[Paul Lake]

Since Curtis Gale Weeks asked to see a few poems, I thought I'd post these three by way of introduction to show the weird range of forms and styles I work in.


Echoes


A dolphin, like a bat or sonar dish,
Turns sonic blips to solid information
Till, bored with his one-sided conversation
With ocean floors and passing schools of fish,
He turns to higher forms of mimicry
And imitates his own returning wave
With cunningly cast measures that behave
To dolphin ears like carvings by Bernini,
Transforming shoal and branching coral reef
To frozen arias of sculpted sound
So artfully that others might confound
Its delicately etched patterns in relief
With star or angel fish, or, hearing, feel
The shock of truth like an electric eel.


*

End of the Road


When all roads led to Rome,
unRoman ways
made inroads
into Rome
so Rome’s ways changed.
Now when
strangers go
to Rome,
to do what Romans do,
neither they
nor Romans know
what Romans do, to do,

some even deeming
it unRoman
they once knew.


*

The Test


The Pharisees and doctors of the law
Had gathered round to put him to the test:

“This woman here is an adulteress--
The law of Moses says she must be stoned.
Master, what course do you say is the best?”

He paused to scratch some words upon the ground
Then sat up straight and said, “Whoever’s faultless
May throw the first stone.”

Hearing, one by one,
The lawyers left. When Jesus was alone,
He turned back to the woman and said, “Go,
Back to your home, but do not sin again.“
Whereupon,
The learned doctors quickly cried out, “So,
It seems you really do believe in sin”
And, picking up their stones again, stoned him.

[Sharon Passmore]

*applauding madly*

[Curtis Gale Weeks]

Thanks, Paul.

I remember "End of the Road" from when Tim or Alan posted it in a General Talk thread some time ago...or a link to it. I vaguely recall it being used to show how someone might write free verse effectively (as opposed to some free verse attempts), but maybe I'm wrong since it seems heterometric to me.

I particularly like some of your metrical choices for "The Test": a clear indication of how verbal stress plays a key role in shaping meter.

C.

[Paul Lake]

Very observant, Curtis. All of my free verse has hidden repeated metrical rhythms; they're just freer than in more formal metrical work. It's not always as obvious as below, but you were right about "End of the Road," which, slightly rearrange, is partly iambic:

When all roads led to Rome, unRoman ways
Made inroads into Rome so Rome's ways changed.

A+ for you ear.

And thanks, Sharon, for your kind words.