Tag Art

On My Arrival

freyathewriter 23 Comments 
I have thought on this shoreline
a thousand miles distant
wondering if my memory is false
a fever dream arising
from too few vitamins, or sunstroke 
or being beaten senseless 
by forty foot waves
or deafened into stupidity 
by howling storms

the jewels, oh, the jewels
of sunlight reflecting
off mere glass windows
more priceless than pearls
for they are the portals to where you are
rainbow iridescence dancing 
and reflecting a moonlight
I fancy we share, sometimes

something so mundane
as washing on a line
warms my yearning heart
shirt-tails waving in the breeze
skirts, dresses, a silk chemise
such a teasing prospect
for this man, yearning
yet fearing all will be grey
on my arrival

A child’s romper suit, really?
is it swinging in the zephyr
as my ship draws ever near?
I can almost touch the downy cheek
of the little mite who wears it
safe, warm at night
while I ride the waves
pitching and yawing
with my fellow men
salt spray stinging
bringing tears, such tears
to searching eyes

They call me Captain
but that is just my role
my soul, my heart
is anchored here
at this shoreline
where I am free

wife, I see you
wave, wave with all your might!
daughter, I am finally here
I cannot wait to hold you
for the first time
I am home
at last

Egon Schiele, Houses with Laundry (Suburb II) (1914)

Tonight at the dVerse Poets Pub, Melissa is our congenial host and she is inviting us to respond poetically to one of four of Egon Schiele’s paintings, with no restriction on poetic form. I love Schiele’s work and this particular painting captivated me with all the jewel-like washing hanging on the many lines, and the repetition of colours in the windows of the houses beyond the shore.

I immediately thought of the vantage point of the viewer, and wondered who they might be, other than Schiele the artist himself. As you can tell from my poem, I went on quite a journey with my imagined seafaring narrator!

If you would like to take part in ekphrastic imaginings, please do come and join us here at dVerse. Head on over to the post linked above, read about some of Schiele’s short history, his paintings and his legacy, write your poem and follow the instructions Melissa has kindly included.

We look forward to welcoming you!

To arms – dVerse Quadrille Monday

freyathewriter 52 Comments

electricity_junction_box_with_birmingham_coat_of_arms_-_andy_mabbett_-_02

“Push the door, just a little

and stride into the unknown beyond,”

my brave heart urges, insistent, strong.

I shake my head, in time with my quivering hands,

fight-flight pushing and pulling me

every-which-way.

I think I want to cower.

But I go.

Forward.

 

It’s time for the dVerse Quadrille Monday, where this week Victoria invites us to wrote on the theme of ‘open’ in any manner we choose, as long as we use the quadrille form.

The picture above is the coat of arms for Birmingham (UK), the city of my birth. The lady on the left is holding a book and an artist’s palette, representing art, and the man on the left is a blacksmith, representing industry. It gives me a feeling of strength and determination, very much how the people of Birmingham were, and how I see them (us) still.

I’ve been taking a little breather from writing to regroup, and it’s good to ease myself back in with a quadrille, a form I really enjoy writing in.

Please do head on over to dVerse to read… and take part – why not?

Old and New – A Dash of Sunny

freyathewriter 20 Comments

IMG_0341

modern tradition

– an oxymoron some would say,

but i beg to differ.

the beauty of the design of today –

clean lines, smooth curves, simplicity,

matched with the serenity of age-old customs

handed down from parent to child

from mother/father to daughter/son –

or sometimes with a slipped stitch in time

that was caught, just in time

to re-forge the link that almost

wrenched the chain asunder.

modern tradition

that’s how I do it.

 

It’s time for my (mostly) weekly entry into A Dash of Sunny’s Prompt Nights, where this week we are asked to choose a photograph and write a poem or piece of prose inspired by it.

The photo is mine, of my Chanukiyyah that I love because of what it represents (my Jewish heritage), but also because it is beautiful in and of itself. It is made of iron and is so, so heavy, so very pleasingly substantial. I am sure it will outlast me!

All the branches are filled with lit candles, so that signifies the last night of Chanukkah, the eight day ‘festival of light’ which you can read about here, if you would like to know more!

Please do head on over to A Dash of Sunny to read how others have responded – and why not take part yourself?