Poet

I was going for an artistic, contemplative look.

I was going for an artistic, contemplative look.

I only post a few of my own poems here, simply because many of them are being sent hither and yon in hopes that some editor will have a weak moment and accept one for publication.  Word on the street is that poems that can be found in Google searches are often considered “previously published.” But I’ll give you a few links.  Sometimes I will post one that I am working on if I am looking for some feedback or wanting to gage and audience’s reaction. But I will take them down shortly after and hope that Google deletes them from their cache before they end up on a publisher’s desk for consideration.

I will however share a couple with you that were published in college journals some time back, like the one below which won the Savage Poetry Prize from Bloomsburg University and the Academy of American Poets, and was published in Bloom’s faculty journal, Carver. You can read the old moon poem to which it refers by clicking here. Another was recently posted during National Poetry Month here. And I also read one of my own during my 30 Days, 30 Readings here.

Overvision

I wrote a poem once 
about my neighbors and the moon.
Each brief line dropped 
into place as I let them break
at their will. The syntax
arranged itself just comfortably
so.            Years later

I came back with more 
education and a better sense
of rhythm.         I thought
I could improve
it; make the lines
more powerful,

the innuendos more profound.
            But the new ink
was too dark for the old page,
and my good intentions discolored
the moon.  I’d awakened
      a befuddled old man
and his angry, fuzzy-
slippered wife (I’d forgotten
that my old neighbors had moved
away          long ago).

They wanted to know
what the hell was going
on—who was I?  And 
what had I done to the sky?
Too late almost to save
it, I took whiteout
to the street (the last
bottle on the shelf
at the all-night mini 
mart on that same block),
 
dimmed     the stars
and ushered back to bed
the little man and his grumbling
wife.          That globe of blood
               
             still had a pulse—
thank heaven, and I let it return
to where it had been;
on page one
of a college literary 
magazine              simple
and perfect,
hanging low there
in that early night sky.

 

26 Responses to “Poet”

  1. nectarfizz says :

    Hmmm.. intriguing..I like intriguing.. intriguing leads to thought and thought leads to learning….learning leads to acceptance..and acceptance to equality..hmm yes..you I like.

  2. sonofwalt says :

    Thank you so much for your comments, Nectarfizz. Can I call you Fizz, or Nectar or just Nect? Seriously, I appreciate your taking the time to read all of this. :)

  3. Cadlin Scott says :

    Post online with a different title and altered first few lines and (of course) ficticious screen name.

    And remember, old cowboys can be every bit as bad as teenagers. That’s a fact that is.

    c.

  4. cadlin says :

    Hmmm? Why is my gravatar and amoeba with legs? Go figure.

    • sonofwalt says :

      Well, thanks for having the patience to follow me this far! lol I haven’t blogged much lately as you can see. It’s been a rough year, a busy semester, new job, back to school, dead cerebral cortex, you name it! I read the looking for sonofwalt pieces and was going to respond, but… my screen stayed blank for some reason. :(

  5. Kevin Daniel Gibbons says :

    Hey, just wondering how the Dad Poet’s doing. It was cool connecting with you during the NaPoWriMo last year. Hope all is well with you, your boys, and everyone else in your world. Keep writing, stay strong, and have a good year. ~Peace~

    • sonofwalt says :

      Thanks, Daniel! I’m doing fine. I haven’t posted anything since Christmas. New semester starred. COLD here in Pennsylvania, and I think after all these years I have either become, or must admit to having always been, one of those folks whose moods turn dark in the lightness cold of January.

      Big and happy plans ahead and the clan here are doing great though. I loved your recent peice/peices on the bus, jail/chapel. Great blend of prose and poem.

  6. poetart says :

    I really enjoyed reading this, particularly: ‘the new ink was too dark for the old page’ great line!

  7. sonofwalt says :

    Thank you, poetart! I really enjoyed your blog, and am honored that you found these pages and lines worth taking the time to read. Your spirit comes through in your written voice, and it inspires me.

  8. sonofwalt says :

    I do need to edit this. Perhaps I should mention “Moon Watcher” was winner of the Savage Poetry Award from the American Academy of Poets and Bloomsburg University, and that it was published in Carver, the faculty journal for Bloom U.

  9. Jennifer Bullis says :

    Dadpoet, thank you so much for the “like” on my poetry post. It looks like we share similar preoccupations: literary writing, theology, attempting to reconcile sacred text with what we know in our hearts to be true of our lives.

    Your poem “Overvision” is magical. I love the concept of altering reality by re-writing an older poem!

    I sincerely look forward to exploring further into the pages of your blog. Thanks for leading me here, and cheers!

    • sonofwalt says :

      What a delightful comment, Jennifer. Thank you! I’m very fond of Overvision. It’s one of those poems that grows up like a child, and comes alive on its own terms. I’m really glad you enjoyed it. It’s good to cyber-meet you. :)

  10. Jennifer Bullis says :

    And to you as well! Thanks, too, for following. Back at you… I want to keep up with what you’re working on.

  11. Phil Canon says :

    I like your two poems here. The writing is strong and playful. Do you not often publish your own poems on your blog? I’d like to read more…

  12. Phil Canon says :

    PS thanks for visiting my blog.

    • sonofwalt says :

      I don’t post too many of them here, no. Though April 5th was one of my own pieces put to video too. After deciding what I am submitting where next I’ll post a few more here. “Cleaving” is another one of mine that we rendered to video in late March.

      Oh, and you are welcome! I enjoyed my visit and will be back. Love those dad moments. I can relate.

  13. N Filbert says :

    very nice work. and nice priorities. thank you for visiting my page – i look forward to many more visits to yours

  14. conniededona says :

    I belong to a poetry forum, called Blueline/goobertree.com. we post a poem a day for 30 days. I’m working on my 24th round of thirty. the poems keep getting better and the practice and the commenting keep both me and my writing sharp. You have a great poetic voice-keep writing!

  15. Alexis-Rueal says :

    I truly enjoyed this. Sometimes you just aren’t meant to change what was written. This piece speaks of that beautifully.

    • sonofwalt says :

      Thank you so much for that comment! I am not against editing or revision, but I am too prone to what I’ve called “over-vision.” There is such a thing as too much, isn’t there? :) Thank you for visiting!

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