Inside this well —
I wait, depressed
I watch as daylight teases;
its solemn disc unmoving
(a frozen moon).
My hope is strings,
too thin
too few to twin(e)
myself a rope.
I need my friends
to pull
Please help me
I’m not well.
Hope of a Condemned Man I by Joan Miro Ⓒ
Today De is back doing a quadrille at dVerse. We need hope together in the wake of terrible events. So hope is the world, write a poem of 44 words exactly including the word hope.
—
October 9, 2017
Björn Rudbergs writings 
Wonderful meter in this piece.
This is crazy good. I love “twin” instead of “twine.” Fabulous poem that anyone could connect with — depression is pretty much a universal condition at this point.
This is my absolute favorite part:
“I watch as daylight tease(s);
its solemn disc unmoving”
And then the pulling in the last stanza where you ask for help roping the moon — which of course reminds me of that wonderful scene in It’s a Wonderful Life.
Oh … my grammar… (but maybe it’ makes sense anyway)… teases it should be. Twine instead of twin…. I blush.
No, don’t change them. I honestly prefer “twin.” And really, “tease” works best, rhythmically.
🙂 for me teases works, and twine I have added in parenthesis
I riffed on this; hope you don’t mind. Your frozen moon idea. It’s too long, so I’ll have to write another for the prompt … Something happy, to make you feel better.
fine writing plus Miro, bravo (and thanks)
I like that in the end, there is a plea for friends to help you. We , at one time or another, need others to help us and pull us through difficult times. Hope you are well Bjorn ~
I really enjoyed the imagery for this poem, and the playful use of words. It cast out all these different tendrils to follow.
So well done….and there is much this can apply to. I’m thinking of those suffering from depression….that feeling of drowning at the bottom of the well. Yes — we all need help sometime…the trick is in learning to accept it.
I was thinking of an ink well — which is what I find to be the coolest thing about poetry; that there’s no right or wrong way to read it, just different.
Roping the moon is the height of hope–something we need to cling to, for it will persevere to the moment of our death, where we will still hope there is more beyond the veil.
This touches me today, B. Deeply. Thank you. Your word choices. Those parens. That visual. Perfect.
Yes we need friends to help pull us through.
This carries a universal theme on it’s wings. If only people would reach out more to each other all of the time and not just when tragedy hits.
I’m pulled by your idea of strings, though they are too few. Great write!
This is wonderfully penned. I especially love the second stanza. The image of hope so thin it can’t even been twined into something strong enough alone.
This is poignant -especially ‘too few to twin(e)
myself a rope’. It’s a good description of hopelessness.
Perfect title for the tone & I admire the word-play.
Great use of parentheses, (especially for a De prompt). I’m not well. I’m not a well. No my friend, you are deeper, and your water is much sweeter.
That’s an excellent title and the perfect image to accompany your poem Bjorn. I love the way you describe hope as thin strings and the play on the word ‘well’.
A person staying well is a communal activity.
One wonders why it takes a tragedy for people to pull together. I love the concept of roping the moon!
The middle stanza really jumped out at me. The image of thin strings lingers. I do believe if one string can be joined with another string there is strength and hope.
My hope is strings,
too thin
too few to twin(e)
myself a rope.
So wonderfully, painfully poignant and vulnerable. My money quote:
“My hope is strings,
too thin
too few to twin(e)
myself a rope.”
So full of yearning of that hope we all need like air!
Well put, Bjorn! We need friends to help lead us from the well of despair.
Wow. Lovely quadrille.
This is amazing. I know well of depression. I know how valuable and precious friends are. Hope with hands and hugs, tears and smiles.
I like the directness in the voice of this poem. I think it speaks to those suffering from mental illness who cannot possibly pull themselves up without help. Unfortunately help is not always there. Very powerful write, Bjorn.
It is always nice to reach out to someone, when it becomes too much to bear.
Ah! Björn, that Light teasing line is breathtaking. Almost as beautiful as your sunglasses 🙂 Cheers from Bucharest
Cheers back… only been in Bucharest once.
An evocative quadrille, Bjorn…powerful in its vulnerability. We must reach out to encourage and save another from the brink.
Perfect description of depression. Asking friends for help is a positive sign. Shows some hope
oh! this shares that feel so well and connects….perfect!
This completely describes my life at the moment. Brilliant!
We all need our friends. Esp in that moment…when we are feeling so down. Nice word play on twin and twine. And thanks.for the email. Working on my doctorate degree now.
Friends can help
Poignant. I can imagine many making this plea.
The painting works well with your words.
I especially liked these lines “My hope is strings, too thin” because that is how it feels, so tenuous when you have very little hope left. Nice piece, Bjorn.