 |
| For Poe by Odilon Redon |
_(To_Edgar_Poe_(A_Mask_Sounds_the_Death_Knell))_LACMA_AC1997.14.1.3.jpg){kind=link}
Did
you hear
the
bells? You
asked for us
and we
tolled—
clang dong
clang dong clang—
We knew you loved
our echoes.
Did you
hear?
Or were
you too soon
away?
too
soon a-
way
Written for Margaret's Play it Again, Toads #10: Dance the Night Away, the Waltz Wave Form by Kerry at Imaginary Garden with real Toads.
Copyright © 2014 S.L.Chast
The rhythm of this is wonderful. I felt myself swaying back and forth as I read.
ReplyDeleteSounds ominous. A Hemingway/Macbeth combo.For whom the bell tolls meets hubble bubble toil and trouble
ReplyDelete"too soon away...too soon away...." I love the tolling lilt of this poem.
ReplyDeleteI too felt the bell swaying-clever, Susan!
ReplyDeleteThere is a haunting chill in the wonder of 'for whom the bell tolls'?!
There is the tolling of a bell in this piece...It does seem a bit scary, eerie...beautiful
ReplyDeleteSuch images of leaving.. The bell always toll too soon...
ReplyDeleteThis is haunting, Susan? One wonders at the identity of the speaker and cannot help imagining oneself as the audience..Do not ask for whom the bell tolls...
ReplyDeleteI changed the pronoun to make it clearer.
DeleteWhat a great pairing of image and words, Susan...I so enjoyed your post!
ReplyDeleteLovely--a real bell ringing going on here-the last line a repeated knell. I agree with Kerry--one does wonder. Thanks. k.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the bells are for ... hope it's something for the good.
ReplyDeleteFor me bells measure our lives' hours, but only, when we allow them...Though I love the sound. :)x
ReplyDeleteAnd this is how the universe works... you asked for them and we tolled. Thus it is our task to find center, ask with an earnest heart and listen for the response. Lovely, Susan. You uplifted me this morning.
ReplyDelete"Too soon away..." Wonder if it was a death knell or a celebration or a sendoff. Bells toll for many reasons; let's keep the faith that it was positive. The form of this is lovely! Amy
ReplyDeleteSometimes it is hard to hear the bells at all. We know they must ring somewhere, but........
ReplyDeleteI have reposted this in the light of the terrorist massacre of Black people at an historic church in Charleston, SC, USA.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, in light of the recent terrorist action in Charleston there's a new way to read the poem.
ReplyDeleteLovely narrow little poem. I liked it. A lot.
ReplyDeleteA befitting tribute Susan.. loved the rhythmic flow and the question posed at the end.. urging us all to ponder.. is it ever too soon? Beautifully penned :)
ReplyDeleteLots of love,
Sanaa
ah...the bell tolls the knell of disintegrating civilization...ugh..too soon a/way....what a write!!
ReplyDeleteSusan, I felt the church bells toll as lives were lost..too soon away...I have been seeing this story on the news and I wonder why this had to happen?
ReplyDeleteBeautiful, the bells tolling and the repeated "too soon away." I thought of the victims of the latest shooting. And isnt it terrible that we can say "the latest shooting" ??
ReplyDeleteEven before I read your comment above, I felt something very sad about this poem. I love bells. Their ringing is almost hypnotic to me. And I feel them as joy or sorrow, messengers of sorts. Your poem has the depth of a beautifully resounding clang. It announces the grief, and helps heal it.
ReplyDeleteThere is a sorrowful tone to the bells and they echo the sorrow right through to the end...another tragedy...how many more?
ReplyDeleteVery strong and gripping....The sounds of the bells are ominous for me Susan ~ Thanks for reposting this gem ~
ReplyDeleteThe beauty of this is the brevity.. clear as a bell.
ReplyDeleteWhat an alluring call bells have. Their sounds do not flee in a hurry.
ReplyDeleteThis is haunting, Susan. Reading this & hearing those sounds of the bells gave me chills. I'm afraid to live now in this world, everywhere there seemed to be screaming greed coming to eat you big time. You got this really right, Susan, keeping it short & strong! Thanks for the poem.
ReplyDeletei love how you were able to convey the rhythm of bells tolling with your words ~ wonderful!
ReplyDelete♥
I could here this chime..so wistful and yet clear..carrying in the wind of thought and contemplation...
ReplyDeletewhen the bells ring they have a message ...though bells are of different kinds..but convey effectively and so does this poem with its dramatic rhythm and movement...
ReplyDeleteThe format really enhances the ringing bell. Great poem.
ReplyDeleteThe echoing and the staccato/wave style underlining the sound of tragic shooting...~ example how art/music always serve as
ReplyDeletea witness and participant in main life events both happy and sad....
Seems tinged with regret.
ReplyDeleteA lovely, evocative piece of writing.
ReplyDeleteUsed to live within a block of beautiful sounding church bells. I miss that music,
ReplyDeleteElizabeth
I really enjoyed this, Susan! 'We knew you loved our echoes', that's such a great line :)
ReplyDelete