Wild Friday at Poets United

Welcome to the first Wild Friday at Poets United! Starting today, we will be dedicating the second Friday of the month to topics touched by poetry  — it can be about a particular poem, a poetry book or something that is happening in the poetry world. 

The second Fridays will be wild! I hope to pleasantly surprise you with something that we all will enjoy doing together. On that note let us dive into today's prompt:  

source

In a world dominated by men, it was rare to see a woman in ancient times to wield such power in writing. Sappho's songs were regarded as outstanding, so revered was she that the people of those times referred to her as the "Tenth Muse," and her songs were passed down over centuries inspiring generations of Poets, none of whom managed to replicate her command of metre and sensual artistry.

So, where did Sappho come from? Her estimated birth date places her sometime after the composition and transmission of the works of the Homeric Poets, which told stories of the Trojan War and are preserved in the epics known as the 'Iliad,' and the 'Odyssey.' 

In my eyes he matches the gods 

In my eyes he matches the gods, that man who

sits there facing you--any man whatever--

listening from close by to the sweetness of your

          voice as you talk, the

sweetness of your laughter: yes, that--I swear it--

sets the heart to shaking inside my breast, since

once I look at you for a moment, I can't

          speak any longer,

but my tongue breaks down, and then all at once a

subtle fire races inside my skin, my

eyes can't see a thing and a whirring whistle

          thrums at my hearing,

cold sweat covers me and a trembling takes

a hold of me all over: I'm greener than the

grass is and appear to myself to be little

          short of dying.

But all must be endured, since even a poor [

When I first came across and read this poem I was blown away by the intensity of the emotions that adorned each and every word, placed carefully and with such precision so as to capture the reader's attention. 

Sappho's poem puts me in the mind of love, eros and jealousy. The poem as we have it is apparently incomplete as there is the beginning of an additional line at the end ("But all must be endured... ") Most translators have ignored this fragment and concluded with the previous line, but a few modern ones include it.

source

Which brings me to question: what could have been the conclusion? What more could have been said? The fact that the poem is incomplete leaves much to be contemplated and adds a certain level of mystery. I remember reading and re-reading this poem and each time marveling at the possibility of there having been at least one more stanza in completing it. 

So, for our first Wild Friday at Poets United, I invite you to write poetry and offer the following two options:

1) Find a poem which is also incomplete and write a response poem that works like an ending for your choice.

                                                       

2) Or if you don't feel like finding a different poem then use Sappho's.

Add the direct link to your poem to Mr Linky. Remember to visit others and to comment on their work. I look forward to reading what you all come up with. Have fun!

Wild Friday at Poets United

Have you ever read a poetry collection that makes you taste fire and storm? Have the words ever touched you so deeply you just had to voice your opinion? 

Welcome to the second Wild Friday at Poets United! The Autumn breeze outside my house carries fine drops of promise of the rain to come. The weather is perfect for sitting down to contemplate poetry and have a cuppa. 

Rupi Kaur’s first book, a collection titled Milk and Honey (stylized as milk and honey), was published on 4 November 2014. Her inspiration for the book's name came from a past poem which included a line about women surviving terrible times. She describes the change in the women as, "smooth as milk and as thick as honey." A collection of poetry, prose, and hand-drawn illustrations, the book is divided into four chapters, and each chapter depicts a different theme.

Following are a few poems from her poetry collection Milk and Honey:

(i)

You tell me to quiet down                                                          

cause my opinions make me less beautiful

but I was not made with a fire in my belly

so I could be put out

I was not made with a lightness on my tongue

so I could be easy to swallow

I was made heavy

half blade and half silk

difficult to forget

and not easy for the mind to follow.

(ii)

I’d be lying

if I said you make me speechless

the truth is

you make my tongue so weak it forgets

what language to speak in.

(iii)

did you think I was a city

big enough for a weekend getaway

I am the town surrounding it

the one you’ve never heard of but always pass through

there are no neon lights here

no skyscrapers or statues

but there is thunder for i make bridges tremble

I am not street meat i am homemade jam

thick enough to cut the sweetest thing your lips will touch

I am not police sirens

I am the crackle of a fireplace

I’d burn you and you still couldn’t take your eyes off me

cause I’d look so beautiful doing it

you’d blush

I am not a hotel room I am home

I am not the whiskey you want

I am the water you need

don’t come here with expectations

and try to make a vacation out of me.

(iv)

my heartbeat quickens at the thought

of birthing poems

which is why I will never stop opening myself up

to conceive them

the lovemaking to the words

is so erotic

I am either in love

or in lust with the writing

or both

Goodreads

"Milk and honey," reveals a far more significant purpose. Kaur adapts to the fluidity of the modern age whilst retaining a sense of heritage, culture, and power. This is not poetry to become half-remembered on a dusty shelf as a ‘modern classic’, but to be read out loud, written in texts to loved ones, and learnt by heart.

 So, for our second Wild Friday at Poets United, I invite you to write poetry and offer the following two options:

1) Write a poem inspired by one or all of the quoted pieces from Rupi Kaur's poetry collection, "Milk and Honey." Tell us how you feel and what comes to mind while reading these poems. 

2) Or, if your muse prefers something different, pick one poetry collection that has touched you deeply, and write a response poem. Feel free to address what affects you the most.

 

Add the direct link to your poem to Mr Linky. Remember to visit others and to comment on their work. I look forward to reading what you all come up with. Have fun!📕