not so pretty
my penmanship, it wobbles in slant
each finger holding fear of a rulers sharp
recurrence, but then life
is not so pretty, not as taught
would you want it to be, so pretty? pretty holds expectation
takes on a fore fronting of conflicts
fought for, lied for, cursed into being, bearing
gifts of captured collaborations
unable to escape its
constraints, it, a cat house
rare, raw
turned over nightly as not
so pretty, feeding
off the sold signs, signature images
perfected in style and slick hands
drop of a dollar - as the not so pretty ensures
all feel pretty good in the end, ensuing a laughter more than
a proper portrait can promise all boxed, bowed
and delivered in Gucci, speaking in
Getty, bottled and aged ripe
a cat cries out
at nightfall, in heat, its heat seems
to scream summertime, tempered
by the will of a wellspring
splashed in a flashing
neon cursive, smoldering in smells
of a hard whiskey, clinging close to that character
of a nunneries darker side, like the busted
brown, worn wooden beads
remnant's of a rosary scattered across terracotta
tiles - haunted, hunted down by the fountain pens of the
not so pretty...
bkmackenzie
copyrighted 2011
Posted for Free Verse Writing class.....and One Shot Wednesday at One Stop Poetry
I like it... not so pretty?
ReplyDeleteJust devastatingly sharp and honest, full of challenge and asking, yet also giving an answer which may or may not find favor but so what--when you're not so pretty, favor is a transitory and frequently irrelevant commodity. A great piece of free verse, tight and excellent all through. Thanks for linking up today, barbara
ReplyDeleteThe nun's ghost reappears: "it wobbles in slant
ReplyDeleteeach finger holding fear of a rulers sharp" and what is pretty penmanship when you can write such alliteration sweeping the curses of a lifetime into a heap and staring at them in all their squalid beauty, more brutally raw than Salinger, sharper than Plath, more Irish than Heaney. This is poetry!
bk, this is marvelous...you create a great flow with your aliteration and esp like the imagery of the busted rosary...
ReplyDeleteLove the interplay of sibillant, slippery and pulsing sounds! A beautiful read!
ReplyDeleteBarb, this is oh so very good, dead on.
ReplyDeletePamela
Conceived, composed, continued--it is in a writer's world that begin and end are written, in cursive, with a pen--and become history.
ReplyDeleteExcellent exercise, your penmanship 'pretty', and image totally relevant. Thank you for good work.
PEACE!
"Not so pretty "- like a mantra or a curse
ReplyDeleteHmmmm like it
Love the title, the subject, and the final lines...the image of the rosary, amazing power to these words and images. As always, intimidated, impressed, and so hoping that I will one day be able to write with such a voice! Honored by your visits and schooled by your work. :) Thank you!
ReplyDeleteWonderful lines - I see the rosary beads scattered across the terra cotta tiles. Beautiful poem.
ReplyDeleteVery nice piece. I really enjoyed the transitioning between each stanza, just worked extremely nice. Thanks for sharing:)
ReplyDeleteAn authentic and intelligent poem with startling imagery. I enjoyed it immensely, James.
ReplyDeleteGreat train of thought and speculation running through and between the lines. You provide a a deep background for recounting the speaker's addressed behaviors. A great piece with excellent phrasing of imagery, bkm
ReplyDeletea fantastic write, bkm... there's a lot of mystery. and "not so pretty" I like that a lot... it's simple but can be a very deep subject & you took it there.
ReplyDeletelike the busted
ReplyDeletebrown, worn wooden beads
remnant's of a rosary scattered across terracotta
tiles
another beautifully executed poem that says 'it is not so pretty'—while you have pulled it from the ruins and made it beyond pretty, you have made it real.
an intense atmosphere and flow in this bk...haunted, hunted down by the fountain pens of the
ReplyDeletenot so pretty... tight!
there are those times when everything becomes transparent and our fingers can no longer remain steady, and our penmanship wobbles with fear...and this is when our thoughts become crystal clear and no matter how much the truth hurts, we must write about it...there has never been one line of your poetry that has not moved mountains and left me wanting to view life through that kaleidoscope of yours...it is truly an honor to have the opportunity to relish in the gifts you share for all those who soar in the limitlessness of poetry...
ReplyDeletethank you for yet another amazing view of life...
sincerely,
Thank you all for your comments and visits...I have been a bit lacks this past month on visits...love you all thank you again..bkm
ReplyDeleteAnother excellent piece from your pen, whether the handwriting is perfect or not is irrelevant, when the thoughts are as precise as these.
ReplyDeletePowerfully worded and paced..I can almost taste the ink. // Peter.
ReplyDeleteThere are just so many images in this one, Barbara that stun me. It is brilliant and speaks to many of my core understandings. Pretty does bring expectations. In my opinion, this needs to be published. Must be!
ReplyDeleteWonderful poetry. So enjoyed your pacing, alliteration and the way you touch cords of intuition-marvelous.
ReplyDeleteFine piece Barbara, well-crafted and engrossing in content
ReplyDeleteWarmest Salad
Luke