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| bigwavephoto |
Go with the waves, do not fight and do not fear
the froth of daily sweat which feeds your heart.
Trusting its rise and fall, your way is clear.
Wave as friends pass, but to your course adhere.
You cannot exchange places or take part –
Go with the waves; do not fight and do not fear.
Though it seems your friends too soon disappear,
they leave gifts that nurture your greatest art.
Trusting their rise and fall, your way is clear.
It’s time to take your sabbatical year
and discover paths leading off the chart.
Go with the waves; do not fight and do not fear.
Your spirit can manage the vast frontier—
Listen to breath’s rhythm as you depart.
Trusting its rise and fall, your way is clear.
Your experience serves to engineer—
No greater science and no martial art—
Go with the waves; do not fight and do not fear.
Trusting their rise and fall, your way is clear.
For Sumana's
Midweek Motif ~ Waves at Poets United
Copyright © 2015 S.L.Chast
Wow, this is an amazing poem, Susan. Its message for me is that there are some things one cannot fight, so it is best to just follow the wave and see what's next. We have to trust that the waves are pushing us in the best direction rather than trying futilely to push back..
ReplyDeleteThe alternate endings were much like waves constantly coming up to the shore. Success is often achieved by constant repetition until the answer is found...often off the chart!
ReplyDeleteI see the waves here as breath itself - if you think about it you almost forget how to do it - your body fights, tries to go against what is meant to be...but maybe we know all along as your last verse suggests..and that is magnificent!
ReplyDeleteBeautifully done, Susan.
ReplyDelete"It’s time to take your sabbatical year / and discover paths leading off the chart." my favorite lines telling me to follow them..the repetitions fit so beautifully with the other lines and the last stanza sums it up...an inspiring villanelle so in tune with the prompt...
ReplyDelete"It’s time to take your sabbatical year and discover paths leading off the chart" ... That's what I liked, too, Susan.
DeleteLoved the opening lines of the poem... sending us a beautiful message :D
ReplyDeleteIts simply breath-taking :D
Lots of love
Sanaa
after all we all are alone on the journey of our life and have to keep moving
ReplyDeleteBeautiful, strong words.
ReplyDelete"Your spirit can manage the vast frontier—
ReplyDeleteListen to breath’s rhythm as you depart.
Trusting its rise and fall, your way is clear."
Absolutely brilliant, Susan. Being strong is simply about being able to persevere through extreme adversity. Inspiring piece...:)
I love the repeated message in this poem, to not fight and not fear. A remarkable write. I love the form and rhythm of this piece.
ReplyDeleteyour poem so amazingly fashioned into a wave, Susan. It's the kind of poem you want to listen to (just like the shore.)
ReplyDeleteYou always inspire :)
lovely write; to venture trusting all the way, quite a challenging state of affairs
ReplyDeleteHave a nice Wednesday
much love...
Rhyme and form work so well for you here, like gentle waves of thought.
ReplyDelete'Go with the waves' - what a lovely refrain and a great life motto!
ReplyDeleteSusan,
ReplyDeleteAs with your poem, I believe that life's destiny is set out for us to follow. We can enhance the experience, if we do 'go with the flow,' and not spend too much time, fighting against everything in our midst. Friends in particular may come and go; there is no point in wasting valuable living time, trying to delve too deeply into the whys and wherefores, we may encounter..
Eileen
Insightful comment !
DeleteEnjoy the ride without fear. Villanelle form was a great choice to express the ebb and flow of the waves. Excellent poem with message to match.
ReplyDeleteIn the second stanza is the line that jumped out at me, and where I find the wisdom - that we can not exchange places with those we are passing, with our friends. We have to live our own lives and stay true to them. Our destiny is our own, and we have to live life in such a way as to be worthy of attaining it.
ReplyDeleteA beautiful message, in a beautifully crafted poem.
ReplyDeleteLovely villanelle sonnet! So wise, but relatively to situation...what to call 'the wave'? what if you originally go with wave, but wrong way? you know, I always looking for challenges....:)
ReplyDeleteThank you Susan. This poem is so uplifting, encouraging and yes it's best to go with the waves, with the flow and have confidence in the path we make. I like the repetition in this, the way it serves to convince us of its truth.
ReplyDeletesometimes trust is a hard thing
ReplyDeleteThat can be the hardest part, just going along.
ReplyDeleteWonderful rhythm and lilt to this poem, Susan, and I like the recurring lines and rhyming. Suited the theme very well and indeed just as in the sea we let ourselves go with the flow of the waves in order to survive and come to the shore, we have to allow ourselves to go with the flow of the vicissitudes of life in order to reach our goals.
ReplyDelete