“Once below a time,
When my pinned-around-the-spirit
Cut-to-measure flesh”
it must have been those citrus summer bells
summoning brass to timpanic pitch and swell
in two toned beats that set my pulse to play
along with yet another parish church Sunday
spirit flies on sea-thrift carpet mounds
where low slung bees steal hallowed honey ground
forage in pink pistils beneath a yellow ageing yew
that kneels and sings Jerusalem to a western wind tattoo
it must have been the wedding airs of happy ever after
seedy rice and something surreptitious in that laughter
tossed bouquets tied loosely with a hidden invitation
ribbon trail pursuit of a honeymoon gestation
sweet swollen appetite for peeled and ill-cut flesh
the greedy gudgeon hooked by beastly bait in mesh
swift from discarnate seas to flounder after birth
a bare boundless soul caught fast ‘twixt tears and mirth
Opening lines taken from Dylan Thomas’ Once below a time and continued in four-line stanzas of rhyming couplets. Late entry for the Toads’ Tuesday Platform
The flesh and the flowers worked well creating contrasts.
and the temptation of taking form
Bravo, Laura. Wonderful and richly conjured words, Even the ‘pink pistils’ are delicious.
Am as pink as those pistils with your very encouraging words – thank you Tish
You really conjured up the feel of the original lines. Wonderful. I’m not understanding the wordpress link mix up. Your comment appears as normal followed by another saying there is a problem. Beyond my Ken!
A hard poet to follow but I like to trace his lines
[Strange – I click the link and it goes to 404 error having combined our blog adresses – ghost in machine perhaps but only haunting me]
Strange. Which link? You to me?
me to you and me to me 😐
Lovely, musical sound-play.
Thank you Rosemary – Emulating the Welsh bard’s lilt as best I can
Pistil – another word learned through your poetry 😊. Love the the colourful pic!
thank you Kiki – and for some more biology – that’s a five-spot Burnet moth enjoying the pink pistil of a scabious 😉