I thought at first they were poppies,
flashes of blood red smudged
against the sky of the dying day,
natural tombstones anchored
in fields of summer green.
I brought you one that day,
you remember. You touched
each petal lightly, tracing
your fingers along the edges.
He died at the Somme,
you said, a half-written letter
in his pocket. I wouldn’t read it,
you said, staring at orange
purple clouds of sunset,
but I have it still.
Dedicated to Charity Singleton*
This poem is submitted to One Shot Sunday, hosted by One Stop Poetry. To see more poems based on one of five photo prompts by photographer Fee Easton, please visit the site.
*This poem is dedicated to Charity Singleton. If you make a donation to The High Calling during the month of May, I've committed to dedicate a poem to you. Just let me know via the comment box or an email that you made a donation (not the amount).
Photograph by Fee Easton. Used with permission for One Stop Poetry.
Wonderful color contrast in both beginning and end of the poem, between which you build a touching scene. "against the sky of the dying day, / natural tombstones anchored" Great lines throughout, Glynn. The tombstone reference in particular against the sunset impacts both visually and emotionally.
ReplyDeleteOh...this is too damn good!
ReplyDeleteYou haven't missed a beat or word.
Spectacular poetry.
Poppies and image used well to show the links to death and hope
ReplyDeletenice glynn you just took the field and opened it up...also love the rap to color beginning to end...great 1ss
ReplyDeleteYou always take your poems to a place I didn't expect them to go. Exceptional.
ReplyDeleteGlynn - thank you for the dedication! This poem was beautiful and haunting and reminiscent of all the hard things we put off and dread. Even the hard, beautiful things.
ReplyDeletewow glynn - i liked this a lot - amazing where you were going with this picture - this was a very unexpected path but deep with meaning and beautifully written
ReplyDeleteI like this...very nice,deep and beautiful.
ReplyDeletegreat writing. very descirptive and touching.
ReplyDeleteThis is great!
ReplyDelete"natural tombstones anchored
in fields of summer green."
beautiful!
Oh the closing lines lifted hairs on the back of my neck Glynn - poppy fields mean the Somme and everything else around it to me - beautiful !
ReplyDeleteI find it quite interesting that you interpreted this in your text as a sunset, and I viewed it as a dawn. Descriptively concise in your take on the prompt, and the analogous tombstone reference is obviously well-played.
ReplyDelete-Pounds
Simply gorgeous piece of conversation-prose-style poetry, driven home with the uses of "you remember" and "you said". This is so subtly heartwrenching, it almost shouts it in a whisper. You have closed this poem at just the perfect time, in the perfect way, to achieve maximum effect. Seriously good Glynn, my fav of the responses if I'm to be honest (and there wasn't a single bad one, discounting my own of course!). Well done mate.
ReplyDeletepoppies, despite the well known link between war, death and remembrance, you have given them new life, new meaning and new significance with this poem. Lovely , sad poem.
ReplyDeleteVibrant images, a bit of mystery and haunting overtones. Poignant and beautiful, Glynn. I looked at Fee's photo and thought "Oh, beautiful poppies, reflected in the red clouds." :)
ReplyDeleteA very nice piece, written here, a picture well drawn with words
ReplyDeleteWonderfully written. Love the vibrancy of color drawn through your words, an urgency... yet serene in the remembering.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful poem, I love the unread letter.. just fantastic :)
ReplyDeleteFollowing now.
Abi
poignant. Excellent.
ReplyDeleteLove the imagery here, you really made it wonderful for me in the lines 'You touched
ReplyDeleteeach petal lightly, tracing
your fingers along the edges.'
memories flood !
thanks for that !
JL&B
Beautiful and you pull the meaning of the red poppy straight to the heart Glynn...wonderful..bkm
ReplyDeleteI can't help but treasure that letter too. The secrets held within that letter are so powerful. So much said in not disclosing the contents. Thank you Glynn. Plus, I just love the colors Fee captured.
ReplyDeleteThe poppies appear to be waving to the sky in victory ....
ReplyDeleteThis was lovely. I liked how you let the photo lead you to something more personal to you.
ReplyDelete