Downstream

slapdashmonuments

Inspiration hits with a flash, stories written on the go. A rumble of laughter and the tale is heard only in echoes. The wind blows me in a new direction. Whom shall I visit next?


As water flowed, it washed me all away:

The elements that made me what I am;

My hopes and visions, first. Behind them swam

Awareness, leaking ’til there’s no today

My pride in my accomplishments went next;

My puns, non-sequiturs–my treasured words.

Released at last, my loved ones fled in herds,

Sweet memories in hand, and their context.

I watched, bemused, myself, in downstream drift

And numbness flowed to force out my regrets.

My veins are empty highways now, until

Soft Time, in mercy, opes me up, and lets

Life’s new beginnings in, a gentle gift.

I bless the razor bright, and love God’s will.


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Comments (5 so far!)

Robert Quick

Robert Quick

Dark, but familiar. I wonder if this moment lies in every artist's breast. Are the cadence and rhyming scheme structured to be a particular type of poem?

  • #1453 Posted 6 years ago
  • 0
slapdashmonuments

slapdashmonuments

Thanks, Robert! This is in the form of a Petrarchan sonnet. :D I wrote this as a sort of imaginary version of some self harm in which the letting of blood leads to a purge of the old and an intake of freshness of heart.

  • #1455 Posted 6 years ago
  • 0
Escapist

Escapist

This is such a beautiful release that it almost doesn't feel sad at all. I particularly love the enjambment. Lines 11 and 12 and especially the phrase "Soft Time" are so haunting.

  • #1459 Posted 6 years ago
  • 0
Escapist

Escapist

Oh! I'm not sure if you're a fan of classical music, but the modern American composer William Bolcom set several of Petrarch's sonnets about Laura to music, called "Laura Sonnets". Just in case you're interested!

  • #1461 Posted 6 years ago
  • 0
slapdashmonuments

slapdashmonuments

Hi again, Escapist! I'm so gratified at your comments, sincerely. Thank you many times. I am actually a music educator by training and love modern music, and will have to check out Bolcom's settings! That's wonderful to know, I always love tips like this! :D

  • #1465 Posted 6 years ago
  • 0

Author's prompt text:

3 Word Prompt from Percy Jackson 1: Water, Beginnings, Razor

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