A Poem Written At The End Of the Day

I am writing poems for my poem-a-day project faster than I am posting them to this blog, I am not sure if this is a bad thing. The blog is really to give me a place to record my progress on the project rather than publish the poetry. For instance, I am posting on Squidoo and on that site I would be penalised for posting elsewhere. So at least some of the poems will be kept for that site. I have just written a lens (=a web article) which outlines this project and gives snippets of some of the poems posted here but it will also contain some of my "better" poems, my personal favourites. So if you would like to see what I consider my best work please pay a visit to that site. It is originally posted with one new poem but I will be adding more as time passes.

For this post, I am including a poem which I wrote whilst sitting in my garden during a lull in the rain which we have been seeing this awfully wet summer. The sun was going down, everything was quite peaceful (no mowers or other garden sounds) just the sound of birds at the end of the day.

Evening Promise

A sound of flapping wings

As birds are settling down

Dusk is fast approaching

And the world is calm

Light fades and birds call

Evening comes for nature’s rest    

I sit and I listen

And the world is at peace

Clouds are floating by

No rain tonight it seems

I will take my nightly rest

And resting offers dreams

Dreams of times long since gone

Confusion creates awe

But with the coming, morning light

Like birds my hopes will soar

 

 

 The image was taken quite a time ago and is only used here to illustrate the poem.

A poem-a-day project update.

Just had to make this quick post, to keep up the new impetus. I have been away for a short break and although I anticipated several new poems, things did not work out as I hoped.

The weather in the UK has been WET for the past few weeks and the past few days have been no excepetion. I think we were luckier than many parts of the UKand did see some sun but one road between our hotel and the nearest large town was closed down because of flooding, when the local river burst its banks.

Anyway, I added another short snippet to a poem which I posted on this blog a few posts ago. Let me remind you of it.

21^st June

Rain

It’s raining again, oh goody!

They told us we were short of water

And to use a hose was out of order.

In case of use a fine would follow

But now that’s sounding rather hollow.

It’s raining again, oh goody!

Well I just had to make a response to this, ahem, little gem. And here it is:-

6th July

Enough Already!

It's wet enough,

It's not as if we need yet more.

But there is one thing

That I have to say,

Beware of what you're wishing for.

OK, back to reality next time. The project is on again after the holiday. And yes despite the rain we did enjoy ourselves. Expect a poem about Glastonbury, The Tor and/or The Chalice Well. Glastonbury has a very long history associated with Authurian legends and I am sure there will be much to write about this lovely and magical town.

There, I have listed a few subjects. No excuses not to write the poems. Be back soon.

New Poems: The Artist's Role & Buddist Chant

Back in quickly to post two more of my daily poems. Not sure that I would rate any of these as world beaters but it is beginning to be easier to start writing on different subjects. Today, I focus on artists and buddhists. Also I am developing a process or/and a routine which I am sure will benefit me in the days (months ?) to come. I would love to know what you think of them, and look forward to any criticsm in your comments.

The images are often of the subject of the poem but the monk was selected rather than the cover of the CD I was listening to at the time.

26^th June

 The Artist’s Rôle 

 

Abstract abstraction

Collage perfection,

From imperfect parts

To a meaningful whole.

Textures contrasting

Directional casting,

Calm and contentment

The artists true goal.

A skilful creation

By well practiced action.

A bold affirmation

Of the artist’s proud ole

A colourful flourish

But never too garish.

Artistic appraisal?

It’s food for the soul.

 This is one of two pictures hanging on a hotel wall by the same artist. I enjoy creating collages and rather liked these works. What better way of celebrating them than to write my next poem on the subject of art.

 I found this more difficult to write because I had actually chosen a subject this time. Lots of editing and rewriting but eventually arriving at something I can live with.

In trying to find a rhyme with “whole” in the first verse, I actually found lots of possibilities and decided to make this a feature of the poem. I used a rhyme on the last line of each verse. A different rhyming form for me but one I think works quite well.

27^th June

A Better Life

Shining sounds

Of people singing

Clashing gongs

And bells a-ringing.

Imagining

Some far off temple

Mystic views

A world of fable.

Holy monks

Will chant and raise 

Voices aloud

In simple praise,

To their God

Whose all forgiving

Goodness

Will reward them all.

Alternative last line for this poem:-

“Their reward will bring”

The song came to mind whilst driving back from a short break; my wife had put on a CD of Buddhist Chants and this set off a few thoughts which I completed after the journey.

I will be saying more about my process in the very near future, although I may well be writing a Squidoo lens (=article). I will be posting  the  link on here though.

More daily poems

This has been more fun than I imagined. Not really making the one a day, but the average is good. Seems like I have to have the opportunity in order to write. Note to myself: need to create this opportunity and provide thte time.

Well I have another three and I am very happy with these so lets get right down to the nitty gritty:

25^th June

A Healing Circle

 Round and round and round we go

Follow the path, all we need to know.

Find the centre that’s the plan,

Return again a better man.

Round and round and round we’re yet

Upon a path ordained, it’s set

From here to there and then return.

A healing circle, look and learn.

Round and round and round we walk.

The path is clear, no need to talk.

It spirals in, then out again.

A healing prayer to ease the pain.

My wife and I visited a “Garden of Well-Being” inGloucestershire, called Matara. The gardens have been designed to create a sense of calmness, and contain elements of Japanese (Zen garden) and Celtic traditions (mazes or labrynths). The double spiral is a common form of the single route labrynth and is called here a healing circle. The idea being that you walk forward to get to the centre and by keeping going in the same direction you reach the exit, a different exit of course.

I started to write this lying in bed in the hotel we stayed in for two days visiting two wonderful gardens. It was very early and most of it came to me without too much conscious thought but I had to write it down before I forgot it. At 5.00 a.m. this would have been a distinct possibility.

The first verse came out in one go. The second verse was a little more difficult to find and in fact it nearly did not get written. I wrote the third verse after the first and thought that the poem was complete but after a little break decided to add another verse. The second line of the last verse originally read:

" It spirals in, it spirals out."

However, rhyming with “out” was difficult and so came up with the alternative seen above.

The last verse eventually appeared, still using the same repetition as the other verses for the first line. The rhyming couplet gave me a little trouble, which is why the second line is a little stilted The word order being a little unnatural although not unforgivingly so.

The third line also took two attempts, firstly:

“From here to there and back again”

The lack of a suitable rhyme again led me to change to a slightly different tack.

When a lyric or poem “falls” out on to the paper quickly, without needing too much concentration on my part, I often find that it is one of my favourites. Although it is only days since this was written, I believe this will be the case with this poem. I must admit to being quite pleased with it.

25^th June

As in a dream!

I am so glad that I did get up and write the last poem down. When I got back in bed I was obviously on overdrive and another poem came very quickly to mind. Again it did not need much work from me, the lines coming very easily. This time I did not write the poem down straightaway, I allowed myself to drop off to sleep – and of course later on upon reawakening, I had completely forgotten it. I remembered that I had completed it but could not even remember the theme or subject of the poem except that it was something to do with the visit of the day before. Just like a dream it had evaporated completely.

A warning to get ideas down on paper as soon as possible and whatever you are doing.

26^th June

The Black Tower

A calming scene of luscious green

A tangled woody bower,

A colourful riot before one’s eyes

And then afar a tower.

The tower is in black stone built,

The local stone is sand,

I cannot help but wonder why

The builder made this stand.

The crenellations ‘round the top

Add to the mystery

Like a castle on a hill top proud.

The man a dreamer, he.

Was it a show of daring-do

Or was there a special reason?

But either way, to travellers’ eyes

It stands out all year, each season.

A photo of a distant tower seen at Old Sodbury, Gloucestershire. I was struck by the colour of it as we drove by. Virtually all other buildings were in the oolitic limestone common to the Cotswold area. In fact the councils will not allow any other materials to be used for new buildings in an effort to maintain the scenic beauty of this wonderful location.

I have very little to say about this poem, it being another one that came out very easily. Again, the last verse was written before the final verse but not an uncommon issue, I would guess. In the third verse above the third and fourth lines have been changed, the originals being:

“Looking to all who pass it by

Like a castle, there to see”

I am very glad that I took a few seconds to change it.

 Oh yes, crenellations are the shapes of the rectangular, protective devices seen around the battlements and towers of a castle. A note on the tower from Wikipedia:-

There is a crenellated tower on the escarpment immediately above and to the East of the village, resembling a rook chesspiece, visible from the main road, that performs the function of a ventilation shaft (the first of six) for the Chipping Sodbury Tunnel, on the main railway line from South Wales, via Bristol Parkway to London Paddington). These shafts were designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the Great Western Railway, which runs through the village and under the hill above it.

Actually I am going to call it a day for this post there, I will post the third poem in my next posting.

Poetry, Beginning To Write Again Many Years

If you have read some of my previous posts here or my poetry-basedSquidoo lenses, you will be aware that the poetry I have been posting on the internet was almost all writtten many years ago in my youth. I have mentioned that my interest in writing has been reawakened by the postings. However, I have not been active in this endeavour.

In order to kick-start myself into action I am going to try and write a poem everyday. I am not sure if I can carry this off but if I do it will lead to a number of short, probably poorly written and an eclectic range of subjects. All to the good perhaps, especially the latter. Also, looking on the bright side, I should be able to edit the better ones into something to be proud of. The hope is that the action of writing will have three major affects:-

• Writing more will encourage more writing
• Writing more will encourage creativivty in my writing
• Writing more will improve my consistency and skills in writing

If I seem to be repeating myself it is because I have great expectations of writing more. So everyday I will be making notes and putting a couple of stanzas down on paper. I will be editing as I go of course which is of course a standard part of the writing process. However I hope that by frequently posting  some of the "best" on this blog, more editing of course, I will get back into the business of writing poetry again.

Here are three which I have writen on the first two days of this project. Nothing came on the third day but I do feel good about them.

 

20^th June (My thanks and apologies to William Shakespeare for the inspiration.)

Rush Hour

Hustle, bustle, toil and ruffle

Clothes protecting from the weather.

Rushing through the snow and rain

To their place of work ordained, 

Commuting colleagues all together.

Every morning it’s the same.

In the evening, repeat procedure

But carry out in reverse order.

Buses, trains and cars a-honking

Stressful signs of people waiting

To get home a little quicker;

Lord, O Lord, please heed their praying.

Played around with many rhyming schemes but settled on this one. Not usual for me - but after reading lots of free and non-rhyming poetry I wanted to be different. The first stanza came together and I worked on it for sometime using ABCCBC.

The original second line was, “Clothes worn keeping out the weather”. I may still keep it yet. Actually on second thoughts, to go back to the rhyming scheme, I am stayin with the original. Leaving, “Clothes worn to keep us warm” as second reserve.

The last two lines in stanza 2, after failing originally to maintain the rhyme scheme were,

“For the next stage of their journey

To get home, Lord heed their praying.”

NB. I moved the word “procedure” from line to line three times during the writing of this poem.

Shopping

Spending money, joining queues;

Oh boy, what joy

I can think of better things

To occupy my mind.

And if it should come to it,

I rather spend my time

Doing almost anything else,

Than shopping

I get no satisfaction

From brash new fashion.

I don’t need or get along

With must-have toys for boys.

Why are they so needed?

It really is a mystery,

A waste of world resources.

That’s shopping!

Wow, I thought I had finished this but have made several minor and a couple of major revisions to it whilst typing.  These were mostly to improve the metre and rhythm of the lines in the poem.

Apologies to Messers Jagger and Richards, but I declined their original line to improve the metre here.

21^st June

Rain

It’s raining again, oh goody!

They told us we were short of water

And to use a hose was out of order.

In case of use a fine would follow

But now that’s sounding rather hollow.

It’s raining again, oh goody!

The shortest yet! Written during a few minutes waiting for a colleague at work.

I will of course keep you up to date with this project, hopefylly more posts (and poems) will follow rapidly.

A Poem For Ellen, On Her Passing Away

I don't often write this type of poem but Ellen was 101 years old when she died and I felt moved to put pen to paper.

                                       For Ellen.

               A grand old age, they all said so

               But still it hurt to see her go.

               And in the end, Not taking long;

               So short a time To move along.

               Leaving behind this vale of tears,

               Family and friends made through the years.

               She had a life that many say

               Was just and rewarding, for in her way

               She lived and loved those that she knew

               Harbouring no grudge, paying her due.

               For husband, son and daughter too

               She gave her love, she saw them through.

               In troubled times she was right there

               No need to ask, with strength she'd bear

               Them through it all and take their part

               With selfless love and generous heart.

               As Nan, she loved the children who

               Grew up so fast and loved her too.

               So weep not for a life so blessed,

               Remember Ellen, gone to rest.

I hope that you like it.

New poems on Squidoo on the theme of lost loves

I have just published annother tranche of my poems on a new Squidoo Lens (=web page),

Poems On Endings And Lost Loves.

I am still hoping to publish a large proportion of some of the hundreds of poems which I wrote in my teens and twenties. Many of these were set to music as this was my main outlet for creative endeavour. Often changing the words to provide a middle eight for the resulting songs.

Here I give a very short example of what is contained in the poems, apologies but you will have to browse on over to the Squidoo lens to read the rest. Squidoo does not like repetition of its published content in a bid to retain Google ranking for original content.

Three extracts from the lens:-

Silent Lady

Silent Lady, Silent Lady

the time has come to say goodbye.

How can I forget you,

When I see you everyday in my mind’s eye.

Sing Me A Simple Song

Sing me a simple song,
So I can sing along.
We can make beautiful music all night and day.
Sing me a melody,
Let's sing in harmony.
I know that we can make it come what may!

Reflections From The Past

Reflections remind me
Remind me of a love we knew
And sometimes I can see you
In reflections from the past

I hope that you will be suitably impressed and want to read the whole poems, there will be at least six poems in this lens when it is completed.

THaanks for reading and I hope to have more news of more poems soon.