Tag Archives: Poem

the strand (lost paradise lament)

seraph, a man in a grain of sand
how far you have fallen
all trace of you got swept beneath
the sea of time, your alleged crime

you tried to pay your respects
to the last breath, but lies still lie and
fidelity has long left the stage
he’s gone, never to pass this way again

you bear the echo of all that was
with the weight of a dead crown
are these the days of clarity
in the sea of time, a bitter wine

lilies grow amongst the skulls now
the aftermath of your unseen war
have you not seen through the tears
you, the unreconstructed man

silence, and dark tranquillity
morning star, you blanch at the dawn
parlay at the speed of trust’s decay
this sea of time, the mere sublime

grief has frozen you to the shoreline
the pain of you reaches into his lie
verging on hope, though god knows why
a quiet smoke seeking ascension’s sigh

who will come for you now
who will comfort you, bury you

 

by TONY SINGLE
© All rights reserved 2018

’til river do us part

a black river rolls its waters in state
past a dirty hut’s stoop and manor’s gate
a white nymphea on the satin river’s breast
eyes enthralled like a bride’s at a funeral fete

the young maiden stands on an old dam crest
folding a long wedding dress to her chest
a cold wind hugs her shoulders, her ideal mate
it whispers to her in feverous behest

a black river rolls its waters to the strait
aloof, indifferent, like the decrees of fate
the young maiden on the satin river’s breast
the hearse carries the bride to her wedding fete

 

by TETIANA ALEKSINA
© All rights reserved 2018

Open-Source Poetry Two #4

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?

Вензель

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

Вензель_нижний

 

by TETIANA ALEKSINA, TONY SINGLE, THOM TNKERR, FRAGGLE & LAKMI
© All rights reserved 2018