Splash on me
As waterfalls will
Hail down on me
Like rain storms will
Crash into me
Like great oceans will
And I will be unbroken
Sear my skin
Like a wildfire will
Puncture my soul
Like arrows will
Spear my heart
Like a great sword will
And I will be unshaken
by LAKMI
© All rights reserved 2018
Dear Readers,
These lines from the poem of a famous Russian poet Fyodor Tyutchev came to mind while we were preparing this post:
Нам не дано предугадать,
Как слово наше отзовется,-
И нам сочувствие дается,
Как нам дается благодать… *
Really, we never know what the last line of a poem will be when we write the first one. Especially when we’re collaborating with you, our Dear Writers and Readers.
And guess what? It’s this very thing that makes the Open Source Poetry feature one of our favourites here on Unbolt Me. We believe it’s one of your favourites too. The overwhelming number of submissions bears this out!
The lines quoted above also serve as a kind of epigraph. They’re strangely relevant to the themes of our newly completed poem, and pose pertinent questions. How often do we regret words that were said? How often do we hurt those closest to us with our tongues, sharpened with jealousy, even obduracy?
But, hey, you can rest assured that we won’t have any such regrets concerning our new poem! (Oh, and g’day Andy! Your contribution to our Open Source Poetry feature was an absolute corker!)
She looks in the book like into a mirror
The face of her sister is there
She wears daffodils in her hair
She reminds her of Shakespeare’s Ophelia
Amid weeping willows along the shore
She lives in the memory of a love no more
She regrets a past whipped with hysteria
And a tongue sharpened by jealousy
That stabbed at fond hearts so zealously
* Time will return the word we place
In ways we cannot ask ahead;
Compassion comes our way instead
Much as the blessedness of grace.
(Translation by Evgenia Sarkisyants)
by TETIANA ALEKSINA, TONY SINGLE, THOM TNKERR, FRAGGLE, LAKMI & ANDY SMERDON
© All rights reserved 2018
Dear Readers,
Last time, we asked you about Shakespeare. Many of you appeared to be familiar with this well-regarded literary chap, so our diligent English teachers of school years past can sleep the sleep of the just. It seems they did their work pretty well!
It also appears that you were not only assiduous when it came to your lessons. You’ve also indulged in some extracurricular reading since those formative days! How else could we explain the fact that almost every one of you mentioned Edgar Allan Poe in your comments? Spooky, man!
(In truth, this made us very, very happy. We’re much more familiar with Poe’s works, you see. And it’s not that we’re proud of our ignorance when it comes to Shakespeare’s output—rather, we feel relieved that we at least know something when it comes to old-time book readin’.)
But anyway, let’s get back to the hip and happening 21st century. There are some quite good writers churning out quite good shit in this day and age, you know. Some of them don’t even have a sizeable following like Poe and Will do, and we think that’s a crying shame. Take Lakmi, for example, who will hopefully be featured in future school books and university lectures. Let’s keep our fingers crossed, eh? Such wonderful poetry! But don’t take our word for it. Check it out here.
Oh, and a little raven told us that Lakmi will at the very least be featured in the next instalment of our communal poetry writing feature. Which is… oh, fancy that! Right now! What a stroke of luck! And, hey, if any of you, our Dear Readers, would like to join in, just cast your eyes over the rules of this fun little game and have at it!
1) We provide the next line of the poem.
2) You write the following line.
3) You submit your line via the comments section of this very post.
4) We pick the line we like most and add it to the poem.
5) We publish every line to date in a follow-up post.
6) Steps 1-5 are repeated until we have a masterpiece!
So, what do you reckon? Shall we make a modern masterpiece together? It’s gotta be worth a try, right?
She looks in the book like into a mirror
The face of her sister is there
She wears daffodils in her hair
She reminds her of Shakespeare’s Ophelia
Amid weeping willows along the shore
She lives in the memory of a love no more
She regrets a past whipped with hysteria
by TETIANA ALEKSINA, TONY SINGLE, THOM TNKERR, FRAGGLE & LAKMI
© All rights reserved 2018
unbolt me 