Sometimes, like a musician
coaxing certain notes
and interminglings of notes
from strings or keys
or a sculptor pulling shape
gradually from stone,
chiselling away all that is not
that shape,
I draw words from somewhere
behind thought, from
beyond the air:
thus, here.
Written for dVerse 17 Nov 2025: Q236 – Coaxing Is As it Does, a Quadrille (a poem of exactly 44 words excluding title, which in this case must include the word 'coax').
Rosemary, perfect articulation of the process. Hadn't considered coaxing as part of the process, but some part of us emits the call...
ReplyDelete*Smile.*
DeleteWe do work hard sometimes coaxing just the right words! Nicely written, Rosemary.
ReplyDeleteTa!
DeleteSometimes that's exactly the way it works, Rosemary!
ReplyDelete*Smile.*
Deleteand so beautiful words they are!
ReplyDeleteOh, thank you!
DeleteAnd what a mistress of words you are..I am glad you have their magic in your hands - jae
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jae. I am very glad of it myself. There are times when poetry is what has saved my life.
DeleteWhat a fabulous simile, Rosemary, ‘like a musician coaxing certain notes’. ’Coax’ is a gentle word, a tender word, that suggests doing something with love, such as a ‘sculptor pulling shape gradually from stone’, even though some people may not think of chiselling in that way.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kim. (I think of chiselling as requiring great patience, and finesse rather than strength.)
Deleteahh Rosemary this is so well crafted and a joy to read - our Muses were on the same wavelength!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Laura. (Yes they were, weren't they!)
Delete"thus, here." That last line is the proof of everything before it...word magic!
ReplyDeleteLove the way you coaxed them words today.
ReplyDelete*Giggle.* Thanks, Bjorn.
DeleteAh the gift of inspirition and imagination
ReplyDeleteSuch blessings
Happy you dropped by my blog
Much♡love
YOU are a blessing, Gillena! I enjoy your blog, and just knowing you are there in the world.
DeleteVery relatable! :D
ReplyDeleteGood!
DeleteRosemary, that sense of drawing words from “behind thought” really hits home for me.
ReplyDeleteMuch love,
David
SkepticsKaddish.com
That's nice to know, thank you.
DeleteAs a flautist, vocalist and wanna-be writer ... yes we must draw/coax from wherever and whenever we can. Dreams too ....
ReplyDeleteOh yes, dreams indeed.
DeleteThis is exquisitely drawn, Rosemary! I love how you describe the process of drawing words and bringing them forth.
ReplyDeleteEspecially admire this part; "a sculptor pulling shape gradually from stone, chiselling away all that is not that shape." ❤️❤️
Thank you, Sanaa, for the kind words.
DeleteAw, what a fine 44 words. Loved your comparisons to other arts.
ReplyDeleteThank you, I'm glad you loved it.
DeleteGood coaxing job, Rosemary!
ReplyDeleteHa, thank you!
Delete