The power of a poem

Written in response to Indispire: A poem that left a lasting impression

If I could give you a window

Into the depths of my mind

If my true colors I tried to show

In a manner visible to the blind

If my raw emotions I had to display

They could not be expressed any better

Than in a powerful verse, I would say

With magic infused in every word and letter…

**

For poetry is the zenith of all art

The divine medium, by gods decreed

It is the mellifluous voice of the heart

An expression of the soul’s hidden need

When woven in a verse seamlessly

Dark thoughts become palatable

As poets pen verses ceaselessly

Making nebulous ideas palpable.

**

In the span of a few lines you may embark

On an emotional  roller-coaster ride

Come face to face with the reality stark

Open your mind to possibilities wide..

**

Embrace the world of verse, I urge

You will be transformed, I can assure

In a sea of imagery you will submerge

Discover the hidden truth, brilliant and pure.

With this ode to a poem, I am going to talk about my favorite poems:

1. The Glories of Our Blood and State- James Shirley

The glories of our blood and state

     Are shadows, not substantial things;

There is no armour against Fate;

     Death lays his icy hand on kings:

               Sceptre and Crown

               Must tumble down,

And in the dust be equal made

With the poor crooked scythe and spade.

Love this because it is a great reminder of how victory is transient, no matter what stage of life you are in.

2. Daffodils- William Wordsworth

 

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;

Ten thousand saw I at a glance

Tossing their heads in sprightly dance. 

Growing up in India, I never really saw daffodils, and always wondered what they looked like. Also tried to imagine what ten thousand daffodils would look like…so I love the visual imagery in this poem…

3. Success is counted sweetest- Emily Dickinson

Success is counted sweetest

By those who ne’er succeed.

To comprehend a nectar

Requires sorest need.

As he defeated – dying –

On whose forbidden ear

The distant strains of triumph

Burst agonized and clear!

I always remember this poem when in the throes of jealousy and self-pity over something I am never good at, while someone I know really excels at it. Overall I agree that I have experienced success more than failure in my life…

4. She walks in beauty- Lord Byron

 

She walks in beauty, like the night

   Of cloudless climes and starry skies;

And all that’s best of dark and bright

   Meet in her aspect and her eyes;

These lines are just hopelessly romantic and lusciously lovely….the way every woman would like to be described, and the way every man’s lady love would appear…

5. If- Rudyard Kipling

 

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;   

    If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;   

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

    And treat those two impostors just the same;   

 If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

    To serve your turn long after they are gone,   

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

    Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

I saved the best for the last, this is the most inspiring poem I have ever read in my life. The first verse about triumph and disaster is mentioned on the walls of Wimbledon, and I aspire to be able to follow it..

The second verse mentioned here is something I wrote in an unsteady hand as I was developing progressive paralysis of all 4 limbs from a rare nervous system disease called “Guillaine-Barre syndrome” at the age of 14 on a poster and had mounted on the wall. My paralysis progressed to where I could no longer write, and then 6 agonizing months of recovery followed during which these lines gave me strength.