- Non-Erotic Poetry
- Chagall's Bride
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Click hereI sail into midnight
in a gown of cobwebs,
in firefly earrings.
I skim barefoot past spirits,
float above zombie louts,
those Calibans below
who wonder and stumble.
I am alone trailing memory
in a dusty blue wake,
singing thin hymns to the night.
It swallows them whole.
Tears skate my cheeks like mercury.
They burn and fall in silver beads,
each a starry story, particles
of promise that dot the sky.
Follow them and you may find
the sabbath where I've blessed bread twice,
pulling air to me,
pulling HaShem to me.
My whispers curse the darkness
and shatter yarzheit candles.
Crows glide up from the earth
and speak from empty eyes.
Perhaps they see angels.
I do not.
I am occupied. I scatter
the barren ground with prayer
cast in radiant dust and so
the Perseids are active tonight.
- COMMENTS
Neonuroticabout 3 years agoTen years later and I gotta agree with UnderYourSpell. Love the lines she quoted. Surreal imagery (and genuine art.)
legerdemeralmost 9 years agoOthers have said almost everything I have to say. It's simply superb.
The third stanza is my favorite, but the following two reach nearly as far into me.
I was jarred by "zombie louts" - it was the single false note, and I wish I could come up with something else that would convey the meaning but fit better in the context. I wonder if the following might work (just a thought...); I'm not sure at all it helps.
I sail into midnight
in a gown of cobwebs,
in firefly earrings.
I skim barefoot past spirits,
float above those Calibans below
who wonder and stumble.
The bottom line: I am floating there, with the brides in Chagall's sky, thanks for taking me with you. It was a gift.
AChildabout 13 years agoWiki'ed Marc Chagall then watched this video slide show
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDB1dXXA9-E
on youtube. It was awesome. Thanks for introducing me to a cool artist I've never seen before. The ethereal imagery is great in book works. Do you have any notes about all the chickens and red horses in Chagall's work?
greenmountaineerabout 13 years agoI read this earlier and enjoyed the powerful language without fully understanding the metaphors. I came back to it to think about it more, which I hope you take as a compliment.
I enjoy the occasional use of foreign words and iconic references from different languages and cultures because I believe there are common denominators among people.
However, I remain somewhat confused about this poem, however lovely the language of it is. For example, I wasn't sure whether you were writing about Chagal's wife who died in 1944 or his painting which I believe is called "La Mariee" or perhaps the poem was about both, but I know so little about either.
