My feet are lead
I walk with weight on sand
alone impressing
footprints washed away on every wave,
It’s foam and kelp. A heart-
beat close to last. As once the sea.
You butterfled one day
organza in the wind with me bereft; a scream behind,
alone and
moored with seaweed veins and
flotsam bones. Me on shore.
My feet are soil and roots;
I’m pebbles, weed
and green your grave, the bloodstream echo.
voice from past.
It’s a frozen fire. You and cold.
Yet, with hands
I shape, with flesh the wreath
your canvas craved. Me and crimson sky.
Man Bathing by Edvard Munch
Today I host dVerse MTB and I continue to inspire you to write poetry inspired by movements in art. This time we have come to expressionism, and want you to write like painters like van Gogh and Edvard Munch. Bar opens at 9 PM CET.
Make it subjective, write in first person, distort perspective, and color it with contrast, and if you prefer to be inspired by expressionist poetry there is plenty to chose from.
—
February 16, 2016
This is cold and hot all at once….organza in the wind, I have chills
“and green your wave, the bloodstream echo”: Ah, you play really well with expressionism here. And the structure of the verse with those sudden breaks create an interesting reading experience. I really liked it.
Hot and cold, all at once. Like the burn of waves when they hit, so cold they are hot.
Oh my! LOVE the title and most especially the second stanza. I gave it a try, Bjorn. I’m hoping expressionism gives lots of leeway 🙂
Stunning contrasts of fire and cold. I love the heavy side of emotions like feet of lead and soil and roots. An interesting challenge to write and indeed adds depth to the emotions. Beautiful writing!
Another stunner, brother–erotic but sad as a sea shanty–love lost & memories chilled into emotional ice–an incredible tale pun out of a glance at the art. I love your lines /alone and/moored with seaweed veins and/flotsam veins/.
Love the title, Björn, and the heaviness of the opening lines, which becomes footprints that are washed away – a wonderful metaphor! I also love the ‘flotsam bones’. But my favourite technique in this poem is oxymoron: ‘frozen fire’.
love how you verbized butterfly, but then twisted it to butterfled. Didn’t catch that slight twist until the second reading 🙂
Almost like a new invented word 🙂
I too like the frozen fire. But the image of the footprints being washed away…heavy and sad.
I liked the phrase “You butterfled one day”.
This is an immensely powerful piece of writing Bjorn. Just so many great images ~ ‘a heart beat close to last’ ~ I’ve read the whole thing a number of times. Just excellent!
Loved ‘moored with seaweed veins and flotsam bones’ so visual, the image of dry timbers and hawsers.
It’s like I could taste it, but I don’t know whether to spit out the grainy sand caught in the slime, or savor every last drop of salt. Beautiful poem.
Wow…superb in so many ways…I could highlight the whole thing so I will…it is all a thing of beauty.
I like how you captured the heavy footprints that still get washed away…it makes us so small…
A stunning example. You set the mark high, my friend.
“You butterfled one day
organza in the wind” this though I could highlight it all. WOW
I love “butterfled” as a verb. Also this line: “organza in the wind with me bereft; a scream behind”
This line makes me giggle: “flotsam bones. Me on shore.”
The second to last stanza is my favorite. I was especially smiling, thinking of Pebbles from The Flintstones smoking weed. 🙂
So much texture in this piece.
Butterfled…that stopped me in my tracks! Well, this is very much expressionistic. So that’s how it’s done! The contrasts and there’s just so much to ponder and love in this.
This is incredible! I do think you are at your best writing with paired art. My favorite image is “organza in the wind” and bereft….
I love the paradox of the understated expression as opaque as organza and emotions cool and vapid yet powerful
“You butterfled one day
organza in the wind with me bereft”
My favourite lines.
You butterfled one day
organza in the wind with me bereft; a scream behind,
alone and
moored with seaweed veins and
flotsam bones. Me on shore.—loved these lines…beautifully expressed!
Deep. Deep into the sand and sea, you sound like your body has decomposed and joined the earth.
I walk with weight on sand
alone impressing
footprints washed away on every wave,
There are movements of footprints in the sand and the waves.There seems t be some uncanny coordination. Great!
Hank
‘Butterflied’ is excellent. Also love ‘seaweed veins and flotsam bones’, like you were becoming a part of the sea.