Happy Poetry Friday! You can see today's roundup here.
I found this wonderful poem by Patricia Clark here, and then I wrote my own Kampala version. I'm loving seeing everyone's snow photos -- both my kids sent them -- but I'm also loving being in this warm place that I describe in my poem.
Fifty-Fifty
You can have the grackle whistling blackly
from the feeder as it tosses seed,
if I can have the red-tailed hawk perched
imperious as an eagle on the high branch.
You can have the brown shed, the field mice
hiding under the mower, the wasp’s nest on the door,
if I can have the house of the dead oak,
its hollowed center and feather-lined cave.
You can have the deck at midnight, the possum
vacuuming the yard in its white prowl,
if I can have the yard of wild dreaming, pesky
raccoons, and the roaming, occasional bear.
You can have the whole house, window to window,
roof to soffits to hardwood floors,
if I can have the screened porch at dawn,
the Milky Way, any comets in our yard.Fifty-Fifty in Kampala
after Patricia Clark
You can have the peace
of the dark living room,
the glow of your screen,
if I can have the back porch at sunrise
and the raucous alarm clock squawking
of the Hadada Ibis.
You can have all the coffee paraphernalia
in the kitchen
after Patricia Clark
You can have the peace
of the dark living room,
the glow of your screen,
if I can have the back porch at sunrise
and the raucous alarm clock squawking
of the Hadada Ibis.
You can have all the coffee paraphernalia
in the kitchen
if I can have the sake jar full of feathers
that I’ve gathered from the ground outside.
You can have
the fecundity of the compost bucket,
rotting secretly, silently, endlessly,
if I can have
the last cookie in the cookie jar,
since you aren’t eating sugar these days.
You can have the Vervet monkeys on the roof
gathered in families in the afternoons
and looking down on us
if I can have
the sound of the African Wood-Owl at 2 AM
with you snoring softly beside me.
©Ruth Bowen Hersey
17 comments:
oooooh! Ruth...not only can I get to your poem by just copying and pasting your link, I love this mentor poem and your take on it. It's so true to life and fun and a little bit funny. I need to try out this form. Thanks so much for sharing...you last cookie-eater, you!
Thanks for sharing this inspiration and your take with us today. Your poem is so evocative of atmosphere and place - really lovely!
Oh, that last line! That soft snoring beside me is everything. <3
Ruth: Love, love, love these poems! Now I have to write one. I am jealous of your feather collection and would definitely also choose the screen porch. Cheers!
Love the 'found' poem, but reading about you, Ruth, makes me smile and want to be there, seeing the ibis and listening to your special bird sounds. Together with your husband's wishes, what fun it is to read!
What a fantastic mentor text! I'm going to write a Fifty-Fifty poem now, too!
On an unrelated note, I thought of you yesterday when I had the most amazing bird sighting. I was out walking in the couple inches of fresh snow, with more sifting down, when I heard the most unusual sounds. Not geese, but definitely coming from the sky. Out came the Merlin ID app and...Sandhill Cranes! A huge multi-V flock, flying over MY neighborhood, flying over ME. All I could do was stand there and whisper Wow.
I love the idea of a 50-50 poem! I might have to give that a try too. I love "grackle whistling blackly" from Patricia and "fecundity of the compost bucket" from you! :)
What a great form to express what it is you love and enjoy. And all bird sightings are such a pleasure to read. Enjoy your warm lush environment; I can almost hear the monkeys. Thanks for sharing this.
Ruth, what a love poem. I so enjoyed reading all these beautiful aspects of life in Uganda from your 50-50 poem. So many interesting tidbits in your poem. What a lovely format.
Gosh, I love this form! Yours is lovely!
Wonderful take on this poem--and the conversation feels so full, especially with your ending.
Oh Ruth, I love this form - I may have to borrow it. Such a great poetry prompt! PS I would take the coffee and the cookies, too, in any trade.
Thanks for your wonderful example of a 50/50 poem. It's definitely one I will try.
These are both lovely Ruth, especially the closing 2am owl–the form is calling to be tried on, thanks for sharing them. And I wouldn't mind some of your warm weather heading this way…
I think I like your version better. It becomes a love poem. I like the idea of writing a 50/50 poem.
Thank you, Ruth - love your take, and, especially, the last stanza, which leads me to believe there won't be a need for any carving up of assets in your lovely corner.
Ruth, I was reading back on all your book posts and stumbled across your beautiful 50/50 poem. It's totally gorgeous, so even though you say you haven't been writing much, what you've captured in this poem is perfect!
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