Forgotten Anniversary
Wet October calls forth a crippled Spring
Under the shaky ceiling of our skies,
The lame season saddens everything
Retelling all the worst of Winter’s lies.
Explosive joys lie dormant in the blood
Wrapped like the leaves in crampt uncertainty,
Fires that would heat the heart, bestir the bud
Are banked and smoulder with a cold pallidity.
Our faltering love echoes the Spring’s excuse
Pleading ignorance of the New Year’s birth;
Our souls uncertain, wilfully obtuse
Stare wonderingly at Life and Passion’s dearth.
There’s nothing new in losing something old,
Though Winter’s past the days may yet grow cold.
Chris Trotter
1978
This posting is exclusive to the Bowalley Road blogsite.
5 comments:
Bon mots Christopher.
You should have stuck with poetry
Mick
"Shaky ceiling" bit is nice.
Leaves wrap, rather than are wrapped as suggested here. What's wrapping the leaves here?
Taking a chance there with "palidity", just get away with it in my book.
Pleasing alliterations and the ending ties the mood together.
Have you got enough of these for a slim volume?
You're too kind, Anonymous@9:50.
I must point out, however, that leaves are wrapped when they're in the bud - just open a bud sometime and take a peek ;-)
Oh I see now what you mean with the leaves.
Take the point.
Sorry, I'm just returning to my apprehensions about 'palidity'.
I mean, when they're smouldering there's nothing cold about the deal.
After that, all good, nothing colder than a dead fire.
I'm thinking you either choose 'smoulder' or 'palidity' but not both together.
Hey, just a thought, very brave of you to put a sonnet on the internet amongst a whole ghastly gaggle of world weary dinner party socialists with time on their soft little hands.
In about 1999, you wrote an incredibly insightful article in the independent on the collective deal made by the Government Employers and the( I think) male worker involving import tariffs, women out of the workforce and compulsory unionism. If I remember correctly the theme was that prosperity of that time was very dependent on those factors. Regardless - is there any chance you could post it again on your blog - as I still think about it 12 years later. I just wish I could think about it accurately.
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