We who with songs beguile your pilgrimage / And swear that Beauty lives though lilies die, / We Poets of the proud old lineage / Who sing to find your hearts, we know not why ... (James Elroy Flecker)

16.2.18

Words Fail

Written for Midweek Motif ~ Word at Poets United
and for MTB — Brevity at dVerse
















Words Fail

 I wanted to think of a wonderful word,
and craft a poem around it: a word
to dazzle and exalt. But the heat. 

The fan stopped dead. My cat panted 
and frothed. I choked on a wordless shriek.

-
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20 comments:

  1. Anonymous16 February 2018 at 20:12

    I had the same feeling, wanting to find the perfect word, then realized that WORD was the only possibility.

    Elizabeth

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  2. Anonymous17 February 2018 at 00:32

    you have found the short cut to drama instead Rosemary - well executed.
    p.s. sorry to hear the passionate crone came unstuck - maybe your passion created a short circuit!

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  3. Frank Hubeny17 February 2018 at 00:51

    That we have the ability to say words at all we take for granted. I liked the parallel between wanting a single word and the "wordless shriek" at the end. I also liked the similar sound connecting the two parts ending with "heat" and "shriek".

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  4. Sherry Blue Sky17 February 2018 at 01:07

    I felt that wordless shriek. Well done, Rosemary.

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  5. Debi Swim17 February 2018 at 02:45

    It is hard to think of that heat when it is winter here. But I shriek at heat also

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary Nissen-Wade17 February 2018 at 08:47

      It was more from anxiety about my cat, plus the fan dying. But we survived.

      Delete
  6. Cedarwind17 February 2018 at 04:56



    ‘But the heat’ great turning point

    ReplyDelete
  7. brudberg17 February 2018 at 06:33

    Oh... I'm glad that I don't live in a hot country... but words can escape you in cold as well

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary Nissen-Wade17 February 2018 at 08:45

      Usually I love the heat – but it has been extreme now for many days.

      Delete
  8. Waltermarks17 February 2018 at 08:33

    The heat is hard to beat, maybe your cat had the best reaction. Your unspoken words are descriptive

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary Nissen-Wade17 February 2018 at 08:46

      It was certainly an alarming reaction! I had to work hard at getting her temperature down.

      Delete
  9. kaykuala17 February 2018 at 12:37

    The heat can be so unfair. One gets exhausted without any workouts! Has to be tolerated then Rosemary!


    Hank

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  10. Sumana Roy17 February 2018 at 15:34

    Sometimes words do fail. & the last sentence amply states how.

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  11. Gina17 February 2018 at 20:53

    what a moment to have words fail just as you need to write a poem or say something brilliant! hope the cat is well now.

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  12. Mish18 February 2018 at 10:09

    I am snuggled in a blanket but grateful to be warm. This was a fun read and I was surprised by the "wordless shriek" at the end.

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  13. Margaret18 February 2018 at 12:50

    Ha. I say follow the example of the cat :)

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  14. Sarah Russell18 February 2018 at 17:29

    I catch myself in those wordless shrieks. But it’s worse when I utter them...

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  15. Imelda19 February 2018 at 10:09

    Fun read. I liked the idea of a wordless shriek. :-)

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  16. Intelliblog21 February 2018 at 18:00

    LOL, sorry, I had to laugh first, then worry about the cat and you afterwards. Fantastic poem, Rosemary!

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  17. Intelliblog21 February 2018 at 18:01

    PS: A wordless shriek would not have been my reaction - a loud expletive rather!

    ReplyDelete

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