thank you all for your comments and for taking the time with my poem. Although it reads like a 'lover's' poem, it was in fact written with my soldier son in mind who left me 22years ago at age 16 to 'join up' and the army turned him from my loving thoughtful son and friend into a man who hides his emotions well (suppose a trained special soldier has to) However, I think of him all the time and long to hear from him and once in every while the phone does bring him to me inbetween him living his own life. Please dont misunderstand I am not a bitter clinging mother ~ just a mum who misses the son who was also her best friend xxx

Comment is about Golden Silence? (blog)

Hi Dave - nice to see you're experimenting with different styles.

I had a police friend who we called 'Jigsaw' - for no other reason than he always went to pieces when he was in the (witness) box. Daft - but true.

Comment is about Jigsaw (blog)

Original item by Dave Bradley

Thank you, dear Lynn. I am happy when people enjoy reading my poems.

Comment is about Woman's mood (blog)

Original item by Larisa Rzhepishevska

hmm, yes all this pandora talk put this is my head...

Comment is about The Rib (blog)

Original item by Marianne Daniels

i did mean 'fault line'...
why can't a poem really peck your head with its demands? hee hee...
it SHOULD be free game... thanks for the comments.

Comment is about Walk alone (blog)

Original item by Marianne Daniels

Hi Lynn

Thanks for commenting on mine. I've enjoyed reading yours - good fun, poignant in places, some sharp insights. Hope to see you blogging!

Comment is about Lynn Dye (poet profile)

Original item by Lynn Dye

Other commenters have said it all, so you may not get too many more comments, but I'm sure this will resonate with many. Well written.

Comment is about Golden Silence? (blog)

Hi Cynthia,
Thank-you for reading & commenting on 'Pandora's Box', your comments are always much appreciated.
Yes, I think you're maybe right about the choice to indulge curiosity being the exercise of free will, can I claim poetic licence?
I think also the discussion of what is free will etc is quite a complicated one; the (what I believe to be)myth of Pandora ties up very well with the (what I believe to be) myth of the creation story; certainly in Pandora's case - she did as Zeus had manipulated her into doing, is the same true of Eve? - not sure.
I believe both stories, both women, both gods to be entirely fictitious.
I do believe, however, that we are programmed according to a mutable mix of biological imperatives, chemicals, social conditioning, personal history etc ... so if we're programmed, do we still have completely free will?Interesting point you made!
:)
Cx

Comment is about Cynthia Buell Thomas (poet profile)

Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas

Hi Andy,
Thanks for reading and commenting on 'Pandora's Box', much appreciated & nice to hear from you.
:)
Cx

Comment is about Andy N (poet profile)

Original item by Andy N

Hi Cynthia,
RE pandoras box, glad you liked it and though i can't say i know the biblical references i like the fact that you were able to relate the two 'stories'.
RE Riding slipstreams, I have actually blogged it before but during one of my manic depressive downturns ( shall we say ) i removed myself from WOL and inevitably regretted it as i lost record of all the stuff i'd blogged.Hoping to blog 'em again without too much uproar for repetition lol.
RE Onyx eyes, i like that you find it scary and yes i suppose i do enjoy these kind of thoughts, they come easier than hearts and flowers.

Comment is about Cynthia Buell Thomas (poet profile)

Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas

Hi Isobel, My RE is tres poor too, though i agree that King probably did get inspiration from the bible.
I had hoped to get away with Pandoras sex change - looks like i managed it ok lol x

Comment is about Isobel (poet profile)

Original item by Isobel

think language has a lot to answer for; it can become so esoteric it is a hindrance to real communication rather than a help. In my opinion, it is especially useless when writers/speakers don't really think about what the words really mean, and just 'spout', using all kinds of rhetorical skill to influence other people, all the time being on very unsure ground themselves. 'God/gods' can be the epitome of good or evil. Funny that. I took the slant of 'god/good'

i asked what writers work is this referring to?
language...is especially useless when the writers dont really think about what the words really mean...
i assume you are talking about poetry as we're on a poetry site.
straight forward question really cynthia.

Comment is about Cynthia Buell Thomas (poet profile)

Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas

Hi, Lynn! You are so dear. Thank you for your comment. Thanks for understanding. I say these words as woman to woman. lol
With warmest wishes, Lara

Comment is about Lynn Dye (poet profile)

Original item by Lynn Dye

I think this is really good, Larisa.
Love it! Warm regards, Lynn

Comment is about Woman's mood (blog)

Original item by Larisa Rzhepishevska

I like this poem too, Dave. It is so easy to relate to.

Comment is about Jigsaw (blog)

Original item by Dave Bradley

Brilliant, and scary. The first two lines of stanza 2 are compelling. Do you enjoy these thoughts?

Comment is about Onyx eyes from watchtowers spy. (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

I think this is fantastic. Didn't you have another one rather similar? Something rings a bell, because I was much impressed by similar ideas before. You are developing a real 'voice'. The title is excellent.

Comment is about Riding slipstreams (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

These prior comments are fulsome, and worthy. I think 'fault' is used like 'fault line' where lava/fire/disruptive emotion break through the earth/conscious restraints. The beauty of your work is symbolism which is free game, so to speak.

Comment is about Walk alone (blog)

Original item by Marianne Daniels

thank you all xxx

Comment is about Golden Silence? (blog)

This is really good, Kath. Symbolically, I actually thought of the apostle, John, in his exile, trying to assimilate and reteach the tenets of Jesus of Nazareth. Words are so loaded with the reader's own experience.

Comment is about Pandoras box ( sort of ) (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

What a powerful subject, brilliantly highlighted here. I find the 'rib mythology' absolutely appalling, and can hardly believe it still exists - oh so strongly - in some arenas. I love how clear this is, smashing glass all the way.

Comment is about The Rib (blog)

Original item by Marianne Daniels

Hi Marianne - I really enjoyed reading this; it actually 'feels' poetic, with its classic sense of morosity.

I'm with Ray though with the line -

"the fault of emotion bleeding monarchs of madness in their minds"

cf. 'emotion's fault, bleeding madness of monarchs in their minds'.

It's less demanding to imagine someone 'bleeding madness' than it is 'bleeding monarchs' - it just depends which noun you wish to modify.

I enjoy your writing - there is something there that appeals to me.

Comment is about Walk alone (blog)

Original item by Marianne Daniels

I find this such a sad brave poem Rosemary. But your inner Goddess is so strong! I see you wrote this in 2005 - you are still here writing poetry which is both great and true. Good for you! Much love AF xx

Comment is about Golden Silence? (blog)

Yes - I like this one. Sometimes it isn't a question of a dagger in the heart - just a little hurt. Sometimes it isn't a question of life and death issues - just common courtesy...this strikes a chord for me.

Comment is about Golden Silence? (blog)

LOL - that's another reason I liked the poem! You are far more subtle than me Kath! The change becomes her well...

Comment is about Pandoras box ( sort of ) (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

I bet Steven King was inspired by the bible, as was Tolkien. I think much of literature is rooted in myth or religion, time honoured allusion... glad to hear it wasn't Blackpool LOL x

Comment is about Kath Hewitt (poet profile)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

I fankoo xxx

Comment is about Golden Silence? (blog)

:)

Comment is about Masood (blog)

ooo masood x

Comment is about Masood (blog)

i love this poem. it echoes my feelings entirely on the subject of all this supposed beauty in silence and these platitudes that really just fail to acknowledge a persons suffering and attempt to make it right with trite observations. and we know all too well when a person doent speak to you its becuse they just dont want to and will use any cleverness to excuse that to avoid responsiblity for their non-action.
you have put it beautifully x

Comment is about Golden Silence? (blog)

Sounds to me like you have given Pandora a sex change Kath! Good poem, as usual! x

Comment is about Pandoras box ( sort of ) (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

Hi Andy,
thanks again for reading and commenting. I had toyed with different ways of splitting but couldn't decide so in the end it stayed as it is - as per lol x

Comment is about Andy N (poet profile)

Original item by Andy N

Hi, Definately not blackpool!! It was actually inspired by Stephen King's Dark Tower series of novels. I wanted to try to stay away from the actual Pandoras box, yet keep the meaning? Hopefully i pulled it off!
Thanks for taking time to read and comment xx

Comment is about Isobel (poet profile)

Original item by Isobel

I enjoyed reading this one Kath. My R.E. isn't great so I googled the tower of Babylon, assuming that might be the one you are referring to. It represented man's vanity, trying to compete with the Gods, bringing the wrath of God upon man, scattering them across the world, splintering races. With that knowledge I find your poem easier to understand. I enjoyed your take on it. Now please don't tell me it has anything to do with Blackpool!

Comment is about Pandoras box ( sort of ) (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

Could this be Pandora part 2? I love the ideas in it - second hand flesh, a waste of bone, a clone, bloated up by my lack of... you say it all very eloquently.

Comment is about The Rib (blog)

Original item by Marianne Daniels

I wasn't criticising the ending Marianne - just commenting on the irony that hope should be the clinching evil - it's the paradox that lends the poem pathos and makes it stand out. As artists, we all reflect our moods in poetry - don't know about you, but I can from go from one extreme to the other in a day or a month...
Don't feel any need to bang a big base drum just on my account. x

Comment is about Pandora's Box (blog)

Original item by Marianne Daniels

Hi Ann, I think the running order for Women of the World is fine; I'm surprised you haven't had more comments. Funnily enough, the last poem I posted was the first one that I had written for more than 30 years!

Comment is about Ann Foxglove (poet profile)

Original item by Ann Foxglove

he who rides the pale horse is often no where to be seen x

Comment is about no title (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

great...love the snake image like its passage causes a carving in stone you could imagine like a fossil..'etches its path forever more..stories of history hidden beneath.'
smashing :)

Comment is about Silver spring (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

i love your writing kath, it paints some very sensual and expansive picture...

this is my fav. of the pandoras box series x

Comment is about Pandoras box ( sort of ) (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

thankyou for the comments, I am considering ptting up an audio as soon as i can get my hands on a device to record.
isobel - i shall try to write a more optimistic poem in the future...

marianne

Comment is about Pandora's Box (blog)

Original item by Marianne Daniels

this is lovely... i bet this would go down really well in a live atomsphere.. i think it could nearly work as a song too.

good stuff..

Comment is about As Sure as Eggs are Eggs. (blog)

feel like there is a song like quality to this in places... the first seven or so stanzas all would be performed lovely in a open mike also.. the 8th and 9th stanzas however would leave me totally out of breathe! lol

Enjoyed this however. nice one

Comment is about Perspective (blog)

enjoyed this, kath... i would have being tempted - i must admit to break this poem up a bit more for example on the second to last stanza breaking up the last two lines so it reads..

The gift of life,

renewal,

the gift of hope.

I did really enjoy this otherwise.. nice one! x

Comment is about Pandoras box ( sort of ) (blog)

Original item by Kath Hewitt

Hi Greg - thanks for the nice comment on Women of the World. It was one of the first poems I wrote, last autumn. I've got a soft spot for it and somehow the Pandora stuff on WOL recently brought it to mind. I wonder if it would work better if I changed their "running order" though?

Comment is about Greg Freeman (poet profile)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Hi Greg - thanks for the comment! This is one of the first poems I wrote, last autumn. I've got a soft spot for it and somehow the Pandora stuff on WOL recently brought it to mind. I wonder if it would work better if I changed their "running order" though?

Comment is about women of the world (blog)

Original item by Ann Foxglove

Thank-you Dave, for your kind comment on 'Disconnected', much appreciated.
Cx

Comment is about Dave Dunn (poet profile)

Original item by Dave Dunn

Thanks Anthony for your very generous comments on 'Pandora's Box', they are very much appreciated.
No, you didn't comment on it before, previously I posted it just for a short while, then took it down again because I didn't think it was good enough, but kind comments from Isobel persuaded me to put it back. Glad you liked it.
Cx

Comment is about Anthony Emmerson (poet profile)

Original item by Anthony Emmerson

Good evening Lynn-just read'I thought of you'-beautiful!I love the honesty in your poems.I,m having break travelling the east coast this week-no tears(or shouting hurrah! lol!)hope there are some more of your delightful poems to read when I return-thank you-Stefan.

Comment is about Lynn Dye (poet profile)

Original item by Lynn Dye

Isobel.The reality TV stuff at the end is just thrown in for more cheap laughs.This is just number 1 in a 392- part series on the wonderful history of mental illness. Some of it is even true!Trepanation is the first known treatment of madness, a primitive form of lobotomy - as if lobotomy weren't primitive enough.

Comment is about Mad History: The Early Egyptians (blog)