Oh, words!
You’re the last thing I engage with
even after the lights go out
and the first thing that awakes
when I awake.
You gush out of me in rainbow spirals
and do summersaults in my head.
All too speedily I must pick up
pen and paper on which
gleam shades of early foxing*
from the night’s inactivity.
Oh words, oh words!
Sometimes those papers are
store brought receipts
laying forlorn on the table,
other times the edges of white leaves
in books of candor I adore.
I must release,
I must release, oh words,
to let my eyes see you
in all your rawness
before you escape from me
or worse—evade me
when I need you the most.
Oh words! You come in various
colors, flavors, and sizes
and different nerve and verve.
Nothing relieves my angst
than to see you lined up
like little toy soldiers
in the landscape of little boys.
You take me to new flights
and new trajectories, words–
when I need to calm
unnumbered toils.
I bow to you in celebration
and pray my eyes to discern always
your clamor and glamor
in your every color and form.
Come often to me–release me,
oh, words!
You escort me one step
closer to heaven.
© selma
*
(212 words)
*Foxing is the yellowish-brown discolorations seen on the
pages of old books. The pages would be described as “foxed.”
I took this reference to describe how pen and paper would
show early signs of foxing after a night of inactivity.
Written for W3, Prompt #74: Wea’ve Written Weekly at The Skeptic’s Kaddish. xo
Posted on September 27, 2023
Okie dokie ~ Let’s do this thing!
I. The prompt poem:
‘And In That Moment, Somewhere A Band Was Playing’, a poem by Yours truly
This poem branched out of the prior week’s W3 poem prompt written by Deepthy.
Find that poem here:
‘Flight of Ideas’, a poem by Deepthy
2. Prompt guidelines
The iconic Chilean poet Pablo Neruda (1904 – 1973) would have turned 119 this
summer. Neruda was known for his historical epics, political manifestos, and
love poems. Neruda’s incisive and joyful odes were often dedicated to ordinary
objects making them approachable yet surreal.
Click HERE to read “Ode to My Socks,” translated from Spanish by Robert Bly,
in which Neruda describes his covered feet as “two fish made / of wool, / two long
sharks / sea-blue.”
- Inspired by Neruda’s electric, surreal images, write a joyful ode to an ordinary
object in your life. It doesn’t matter what it is, think kindly about how to honor
and describe this praiseworthy item of yours. - This particular poem of Neruda’s consists of 215 words, so try to bring yours
close to the word count. Not exactly– close; but not too short. AND Joyful,
remember!
3. Submit: Click on ‘Mr. Linky’ on The Skeptic’s Kaddish Website, PLEASE.
To view the other participating poems, click here.
Thanks for reading my poem.
Submissions are open for 5 days, until Monday, October 2, 10:00 AM (GMT+3)
I hope you choose to participate in this prompt too. See you inside.
- Wea’ve Written Weekly: W3 Prompt #106 - May 9, 2024
- A Reblog— Poetry Book Review: “Poetry Treasures 4” - May 8, 2024
- Share The Wealth: Joy is Our Natural State - May 6, 2024
Fabulous read. Enjoyed your weaving. And so relatable. Thank you for sharing. 🙂
Thrilled to know your thoughts on this. Thanks so much. Come again, Kritika 😊 xoxo
My pleasure kindly 🙂
For sure, will be reading more…engaging here is a gift. xoxoxo
I love the response to the prompt. Words, for us who enjoying writing, is like oxygen to a suffocating soul. This is some fantastic poetry, Selma. Well done. 👏👏💙
Thanks for praising my efforts this way, Nigel. Humbling 🙇🏽♀️
Anytime Selma. 🙏
Oh, Selma! This is wonderful… I wish I had written this!
Much love,
David
You, superlative, you! 🙇🏽♀️
Selma ~ just wanna let you know that this week’s W3 is being hosted by our brilliant Suzette Benjamin ~
https://skepticskaddish.com/2023/10/04/w3-prompt-75-weave-written-weekly/
Enjoy!
Much love,
David
💗 ❤️ 💕
*hug*
That is so perfect and so relatable to scraps of paper everywhere 😊. I feel I need a dictaphone near at all other times (especially in car, walking or in bath) as words come at times and I don’t want them to escape … 💞
They tend to sneak in sometimes. We catch the ones they let us catch. And then they move on to another word lover. 😂 those words!
Bless you. Thanks for reading 💕
Wonderful ode to words. Where would we be without them.
Yeah, where would we be without them. Bless you Sadje. Xo
Thanks Selma 🩷
I learned about foxing while checking photos on Pinterest. This is such a beautiful ode. 🩷
Thank you, Foxy lady. (Different from foxing)
Bless you.
☺️🌷🩷
Words are a writer’s tool for amazing stories.
True true. Amazing stories only please. Words matter. Let’s use them for good. Thanks xo
❤️
I absolutely love this ode, and I live and love words, as well
Aww. So happy to receive this comment, Beth. Happy week to you. Happy October!! Yay! 😁
Hi Selma, a most fun and entertaining poem.
Glad you found it so, dear Robbie. Blessings.
The perfect topic for an ode…a life without words is no life at all…
I struggled with what to write. 😂 until finally—Words!
Thanks for reading and commenting xoxo
My pleasure.
Exquisite poem, Selma! <3 Words are with us in our dreams and in our waking hours. We must capture them before they "escape." I never mind being awakened by a poem! 🙂
Words. They come and then they go. Catch them while we can. Make a difference. So happy you liked this, Cheryl. Xoxo
Hi Selma, wonderful poem! Yes to words!
Here, here. Yes!
Words are always worthy of celebration. (K)
Absolutely. 💯 %
👏🏽
Hi, Selma!
I just wanna let you know that this week’s W3 prompt, hosted by our hilariously talented Lesley Scoble is now live:
https://skepticskaddish.com/2023/10/11/w3-prompt-76-weave-written-weekly/
Enjoy!
Much love,
David
Thanks so much for this dear David. I’ll be taking a short break for a while and hope to return older and wiser when I do 😜 I will definitely return to W3 where all the greats congregate weekly because being in their presence nourishes my soul. Thanks, David. I wish you miracles.
enjoy your break, Selma! <3
*hug*
Xoxo 🤗
Indeed they do!