For the (fictional) series "Edges"
His Voice
A Homecoming
His Voice
A Homecoming
I was just a whelp
when we first came here,
the best part of fifty years ago.
Can I sever
this old man from the child
I was then, tasting heaven here?
My daily bread
suddenly became manna.
I still wish we'd never left.
Now that I've found again
the exact blend of elements
in unchanged perfection –
there is also terror.
It's the same I felt then
when we went away, lost from here.
I send up prayers
to a God I no longer believe in.
"Let me stay. Let me keep it this time."
i cant say i've grown fond of him, he seems quite melancholy
ReplyDeleteYes, I agree.
Delete"My daily bread
ReplyDeletesuddenly became manna."....A wonderful part of a life's journey when fairy tale happens. A lovely poem.
Not sure I understand this one. Not sure where the "here" is that the narrator mentions. Seems like there is a return, but am not sure why they left...nor who this old man really is & why the terror. I wish I understood more.
ReplyDeleteA bit hard when the poems are read separately, with gaps of time between them! Eventually I'll put them into a chapbook.
DeleteThis is the same man whose voice has already been heard in this series, in the same 'here'. But for both people we are only finding out snippets of their respective pasts bit by bit through their own reminiscences, and only as they impact their present lives and feelings.
"Let me keep it this time." I so completely resonate with those words, each day a prayer of gratitude for me. This is a very interesting series, Rosemary. Intriguing voices.
ReplyDeleteOh, letting go is terrifying for the best of us. And to have found that similar elemental value in one's surroundings makes one over-protective. That is the nature of life as well as our thoughts, which want to savor this manna for as long as it lasts.
ReplyDeleteEmotive and sweet!
-HA
I love the mystery in this piece and the pleading end line.. haunting write
ReplyDelete"My daily bread suddenly became manna. I still wish we'd never left".. sigh.. this is incredibly evocative, Rosemary 💞
ReplyDeleteSome childhood memories don't lose their power to tug hard at us, no matter how old we get.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds as though childhood memories have had such an impact on the narrator as to colour his whole life. This is devastating because he clearly has not been allowed to grow in his own potential self. As you say reading the whole is something one day we can look forward to.
ReplyDeletethis was beautiful. thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDelete"Let me stay. Let me keep it this time."
ReplyDeleteTears. My dad is lost in time and I hope this is where he is.
so many excellent lines Rosemary, filled with longing and losing and finding
ReplyDelete"the exact blend of elements
in unchanged perfection "
I look forward to your chapbook.
ReplyDeleteI can't say I blame him. Every now and again, it would be nice to just be able to keep the good and bright and lovely... and never learning the terrible.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful poem. Loved the lines, "My daily bread
ReplyDeletesuddenly became manna.
I still wish we'd never left."
The line about severing child from man reads differently each time I read this, like a kaleidoscope, which seems to fit with his own reading of what he's experiencing :)
ReplyDeleteI have that trouble, severing the old from the young me.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if we can ever find again:
'the exact blend of elements
in unchanged perfection'
and escape old terrors from the past.
Wonderful images - impressions that encapsulate some of what it is to be human, so beautifully - and cascade to a powerful close.
ReplyDeleteNow that I've found again
ReplyDeletethe exact blend of elements
in unchanged perfection
It is most satisfying Rosemary, to be aware of similar circumstances and to be brought back to experience them again!
Hank
yes, old places you know are not just places. they are character, they are you. great lines, Rosemary. :)
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteLove the entreaty at the end; a heartfelt cry.