After many many years, I've once again turned my hand to trying to craft poetry. This in a large part has been motivated by the various themes on BlueSky that mix poetry with photography. For example, #ImageAndVerse or #PaintByWords. Both encourage you to write your own poems matched with one of your own images. With that in mind here is my most recent attempt - one that turned into a six-parter, entitled Stiletto vs Ego.
With rapier wit
There’d been a skewering.
Now she sat
With stunned anger,
In cold humiliation.
With iced steel.
There’d been no need for that!
To go so far
To say such things
To be so, so him!
He'd punctured her.
Torrential words wounding her.
Watching her crack;
Doubling the dose.
Her esteem humbled.
A mere spark
Lighting his malevolence;
Unleashing him.
Never warranting this!
Never enough for this!
That one little word
Had ignited the fire
Had drawn his ire.
And as he’d pierced her with his venom
She shattered and broke
Just that one little word
She’d flung it to wound and hurt
The response had surprised
She’d never expected this
Never so much of this
She sat slumped;
A picture of hurt.
He calmed with his fury spent.
He tried, "Sorry."
Knowing it would fail.
He reached gently;
She flinched.
With words so weaponised;
Was there a way back?
A way to heal?
She could feel his regret.
Fearing unleashing her own invective,
She kept her silence
Wrapped protectively
As her armour.
Maybe what had passed
Couldn’t be put in the past.
Not here, not now.
Maybe nowhere, maybe never.
She just said, “Go.”
He hesitated, reluctant.
Wanting to repair immediately.
To correct the damage done.
A flood of apology;
A torrent of regret.
She pulled further away.
Again, "Go. Go now!"
Needing to allow the space;
Needing to give the time.
He'd live in helpless hope.
Motif Webs