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Old Poet

Posted: December 31st, 2010, 9:06 pm
by jim turner
Rainstorms scratch at his window,
feeling for cracks–
the thinnest wide enough
One will find a way.

Why does he bother,
on his notebook’s final page,
with vowels, verbs, rhymes?
His yellow pencil’s dulled stub,
too short to sharpen one more time.

Did he not see the flame
of his last candle tremble and fail?
Feel the stinging, tendriled wraith
of smoke searching in darkness?

Listen! In the shadows
still he whispers of visions
behind his shuttered eyes.

Will they never pass, those storms,
never cease, that rain, falling
on the flooded river of his words?

Jim 12/31/10 (Last effort of the Year 2010. Best wishes to all for the next.)

Re: Old Poet

Posted: December 31st, 2010, 11:56 pm
by saw
the desire to create gives us a reason to get out of bed in the morning as we age

sure beats watching tv......and who knows maybe we touch a few souls along the way.....old poets never die, they end with that killer line that puts it all in perspective.......happy new year, jim

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 7th, 2011, 5:01 am
by dadio
Well composed poem, Jim.

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 7th, 2011, 10:57 am
by joel
How’d you finish, Saint Jerome?
How’d you scribble
Iesu as
Revelation’s final word?
Wasn’t it your final breath

like a missing epilogue,
like the knowledge of an end—
like a book you’ve loved and lost
when its final page is turned?

Were there strong winds blowing then
overtop your little cave
with the whistles and the sounds
of “Soon your work is over”—

were there raindrops flooding in
through the cracks around your stool—
were you baptized by the Love
of vowels, verbs and rhymeschemes?

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 7th, 2011, 10:18 pm
by Hollweg
Killer line that puts it all in perspective, indeed.

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 12th, 2011, 12:38 pm
by Steve Plonk
Turner, It's a good poem... I see melancholy reflections of Poe in here, as well as
reminders of why we write... :)

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 13th, 2011, 5:04 pm
by still.trucking
difficult to find the words to express how I found your poem
But the ones that comes to mind is: A Satisfying poetry experience

yours too joel

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 14th, 2011, 12:37 am
by judih
some sit there and smile
others write it down
fifty-fifty

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 14th, 2011, 11:21 am
by joel
judih wrote:some sit there and smile
others write it down
fifty-fifty
half the sky: migrating geese--
resident ducks, sky's remainder--
water receives a single flock

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 14th, 2011, 2:46 pm
by stilltrucking
sorry about the double post Mr Turner.

I loved this bit
were there raindrops flooding in
through the cracks around your stool—
were you baptized by the Love
of vowels, verbs and rhymeschemes? [/i]

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 14th, 2011, 10:29 pm
by edsiejka
Hey Jim-


Excellent poem...your words paint a vivid picture

regards,

ed

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 15th, 2011, 7:14 am
by mnaz
one of them gets in, eventually
going through the endless storms
or maybe i hadn't noticed the lulls
i wish i could write such poetry!
either way, thank you

when i think of all the yet
unwritten pages, a little daunting
wish i could write them all..

Re: Old Poet

Posted: January 15th, 2011, 10:56 am
by WIREMAN
...i've found my way outta of many holes at the end of a pen, letting the ink flow onto the spiral pad....i too feel poe here......