 2009 - 2 answers

"God bless the speckled things"? What poem am I misremembering? [more inside]
posted by ourobouros on Dec 27, 2008 - 5 answers

Please help me find a quote, proverb or poem, about friendship and neighbors. [more inside]
posted by librarianamy on Dec 4, 2008 - 7 answers

I've forgotten the name of a poem I read a month or so ago, and the only thing that I can recall is that it references Dostoevsky's character Raskolnikov from his novel Crime and Punishment. I think he rhymes Raskolnikov with 'off'. Does anyone know the poem I speak off, or can help me find the name of the author and/or poet. [more inside]
posted by ashaw on Nov 28, 2008 - 4 answers

Longshot poetry filter: My grandfather's memorial service is tomorrow and my grandmother would like a poem to be read. She thinks the title was "No Regrets" and the first line is "I don't look back..." [more inside]
posted by drumcorpse on Nov 16, 2008 - 8 answers

"Burying my Father," by Sam Hunt. Does anyone know this poem? [more inside]
posted by routergirl on Oct 3, 2008 - 4 answers

I'm trying to find a quietly apocalyptic poem that featured horses - can anyone help? [more inside]
posted by Chairboy on Sep 29, 2008 - 7 answers

Searching for a poem about aliens justifying their conquer of a "new world" - ours. [more inside]
posted by Solon and Thanks on Sep 14, 2008 - 4 answers

Help me find the rest of this poem: "to be a woman/ you don't have to put on lipstick/ or wear makeup".... [more inside]
posted by potatopeople on Aug 29, 2008 - 3 answers

I'm looking for a poem whose first lines are "When the sun dies there will be eight minutes of light/Not enough time to hoard lemons or bulbs . . . " and it goes on from there. Next line is something like "or let the camera record the slow explosion of a rose." Can't find it anywhere! Ungoogleable. It's driving me nuts! (I heard it a decade ago.)
posted by liketitanic on Aug 24, 2008 - 6 answers

I'm looking for the text of a poem/ statement that was printed on tea towels (where I saw it but could very well also be elsewhere) about how governments are willing to spend millions on armies and navies but schools have to hold cake stalls to provide basic services. The tea towels were popular among my friends' hippy parents in Canberra, Australia in the early- to mid-80s and were possibly printed by the Nuclear Disarmament Party, but just as likely found elsewhere. I've searched with all the terms I can think of but can't find the text. Can you help? Thanks.
posted by goo on Aug 14, 2008 - 6 answers

Betelgeuse, Altair and Orion Is this poem's initial lion Sorry - line - but I've searched everywhere For "Orion, Betelgeuse, Altair" ... [more inside]
posted by the quidnunc kid on Jul 23, 2008 - 3 answers

What are some good poems (or songs) about a beloved person traveling very far away (from the speaker of the poem/song)? [more inside]
posted by bubukaba on Jul 8, 2008 - 33 answers

Please help me find this poem that I read years ago and have only a few details from... I think was titled "Emptiness". [more inside]
posted by odi.et.amo on Jun 10, 2008 - 3 answers

What are the best poems about glory in battle and valor in warfare? [more inside]
posted by clockworkjoe on Jun 9, 2008 - 31 answers

I'm looking for quotes or a short poem for my sister, whose expecting her first child in the next several days. Any ideas?
posted by phr4gmonk3y on May 7, 2008 - 11 answers

I need help with interpretation and understanding of The Divan of the Lover. A friend of mine claims to have figured out the meaning, and I'm drawing a blank aside from the most obvious. [more inside]
posted by sandraregina on May 2, 2008 - 9 answers

A poem about a girl tearing up a letter and throwing it into the ocean? [more inside]
posted by Coatlicue on Mar 4, 2008 - 2 answers

Help me find a poem I read over 10 years ago and have hazy memories of! It's about termites that eat steel. [more inside]
posted by InnocentBystander on Mar 1, 2008 - 3 answers

Who made this poem? I starts like this "Life is a song that begins with the word behold." [more inside]
posted by low affect on Feb 23, 2008 - 2 answers

I'm looking for a story that was a twist on the proverbial one-legged man at an ass-kicking contest. The man built or had a mechanical leg and handily won the contest. I thought it was very clever. It was very short piece, just a few dozen lines, and may have actually been in rhyme. I recall a woodcut illustration that went along with the story.
posted by deanj on Feb 6, 2008 - 0 answers

I'm seeking a W.B. Yeats poem that's as "positive" and as "universal" as possible -- specifically, that doesn't talk about death, or aging, or romantic love -- and that isn't spoken by, or addressed to, one individual who's clearly female or male. [more inside]
posted by lorimer on Jan 25, 2008 - 10 answers

Rumi poems online -- with both the original text and the English translation -- that would tell me how to speak his original texts? I would need either English transliterations (spelling in western alphabet of his original texts, with some way to know which syllable to accent) or an audio file of someone speaking them. Does this exist?
posted by lorimer on Jan 18, 2008 - 2 answers

I'm looking for a specific poem about a baseball pitcher. [more inside]
posted by giveandgo on Dec 11, 2007 - 6 answers

Looking for a poem I read about a domestic frustration and a housewife snapping after toiling away in quiet desperation. [more inside]
posted by JeremiahBritt on Dec 11, 2007 - 5 answers

Poetry about migraines / headaches / chronic pain ? [more inside]
posted by onoclea on Oct 26, 2007 - 6 answers

Hello folks, I am looking for the name of an old poem recited to me by my father in my childhood. It is similar in style to the 'Dangerous Dan McGrew' I think, but is about two men stranded on a desert island after their ship sinks. Initially they are strangers, but after realising they have a mutual friend, become good friends themselves. Things continue well until, I believe, they spot the mutual friend on a ship passing by. They notice however that the ship is a Pirate ship, and upon realising this, absolve their friendship in the knowledge that their mutual friend is of ill repute! This is all going on old memory, so I could be wrong in certain aspects.
posted by ferd on Oct 17, 2007 - 2 answers