IN THE MIRROR and THE FONTANEL (Poems)

["Wild Leaf," copyright Superstock, Inc., Webshots.com]


IN THE MIRROR

part sister, part demon
you visit nightly
draped in sleep,
a child playing dress-up
before her mother's mirror

you take on facets
that beg reflection,
friend or traitor,
whimsical or sad

as each in turn
finds full embrace
in the moon-like silver
of the mirror

* * * *

I've been reading a great deal of poetry by other people, even more than usual, which often precipitates writing of my own. This new poem above popped up late last night, pestering me until I got it down on paper. Funny thing is, I don't remember very much at all of my dreams last night. Maybe writing the poem served as that function for the night. And I'm only partly joking....

P.S. After posting the above I went off-line and another poem promptly asserted itself. I know from years of experience that my poems take a while to "settle," so both of these poems may wind up being slightly "tweaked." But I do believe they are essentially complete.

THE FONTANEL

it aches deeply today
this soft spot
I’ll always hold for you

old failures and pointed
questions with no answers prod
until it blooms bluer
than any bruise

but better the pulsing ache
of this unclosed fontanel
than a hardness like graveyard
bones piled over you

P.P.S. A third poem has since wiggled its way through, but I probably won't post that one til it's had a chance to "settle." I'm rather tickled that three appeared in barely 24 hours, as I really don't write "regular" poems much at all these days. I'm too absorbed in various haiku forms.

* * * *

‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blogs ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL and ROSWILA’S TAIGA TAROT.

ONE-LINE HAIKU: Response to One Deep Breath Prompt of 4/9/07

across what bridge .... this inspiration

This week's prompt is to think about "bridges." I was reminded that I've always wondered how my inspiration and ideas come to me (to anyone), from where, and how they get here, which resulted in the above one-liner. I then thought of The Hierophant in The Tarot as an appropriate illustration for it. Older names for this card are The Pope, or The Pontif, which means "bridge." And that accurately gets across (:-D) one aspect of The Hierophant: a channel for inner inspiration.

The wonderful card above is a very non-traditional version of The Hierophant and was done by Fulgour (using cut paper) for the Fourth Aeclectic Community Tarot Project.

Please visit One Deep Breath to read the full prompt and to view others' creative responses to it.

* * * *

‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blogs ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL and ROSWILA’S TAIGA TAROT.

A ZERO G GARDEN (A Scifi Renku)

Zen Garden, by Ciro Marchetti

You may have noted my fondness for small poetry forms. Today’s post is a renku, with a science fiction theme. It was written by Oino and myself in comments to my Daily Dreamku (prompted there by Oino, and posted here with his permission).

Renku are usually written by two or more people, though sometimes by one person. A renku consists of alternating three- and two-line stanzas and is often considerably longer than ours below. The starting three-line verse of a renku is what evolved into the haiku form. The most important features of a renku are linking and shifting. "Linking," very simply put, is responding in some way to the previous lines. The fun (and skill) is in making the link very subtle or unusual. "Shifting" is taking the theme or subject or setting off in a different direction.

I’ve identified the authors below each contribution, and the two of mine that were Daily Dreamku. (For non-scifi fans, the letters "FTL" stand for "faster than light," and "Dorsai" refers to a military scifi book series by Dickson.) I share this renku mostly to share the form itself, but also to remember how much fun it is to await a response and then savor it. :-)

A ZERO G GARDEN

suprisingly
it's the hope of the future
space dragon's hatchling
pk [dreamku]

imprints on an astronaut
at last we'll go FTL
oino

holistic farming
the evidence of old wounds
is more intriguing
pk [dreamku]

entombed in his armor
a soldier of Dorsai
oino

ours to do and die
at the galactic wormhole
no turning back
oino

backs to the stars
we repair the warp drive
pk

* * *

Resource: Haiku Society of America’s definitions, you can read a much more detailed description of renku here.

‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blogs ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL and ROSWILA’S TAIGA TAROT.