Myth
You cant keep hangin’ on
To all that’s dead and gone
Oh, let the ashes fly
Help me to make it
Help me to make it
.
.
.
.
.
the first sound…and the last
.
.
.
in the quiet before sunrise…
.
before this relentless world awakes…
.
at the window silhouette of my
.
alone listening…
.
.
i hear the first of morning’s call,
.
faint from the dense of sheltering evergreens…
.
alighting from February’s greyed and leafless branches…
.
in slow breaths past your sleeping lips…
.
.
i can hear our shared living mystery recital
.
whispered deep within your down pillowed dreams,
.
the serendipitous and storied soliloquy of
.
our improbable union of years.
.
.
in destiny devoted season after season…
.
that even in this cruelest of another Winter cold,
.
we can still scorch
.
in the white of our own flame.
.
.
and still… this fool romantic’s heart
.
could believe only Love beckons reconciliation,
.
but a slow and greying wisdom wonders
.
‘is it our friendship we can’t live without?’
.
.
.
.
and outside our window long past sundown…
.
when the world has turned away…
.
i hear the life mating cardinals, like us
.
a fated pair
.
.
.
.
calling each other home to close another day.
.
we are as the Universe demands, and how
.
i’m forever grateful it’s your voice i hear.
.
.
the first sound…
.
.
and the last.
.
.
.
.
drawing approx. 8″ x 8″ on vellum paper
pencil, watercolor pencil, white and black marker,
acrylic paint and sourced from various Google pics
click to enlarge
who could know then 
Lovely !
hi Rita, it’s so good to see you again! you’ve been missed.
ty so very much for your kind comment, you put a smile in my heart!
[…] https://whocouldknowthen.wordpress.com/2014/03/09/first-sound-and-the-last/ […]
Beautiful, both words and cardinals. You are a wonderful artist…in so many ways.
and how lucky i am to finally have a wonderfully supportive Sis’, ty.
So romantic…I love a poem about forever love. The cardinal mates are perfect!
yeah me tooww, i’m just fortunate i’m able, after all this time looking
to be able to write about it firsthand.lol and ty, i do believe cardinals
are my favorite birds. i knew i’d be drawing them one day.
Oh wow, this post is a delight all the way around! I absolutely love this song by Beach House, and reading your poetry while listening to it is an exquisite experience. Your poem is beautiful. I particularly love the stanza:
i can hear our shared living mystery recital
.
whispered deep within your down pillowed dreams,
.
the serendipitous and storied soliloquy of
.
our improbable union of years.
That, my friend, is outstanding. I do hope you shared this poem with your love. And your drawing of the cardinals is stunning! Just a few days ago, I saw a beautiful male cardinal in one of our bushes, keeping a close eye on his mate while she searched for food. It was a joy to watch them together.
heh, i’ll have to give my daughter a nod for the Beach House share,
we do that every few weeks and this song actually inspired this poem.
it’s the first time in a few stale months sans music inspiration, normally
all my poems are written to music. i’m so glad you liked it too Miranda,
and you chose my favorite stanza as well…you know, the words that just
fall effortlessly into place..lol!
ty so much for your wonderful encouraging reactions, you are treasured here!
And how I’m forever grateful, ‘It’s your voice I hear, the first sound and the last’. As I read this wonderful poem, i felt has if i was in another place or time. Where the only thing that mattered for the two I did view from afar as a shadow, was that love would always meet its completeness in their love at the end of each day and that was the truest treasure that two could have, to be together as one in each others arms. The picture your words paint is breathtakingly beautiful…I admire your style and grace in the way you write…it is a blessing to know you my friend and fellow poet…and your last words sealed its completeness…and in short, you have written a gem, a sweet conversation of love…a very awesome poem. God bless and keep them coming for what you bring is so outstanding. Thanks also for your visits!
geez Wendell, i’m not usually short on words but i barely know
what to say, how quite to react to your overwhelming kindness.
this is my 150th poem since April last year and previously had
never written poetry at all…i just try and keep my heart open
and listen to what it tells me.
that something i write might elicit such a reaction in others is
profoundly rewarding and i can’t begin to tell how it validates
this eternally doubtful artist. ty, ty, ty my brother. Love is All.
Love your use of alliteration…. especially “the serendipitous and storied soliloquy.” The feeling this poem evokes is so magical. So beautiful throughout.
ty so much C.C., and a very warm welcome to you. i love the feeling on my tongue when combined words just
feel so perfectly suited, ty so much for noticing it. this song just put me in a daydreamy place,
i didn’t want the poem to end! lol
It puts the reader in a day-dreamy place too, so thank YOU 🙂
welcome to my world CC, i always have my head in the clouds..lol!
There is softness and grace in this ‘jack’ your words have brought an inner calm as I read and listened to the music. I do love the verse that is your favourite and Miranda’s , but I also love the first stanza that set the scene so beautifully. Thank you for your words and your drawing.
Jen i really appreciate you mentioning the first stanza, it was a challenge for me to properly introduce this poem, the simultaneous sounds of her voice and the bird’s call. i reworked it right up to the minute i hit ‘publish’ so ty so much for liking it. i saw the sun for an extended period the other day, the temperature was above freezing for the first time in months and i think it melted the ice that my words have been frozen in.
ty my dear friend, i do love that you are always here and my new nickname…. Jack.
We have known each other a little while now, I have seen you develop and read in awe at the soft feeling and emotions in your words. I ‘get you’ as they say, unlike some poets who can be a little more difficult to ‘get’ you have done well with the introduction through to the closing line Jack… And I’m glad you like your nick name ..smiles and hugs my friend.
Jen, i have been misunderstood nearly all my life, there were times when i tried
hard for it to be otherwise, more times than not i just stopped trying. i decided very
early on when i first discovered poetry that it was my chance to maybe correct that,
i take pains when i write to try and convey all that i’m feeling without fear. i guess
it’s one of the reasons i’m obsessed with the medium now. ty for ‘getting me’, it’s your
gift to me that i am forever grateful for. Love and Hugs to you Jen!
Thank you so much and you do convey with such beauty..supporting each other is an added bonus. Smiles and an Aussie hug back x
I found you through Noora-and I am very grateful that I did. Your poetry touched me with its eloquence and the delicacy with which you write. This resonated with me.
I look forward to reading more from you (I am now following)-and I loved the addition of the song, as I am not familiar with their work. Thank you for bringing me into your world for a brief moment-a lovely moment. I hope that you will visit mine in time.
Blessings to you,
Inkberry
what a wonderful way to wake up this midnight hour and find this most gentle kindness Inkberry, ty and a very warm welcome to you. i will have to humbly thank sweet Noora for lighting the path for you, to me. music is such a constant source of poetic inspiration for me, i knew from hearing the opening chords of this song it would accompany my next poem. i’m so glad you liked it.
i am a novice writer, only trying my hand at poetry since April, and there can be no greater gift in return than to have my words resonate and touch someone else. ty for being here and i will definitely find my way to your world as well.
I often feel the same way, when I find little kindnesses on my blog. Tiny presents without wrapping, reminders of the good things in the world. It makes all of the ugliness go away and all there is…are the sounds of voices embracing beauty.
I listen to music writing as well; sometimes just listening to music on a walk will inspire me to come in and write-so I started carrying a little pad in my pocket, so I wouldn’t forget.
One important thing that I have learned on my path, is this: If you write, you are a writer. If your ability to communicate compels others to follow the words that you speak, you are a writer. If the eloquence with which you write, can illicit comments and words of gratitude-precious time someone took from their crazy lives to bestow their praise upon you, you are a writer.
The distinction of novice, is something professional writers might say, but even professional writers must acknowledge that there are some things that require no measuring stick of time. There is no minimum to achieve the status of “writer”.
Dear one, you are a writer. You are a poet. Embrace it. I will embrace you as such, I hope that you will.
I only started my blog February 1st, 2014, my first poem appearing here on February 2nd (Groundhog day…how funny), and since then I have published 34 works in 38 days. I had written poetry here and there throughout my life, but shoved it down and ignored it.
I punished myself-even in college, a Literature major, a professor told me he wanted to mentor me in my writing. I threw it away thinking I wasn’t anyone special. Everyone wants to write. Who was I to think that I could compare to the masters that were so beloved to me?
I changed my major and graduated with a degree in Environmental Sciences and Geology-thinking I was being “practical”. I wasn’t. Though I love the natural world and its mysteries, I suffered for that mistake. Thinking I was squashing my hubris, I squashed my spirit instead. Thirteen years later after leaving college, here I am.
Ironically, all things happen as they must, so that mistake leads me where I am now and for all the pain I have suffered, I have grown and I am better for having taken a rough road.
I would not have met my husband, if not for that mistake. I would relive the anguish of my divorce over and over, to have met him. To be where I am. I am unemployed and we struggle, but it is a life I would not change, because of what I have found in a little less than a month of experiencing what I was meant to do.
I started my blog, to save myself. I was so lost, that it is a miracle I am speaking to you. Writing was a light in the dark. Ironically, even lost to that void, what brought me here was fear of my own light…then. Fear of what that meant-that I could write and that I could become. Fear that I was better than I imagined.
So I put myself in the dark, and forgot who I was. If you ever read poems on my blog, or one of my non-poetic works, which tell a little of my story, Inkberry’s Quill: Lost in an Oubliette – Found by Love and Blog-you get a bit more of the picture.
You are more than you know. Don’t ever let anyone ever tell you, you are a novice-don’t let yourself do it.
Fair journey to you on your path, Writer.
Blessings,
Holly
(aka Inkberry)
Holly, i’m a little overwhelmed by so much of what you’ve shared here, so much kindness so freely given, i think i’d like to digest this fora day before i respond if that’s ok.
i will tell you that this;
‘fear of my own light…then. Fear of what that meant-that I could write and that I could become. Fear that I was better than I imagined.’
is my story regarding my artwork, which i set aside nearly 30 years ago. now i’ve illustrated my last 4 poems, which was an enormous hurdle to overcome.
dearest Holly, please know how profoundly thankful i am that you found my blog somehow in this great big WP world, how my heart stuttered reading your words of such generous comfort and grace, how i needed to step away to compose myself. the arc of your story so closely mirrors mine in so many details it’s uncanny.
and yes, ‘all things happen as they must’, in hindsight we can see that, trust in it, recognize that we were on a journey for a reason. you met your husband, i met my wife finally at 42. i’ve written about 50 poems to her, about her in the last year. she is my sweet savior, i’ll always be very honest about that. also please know that although we live together and she is the best friend to my soon to be 14 year old daughter from my previous marriage, our schedules dictate that i am mr mom especially during the school week. i do most of my reading during the weekend when i can devote extended time, so expect a visit then. your creative output is impressive, that’s nearly a poem a day! so yes, it definitely sounds as though you have found your place in the world, i couldn’t be happier for you and i am excited to delve into your passion and poetry. again, your journey parallels mine, we both sacrificed a lot to get here.
there are a lot of reasons i set down my paints and pencils nearly 30 years ago, but the anxiety and doubts i suffered i eventually discovered were clinical. i have severe Social Anxiety, complicating the natural tendencies in most artists to be doubtful about their work and at the very height of my skill, the anxiety to ‘show myself and my work’ in public just became too overwhelming. i’ve discovered i have no such anxiety about sharing myself online however, safely removed from the spotlight. it’s the best i can do without medication which i cannot take, i tried to near disastrous results. i’m very lucky to be here at all.
i had many expectations and hopes as a young artist, maybe too many. when i discovered poetry i had no such expectations; i still don’t and so i am fearless when i write. i probably don’t know any better lol. it would be nearly impossible for me to tell you what your encouragement means to me, how it warmed my heart and inspired me to continue this discovery, this journey of words. and to think that i, who barely says 3 words in real life is writing…..what a mystery this life is!
ty Holly, ty so much.
Love and Hugs to you new friend.
I couldn’t stop the tears falling, reading your response-I am equally touched by what you said. You are so welcome ❤ Thank YOU, because your story and words helps me as much as mine and my words help you. Love and hugs to you too, friend.
well…i’m glad we found each other then, connections like this
happen for a reason. i’m looking forward to my visit this weekend.
So beautiful 🙂
hi Shirley, ty so much.i’m so happy you liked this poem because i did love writing
it and drawing the cardinals too. the sun came out the other day, the temperature
rose above freezing for the first time in months and it gave me hope that Spring
might be here soon.
That’s lovely – Hope Springs, and Spring brings all kinds of possibilities.
hi Shirley, so sorry for the delay, mr mom has been busy lol!
yes Spring does offer every possibility, but honestly i really
need to see at least a crocus or two VERY soon!
Breathtaking, really 🙂 This is sigh and misty eye inducing.
Favorite Stanza:
“i can hear our shared living mystery recital
.
whispered deep within your down pillowed dreams,
.
the serendipitous and storied soliloquy of
.
our improbable union of years.”
And a couple of standout lines:
“in slow breaths past your sleeping lips…”
love the way that falls off my tongue 🙂
“we can still scorch
.
in the white of our own flame.”
…and well… no explanation needed!
ya know….there are reasons i love and am obsessed with writing poetry.
sharing and receiving reactions like yours, are why. ty Melanie, for
putting a smile in my heart tonight!
Such a beautiful post for a monday morning. Such compassion and honesty. I heard the song and simply had to play it loud. I am also writing poetry so do pop in when you get the chance. Enjoy your week. 🙂
hi Nomz, ty so much and a very warm welcome to you. this song seems to have struck
a chord with a few folks, i’m so glad you liked it. oh and i played it loud as well
while i was writing! i will definitely pay you a visit, i’m always excited to read
new poetry.
Hahaha. It is wonderful to play a song top volume and howl along. It was also the context I found the song in that convinced me to listen for a while. The sun is finally out over here so I posted a poem about that. It is called “The first Nordic sun” 🙂
lol… yes it is, and a little dangerous when i do it ’cause i wear headphones,
my daughter came running when i was singing along to this song wondering what all the noise was about! Nomzi please know i am mr mom lol during the school week, so expect a visit to your blog this weekend when i can devote extended and uninterrupted time to reading your potty. Nordic sun….what country are you in, if i can ask? i have a lot of friends in your neighborhood! i’m in Chicago, and we saw the sun for the first time too.
Hello there. I get it. i am not leaving, i have just arrived and it will be good to get some feedback. I am writing from Norway where it is a sunny day again. A miracle. I just read your beautiful poem and left a little message there. Enjoy the sun and your day 🙂
MasterWho, Achingly lovely poem. And those two wise, feathery cardinals! Pulsing their little hearts out–like you. Is it my imagination or has your writing deepened or widened somehow with your reclamation of your art? Kind of as if your writing is now singing to (or dancing with:)) your art, and vice versa. That’s my experience anyway–it’s even richer than before. Hugs ‘n’ love
ah Chloe, i can’t quite put a word on it yet, but there is SOMETHING
going on. i can feel it, especially with the poem i’m working on now.
i think i’m feeling ‘braver’ somehow, if that makes sense. i’m not at
all surprised you’d be the first to see it, you are amazingly perceptive!
Beautiful writing of the familiar and new, lovely pair of cardinals too!
ty so much Mary, and for mentioning the drawing. i think i’m beginning to ‘see’ again, as you know so well, there is a very different way of looking when we draw and paint.
Absolutely – always love looking at others work, an appreciation for what goes into developing a piece.
yes i do too, that’s why i am grateful to see the development
of the ‘sorrow’ drawing, heh, i’m not as brave as you!
Beautiful… Both the words and art…
ty so very much lumar1298, i appreciate you being here.
“i hear the first of morning’s call,
faint from the dense of sheltering evergreens…
alighting from February’s greyed and leafless branches…
in slow breaths past your sleeping lips…”
Ahhh!
… this is breathtakingly beautiful work, my friend.
You never cease to amaze me. Ever.
❤
**blush** oh Noora, you humble me with such kindness, ty, ty, ty.
Great imagery!
hi chris and a very warm welcome to you. ty, i really appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment, feedback is always welcome here!
I felt like I was actually there. I love it when someone writes so well that it transports me. This is my favorite part. It has so many layers to it.
“i hear the first of morning’s call,
.
faint from the dense of sheltering evergreens…
.
alighting from February’s greyed and leafless branches…
.
in slow breaths past your sleeping lips…
.
.
i can hear our shared living mystery recital
.
whispered deep within your down pillowed dreams,
.
the serendipitous and storied soliloquy of
.
our improbable union of years.”
Blessings,
Theresa
.
I have read this several times..each time…it becomes timeless for some reason..Beautiful…drifting in whispers…
even your work of art is drifting in beauty …
Cardinals are always outside my windows…I was told once when one crosses your path in the break of dawn, then the next person you kiss with passion will be there beside you forever…
I Believed it for awhile, for I felt it, lived it…
Thank you….I am glad to see someone in forever
Take Care…You Matter..
)0(
maryrose
i had not heard that old saying about a Cardinal crossing your path, but it
doesn’t surprise me they would be coupled (pun intended) with that belief.
they’ve always been very special to me, early riser that i am. ty for sharing
that maryrose and ty as well for so many compliments. though i’ve written near
50 poems to my ‘forever’, there always seems to be another waiting to be written.
Love and Hugs to you maryrose, ty for being here.