I am the sea, the sky, I am horizons far away
your joy and sorrow, both being bright and gray,
it’s me, both business suit and farmhand’s pants
I’m burning ice, I’m flame, disdain and trance.
the dear departed, and your newborn’s hand,
I’m the river wild, the mountains, lake and land,
the ink you bleed on paper, both poetry and will
a forgotten butterfly, dying on the window sill
I’m dawn, I’m dusk, our silent planet’s skin,
but what I mostly crave — your red hot sin.
Today Mish hosts at dVerse poetics, and we are writing from the perspective of being a color.
February 16, 2021
Björn Rudbergs writings 
‘The Old Guitarist’ is my favourite from Picasso’s ‘blue period’ and your colourful sonnet is one of my favourites after the librarian poems, Björn. The opening line hooked me, and I stayed hooked until the amazing final couplet.
it’s only ten lines so I think it’s a sonnetina… but it felt right for the theme.
Wowww!! ❤️ This is exquisitely woven, Bjorn! I especially resonate with; “I’m the river wild, the mountains, lake and land, the ink you bleed on paper, both poetry and will.” No doubt about it 🙂
I like the form of your poem with its rhyming couplets to explore all aspects of blue. I love the end with its craving of ‘red hot sin’ – I don’t doubt that such a colour would be!
I like the way the colour peeps out to say “it’s me, both business suit and farmhands’ pant”…so versatile and making himself known.
I don’t like to think of red hot sin as spicing things up, but it does lend color to the drabness of what’s been going on for far too long. I love that exclamation point of red at the end.
This amazing line . . . “I’m dawn, I’m dusk, our silent planet’s skin” . . . — the concealed power of gray.
Amazing lines to convey the thoughts of blue
Bluetiful.
It’s lovely and cool and subdued. The dead butterfly a vivid image of death’a cooling. I dig it.
i have always enjoyed dawn and dusk since i learnt photography at school. i can see our planets skin .
great line
Like others, I first thought you were gray, but hey, Picasso didn’t
t have a gray period. Interesting that the narrator can be blue or gray, the Union vs. the Confederacy. You did some excellent word-smithing (already noted) and your rhyme schemes are unobtrusive. A great read, brother.
This is excellent Bjorn, full of feeling and motion. Loved it!
a sock it to me poem, painting the grayer shade of blues …. poignant music! An emotional impact I’m still working through.
I enjoyed the many facets of blue here, “both business suit and farmhand’s pants” flows so well. I can see how blue would desire red and now I’m thinking of purple. 💜
Wow. Fantastic images and flow. Great title too.
The whole poem was f’n fantastic, but this line in particular rocked me:
Amazing.
-David
I was comforted that some of your commentors thought it was red, some grey, some blue. I couldn’t tell what your chosen color was. Maybe that was the point? The images were great fun, and the language great, as usual.
Yes, absolutely. You’ve nailed that colour.
Oh wow! Thank you for sharing this masterpiece.
An interesting take on the prompt, Bjorn. Dawn and dusk the color of change, yet still always the same it seems!
“your newborn’s hand” really stood out, took the poem to a new place.
Blue lusts for red! Wonderful poem and perfect match with the painting.
This is very good. I especially like:
“it’s me, both business suit and farmhand’s pants
I’m burning ice, I’m flame, disdain and trance”
This is poetry my friend. Hello from Michigan and I hope you are doing well and staying safe.