Gather, a spring challenge

[greenmountaineer]

Great poems and great contest, all. It's not often I find myself fretting over voting on poems. I thought this was a great way to get to see other people's work in a fun way. Since my dear Beast has clenched it, I might as well confess.

Mine were "Somewhere, Something Incredible" and "Proposal Ghazal".

i absolutely loved the feel of that poem. took my imagination on a great journey, thankyou!

Your "Somewhere.." was a very close second for me. I hope you'll post more poems on Lit.

 

[Angeline]

Congrats to AMoveableBeast and all the poets. I thought the quality of poems submitted for this challenge was high and I was fascinated in the various ways people interpreted those three words.

I didn't know until now who wrote what though I felt sure about a few (and was wrong on some). GM I knew Cruising was yours as soon as I saw "Raritan."

Big thanks to HarryHill for all the work and keeping everything low-key and fun.

 

[UnderYourSpell]

Congratulations AMoveableBeast a worthy winner indeed
I do still mourn the loss of FF for that killer last line!
Huge thanks to Harry. Ange and Ballot box

 

[sheablue]

Congratulations to AMoveableBeast and all of the poets who participated! What a delicious buffet of poetry we were treated to.

I don't consider myself a poet, in the least, but I do like to write it. I was thrilled my poem, dedicated to my friend who hates spring, made it out of the first round.

Mine was A ... Spring is a sickly season ...

I don't remember the title now!

 

[Dianthus]

Praise and thanks to all 24 who gathered to submit one or more than one poem. We had an embarrassment of riches and I was really happy to read and re-read the poems.

Thanks to Harry, butters and Angeline for conceiving and directing this challenge and herding all the cats. I really enjoyed the concept and chance to craft with your guidelines.

Congratulations to AMoveableBeast, the first place winner, and the two runners-up, Odd Objects to Ballerinas and Bloom.

 

[HarryHill]

Congratulations to AMoveableBeast and all of the poets who participated! What a delicious buffet of poetry we were treated to.

I don't consider myself a poet, in the least, but I do like to write it. I was thrilled my poem, dedicated to my friend who hates spring, made it out of the first round.

Mine was A ... Spring is a sickly season ...

I don't remember the title now!

.. glad you feel that way, lets start with yours first

False Season by sheablue

Spring is a sickly season,
halfway between the cold hard certainty of winter,
and the heart’s hot promise of summer.

Spring hides it’s malice in false hopes and fresh blooms,
reminding me not to bet on early green buds teased from the hard dark ground by
warm breath, only to be choked out by the next frost.

Spring is more gray skies after an endless winter of gray skies.
Spring is gray snow that melts to black slush to reveal the dead brown grass beneath,
hard twisted things we’d rather leave buried.

So give me a wet blanket of humidity and temperatures that melt shoes to pavement.
Give me a blinding hot sun that doesn’t pretend to be anything it’s not.

Give me the ice and the snow and the frost in my nose.
Give me a cold winters death.
Just don’t give me Spring. Give me anything but Spring.
.................................................
nice sonics in the first stanza,(through the whole piece) the hiss in the first line like rain or sleet
I'm deleting more than I type; someone help me

 

[todski28]

.. glad you feel that way, lets start with yours first

False Season by sheablue

Spring is a sickly season,
halfway between the cold hard certainty of winter,
and the heart’s hot promise of summer.

Spring hides it’s malice in false hopes and fresh blooms,
reminding me not to bet on early green buds teased from the hard dark ground by
warm breath, only to be choked out by the next frost.

Spring is more gray skies after an endless winter of gray skies.
Spring is gray snow that melts to black slush to reveal the dead brown grass beneath,
hard twisted things we’d rather leave buried.

So give me a wet blanket of humidity and temperatures that melt shoes to pavement.
Give me a blinding hot sun that doesn’t pretend to be anything it’s not.

Give me the ice and the snow and the frost in my nose.
Give me a cold winters death.
Just don’t give me Spring. Give me anything but Spring.
.................................................
nice sonics in the first stanza,(through the whole piece) the hiss in the first line like rain or sleet
I'm deleting more than I type; someone help me

Maybe we start a new thread for comments, and everyone has a crack at the poems they liked the most, seems fair, I have a lot to say about a few pieces but time has decided to close in on me

 

[Tzara]

It's a misprint should say noon; the polls are closed congratulations amoveablebeast winner of the gather challenge with "Snowmelt'
ETA: the 10:30 am is lit time

Congratulations, AMB. Good poem. Really good, actually.

I don't really want to lure you into the trees and whack you in the head with a baseball bat. Not really.

Oh, well, maybe a little. Bit.

Your poem is a good poem, though.

Congratulations.

 

[AMoveableBeast]

Congratulations, AMB. Good poem. Really good, actually.

I don't really want to lure you into the trees and whack you in the head with a baseball bat. Not really.

Oh, well, maybe a little. Bit.

Your poem is a good poem, though.

Congratulations.

"Odd Objects" was a fantastic work--complex and esoteric and it grew on me a little more with every day. Another week, and I would have likely started a cult devoted to it. "Odd Objects" doesn't lose contests, it just runs out of time.

And I'll let you have a couple of whacks with the bat just to show you what a good sport I am. *rimshot*

 

[Remec]

we can have really lovely weather here, or weeks on end when it seems to rain most the time. was it april by any chance - that's known for its showery weather

Nah, last several weeks of December and the first week of January. We got to spend Christmas and New Year's both in central London--our hotel being, like, two stops away from Picadilly, maybe three.

 

[EllenMore]

Congratulations to AMoveableBeast for his winning poem, my thanks to everyone who voted for my two entries, and a big thank you to HarryHill and Angeline for setting up the contest. Great challenge and great fun.

 

[butters]

Congratulations to AMoveableBeast for his winning poem, my thanks to everyone who voted for my two entries, and a big thank you to HarryHill and Angeline for setting up the contest. Great challenge and great fun.

which two were yours, ellen? are you a newcomer (in which case kudos for joining in the fun) or a returnee under another name? doesn't matter,of course, i just like putting names to pieces

 

[butters]

.. glad you feel that way, lets start with yours first

False Season by sheablue

Spring is a sickly season,
halfway between the cold hard certainty of winter,
and the heart’s hot promise of summer.

Spring hides it’s malice in false hopes and fresh blooms,
reminding me not to bet on early green buds teased from the hard dark ground by
warm breath, only to be choked out by the next frost.

Spring is more gray skies after an endless winter of gray skies.
Spring is gray snow that melts to black slush to reveal the dead brown grass beneath,
hard twisted things we’d rather leave buried.

So give me a wet blanket of humidity and temperatures that melt shoes to pavement.
Give me a blinding hot sun that doesn’t pretend to be anything it’s not.

Give me the ice and the snow and the frost in my nose.
Give me a cold winters death.
Just don’t give me Spring. Give me anything but Spring.
.................................................
nice sonics in the first stanza,(through the whole piece) the hiss in the first line like rain or sleet
I'm deleting more than I type; someone help me

this one definitely had my vote before the finals. tomorrow i will start in with comments. loved the assured voice this started off with

 

[ninianne]

Congrats to AMoveableBeast for the winning poem.

There is some amazing talent on this forum. Thanks for letting me join in.

 

[EllenMore]

which two were yours, ellen? are you a newcomer (in which case kudos for joining in the fun) or a returnee under another name? doesn't matter,of course, i just like putting names to pieces

Vernal and Bloom were my two.

 

[HarryHill]

which two were yours, ellen? are you a newcomer (in which case kudos for joining in the fun) or a returnee under another name? doesn't matter,of course, i just like putting names to pieces

ellen had P and CC, Vernal and Bloom ^^ ETA: I'll shut up now

 

[butters]

Vernal and Bloom were my two.

bloom was a gorgeous, self-contained piece and a favourite of mine

ellen had P and CC, Vernal and Bloom ^^ ETA: I'll shut up now

 

[MirrorsImage]

Congrats AMoveableBeast!!!!

And a thanks to HH for suggesting the contest! I had alot of fun and am learning alot about the different styles people have ... everyone had such good work!!!

Thanks and congrats to all!!!

 

[UnderYourSpell]

Nah, last several weeks of December and the first week of January. We got to spend Christmas and New Year's both in central London--our hotel being, like, two stops away from Picadilly, maybe three.

What do you expect in the middle of Winter?!!

 

[Magnetron]

Tzara, please talk to me. Give us the 411 on Ballerinas. Was the symbolism of ballet class intentional or unconscious? You know ..... like getting a grip, a handle on the situation, stabilizing oneself, achieving balance?

 

[HarryHill]

Tzara, please talk to me. Give us the 411 on Ballerinas. Was the symbolism of ballet class intentional or unconscious? You know ..... like getting a grip, a handle on the situation, stabilizing oneself, achieving balance?

I thought the barre was a reference/metaphor? for a cock, just another odd object to someone that concentrates only on the study of ballet *shrugs*

 

[Tzara]

Tzara, please talk to me. Give us the 411 on Ballerinas. Was the symbolism of ballet class intentional or unconscious? You know ..... like getting a grip, a handle on the situation, stabilizing oneself, achieving balance?

It was both intentional and somewhat personal, or idiosyncratic. Ballet, particularly for the female dancer, is about balance, strength, and grace. Dancing en pointe in particular exhibits all of these characteristics. I was trying to use that as a symbol or metaphor for emotional well-being. It is a personally meaningful metaphor for me because I associate the ballet and images of the ballet with two particular people I was thinking of when I wrote the poem. Neither are dancers, but both are personally graceful and elegant.

It also gave me a different way to use the word "spring," though I don't think I executed that very well. However, the poem is an early draft and the challenge constraints limited where I could go with the narrative.

 

[Magnetron]

It was both intentional and somewhat personal, or idiosyncratic. Ballet, particularly for the female dancer, is about balance, strength, and grace. Dancing en pointe in particular exhibits all of these characteristics. I was trying to use that as a symbol or metaphor for emotional well-being. It is a personally meaningful metaphor for me because I associate the ballet and images of the ballet with two particular people I was thinking of when I wrote the poem. Neither are dancers, but both are personally graceful and elegant.

It also gave me a different way to use the word "spring," though I don't think I executed that very well. However, the poem is an early draft and the challenge constraints limited where I could go with the narrative.

Thank you for clarifying. The magic in it for me lies in the emotional grounding of the narrator's tone of voice. It is a beautiful work of art as is.

 

[Magnetron]

I thought the barre was a reference/metaphor? for a cock, just another odd object to someone that concentrates only on the study of ballet *shrugs*

* aims for Harry's noggin; winds up and pitches a well rounded Idaho spud *

 

[Piscator]

Congrats AMB, I was among your 9 in the last round.

And many thanks to Harry for the contest - its not often I write to a theme but this one caught my attention at once, even though it was seasonally appropriate. All entries were of high quality but the most interesting aspect of the contest to me was the variety or responses to a simple three word phrase.

Tight lines all