I had wanted to write a poem about rain for a while, but I had trouble saying anything original about it. Anyway, I started this one Friday about the rain that day.
Rain 6/4/2010
The mighty, mighty water got its orders straight from Jove,
And every single raindrop knew its mission as it dove.
A bold and fearless paratrooper dropping to the ground,
It pulled no cord to stop its fall, forever earthward-bound.
It fell with fierce ferocity to break apart the earth,
To show the mettle of the dirt and render up its worth.
A billion-fold these minions flew and thundered through the air.
They scattered men and women both, and lay the landscape bare.
The onslaught was a hopeless charge that could not last for long,
The roar died down, succumbing back to Robin's cheerful song.
So Jove gave up, and showed himself to bear no earthly sting.
He forfeited his powers and surrendered them to Spring.
I really like that - nice comparison between raindrops and warriors.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of your best so far, in my humble opinion. Strong imagery, and each word seems perfectly fit in rhythm and sound. I'm curious-Did this flow naturally from your pen or did you agonize over each word til they fit just right?
ReplyDeleteSorry it took me a while to respond; I've been in Ghana and I just got to a computer.
ReplyDeleteThank you both, I'm glad you liked it.
In answer to your question Mrs. Vine, I guess something in between. I didn't spend a lot of time on this one, but I've never had a poem flow from my mind fully formed. I started with a mental image of the rain itself and its intensity. Then I decided to portray that power by describing one drop and then magnifying it in numbers, and by bringing in the Greek gods. Then I just sort of worked through the poem, describing the rain. I hope that answers your question. :)