The blankness sits before me
Waiting for my wordsAnd all that I can think of
Are the words that have gone before:
In the beginning was the Word
In the beginning God created
The heavens and the earth
And the Word was with God
And the earth was formless and empty
And darkness was over the surface of the deep
And the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters
And the Word was God
Through Him all things were made
Without Him nothing was made that has been made
In His hand is the life of every creature
And the breath of all mankind
And God said, "Let there be light."
The Light shines in the darkness
And the darkness has not overcome it
In Him there was Life
And that Life was the Light of man
The blankness sits before me
Waiting for my words
But my paltry words can never measure up
To the standard I see, I hear
Just like all of my
Are as filthy rags next to the purity
Of my Savior.
My words shall never be immortal
And yet
I'm okay with that.
I understand
That sometimes
The process is more important
Than the product.
A.N: Stanzas 2 and 3 are quotations from John 1, Genesis 1, and Job 12:10, which I have reorganized.
It sounds like what you intellectually feel about a biblical quote; where's the poem? What are your deeper feelings in personal images that show what the quote implies? Where's my epiphany when all I'm left with is that you believe in God. So do a few million others. Offering the images to instill your understanding in me as a reader would create a poem. This far too telling and not enough showing to be a poem. A poet leaves the reader with something to discover within themselves.
ReplyDelete==========
Choosing To Realize The Gift
My ink comes from an artesian well,
for there is a lamp inside my heart
that wants to shine in other's eyes.
It's a breathing candle aglow
that heals my darker moments with joy
inside its all knowing presence.
Beyond me, yet held inside of me
it illuminates my path daily.
I carry pails where it flies with light.
.
© RH Peat 3/7/2012 5:07pm
Form: 3 tercets/ 9 lines
Metaphor: Te giver of life is inside me
I know it when I love others.
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This is what a poem should do. Leave all the conceptual presentation for the reader to discover for themselves, to leave them with an epiphany within themselves. God's love fills us when we love each other.
A poem is musical, metaphorical and it has a unique form. It doesn't tell the reader what to think at all; instead, it allows the reader to think for themselves. Just the way God lets us all think for ourselves. If you tell the reader what to think, you kill there epiphany. Then they can't have a personal revelation about the presentation provided. Don't preach to the reader, draw them into themselves. Show them God's beauty by recognizing spirit within themselves; let the reader realize any conclusion on their own. Lead the horse to the water but leave it to drink on its own. Just maintain your pasture and offer a watering hole. The horse will find what it needs if its there. But if the space is too small the horse will feel confined and dwindle in spirit.
a poet friend
RH Peat