Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Rather Abstract

This morning I realized that I haven't written a poem in an unusually long time. This sudden realization was actually due to a bird that appeared outside my window. The sight of this bird, for some reason, seemed important, and I decided to write about the bird and about what I felt at that moment. It must be said that it is one of my more abstract works. This shows that I have  Shown perseverance and commitment in my activities. 
 
                            The Bird  Outside My Window

I saw a bird outside my window
While resting my head on my pillow
Content with the fruit in front of it
While I, for some reason did fret

And then it flew away
Twas' as if a quartet began to play
In tune with the flapping of wings
Once it faded - unbearable silence

As always I will not state the idea that I intended to present through the poem. However I will say that the unrealistic aspects of this poem are rather significant.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Random Poetry

Greetings Earthlings!
(I think I'll start all my posts with this greeting from now on)
I looked through all the poems that I have added to this blog, and I've realized that they all seem to be written by a clinically depressed poet. Firstly I'd like to state, that I am not clinically depressed, and to ascertain this fact I have added a rather random poem that I wrote a month or so ago (but never added to my blog for some reason). Ok, so context, this poem is about my football boots (literally at least), but, there is obviously an underlying meaning to it, as in all my poems. And as always, I will not explicitly state that meaning.

                        The Stubborn Shoe
Two years did you lay
Stacked in my cupboard
Never seeing the light of day
But now no other, can I afford
So I've taken you out to play

"I've had enough" you say
Your second choice, I can be no more
And you split on end like hay
So out you go, through my back door
And now I need another shoe



Friday, November 25, 2011

Extended Metaphor!

The poem below is the first one I've written that is a proper extended metaphor ( Developed new skills). I actually put quite a lot of thought into it (the 10 minutes that it took to come up with it constitutes as a "quite a lot of thought" in my books) This also shows that I have  Shown perseverance and commitment in this activity, as I have written quite a large number of poems since I took it up as a hobby (though I have only added a few of them to this blog).



                            The Apple

At first its a flower
The maker made it pretty
And gave it the power
To attract those minds - petty

Then it grows into a fruit
Showcasing new found glamour
Only to be plucked by some brute
And stuffed in his mouth

If not, it hangs on a branch
And rots at a rate
Until it falls, weighed down by
Ugliness, and is no more

I am rather pleased with this particular poem for several reasons. Firstly this can be interpreted in a multitude of different ways, this is something that I have been striving to achieve in my poetry for a while now. This emphasizes that  I have Increased my awareness of my own strengths and areas for growth. Secondly every word in this has a purpose (and that purpose is not establish the rhyming pattern). In fact the disintegration of the rhyming pattern is symbolic, and I have made it so for a purpose. I have also incorporated a fair deal of literary features into this particular poem. As always though, I will not state what I had in mind when I wrote the poem.

Monday, October 17, 2011

More Poetry

As I mentioned in my last post, I was working on several other poems. Well I completed a few of them, so I thought I'd add them to my blog.


                            Companions of the Night

Drained of me, have been my thoughts
Just like the setting in of dreadful droughts
Oh have I been crippled by your serenity
Stars of incredible longevity

Each night I yearn to seem them glow
And when they do, through my veins do flow
A feeling of prolonged ecstasy
That makes life seem a splendid fantasy

But when I gaze, on a cloudy night
My heart no longer feels that light
For I feel like I've been abandoned by
My staunch companions of the sky

I'm not quite sure what to make of this one. I feel like my comparisons are somewhat questionable. For example I have compared the effect that stars have on my thoughts to the setting in of droughts. I suppose it is appropriate to an extent as I do not think of much else when I spend my time star gazing. I must say though that this is quite an accurate description of the impact that stars have on me. I think I'll refrain from commenting on the underlying meaning of this poem, as knowing what it is decreases its appeal (in my opinion). Anyway the poem below is rather different to this one.


                                 Standing on the River Bank

I must go past the river
But which bridge should I take?
I could choose for prides sake
Or for the glorious gardens ahead

A false step, and I may have
To dream of what could have been
And the sights I could have seen
Will I get a second chance?

If I make the right decision
I could bask in the gardens
But if I don't my future darkens
Maybe I should just stay where I am

This one is heavily influenced by the position that I am in life right now. I've known for awhile that less is more, so I've actually said more in this poem than in any of the others I've written, but with fewer words. I am also quite pleased with the fact that I said everything that I had to say indirectly. I think it would be just to say that I have Increased my awareness of my own strengths and areas for growth. As I have stuck to  definite rhyming patterns in both poems, this is something that I found quite difficult to do. The area for growth would be making my poems more indirect and abstract, so much so that they can be interpreted in contrasting ways.

 

Sunday, October 16, 2011

A New Passion

I've recently discovered that I quite like the idea of writing poetry. This is something that is completely new to me as, I mentioned during the setting of my goals, and by doing it I am undertaking a new challenge  and also developing new skills. I have in fact become quite passionate about it recently and have started work on multiple poems. I've included two of my completed ones in this post. I wrote my first poem as a creative response to a text that I studied for English in class. I then went on to defend it for my Individual Oral Presentation. I will not present it on my blog however as it cannot be understood out of context.

Stars are a component of our universe that I am exceptionally fascinated by. Of course stars have captivated mankind throughout history and I'll be one among the thousands that have written about it. I chose to write about them regardless of this though, as I rarely go to sleep at night, without spending a few moments gazing at the heavens. Anyway here's the poem......

                                           
                                  A Glimmer of Hope

When All hope is lost
And mortality offers no respite
And I see no point, in continuing to fight
I look toward the heavens

Guidance it gives unto me
From its countless stars
Galaxies apart, yet soothing me from afar
Lead me down the right path, oh messengers of God!

A glimmer of hope
In times of lingering darkness
Without which, I must confess
I doubt I'd make it through each day


The basic idea of this poem this that I look toward the heavens (stars) when I feel somewhat lost and am in want of guidance or moral support. I know that this particular poem is not that good, but for an amateur I think its a pretty decent effort. I have managed to maintain the rhyming pattern throughout the poem and the structure is pretty much the same as well. Below is another poem I wrote recently


                                   A Purposeless Existence?

I often gaze toward the heavens
And ask myself the question,
Am I, but a speck of dust
That persists for no apparent reason?

Is there a point to my existence?
Do I make a difference?
Or am I just another speck
That exists to fill in the emptiness?

They say that every little thing matters
But a speck of dust in this infinite universe
Is about as significant as this verse
The pointless thoughts of a lost soul


The idea that this poem is based on quite obviously contrasts the idea that the first poem is based on. The first poem is about hope whilst this one does not even hint at it. I'm not going to write out a full blown literary analysis of the two poems here as it would be pointless for me to do it, considering the fact that I wrote them . Though there is rhyme in this poem there really is no structure to it. However I have maintained the same structure throughout the poem. Personally, I think the second one is more abstract and my aim is in fact to try and write abstract poetry as that is the type of poetry that I find most intriguing. I have Increased my awareness of my strengths and areas for growth. Maintaining the structure and getting the idea across would be the strengths. I do need to work on things like the rhyming patterns. Though this is not essential for poetry, it makes sense to have a pattern if there is a certain sense of rhyme in it. There are several poems which I have not completed as yet, and I will add them to my blog once I finish them. I presume that I will be able to do so during the course of this week.