Poem of the Week Poet: Paul Laurence Dunbar Born: 27 June 1872, Ohio, USA American Died: 9 February 1906, Ohio, USA
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A Death Song by Paul Laurence Dunbar
Category: Raven’s Witterings
The Erotes: Anteros
Form: Ivorian Sonnet 20 The Erotes: Anteros, god of requited love A tumult of emotions around me And I prayed love was something you’d see Like revealed cards my hand was out on show
Arabian Sonnet Notes
Arabian Sonnet Created by: Jose Rizal M. Reyes Meter: Decasyllabic or pentameter Structure: 2 quatrains and two triplets Rhyme Scheme: aaaa bbbb ccc ddd
Adieu
Form: Ballad Once it was you who ruled my pen And like a child I obeyed you The words at play within my dreams
Spirituality and Transitional Changes
The path of a Pagan is to open oneself to spiritual truth and not rely on blind faith. Paganism is to face life candidly and with an open heart and mind. Being curious about the world around us empowers us to see life with a heightened perspective and enable us to make tough and powerful decisions when life offers choices and to do so with a clear perspective.
The Edge of Twilight – The Journey
The Edge of Twilight – The Journey The sun had barely risen above Woodland Trails when Bel and the Old Fox gently woke the sleeping Young Vixen. The elegant figure of Zuzu was sat in the parlour sipping tea and waiting.
Restoration
Form: Gwawdodyn hir Like tears it comes to ease guilt and pain And wash away the last teary stain So exhausted I can sleep again
Je t’Aime Til my Dying Day by Enigma
The music of Enigma is fantastic for generating ambience for meditation or spiritual dedication. For me, je t’aime til my dying day inspires a few thought processes for both spiritual and Tantric meditative experiences.
20th Century Avant-Garde
Surrealism is the channelling of the sub-conscious that unlocks the power of the imagination. It is the belief that the conscious, rational mind represses the power of imagination and creativity with perceived reality and the taboos of society. The psyche within sub-conscious thought acts as a revelation, exposing the incongruities of everyday living, life and the world around us, and by doing so inspires conscious revolution. As with Romanticism this emphasis was on the power of personal imagination, but Surrealists believed that revelation could be found in the everyday world. The interest in primitivism and myth combined with tapping into the unconscious mind inspired many later movements and styles that remain influential today.
Late April
Form: Epistle Oh sweet I need nothing more than you to make my world complete and I wait in this emptiness until that
Australian Sonnet Notes
Australian Sonnet Notes Meter: Consistent meter Structure: Three quatrains and a couplet Rhyme Scheme: abba cddc effe gg
Living in Hell
Form: Free Verse No warning, just attack my senses. Anger and rage
The Marriage Portrait
Form: Ballad Portrait of the Artist's Wife, Cunera van der Cock by Frans van Mieris the Elder, 1657/8, oil on vellum inlaid on oak. Currently located in the collection of the National Gallery, London, UK
Beyond the Dawn
Form: Raven’s Rovi Sonnet 21 As her voice lingered there upon my ear My eyes wandered slowly into her eyes Where the infinite of love knows no fear
Whisper of Wisdom
Form: Arabian Sonnet I heard his whisper on that darkest night So clear it touched my soul with purest light I didn’t think to fight or take to flight
Teasing Rays of Sunshine
5 Minute Free Write Prompt: What’s the weather outside your window doing right now? If that’s not inspiring, what’s the weather like somewhere you wish you could be?
Through the Windowpane
Form: Free Verse Prompt: Your favourite book in 75 words
Terracotta
Form: Free Verse Sir, can it be that your living flesh so ruggedly defined like the chiselled marble statue of David in the V&A
Letting Go with Love
What does it mean to let something go? Simplistically, it means to release something back to its origin or to the universe. It’s not quite that simple, of course, as first one must identify what to let go of and understand and/or accept the reasons why.
Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky
Title: Pictures at an Exhibition Date: 1874 Composer: Modest Mussorgsky Movement: Romantic Born: 21 March 1839, Karevo, Russia Russian Died: 28 March 1881, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Love
Form: Quatrains Love, a state of contradiction and such, a world of deep joy, yet agony too. Is it enough or could it be too much?
Kisses of Seduction
Form: Free Verse In those eyes of innocence I saw your supplication as a graceful goddess offering her hand and I see your face in all the beauty of love
Take It to the Bridge
Form: Epistle Hello, my sweet distraction of love and how you distract me as my mind searches for words and all my thoughts lead to you
Bloody Dysphoria
Form: Free Verse Those nights I longed for the pain yearned for it desired it
Bounce
Form: Raven’s Rovi Sonnet 20 A man cannot feel love that never was Nor can he lose his soul to a closed mind Although he may search for it just because
Haiku
Haiku Prompt: a ring
William Morris
Artist: William Morris Born: 24 March 1834, Essex, England Nationality: English Movement: Pre-Raphaelite Died: 3 October 1896, Middlesex, UK
National Pride?
Form: Free Verse Empty promises hidden in bare-faced lies our government turning another blind eye
FA Cup Final 2008
Form: Quatrains My lads are both Portsmouth boys, and today they are full of football joys. Portsmouth have won the cup to their loudest cheers
The Erotes: Pothos
Form: Ivorian Sonnet 19 Pothos – the god of sexual longing, yearning and desire
Erté
Artist: Romain de Tirtoff (Erté) Born: 23 November 1892, St Petersburg, Russia Nationality: Russian-French Movement: Art Deco Died: 21 April 1990, Paris, France
Re-connecting with the Sacred Mother
Over recent years I let my spiritual connection between myself and Mother Earth drift. No excuses, it happens whatever path one walks. I don’t beat myself up over this, never have and never will. I am aware when the time comes, and I need to reconnect with my spiritual psyche and personal priesthood I will be guided back.
Making a Mesh of It
Form: Ivorian Sonnet 18 It’s when we touch, I catch the lust of night And feel the wildfires of want spark alight The play of my hands is moulding your flesh
The River
Form: Balassi Stanza Skies of dusky pink clouds Where the nightfall enshrouds The river of floating dreams
Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Green Day
I walk a lonely road The only one that I have ever known Don't know where it goes But it's only me, and I walk alone
The Edge of Twilight 7 – The Young Vixen’s Surprise
The Edge of Twilight 7 – The Young Vixen’s Surprise The next morning a small group of foxes made their way through the Dark Forest. The Young Vixen and stood with Bel and the Old Fox as Vanda and the cubs disappeared with two muscular dog foxes.
October Chill
Form: Gwawdodyn To walk along the forest path now Amid the vibrance of every bow
Amanda’s Dark Sonnet
Amanda’s Dark Sonnet Meter: Decasyllabic or Iambic pentameter Structure: Two septets with the first word of each septet being alliterative Rhyme Scheme: Aabbcca Abbccdd
Vincent’s Chair
Form: Balassi Stanza In silence he is gone Yet his paint whispers on His presence in lines drawn
Raison d’être
Prompt: Why creative writing Oddly enough moving away from introspective writes to creative ones is starting with an introspective write. Such is the way of the writer, I guess.
Someone Else’s Kiss
Form: Raven’s Rovi Sonnet 19 What does it matter her love doesn’t care Now my soul sings with a different song In the starlight the night she wasn’t there
The Coming of May
Form: Arabian Onegin Sonnet Prompt: Little Lies by Fleetwood Mac As the warming sun comes to shine in May It is as clear as the night follows day A pattern formed, no matter come what may
Lonely Place
Form: English Sonnet The reflections of early summer sun, Glistens again on my windows this year, They blend invisibly ready for fun
What I Mean to Say Is…
Form: Free Verse Prompt: Last person you talked to Soft words spoken to share a smile or tear
Edge of Twilight 6 – Gone Missing
Edge of Twilight 6 – Gone Missing The next day the Young Vixen was woken by the sharp knocking at her door. As she opened it three boisterous cubs rushed past her and she saw Vanda standing there, her face weary with worry. ‘Come in,’ said the Young Vixen.
Art Deco
Art Deco, or Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture and design that started in France just before WW1. It influenced the design of buildings, furnishings, jewellery, fashion, transportation, and everyday objects found in many homes. Art Deco is the shortened form of Arts Décoratifs from the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes held in Paris in 1925. The combination of modern styles with fine craftsmanship and rich materials had found it heyday. Art Deco represented luxury, glamour, exuberance, and faith in social and technological progression.
Golden Years
Form: Free Verse Returning youth in golden years a fragile ship upon a stormy sea that searches for the calm harbour
Bird Romance by Jock MacDonald
Title: Bird Romance Date: 1946 Movement: Surrealism Artist: JWG (Jock) MacDonald Born: 31 March 1897, Thurso, Scotland Canadian Died: 3 December 1960, Toronto, Canada
A Lovely Day
Form: Australian Sonnet Begin to fall in love on a Monday For passion that’s gently kissed by the moon A man must battle for his lover’s rune
After the Lash
Form: Free Verse The trailing kisses like salt on a wound in burning pain
