Poetic ponderings

There was a suggestion that I post pictures once in a while. I guess a well-taken picture is worth as much as my nightly ranting, maybe more. I'll think about it. Meantime, I thought to use some poetry instead of prose for a change.

I like to think of myself more as a poet than a prose writer. In my mind, a poet is one who uses minimal words, a lot of images, neatly creating and capturing a scene or an idea. In the case of the great haiku writers, they also succeed in surprising the reader with a new perspective without infusing too much personal meaning. (Read this random introduction to haiku writing for more details.) I don't adhere to the 5-7-5 syllable count, but I try to practice the principles of haiku writing in my prose. When writing poetry, I tend to actually imitate Pablo Neruda's more emotional poems. Unlike prose, poetry is an outlet for emotional duress, usually written in the depths of despair. I'm too insecure to actually share any of my poems as a result.

Someday I hope to write poems without emotional baggage. I really admire Wislawa Szymborska's poetry. I admit that I don't read much poetry, but Ms. Szymborska strikes me as one who is unusually witty and versatile.

Here's a rare semi-decent old poem of mine:

Have you?

Have you ever felt the need
to rush back into the past
to cradle the little girl
to tell her that things will turn out fine
'coz there'll always be someone
in the future
watching out for her?
Would she know?
Perhaps not.
But if she did, she would turn out alright,
and she did,
though not realizing,
that someone was always there for her.


I received another suggestion with regards to my lackluster writing. It's not that I can't write, but I don't think hard enough before writing; I don't put in enough effort, or care enough. I don't quite like this suggestion, but I'll think about it.