Tuesday Poem: Timed Out



This is the twilight zone where the light fades
but no clock can tell how long the dark
will take to fall. Facing away from day
the turn of the earth accelerates
towards night, knowing only that arrival
is certain, and the hot desert wind
is coating the olive leaves with dust and
an unfamiliar owl tells midnight
from the cypress tree. And there is no time;
no time. I take a bottle of new wine
from the rack. Two glasses. Place them on the
terrace table where we watch the dusk
creep in towards us from the still-bright sea.


Writing in strict, classical form isn't something I do very often. This was written at George Szirtes’ workshop on Saturday in response to a request to write an irregular sonnet of either 13 or 15 lines. It has an unobtrusive rhyme scheme (some only hinted at) and I’ve tried to keep to the 10 syllables, though some lines have 9 or 11.  It still needs a lot of work.
I suppose the right title for this poem would be ‘Tempus Fugit’. It’s my birthday today and I’m very conscious of the fact that there are suddenly many more behind me than there are in front and you have to make the most of every minute!

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Comments

  1. Happy Birthday!! If anyone is making the most of every minute it's you. Love the sonnet -irregular - unobtrusive - that's a really interesting form.

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  2. Sorry me again - watched the Joel Stickly - thought it was so good - really funny- have put a
    link to it on my blog

    Ax

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  3. thanks for the comments Avril and glad you liked the Joel Stickley - he's brilliant isn't he?

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  4. Kathleen, I "thought" it was a sonnet ... and the poem really works. The vision it conjured up for me was so vivid, as was the emotional resonance of "And there is no time;
    no time. "

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  5. Happy Birthday.

    The work shows, it is a beautiful piece

    ReplyDelete

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