It’s happened.
Easy as harvesting red berries,
simple one skillet chicken alfredo pasta—
do not clean the pan,
the brown bits at the bottom add flavor to the sauce
just as snippets of life flash before the eyes,
seconds before blackness claims us
and we are led into a purgatory of sorts;
do I intimidate?
Does my skin sublime remind you of yesteryear’s lust
and unresolved feelings?
Poetic religion is not for everyone,
it crucifies nights and befuddles the day,
distracts,
torments and leaves the senses shredded—
like blue cheese and strawberry salad
beguiles
until one is left with no choice but to abandon all means
of rational thought and succumb;
does it appeal to you?
I gaze toward the ashen clouds contemplating life
that’s been left behind,
an orchestra of lovers and foes plays on the nightstand,
yet with one eye half-open
I look on as if waiting for events to alter themselves;
nobody can be fine all the time.
There is a kiss amidst these words, it’s for you
dear reader mine,
like a recurring dream
I keep coming back to life with the fume of a Poet’s sigh.
Photo credits: Truls Espedal, 1973 painting – Pinterest
Join me as I invite others to write Gothic poetry tonight
on dVerse, the last round of Poetics in 2020 💝
Posted for Poetics: Exploring Gothic as a Literary Genre @ dVerse Poets Pub
42 Responses
Oh, this dark muse!
“Poetic religion is not for everyone,
it crucifies nights and befuddles the day,
distracts,. . .”
Love it!
Thank you so much, Merril 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
Wow, Sanaa, you’ve set the bar extra high with this poem! I love the coquettish aside:
‘do I intimidate?
Does my skin sublime remind you of yesteryear’s lust
and unresolved feelings?’
and the thought that ‘an orchestra of lovers and foes plays on the nightstand’. The final line is so amazing!
Thank you so much, my dearest Kim 😀 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
I love how you dressed up your poem with all that food… I can see how close it is between gluttony and lust
Thank you so much, Bjorn 😀 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
“I gaze toward the ashen clouds contemplating life
that’s been left behind,
an orchestra of lovers and foes plays on the nightstand,”
Oh my, that sounds sinister!
Thank you so much, Lisa 😀 so good to see you 💄❤️
Dark, dark, dark. What is there not to like from this gothic poem? It’s brilliant and raw. Amazing work, Sanaa!
Thank you so much, Lucy 😀 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
Oh my gosh Sanaa! You are a difficult act to follow ☺️ Your poem read like a mystery novel and your use of words was spectacular. I particularly loved ‘an orchestra of lovers and foes plays on the nightstand’ Wonderful!
Thank you so much, Christine 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
How in the world could only you write a Gothic love letter to death, by Death, touching on many of the fears, thoughts and projections we all have as we approach the Great Transition? A fantastic ebon ride and read; this is atypical for you, and kudos for that.
Thank you so much, Glenn 😀 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
(I love going dark from time to time) 🙂
This is wonderful, Sanaa, I just love it:
‘Poetic religion is not for everyone,
it crucifies nights and befuddles the day,
distracts,
torments and leaves the senses shredded’
I will follow your quote with one from Paul Simon:
‘If that’s my prayerbook
Lord let us pray’ 🙏
A fabulous quote! Thank you so much, Ingrid 😀 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
From feast to finis, a delightful bit of Gothic!
Thank you so much, Beverly 😀 so good to see you 💄❤️
Oh, yeah; that nightstand orchestra and the assertion that nobody can be fine all the time. are the grabbers here for me Sanaa. Awesome work.
Thank you so much, Ron 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
This is like a recurring dream, or a nightmare of a purgatory. This reflection will stay with me:
I look on as if waiting for events to alter themselves;
nobody can be fine all the time.
Thanks for hosting.
Thank you so much, Grace 🙂 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
(always a pleasure to host on dVerse) 😀
This is stunning!! I know i did the prompt wrong. I just got lost.
Thank you so much, Mary 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
(No you didn’t) 🙂
Wow, Sanaa! This is darkly sensuous, and wonderfully seductive. You have definitely written a powerful piece that will sustain.
Thank you so much, Rob 🙂 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
Brava, Sanaa! Amazing piece!
❤️❤️❤️
death is indeed a deeply buried fear for so many … with your sensuous gluttony you have nailed the gothic style well!
Thank you so much, Kate 😀 so good to see you 💄❤️
It is not quite midnight, I am in bed, alone. The festive holiday lights have been extinguished by timers and the dark has settled in. But these blankets can’t keep out the chill this poem calls forth. I’ll hunker down and pray for that fume…
Thank you so much, Eric 😀 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
Sanaa- this is a wonderful depiction of afterlife, and I love all the imagery.
Thank you so much, Linda 😀 so glad you liked it 💄❤️
The second stanza most definitely does appeal to me! Poetic religion in this stanza is defined brilliantly, it isn’t easy to be so aware of life and allow our emotions to be shredded in this awareness. The whole poem is one of my favorite’s from you! 👏💖
Awww gosh! Thank you so much, Tricia 😀 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️
You’re very welcome! Now that I posted again, I see my first comment with others! Haha! It’s one of those days..
❤️❤️❤️
The tone of this reminds me of a short story and I can’t for the life of me remember the title. It’s about slicing peaches and the peaches in question are the breasts of the villain’s lady love. Nasty and dark.
Thank you so much, Jane 😀 so glad the poem resonated with you 💄❤️
You may have invented a new poetic form — Gastronomic Gothic.
Thank you so much, Ken 😀 so glad you enjoyed it 💄❤️