To anyone reading this,
I’m just taking a break from Tumblr.
I will be spending more time on my WattPad account.
If you’re interested, here’s the link - www.wattpad.com/WinterlyHeights
Hope you stay safe and well during this time of social unrest/reassessment amid the pandemic.
A sailor’s love poem to a singing mermaid
O Musical Allure — Your melody, so purely borne, Could charm the sun at dawn To sink below horizon lines,
Could stun the hands of Time, Convince his agèd mind to cease And let we mortals be Forever basked in euphony.
_____
This poem follows the strict syllable and rhyming scheme of the Vietnamese thơ lục bát. It consists of alternating 6-syllable and 8-syllable lines, with playful internal and external rhymes:
1 2 3 4 5 6a 1 2 3 4 5 6a 7 8b 1 2 3 4 5 6b 1 2 3 4 5 6b (optional) 7 8c
A lovelorn song
A hundred years I’ve waited on the shore. A hundred years I’ve waited by the sea. I cannot bear to wait a hundred more. Dear Father, let my Man return to me.
O let him save me with his warm embrace. O let him have me underneath the moon, For I’ve been patient with a century’s grace. I pray the day we’ll be together soon.
Am I to swim forever on my own — Without a beau, without a bosom friend? Am I to live forever all alone — Until the castles crumble into sand?
The waves go crashing on — no ships along. The waves continue on — so does my song.
There’s a phoenix on our roof. How it got there, I don’t know, But it’s roosting all aloof With an eerie, whitish glow.
I had dreamt I was a bird, Feeling hot and bulletproof, When I woke up to the news Of the phoenix on the roof.
You can see its plumage blaze, Starry-bright and real as fact. Yet you see the roof remains And our house is still intact.
Mother says it’s built a nest: “Yes, I saw it just before, Placing sticks and strands and shards, Making room for many more.”
Father says to let it be: “Best to leave it on its own. Peace can only lead to peace. Let no deadly claws be shown.”
Soon enough some folk in town Gather out in front and ask: “Why on your house? Why not ours?” — Jealous whispers working fast.
Now the Butcher wants its meat: “Look at all that magick breast! Seems so succulent and sweet! Till I get it, I won’t rest!”
And the Chemist wants its tears: “Phoenix Fluid cures all! I’ve been searching all these years! That elixir’s at your door!”
And the Mayoress wants its crown: “Let me wear that fiery glory! I’ve donned pheasant, fox and hound. This makes for a better story!”
And the Lawyer wants its wings: “I could do with magick quills, Use them drafting up my documents, Testaments and wills!”
But the strongest voice of all — None other than the Pastor: “’Tis Lucifer Reborn! It must be killed hereafter! A heart of feathered flame Spells nothing but disaster! Don’t stand there! Shoot and maim! Get to hunting faster! I sense a close destruction. I feel it in the sky! Now heed my one instruction. The End of Days is nigh! I want no rude rebutting. I want no arguments! That ugly, evil thing is but A fowl of foul intents!”
Now Father intervenes: “No! This Plot is still my own! My Dwelling, my Decree! I’m sure the Lawyer knows. We all shall leave the Bird in peace. No deadly Claws will show!”
And with those forceful words, The townsfolk, crushed, homeward go.
[END OF PART I]
Parts II - VI can be found on my Wattpad site
Lionel Lindsay, Morning glory, 1933
Sleepness Demons always say, "I can kiss your Pains away. Breathe me in and let me nest In the pockets of your chest. Let me journey through your veins. Let me curdle up your brain. I have much more Depth to give. Let me live. Let me live."
All beware the Demon's Kiss — All its lies and brittle bliss. Cent'ries pass, it still possesses. Do not be the one it blesses.
#DarkValentine
