Regret nothing:
Not the work of darkness emptying into dawn
You needing rest on the seventh day
Find no reason not to excuse:
The taking of a rib to sculpt new form
She failed prey to a snake's twisted charms
Look not for retribution:
For his hands and feet took the nails
That our lips might limn secrets from a silver cup
Give no apology:
The swell of murder in Allah's name its own price bears
Our drones 10,000 miles away give us options
Feel not once our sorrows:
In our hearts you clear just space enough to bear
In our eyes you leave hints of a tear that's clear
Sing no hymn to what's past:
The moon goes through its phases
Our bodies from dust to dust become
© 2010 Maureen E. Doallas
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I wrote this poem in response to a challenge posted at the networking site She Writes by my friend Jenne' R. Andrews (see her blog La Parola Vivace) following her reading of Dorianne Laux's "Antilamentation".
I offer this poem for One Stop Poetry's weekly One Shot Wednesday event. Be sure to visit the site late Tuesday afternoon and evening and every Wednesday for links to the many contributors' "one shot" poems.
I offer this poem for One Stop Poetry's weekly One Shot Wednesday event. Be sure to visit the site late Tuesday afternoon and evening and every Wednesday for links to the many contributors' "one shot" poems.
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17 comments:
Wow, Maureen; really powerful. Love that line, the work of darkness emptying into dawn...
It's so cool to watch your poetry deepen over time: don't you love that we can still grow, even after all these years?
Maureen, this is beautiful and so thought provoking........
I like the images you have painted with your words ...
Maureen. I am always stunned by the beauty in your poems.
Sing no hymn to what's past:
The moon goes through its phases
Our bodies from dust to dust become
This will be my anthem as I head into 2011. Thank you.
I've read this five times now, and each time it changes on me -- gets deeper and more layered. A wonderful poem, Maureen.
...And at that moment of being dust we are free
I love your poem and the message it conveys
thanks Maureen for your support
Moonie smiles for the coming year
I like where you took this, Nice work done here
I will be back to read this again. I leave carrying a load of emotions. Nuanced and difficult, a heavy hitter, Maureen.
Very strong poem, Maureen. Oddly we seem to have been similarly inspired this week. I like how this poem works, the layering in the lines and in between. It is topical but with a great deal of universality, the tension proceeds stanza to stanza. The threes seem symbolic. Well done!
Very powerful poem creating pointed messages through use of irony, downplaying the significance of the statements made through beginning each stanza with what strikes me as a reversal of meaning.
nice. some wonderful imagery.and you play the words so nice...
Hi Maureen-- I continue to love this poem-- it is so tender, and I think you've reworked the ending to some extent-- beautiful! I put up a Tess Gallagher poem on my blog and then blubbered my way through my offering for one shot today...xxxxj
A powerful piece Maureen perfect for reflection of regret in our lives and moving on to the New Year.
This is very powerful and profound. Words many should be honored to read or hear.
love the formal feel you've created in this, with its allusions and mood. it's great piece, that I read and reread several times over
love the title, and the weaving of world religions throughout the poem...no hymn to sing as along as there is war....very nice...Happy New Year Maureen...bkm
Wise, smile-inducing work.
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