A Taste of Poetry

We have one or two poems due a week, with specific requirements and the expecatation that the class will bring forth comments and help "workshop" our poems to make them better. Thus, these are the first editions of the first three poems I submitted which have not yet been revised. But I wanted to share them anyway.

Poem #1- Write a poem in response to ruins that you've seen since coming to Italy.
(I wrote mine about "The Roca," a fortress that overlooks our city and was built thousands of years ago)

These Walls

The gardens through the archway lead me in,
pulling and enchanting me, whispering to me,
“Turn around and look up;”
I think I should follow the ghostly feet and climb.

Footsteps of a thousand souls who have climbed these stone steps.
Warriors and lovers, wanderers and loners.
They have all stood looking up at this expanse of stone
daily warmed by the sun or wetted by the rains.

Hard stairs, hardly weathered by time and weight,
these stairs were built to last.
They draw me upwards, with fortress walls protecting me on all sides
as I travel through vertical space and time.

To reach this spot was my destiny.
These walls have seen so much and I want to know,
Who has looked out from this very point of wonder?
Whose breath has been taken away?

To be in such a place brings a sense of freedom.
The sturdy structure protects me from all fear
and provides a rare privacy for stillness and reflection.
I join the ranks of those before me who have loved these walls.


Poem #2- Write an ode, or a poem of "high-praise," about an object, person or place.

Ode to the Doorstep

Passing over this cold, gray cement,
Going mostly in and out;
Enter for a spell but then leave again.
To be walked on a hundred times a day
Without a word of thanks.
Sometimes a point of resting for feet, bottom, soul.
A place for collecting umbrellas,
Children’s play things, whispered secrets.

A spot of recollecting-
Direction. Where was I going again?
Courage. To knock or not to knock?
Memories. Here’s where we shared our first kiss…

Always overshadowed by-
The double green doors.
The stone arch-way curving perfectly above.
The brass lion heads that announce the presence of guests.

But beneath all the weight and waiting
The coming and going
The collecting and recollecting
Is the solid, smooth, unchanging
Doorstep.


Poem #3- Write a sonnet.
(This was SO hard. The poem has to be 14 lines, and each line should be 10 syllables with a very particular rhyme scheme. But this is my favorite one I've written for class thus far).

The Morning Dew

The earth is still soaked from yesterday’s rains,
The sun is working to dry these gray stones.
Walk out to enjoy the morning and gain
A joy that fills the skin, the heart, the bones.
During sunrise leaves weep their saltless tears,
Marking the beginning of life anew
A kiss on the sole each morning so dear
With each dewdrop splash, a translucent hue.
These fresh cool moments remind us of dawn,
The gift of wonder, and starting again.
A morning song found in drops that yawn
Singing and trickling in mountain and glen.
Catch the light, you delicate beads of glass
This dew that crawls on each sweet blade of grass.