Monday, October 29, 2012

All Hallow's Eve




The hour before midnight moon
Silk veil flutters and dips low
As black crow
Shrills the air, wolves in lair
Awake, eyes aglow
I listen in fear, lips sealed 
Dead walks past corn fields  

The hour after the moon rises
Incense fills the room - prayers, 
Fragrant pears,           
Healing songs, and all wrongs  - 
Forgiven, the tears
fall like river, missing piece
Dead departs in peace !



Poetry form:  Following the Paul Laurence Dunbar's 7 line structure from his poem Melancholia:   

Silently without my window,  (a)   8 syllables
Tapping gently at the pane,  (b)   7 syllables 
Falls the rain.  (b)   3 syllables
Through the trees sighs the breeze (Internal rhyme c / c6 syllables
Like a soul in pain.  (b)   5 syllables
Here alone I sit and weep;  (d)   7 syllables
Thought hath banished sleep.  (d)   5 syllables




Happy Halloween !!!

Posted for OpenLinkNight - Imaginary Garden with Real Toads (Monday)
and D'verse Poets Pub (Tuesday)

45 comments:

  1. I think the word 'Dead' might sit better as 'Death' ? Just saying... :)

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  2. Now, Grace,
    How many times have i told you NOT to take your picture before morning coffee?
    tee hee
    Ooooo this one had it all! Spooky good fun
    And i hate when the dead walk past cornfields~the rustling corn is scary enough!

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    1. Sorry, I forgot..he..he.... ~

      Thanks for the visit Rick ~

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  3. This was scary yet fun ... loved it :-)

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    1. Did the picture scare you? he..he...

      Thanks for the visit ~

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  4. You have certainly mastered the form! I love the cadence when reading this. It's perfect for the season.

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    1. The form was a challenge ~ Thank you Teresa ~

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  5. SO imbued with mood - so well done! AND in a difficult form, executed to perfection. Wowzers, kiddo. Great work.

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  6. nicely done to form grace...this is really smooth...and your are able as well to get a lot of mood out of it....deftly done....

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  7. I love the eerie mood of this in light of the season! Especially the dead walking past the corn field. Shivers!

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  8. interesting form and evocative imagery.kudos!

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  9. The dead hopefully go in peace and doesn't send a curse anywhere, a different halloween mood you set, enjoyed by this pet.

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  10. Nice use of the form--and evocative write! Loved it!

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  11. Grace, this was intense--liked the words "Healing songs, and all wrongs".
    Enjoy Hallowe'en!

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  12. Wow. "Dead walks" to Dead departs." And this is what the New Year gathering is for pretty much no matter the culture and tradition. It seems that animals and dead speak too when the boundaries between the worlds are at their thinnest. Día de los Muertos and covens too do this at Hallowmass, all Saints Day, Lamas . . . I like "I listen in fear" in the first stanza changing to "Incense fills the room - prayers,
    Fragrant pears,
    Healing songs, and all wrongs -
    Forgiven" in the second.
    This brings back memories.

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  13. Glad that the dead depart in peace! Not always so on Halloween. Smiles.

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  14. You nailed it! ooh, I love the haunted feel, you created!
    Well Done on the form!
    Great spooky offering :D

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  15. Your form is ALWAYS perfect.....

    (From what I remember of you)

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  16. This is an excellent response to the prompt, Grace. I endorse what everyone has said about your form: you make it look effortless.

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  17. How good was that. Reminded me of Day of the Dead celebrations and a less scary and more mindful look at the reason for the holidays. Wonderful.

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  18. I like that you brought incense into this "Incense fills the room - prayers" and death departs! Nice.

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  19. Nicely done, Grace. Great looking cupcakes :) Happy Halloween.

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  20. Ahhh... Spppoooky. Well done. It has the right amount of .. freakiness and spoo about it to make it creepy and yet the seeing them off to peace ends it as all's well that ends well.
    Great write Grace... nice pic too :)

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  21. Scary... Happy Halloween to you, too.

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  22. Love the haunting in this...you did an excellent job on the form!!

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  23. Spare. And spooky. A strange peace at the end....feels just right for Halloween

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  24. I love the whole piece. I can't choose one verse or word because it feels like nit-picking which takes away from the poem. I like it in its full, grim textures.

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  25. Grace, thanks so much for helping me out today!

    This looks like a fun and challenging form, you did great. I like the "Silk veil" and the image through the mouth and eyes. Very natural and spiritual, reminds me of the Día de los Muertos way of celebration.

    Enjoy the holiday. You are a wonderful blogger friend. :)

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  26. Dead walks past cornfields, now I will never feel safe around a cornfield again. nicely done Grace

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  27. You really did a great job with a tough form! Eerie yet somehow comforting as well.

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  28. Great use of the form - especially like prayers and pears! - a lovely poem for the senses. k.

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  29. what a haunting image with the dead walking past cornfields...and great job on the form as well

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  30. You nailed it perfectly (sorry about the pun). From fear to redemption, the journey was smooth and such fun too. Well done Grace.

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  31. I've always liked a creepy story with a happy ending. :-)

    Nice job with the form. I'm impressed.

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  32. How very interesting, this poem structure! Happy Halloween!

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  33. Great work on using that structure and turning it into your own. It really makes the words sing and dance. Good rhythm.

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  34. Nicely done - I haven't tried this form but like the rhythm of it.

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  35. Grace, really loved this! Could almost be a witch chant--perfect Halloween poem :-)

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  36. Wonderful words for Halloween filled with beauty and just a tad of scare.

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  37. love the rhymes and the atmosphere in this one, my dear

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  38. One of my favorite poems this week .....

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