You are really good at stream-of consciousness-style writing. I love the line "I’m an old woman I should
dress in black count my beads
on my knees in church every day
turn off the news, cower at home
read novels, write bad verse." Captures the sentiment really well.
Comment is about Sunday, April 17, 2022 (blog)
Original item by K. Lynn
Dear Holden I admire this poem a lot. It is difficult sometimes to maintain a conceit (extended metaphor) even in a short verse. John Donne was a master of this art, we are his acolytes.
A sonnet for John Donne (1572 - 1631)
Airy valedictions cannot span this bridge in time
What’s mine is yours, what’s yours is very definitely mine.
We both can hear the quiet roar of our own new found land
As time drifts to a stop and as we focus near and far
We no longer stand amazed at the hollow rancour of public life
And have no more time for the mere indulgences of strife.
We look too much upon these empty places, the sands
That have run out, sans mistress, husband, lover, wife.
Faces that bloomed at noontide fade like a plangent song
Sung as we leave the stage with ne’er a whisper of regret
To walk into eternity with all the grace the less deceived
Can muster, as leaves turn golden at this late turning of the year.
And now those twin compass points of greed and fear draw near
Then, quite suddenly disappear: a point upon a circle, a tear upon a face.
Comment is about Sundial (blog)
Original item by Holden Moncrieff
I, like you I guess, intensely dislike (though sometimes admire) the use of sarcasm, satire, irony, sneering. All these negative forms of rhetoric are like wasps, designed to annoy and sting.
“What are others worth that they have the nerve to sneer at any human being?”
― Graham Greene, The Heart of the Matter
Comment is about Home... (blog)
Original item by Holden Moncrieff
Hello Holden. This poem of yours put me in mind of the final paragraph of 'The Dead' the final story in James Aloysius Joyce's collection 'Dubliners' , a paragraph that adumbrates much of Joyce's future writing:
"Yes, the newspapers were right: snow was general all over Ireland. It was falling softly upon the Bog of Allen and, further westwards, softly falling into the dark mutinous Shannon waves. It was falling too upon every part of the lonely churchyard where Michael Furey lay buried. It lay thickly drifted on the crooked crosses and headstones, on the spears of the little gate, on the barren thorns. His soul swooned slowly as he heard the snow falling faintly through the universe and faintly falling, like the descent of their last end, upon all the living and the dead."
Every time I read this, I cry for all the living and all the dead.
Comment is about Universal (blog)
Original item by Holden Moncrieff
Tip-top Holden.
Ethos, pathos, logos, and kairos (καιρός) all have taken their place in the poet's rhetorical armoury.
Comment is about Duel... (blog)
Original item by Holden Moncrieff
James Aloysius Joyce expressed this pithily in 'Ulysses':
“Think you're escaping and run into yourself. Longest way round is the shortest way home.” ―
Comment is about Find & Seek (blog)
Original item by Holden Moncrieff
Liberty is a conundrum - a free spirit is not limited by others' conceptions of liberty.
“We were the people who were not in the papers. We lived in the blank white spaces at the edge of print. It gave us more freedom. We lived in the gaps between the stories.” Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale.
Comment is about Catch (blog)
Original item by Holden Moncrieff
‘ “Until they become conscious they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled they cannot become conscious.” Orwell, 1984.
It is the unackowledged, middle-of-the-road dystopia that terrifies me.
Comment is about Dystopic. (blog)
Original item by Holden Moncrieff
Graham, I can't recommend them enough! It is odd though...
Ray
Comment is about TRANSFORMATION (blog)
Original item by ray pool
My thanks to John, Stephen, Rudyard, Pete and Nigel for liking this poem. Places change and it's usually a mistake to go back, even if in a rather second-hand way.
Comment is about Saxmundham (blog)
Original item by Stephen Gospage
They are my desktop screensaver. How odd?
Comment is about TRANSFORMATION (blog)
Original item by ray pool
I know the feeling my little dishwashing slave has grown old, so off to the knackers yard to be turned into something possibly useful, meanwhile nice people from John Lewis are delivering me a new one, my hands are much too delicate for soap suds so until it arrives we are eating out.😁
Comment is about WORKING AS ONE (blog)
Original item by ray pool
Haha! I must be a one-ff Ray. I actually like washing up and often do our friends if we are invited to dinner or lunch.
I personally cannot abide good quality wine glasses being put into a dishwasher!!
The dictum in our house is, my wife makes the mess (known as my dinner) and I clear it up 😇
Comment is about WORKING AS ONE (blog)
Original item by ray pool
Thank you John, Stephen and Holden for your continued interest.
Clouds are integral to the idea of poetry, and share much with humans in terms of threat or comfort ! Thanks Stephen.
Ray
Comment is about TRANSFORMATION (blog)
Original item by ray pool
Thank you John, Tom, & Stephen! It's the first thing I've written in a while. Still trying to format my book on KDP. Hopefully by the end of this week I'll be sorted!
And thanks for the Likes Nigel, Frederick, Adam, Holden, Kevin & R.G. always appreciated 🌈
Comment is about The Beacon (blog)
Original item by Stephen W Atkinson
Intriguing poem, Mike.
Comment is about Breaking Up With Philomena (blog)
Original item by Mike McPeek
Many thanks, John. Yes, it seems that his planned 3-day romp has turned into endless attrition, accompanied by chaos and loss of many lives. Not much of a legacy.
Cheers to Nigel, Frederick, Russel, Holden, Flyntland and Helène for reading and liking this one.
Comment is about Day after Day (blog)
Original item by Stephen Gospage
A superbly judged poem, Russell.
Comment is about The Small Square Table (blog)
Original item by JD Russell
That's right, Ray. There's no death in a cloud. Perhaps that's what makes them so fascinating (and reassuring) to look at.
Comment is about TRANSFORMATION (blog)
Original item by ray pool
Thanks for the like Frederick - somebody loves me...
Ray
Comment is about INTERNAL AFFAIRS (blog)
Original item by ray pool
Brilliant, I love this one Stephen.
Comment is about The Beacon (blog)
Original item by Stephen W Atkinson
Simple and effective, Stephen. Who would have thought when this began last Spring that the might of Russia’s military muscle would be bogged down in this upcoming Winter?
Comment is about Day after Day (blog)
Original item by Stephen Gospage
Marvellous Imagery on different levels, Stephen. And technically tight too.
Comment is about The Beacon (blog)
Original item by Stephen W Atkinson
Possibly, MC.
Personally, on one level I am sad to see her go. I liked the way her titties jiggled when she walked on stage. I shall miss that.
Comment is about IT'S ONLY MAKE BELIEVE (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
I will definitely be buying this book Stephen 😀
Comment is about Never heard of this fella, but I'll give it a try.. (blog)
Original item by Stephen W Atkinson
I am so glad you understood it so well, corruption is killing most of our countries. It is sad that nothing gets done, it has been a problem, it is a problem, and it will continue being a problem.
Thank you for kind words
Comment is about TUKOMESHENI UFISADI. (blog)
Original item by kanini Beatrice
Thanks so much Stephen for your comment and Flyntland, Frederick, Helen, Bethany and K. Lynn for your likes. 😀
Comment is about Meeting Juliet (blog)
Original item by John Botterill
Lovely poem. Life affirming with a splendid denouement.
Comment is about Sensitivity (blog)
Original item by Hélène
The theme is sorrowful but thoroughly recognizable, many places in the world suffer this kind of political apathy many have this kind of corruption, and politicians who care less about those who elected them, veterans who have sacrificed most, are overlooked.
Fraternity or as it is known, the old boys' network is wrong, it has been the way for hundreds of years and there seems no way to stop it.
Great words, loved it
Comment is about TUKOMESHENI UFISADI. (blog)
Original item by kanini Beatrice
Thanks Stephen, sometimes reminiscence hurts.
You must have seen great changes since you were a young man," said Winston tentatively. The old man's pale blue eyes moved from the darts board to the bar, and from the bar to the door of the Gents ... "The beer was better," he said finally. "And cheaper! When I was a young man, mild beer - wallop we used to call it - was fourpence a pint. That was before the war, of course." "Which war was that?" said Winston. "It's all wars," said the old man vaguely. He took up his glass, and his shoulders straightened again. "'Ere's wishing you the very best of 'ealth!
Comment is about Late November (blog)
Original item by John E Marks
You're on a roll, John. I wonder what happened to Glenfiddich? I remember drinking some in 1984 (made a change from Victory Gin).
Comment is about Late November (blog)
Original item by John E Marks
Sometimes we have to fight - to stop bullying, abuse.
Comment is about Surrender (blog)
Original item by Hélène
Colors can both reflect mood and influence mood.
Comment is about Colors of the Day (blog)
Original item by Hélène
an invitation from eternity it certainly is. You write so well!
Comment is about Invitation (blog)
Original item by Hélène
I love the way this points up the horror and futility of war in such a heroic style.
Comment is about Lest We Forget (blog)
Original item by JD Russell
Great poem, John. It took me a while to understand the cult of Bowie; I think 'The Man who fell to Earth' did it. An unforgettable film.
Comment is about BOWIE (blog)
Original item by John E Marks
A lovely description of a happy moment, John.
Comment is about Meeting Juliet (blog)
Original item by John Botterill
Thanks for the likes Frederick and Holden as always.
Stephen, I think you're right there. He has displayed a human side throughout!
I fear that Milligan was far too leftwing to have ascended the traditional throne, more likely the outside toilet variety. I met him once at a function; he came to the stage during my dinner set and said: "do you know how insensitive you are?" A brief and ambiguous moment.
Ray
Comment is about A HEAD START (blog)
Original item by ray pool
Thank you Stephen and Flyntland, very kind of you.
And thanks to Frederick, Stephen, K Lynn and Holden for reading this one and the 'likes'. Much appreciated.
Comment is about University Payphone (blog)
Original item by Tom
<Deleted User> (33540)
Sun 23rd Oct 2022 13:22
Thank you for liking * Grandma's golden hours*
Comment is about Hélène (poet profile)
Original item by Hélène
Greg Freeman
Thu 27th Oct 2022 16:56
Thank you, Graham!
Comment is about Write Out Loud Woking marks six years with anthology (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman