Thought of this while waiting for a train to pass...a very long train.
Viewing entries in
Poetry
The Raven - He with the moon in his mouth
"Only the shadow knows what lurks in the hearts of men."
If you can conquer darkness, you are one up on your shadow, as it cannot conquer light.
Thought of this on my jog this morning...
I work in an area that takes data, something we have a ton of and from all over, and turns it into information in various forms. The only way to get good information out is to put good data in, so Garbage In...Garbage Out is very applicable in that arena making it a relatively common phrase.
As I think about it, however, I believe it applies just as much to anything and everything we do; it applies to life.
I believe we choose the seasonings and spices we add to our perspectives. They are not always good choices, even though they may initially taste good. Who's to say that some poisons don't taste good? I do not know, nor do I want to. Yet many sprinkle away at their lives with seasonings that leave them bitter and spices that combust from their insides.
Again, I believe that is a choice, and I choose not to.
In a microcosm of the macrocosm, this poem is the fruits of my labor, and like a mirror reflecting upon itself, it is thus named.
The Lighthouse of Catatumbo refers to a point in the Caribbean where the river Catatumbo reaches Lake Maracaibo. This area is historically known for its extreme high frequency of lightning...so extreme it can be seen by sailors for miles thus helping guide them as a lighthouse would.
The Poets' Corner refers to a corner in Westminster Abbey where a number of poets and writers through English history have been buried. I do not remember where I had originally read about it, but one other characteristics I recall is how the sun shining through the Abbey's windows illuminates the corner with a pink hue...a candle to the sun of The Lighthouse of Catatumbo.
Two Love Bugs Flying Into The Light is a story of perspectives, particularly those of an optimist and a pessimist.
I have always tried to look through the eyes of the optimist through life. I know the pessimist's perspective can be just as real, in fact, even balanced as if the yang to the optimist's yin, but that does not mean I have to focus on it. I believe we have the choice.
I started off my first novel,
Through the Kindness of Ravens - The Evolution of Hoke's Focus
with the quote,
“The optimist knows the glass is half full;
the realist, not to drop it.” - rAveNswAn
That is the perspective I choose.
I like making completely nonsensical connections seem plausible and make twisted sense.
It comes easy because most of this stuff is right there and ripe for the picking. The everyday phrases that, when you strip them of their cliche'-ic intention, then tie them to the absurd...well, I'd tell you more but, I gotta draw the line somewhere.
Though no reference to the face cards of a deck, I pictured them when I wrote Behind the Jester's Grin. As I have said before, I love a good joker.
I imagine there have been instances of kingdom's where this storyline would have been in sync with their realities.
I have always liked card decks; the back designs, the face cards (especially the Jokers) and even the history behind them. For example, I had read the King of Hearts represents King Charlemagne.
I imagine if the face cards could talk, the stories they could tell.
I have written several poems incorporating playing card characters. Perhaps subconsciously, I just want to give them a voice.
Last night I decided I set a goal to wake up this morning and...
- Think of a concept (Trilly Wood- a.k.a. "It really would.")
- Wrap some words around it (It's the stuff that dreams are made of...)
- Type it in my collection (In The Wind These Words)
- Then post it in my blog
...and all before I left for work.
I love reaching goals.
Now if I could only find an agent and get The Kite and the Coin Toss published and on bookstore shelves, it would be good, Trilly Wood!
The Ladybug And Her Dandy Lion provides an example of something from the present, the picture of the ladybug on a dandelion, connecting with something from the past, the picture of the bee on a sunflower.
The connection was not intentional, but popped into my mind all on its own, as did its story.
Just another reason I love writing.
I know there is a word for this, but it is not uncommon for words to escape me. I like humanizing things by the terms we refer them. For example, ...
"You poked the eye of the storm
Made the dark clouds cry"
As if a storm had eyes, if you would poke one, you could make it cry. I enjoy making the connections because they branch to further connections like how the cloud's crying relates to rain.