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Thursday, April 2, 2020

POETRY PAIRS #2



I've played around with several different themes. I thought about doing "Dog Days Revisited" and writing more dog poems. I thought about choosing a different subject and trying to write 30 different poems, in 30 different formats. I finally decided I would choose 30 poems I like, and try to use them as mentors to write my own poems. Which may be trickier than I thought, given that today I realized that most of my favorite poetry books are in my classroom at school, and I'm not allowed to go in. Hmmmm. Tonight I started reading through favorite poems I had collected on my blog. Irene Latham is a poet I have admired forever. I tried to use her structure. Not sure I was successful but...

"This Is the Hour"
Irene Latham


This is the hour
where sun dreams
when river
sings
its silky song.


This is the hour
Duck wades
into warm
whispery grass
settling
onto its nest


This is the hour
Duck asks:
        What is yours?
        What is
           mine?


River answers
        Look how 
        your wings
        glisten.


        How my eyes
          wink.


Yes, Duck says.
                Now I see--
                this is the hour
                  almighty sun
                gives itself
       
                to everything. 


Irene Latham

*************

“This is the Hour”

This is the hour
where world screams
healthy die
economy is upturned
children are afraid
streets are silent

And this is the hour
where dog climbs onto couch
stretches out next to me
presses head against human thigh
sighs in contentment 
and sleeps deeply

This is the hour
Human asks:
Will this end?
Will we hope again?

Dog responds: 
We are here together
on this soft couch
our bellies are full  
All is well.

Yes, Human says.
Now I see,
this is the hour
when we must
draw close 
breathe deeply
and give thanks.

All is well.

Carol Wilcox
(C) 2020

3 comments:

Jean said...

Yes, the animals, tame and wild, proceed unencumbered. The pets, in fact, are thrilled by the change in human behavior. Nature is probably heaving a huge sigh of relief. The irony of a pandemic.
Wonderful poem!

Elisabeth Ellington said...

I am really enjoying your project, Carol. And I could so relate to the poignant poem you wrote. I felt so anxious after reading the news this morning, and then Chipotle jumped in my lap and needed all the love and I found myself feeling more present, grounded, calmer. I love how you've captured that feeling that pets have that all is well in the world.

Mary Lee said...

A dog (or a cat, in my case) is just what is needed as a mentor for staying in the moment.