impossible to recall
exactly how it began
within disconnected walls
of days too narrow, thin
exactly how it began–
no entrance, no way out
of days too narrow, thin–
like land-encrusted boats
no entrance, no way out–
unplaced and yet confined
like land-encrusted boats–
this fog inside my mind
unplaced and yet confined,
an echo on repeat–
like fog inside my mind,
these lines that never meet
an echo on repeat
within disconnected walls–
these lines that never meet–
impossible to recall
A pantoum, inspired by the paintings of Lee Madgwick, which were provided by Sarah at dVerse. The pantoum form is for the W3 prompt, where Aditi asks for something dreamlike.
K. 
I can imagine the Lady of Shalott having this kind of conversation with herself. Lost.
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I hadn’t made that connection, but I agree.
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Well-done, K. Surrealistic and dream-like, with no beginning and, the hallmark of a nightmare, no conclusion…
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Thanks Jade. My nights are so different from my days. But maybe that’s true for everyone.
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This is a great ekphrastic.
“like fog inside my mind” fits well with the indistinct form with in the arch.
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Thanks Ken. There are many dimensions to these paintings which makes them well-suited for ekphrastic poetry.
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Wonderfully done ekphrastic and pantoum, Kerfe. The disjointed images, very dream like.
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Thanks Punam. Some days it’s hard to tell the difference between waking and dreaming..
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Has an otherworldly vibe – especially with the collage! Bravo!
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Thanks Muri. All of this artist’s work has an otherworldly feel. Something my work often taps into as well.
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HI Kerfe, I didn’t realise this was about dreams, I thought it was about memory loss. The ideas are similar and it works both ways for me. A fantastic poem.
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Thanks Robbie. I think it could be interpreted that way. I’ve often wondered if dementia is in some ways similar to a dream.
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An interesting thought, Kerfe. Maybe it could. I’ll have to read up on it.
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Until I read the comments I thought the poem was about the Covid lockdown experience. The emptiness and the lines that never meet reminded me of those empty days (and nights).
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It’s interesting how many different interpretations there are of this poem. I like that. It could absolutely reflect the Covid experience as it will be embedded in our consciousness forever I think. And be woven into our dreams as a result.
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Yes, the lockdowns and Covid have affected our collective psyche and our dReams.
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It’s fascinating reading the comments/interpretations. We have a similar interpretation, as I felt the painting depicted a sort of dreamworld, too–or possibly some world in between life and death.
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Thanks Merril. Between is a good word to describe everyone’s thoughts on it I think.
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Yes, I think so.
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As someone who experiences brain fog And dreams that exert an influence over my waking hours, I feel quite at home in this post.
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It is it’s own country…thanks Sun.
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It really felt like walking inside a dream. Beautiful poem!
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Thanks Aditi.
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I do love this form, Kerfe, and you weave it so well to fit the image!
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Thanks Ingrid. It’s a wonderful form, one of my favorites.
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This is absolutely splendid, Kerfe! I especially resonate with; “an echo on repeat within disconnected walls.” I love where the prompt took you! 💘💘
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Thanks Sanaa.
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The abstract structure of dreams is perfectly captured here Kerfe with your words and graphic.
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Thanks! They are abstract, although I never thought of it before. Now I’ll be thinking of it for awhile…
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The Pantoum form lends itself beautifully to the image you chose! Well done, my Friend.
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Thanks Helen.
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You do all the prompts excellent justice. The dreamlike quality warps and wefts throughout the poem and we see it in the imagery too, a beautiful echo of each other. I love the collage, it’s so gently harmonious.
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Thanks Sunra. These paintings inspired a lot of good work.
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You’re welcome! 🙂
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Love this… even though the sense leaves me numb from being trapped with those thoughts
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Thanks Bjorn.
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I’ve never read a pantoum work better: that sense of being fragmented and in a loop of thoughts that go nowhere.
~Dora
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Thanks Dora.
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Kerfe, when you write pantoums, do you see a bit of a collage in them? like – lines overlapping with different combinations of other lines? if you look on one side of any given line, you see line X, but if you look on the other side of that same line, you see line Y … I feel like this style suits you really, really well, and this poem goes to show that…
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I don’t see how else you would write a pantoum, or any poem really. Everything has to be seen in context with what comes before and after. I do have a fondness for repetition and the way its meaning changes with the context.
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I guess there’s just something about it that makes me think of a collage – often parts of your collages transition with multiple pieces around them, but in different ways.
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I would counter that all art does that, or should. Like life, it’s all connected. Part of the problem with our way of living right now–like we can survive by cutting ourselves off from anyone/thing else.
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and with a pantoum, you have to think about how a particular line will transition with at least two entirely different other lines in different stanzas…
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In that way it’s a bit like some kinds of puzzles. I don’t do crosswords, but my daughters do, and it’s kind of like a the permutations of across down intersections.
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Plaintive, building ebb and flow in words of landlocked emotion. Poignant.
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Thanks Aletha. There is so much solitude in that painting.
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Kerfe,
I just wanna let you know that this week’s W3 prompt, hosted by our beloved Murisopsis, is now live:
❤
David
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Thanks. Muri’s poem was wonderful, a good choice.
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🤗
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Kerfe, I saw your “Passages” poem published at The Ekphrastic Review, congratulations! It’s evocative and beautiful.
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Thanks Sunra. It was a beautiful image to work with.
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You’re welcome! It was lovely to see your name on there 🙂 I was like, hey, I know her! How cool! Obvs, I don’t really know you but it was nice to see a fellow blogger’s work online when you’re just mooching around, you know? 😀
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I agree–I’m always pleased to see work from someone I know as well.
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