poems like Snyder’s lost ponies
gallop down shining sand dunes
all heat and sweat and neighing
great stallions of imagination
humbled in embodiment
in motion, huffing, striving
toward the blue-dark horizon
frenetic birds flit at the edge of sky
stencils against the thread of clouds
unable to escape the picture
painting landscapes of loss
singing songs of lament
at the walls of the white monastery
within the hobbled monk chants
breaks the night with his strange descant
there is nothing to accept
prostrate surrender of an endless ritual
rhythm chime of an inner bell
words cascade, an avalanche of lost meaning
roaring down the scarred mountain
felling ancient trees, thundering echoes
through fire-kissed meadows
gods hover at Duncan’s margins of thought
here in the hinterlands of a long forgotten tale
hey, look who it is…smiles…good to see you…
hows married life?
you hooked me early on..love the personification of the poems…of them galloping down….the zoom out to the birds…the monk chants…def a wide range there…but youtie them in nicely in the progression from stanza over stanza…the raw power of them thundering down mountains and felling trees…
its an interesting undercurrent of rhythm you bring out as well…
Oh Anna … I’ve missed you…life is changing us all, isn’t it!
Loved this.. yes the irregular rhythms here fill the bass lines like sketch marks make by Braque or Picasso, the references to other poets enhance the depth of impasto colored by your images, and as the sounds build they make shapes as cool, as dimensional, and as moving as any in art. I always loved your work. Thank you for giving us something this special.
i’m not sure it is intended this way,, but it brings my usual great appreciation of nature as is..greater still..to lose a forest..at the hand of man’s tools..seems rather unfair to a majestic tree of ancient lore of simply living..living ..living..tree…free without the tools of man….to bring an end of such simple a live…beauty a forest..a tree..is.. simply alive….
Beautiful poem. I love the images, though I must confess my ignorance of your last reference. Clearly, you’re a polished, talented poet and I so much enjoyed your writing. The words were too lovely for me to focus on the rhythm you intended. I just read it, a few times, to treat my soul.
That second stanza is stunningly good. The rhythm has a great ebb and flow, fitting the subject so well.
The images are vivid and I enjoyed reading your poem.
Those poems can sometimes love a life of their own can’t they? There is a lightness here that I enjoyed so much… And those little gems I always find in your lines.. For instance the avalanche of words that lost their meaning.,. A great ride to come along with.. You have been missed Anna 😉
so much to discover in this… the hinterlands of a long forgotten tale…love the mystery and magic it embeds and how the poem is felt in the movement and sweat of the ponies… and hey… great to see you anna – hope life treats you well…
the last stanza is throbbing with life and great power…a great poetic experience here.. 🙂
Nice to see you, Anna! Lovely imagery along with a nice rhythm make for a wonderful poem!
Anna, Anna, oh how I’ve missed your facile intellect, your beautiful haunting images; welcome back for now; hope you stop by the pub more often–thanks for visiting my site as well. I adore this poem, like a tiny epic; loved the lines in the opening stanza /great stallions of imagination/humbled in embodiment/in motion, huffing, striving/toward the dark-blue horizon/.
Stencils against the thread of clouds…nice line. Your poem is a gallop to what is beyond the horizon.
Oh I love reading it such a fast galloping rhythm it moved like a canter on my tongue. (if that makes sense) ha ha! Very enjoyable and love the painting too!
Perfectly you, Anna. I enjoyed this poem very much 🙂
I love that painter.
And I love these words: “breaks the night with his strange descant
there is nothing to accept”