Sunday, March 21, 2021

Writers’ Pantry #62: Of Spring and Poetry and Us

Greetings, dear poets and storytellers. If you have been watching the news, then you know that the world if full of grim things and even grimmer people. But good things are happening, too: spring arrived yesterday (in the Norther Hemisphere), and today the whole globe celebrates World Poetry Day.

We shouldn’t ignore the bad—even if we could—but we can take a few moments to celebrate the good. With that in mind, I’m sharing my favorite poetic quote…

“I run after certain words… They are so beautiful that I want to fit them all into my poem… I catch them in midflight, as they buzz past, I trap them, clean them, peel them, I set myself in front of the dish, they have a crystalline texture to me, vibrant, ivory, vegetable, oily, like fruit, like algae, like agates, like olives… And I stir them, I shake them, I drink them, I gulp them down, I mash them, I garnish them, I let them go… I leave them in my poem like stalactites, like slivers of polished wood, like coals, pickings from a shipwreck, gifts from the waves… Everything exists in the word.”
~ Pablo Neruda

 …and my favorite flower (I love its simple, wild beauty and resilience):


photo by Walter Sturn, on Unsplash

And I invite you to do the same in the comments—share a favorite poetic quote and the name of your favorite flower. If you are feeling generous, then tell us a bit about why you love the latter so much.

Now, let us open our 62nd Writers’ Pantry. Add poetry or prose, new or old, short or long(ish), seasonal or not; the choice is yours. If you choose to delight us with your prose, let the word count be 369 words or fewer. One link per participant.

Please remember to add the direct link to your contribution, not just the link to your blog. Take a moment (or three) to visit other lover of words, and let them know how their words make you feel. As always, Mr. Linky will remain open for a week.

- for our next Weekly Scribblings, Rommy would like us to create new poetry or prose inspired by the word “Dance”.

15 comments:

  1. I wish you a lovely Spring! Here it begins to get colder, and we've just celebrated our Autumn Equinox. Autumn is usually glorious here, but this year it's very wet. Some places are having serious floods. My back yard is full of flourishing weeds, but no use removing them while the rain lasts. I'll just stay indoors and write poetry instead.

    World Poetry Day tomorrow – is it really? What a wonderful Neruda quote! May we all find fabulous words to run after and trap and then let fly, tomorrow and all our days.

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    1. Oh sorry, forgot what you requested. My favourite flower is gardenia, for the scent as well as the visual beauty. My favourite poetic quote is the whole poem, 'In My Craft or Sullen Art' by Dylan Thomas, closely followed by:
      poems should be written rarely and reluctantly,
      under unbearable duress and only with the hope
      that good spirits, not evil ones, choose us for their instrument.
      (Czeslaw Milosz, 'Ars Poetica').

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    2. Rosemary, World Poetry Day is today (March 21st). I was a bit over-excited, lol! But I fixed the mistake.

      I love the scent of gardenias. And now that I think about it, I haven't smelled one in a very long time. I wonder if the NY Botanical Garden will have any this year. Maybe I should got and check.

      That is a wise a beautiful poetic quote.

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  2. We are having a lovely sunny spring morning. The cats are keepign me close company and everything is quiet.
    My favourite poetic quote is from Carol Ann Duffy's poem ‘Ann Hathaway’:
    “…My lover’s words
    were shooting stars which fell to earth as kisses
    on these lips; my body now a softer rhyme
    to his, now echo, assonance; his touch
    a verb dancing in the centre of a noun.”

    My favourite flower is the tulip.

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    Replies
    1. That sounds wonderful, Kim, the sunning and the awesome quote. So many delicious images...

      Tulips are lovely. I think I'm growing one. I say I think because I found the bulb and aren't completely sure. But the wee shoot looks like a tulip. Fingers crossed!

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  3. Happy Spring to Spring climates. Here in Trinidad and Tobago🇹🇹 we have only 2 Seasons Dry Season (happening now) and Rainy Season (starting around June)

    Some of our Poui Trees will blossom around our Liturgical Season of Easter ☺

    Muchđź’ślove

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    Replies
    1. Things are similar in the Dominican Republic. The seasons aren't easily definable. It's hottest between May and October, a bit cooler the rest of the year.

      How lovely, Gillena. It's like having your own Cherry Blossom season!

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  4. I have a vintage book entitled “Beautiful Gems of Thought and Sentiment” published in 1897. In it, there is a poem by Josiah Gilbert Holland that is a revelation. While we’re feeling things are in a sorry state and it seems there’s no hope for the future, it appears we’re not the first to have such feelings!! (Written probably in decade before Civil War.)

    GIVE US MEN

    God, give us men, a time like this demands,
    great hearts, strong minds, true faith and ready hands.
    Men whom the lust of office cannot kill
    Men whom the spoils of office cannot buy
    Men who possess opinions and will
    Men who have honor; men who will not lie

    Men who can stand before a demagogue
    and brace his treacherous flatteries without winking
    Tall men, sunburnt, who live above the fog
    in public duty and in private thinking

    For, while the rubble, with its thumb-worn creeds,
    its large professions and its little deeds
    mingle in selfish strife,
    Lo! freedom weeps, wrong rules the land
    and waiting justice sleeps.
    ****************
    ...and my favorite flower is the lowly petunia, which blooms its heart out from Spring to Fall!

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    1. That last stanza is intense, and so very timely.

      I really petunias, too--so many varieties!

      Thanks so much for sharing, Bev.

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  5. Happy Sunday, and happy Spring! My favorite flower is pink carnations. :)

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    1. Happy Sunday to you! I haven't seen a pink carnation in a while. They look extra delicate.

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  6. Good day, poets!
    Thank you, Magaly, for reminding us that good things are happening too.

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    Replies
    1. Best day to you, dear Lee San. And thank you for adding to the good.

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