30 Day Meme, Day 21

[fufaraw]

Turn ons and offs

Really? Okay. Ons--

Bodies--living breathing bodies: the curve of the nape, the angle of a wrist, the roundness of shoulder, of bicep, of breast. The heavy ripe weight of the buttock, the round fullness of the back of the thigh, the luscious apple-curve of calf, the spread of toes supporting weight. The sweep of eyebrow and the shadow beneath, the wet glint of cornea, the fall of eyelashes, the tender double pleat of philtrum. The human body as a collection of angle and curve, of hollow and fullness, each facet singled out for isolated appreciation. Not as a sexual object, merely living sculpture, studies in light, shadow, perspective, tension and relaxation.

Performance, earned by practice and dedication.

The quality of sunlight in those few days when the earth's axial tilt changes.

The sound of water: surf, running river, waterfalls large or mere trickles, soft rain, and the afterthought drip of eaves.

Offs--Assaults on the senses: too loud, too sudden, too harsh. Light too bright, flavors bitter, too sour, sharp or too highly spiced. Unpleasantly textured cloth: upholstery, clothing, bedding. Personalities too abrasive, too loud, too self-absorbed and unaware of emotional atmosphere.

Cruelty, careless handling, use with no investment or regard.

While each of us is the center of our own universe, that does not mean that we have the right to use up all the quiet, all the beauty, all the resources for mememe, and those who do so are wrong.

Comments

[onlythefireborn]

You never cease to amaze me, Fu. I just wish you'd take a few steps into the literary world with your poetry - it provides so much beauty and insight, that I can't help but think that others would find joy in it, too.

[fufaraw]

This...isn't a poem. This is a list. Well, two lists. But thank you for the thought.

[onlythefireborn]

Pretty sure I recognize a poem when I read one. . . But that probably depends on your definition of poetry.

So -- what's yours? :-)

[fufaraw]

Well, the first thing would be some sort of structure. This is just free-form listing. A poem needs more than just words. It needs intent.

And there's the second thing, a destination, a resolution, an end point toward which the poem is moving from the beginning. A random list of objects or attributes, while it may elicit some emotion or other, still isn't a poem unless it has a structure, and one which directs it toward a definite ending.

At least that's what I require of a poem, at least to start with. Some of mine never got beyond those two things, but they did have those two things.

[onlythefireborn]

Politely disagree. From my perspective, your listing has both pattern and resolution (evident by the conclusion).

[fufaraw]

Huh. I am surprised, but thank you.

I have "found" poetry some places it was unintended, too.