WORDLESS
A poet without pain, a cruel
paradox of pleasure,
a curse of bittersweet nothings,
of the glorious you,
how many ways can I recite our love?
A writer without wound, a bane
of imagination,
my creativity cloaked by the parade of your perfection,
when imperfection is what inspires,
when struggle is what transforms,
when war is what redeems,
I have no need of redemption where I can find no fault,
when instead of melancholy songs
I hear majestic melodies,
when instead of weeping eulogies
there are operettas of grandeur,
I die with you and have no need of resurrection,
oblivious to the voices of artists and authors past
left tormented in their graves by my
defection from their ranks, by my
exit from the tribe of unrequited, by my
pitiful existence in ecstasy,
by my lightness of heart,
my days illuminated by your charm,
my vocabulary
only,
sadly,
full of words to praise you.
© Bryan Borland
Can ecstasy be pitiful? Apparently so….Awesome piece
bindo
May 8, 2009 at 10:01 am
Ecstasy can be excruciating when pain is one’s muse. I’ve been attempting love poetry for the past week. Writing about death, regret, sadness, and loss is much easier!
poeticgrin
May 8, 2009 at 10:22 am
Yes it is
bindo
May 9, 2009 at 10:29 am
Sometimes happiness is a damn miserable state of affairs! :0 I feel, some of the most wonderful love poetry focuses on the joy of it all, rather than the wrist slitting misery when it all goes wrong. As always, your poetry is illuminating and wonderfully written.
valbrussell
May 8, 2009 at 10:44 am
Wrist-slitting misery – now there’s a title for a future poem!
poeticgrin
May 8, 2009 at 2:57 pm
writing about love without falling into cliche, without being sticky is hard one…
you are there
Utopian Fragments
May 8, 2009 at 12:07 pm
Ugh, it is hard, UF. Thanks for the encouragement!
poeticgrin
May 8, 2009 at 2:58 pm
A lovely poem, Bryan. Pain, grief and emotional turmoil may well be great motivators for poetry but happiness and love are preferable.
Live long enough and you’ll have all the material you’ll ever need. Enjoy the love, enjoy the pleasure. They are the peaks of life. The troughs sometimes appear endless.
Love is a starry night, a summer day, a child’s laughter, the look in your partner’s eyes, full of love. To write of them is to appreciate the joy in living. It’s a gift; you have the gift. Enjoy.
scribulus
May 8, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Thanks Scribby! But date I say your comment is more lovely than my poem!
poeticgrin
May 8, 2009 at 3:00 pm
“I have no need of redemption where I can find no fault”
….aint that the truth
breathenoah
May 8, 2009 at 4:56 pm
Thanks for commenting Noah! I appreciate it!
poeticgrin
May 10, 2009 at 8:30 am
Wonderful idea, perfectly balanced and beautifully executed, like a thought pirouhette.
Paul
May 8, 2009 at 6:23 pm
Thank you Paul! Your comment and description is heavenly.
poeticgrin
May 10, 2009 at 8:31 am
I am enjoying seeing the scope of your work. Lovely.
nectarfizz
May 9, 2009 at 1:55 am
Nectar,
I’m trying to branch out a little – and therefore I really appreciate your comment!!!
poeticgrin
May 10, 2009 at 8:33 am
I love the the flow of this poem.
when imperfection is what inspires,
when struggle is what transforms,
when war is what redeems,
queerlefty
May 9, 2009 at 3:54 pm
The flow of this poem loves you, QL!
poeticgrin
May 10, 2009 at 8:34 am
The flow of it actually made me feel like it was something President Obama could have said in a speech. I mean it as a huge compliment of course. Guess ‘imperfection is what inspires’ made me think of his magnificent ‘A More Perfect Union’ Speech on race relations (April 2008), or something.
queerlefty
May 10, 2009 at 12:45 pm
That is a huge compliment! Thank you!
poeticgrin
May 10, 2009 at 1:57 pm
‘imperfection is what inspires’
That’s the truth, too. Love it.
queerlefty
May 9, 2009 at 3:56 pm
Bryan,
Your writing is awesome. I cannot write a love poem without it being cliche and ho hum. You write a love poem and it soars. Wow…I love this one.
Hugs,
Bev
topazbev1947
May 9, 2009 at 5:35 pm
“it soars” – oh Bev, THANK YOU! A hug right back to ya!
poeticgrin
May 10, 2009 at 8:34 am
This piece speaks volumes to me, Bryan. Satisfaction and contentment are probably the worst psychologies that I have experienced since I started taking writing seriously. Prior to that I think I was in ecstasy. Should I have started writing? I wonder, sometimes.
Brad
May 9, 2009 at 6:31 pm
I should tell my husband when he makes me happy, don’t expect a poem (How boring!) but if he makes me angry? WATCH OUT! haha Thanks Brad!
poeticgrin
May 10, 2009 at 8:35 am
Yes, indeed.
You contain the paradox, brother:
Life beyond words
Earns the right to be heard.
Wayne
May 11, 2009 at 11:05 am
i really love the opening of your poem but then i wasn’t quite sure where it was heading? maybe i’m just tired still today
jessiecarty
May 18, 2009 at 10:43 am
This one was a combination of two poems I wrote over a decade ago when I was in love and grew tired of writing love poems. I wasn’t miserable, or longing, or depressed, or dreaming… I had everything I wanted. And that grew very tiresome in the poetry category. Ultimately I’d like to try again with the first lines and final lines, but I’m not sure where I can take it. It is a little (understatement) grand and sweeping, isn’t it? But, then, that’s the point, in a way.
poeticgrin
May 18, 2009 at 11:36 am
That is always an interesting endeavor, to combine and find a home for good lines and sentiment. You may want to think WAY outside of the box on this one and try putting it into a form, maybe a sonnet? not necessarily rhyming just to challenge yourself to be word choosy etc
jessiecarty
May 18, 2009 at 12:02 pm
Oh, okay – I see how you are – I tell you I find the most difficult pieces to write involve love and rhyming and here you go encouraging me to combine the two? Oh Jessie, you are a horrible, horrible person! (hoping the smile on my face can be seen from your computer screen)
Now I’ll have to do this! You’ve, um, impregnated me with a poem.
poeticgrin
May 18, 2009 at 12:25 pm
Let me know when you get the ultrasound up *wink*
jessiecarty
May 18, 2009 at 12:27 pm