Blessed are the birchmarked trees and pilchard burn,
the brought-out batteries of packed sardines and mellow tails –
the beekeepers net, soft and wild. Linen, muslin; fabric-genius.
The holders of honey.
The bees sough, graze flower tongues and meet their Queen,
clandestine sorceress in jail-break colour.
Take chance and mount the hill beside, the lofty light,
and watch as pen to diary makes: to tell what of leaves,
a brier of twigs and fox-foot-fossils left in mud.
© Eve Redwater 2012
[Hello everyone! I've written this poem as a kind of addendum to The Bees - a poetic partnership of sorts. This week has been eaten up by my dissertation, phew - I've got some catching up to do!]
Eve, surely you must have been reading Gerard Manley Hopkins! I mentioned once before how you reminded me of him, and your rhythms have begun to resemble his “sprung rhythm” more and more! A principal difference is that he employs rhyme and you rarely do, or else yours is internal. “Harvard Bestiary” particularly reminded me of “Pied Beauty”: “Glory be to God for dappled things / For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow / For rose moles all in stipple upon trout that swim / Fresh fire-coal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings … ”
“Harvard Bestiary” is terrific, in my opinion!
Hello Lorinda, thank you for visiting as always!
I’ve read a little of his, but, as I’ve mentioned below, I’m still not that familiar with his work! I really need to get on to that! x
Sorry – it’s “Harvard’s Bestiary.” It’s early in the morning and my eyes aren’t working yet!
Stacey – you know how I love your ‘ The Bees’. And this is a great Bees 2! Just wonderful – have a splendid weekend – Kathleen
Thank you Kathleen! Have a great week! x
Eve: I hope you can find some rest this weekend…then move on to more spectacular things! This was certainly a lovely (brain-check) poem for an early Saturday afternoon.
Thank you for your lovely comment! It was fairly restful, yes. I trust yours was equally so?
x
Yes, partially due to nursing my poor back, which gets out of whack now and then. Feeling better today!
I think it’s a great poem.
I appreciate it!
Just wonderful, Eve, and sending wishes of a great, restful weekend! xx
Thank you Lauren! I hope you had an equally restful weekend.
xx
Wonderful poem, Eve, lovely imagery.
Thank you David, I appreciate your thoughts!
i reminisced The Bees in your very first line…”blessed are the birchmarked trees and pilchard burn,” a lovely amendment. full of the same kind of life bees are full of.
Thank you Jane! I think bees stand out more to me in nature now than they ever have… there’s something quite magical about them.
Eve, if you are working on a dissertation and still writing poetry of this quality, then I shall bow low to the ground and say that you are a young woman who is amazing. The start of this
Blessed are the birchmarked trees and pilchard burn,
the brought-out batteries of packed…
with its alliteration is simply wonderful. And it keeps going, building the image of the bees and their queen, “clandestine sorceress in jail-break colour,” the keeps the quality of the poem original and striking.
You are quite a poet.
Thank you so much! I know that I’ve slacked in my poetry writing these past couple of weeks, but I’m doing my best to find a balance between this and my work! Phew…
x
This is really lovely, Eve. I love that Lorinda pointed to Gerard Manley Hopkins! I, too, hear him in the cadence of your own very unique poetry. You have a very clear voice that smiles throughout this piece. I loved it! I’ve been watching the bees in my spring yard–loved the “jail-break colour.” Brilliant! I’m appreciative of the fact that you’re in an academic program requiring so much focus…I hope you are making good progress! Debra
Hi Debra, thank you! I’m not that well versed in Hopkins, but I intend to rectify that in the near future.
The dissertation is plodding along, I’ll be glad when it’s done and I can move on to other academic ventures! x
Your blossom picture accompanying your poem really sets off the season and somehow the words. I like both a lot – it seems fitting that the spring sunshine is on my back as I type this too.
Thank you! Yes, the sunshine was out in full force when I wrote this. I took the blossom picture at my local park.
I like the combination of Harvard with Bestiary, there is such a proper connotation with Harvard and quite the opposite connotation with bestiary…I enjoyed this mix all the way through.
Thank you Anna, that’s a great insight into the message I wanted to get across, I’m happy that you felt it!
I always like your poems but this is the best picture of you yet!
Thank you Russell! I think that picture will be used as part of my graduation… lets just hope the University doesn’t plaster it on the big screen we have outside the Student Union!
you also have a great mastery of abstract language. i never tire of repeating ‘fox-foot-fossils.’ x
Thank you very much! x
You are a holder of honey through your poetry, Eva! Certainly it is an intricate hive, beautiful in color, and dripping tasty and very satisfying.
Thank you! Your comment is mouthwatering in itself! I really appreciate it.
x