Thursday, 9 June 2011

Poem inspired by William Blake: The Undiscovered Country

The Undiscovered Country

She thought herself barren and scorched to the bitter end
Like the quicksilver wouldn’t flow, nor the flame would yield and bend
She became like dust and ash swirling in a void of streaming senses
They'd gone; she was set adrift, floating on a still black sea intense.
The Mistress was left bereft, nothing but starched White Noise
Where had all her play things gone? Her toys?
Everywhere had become a scene of shifting shadows, black white and grey
It was forever an ocean of yesterdays, tomorrows and the endless today.

Was this the work of Zeus gone awry or The Sorcerer’s gift?
Without or within, where is the epicentre of that constant shift?
The mind points southward to the heart’s malaise
There came a deep thunderous rumble in the distant haze
Lightning struck the forests in the midst of the night
Out popped the eyes a wandering and all shining bright
Sparks bit into the furnace of her desires
Flames kissed, hissed and crackled. She felt inspired.
Walls shattered, rooftops blew off and the light shone in.
Finally, finally, she could see with an artisan's crystal eye and begin.

Halcyon flew down to his Mistress and sat upon her head
He blinded her eyes, clothed her ears and there made himself a bed
So, to engrave his wit of the kindling kind
With a puff he blew out the dust to create a mind; refined.
T'was as if Minerva and Persephone had melted and entwined
If only the inward eye could make fashion and passion the ink and the visions combined!
Sweet elixirs of blues, reds and greens he nestles upon her crown
Such a kaleidoscopic landscape only a carousing fool would claim their own
Coursing through her veins he shot liquid gold and silver that he'd blown
Its tincture seemed to almost brush her very marrowbone.

Only then would they come in numbers of ten thousand; no more!
When she lifted her mind to the stars and swept up stardust from Nirvana's floor
Could she leave that mortal coil and enter Athena's pleasure dome
And discover therein the changeling that makes Liberty their home.
She at once lifted her inner eye to the forgotten land
And touched the undiscovered country where it would always stand
She sunk into Chimera’s harvest and wandered the corridors.
Here lies a place with no nadir, zenith or horizon, not even windows, doors or floors.

This faceless, mystical stranger she clung to her breast to become an instant friend
For in her heart she knew it would all too rapidly come to an end.
With that super-natural creature she’d slipped into a another space,
Where the great mystery wore an altogether different virgin’s face.
With materials so poor to attempt to meet the visceral core to the point
And with already distant echoes, the silent mystery it does attempt to anoint
It could not leave a stain up the brain. All this is done in the twinkling of an eye.
To then set to making what can only be a poor imitation with the dye!
She knew she should muster her courage and dive into the sublime,
Because she knew she’d already been kissed at least once by Old Father Time.
The heavy heart knew dawn would break and they’d fly back and all would be the same
And nothing but walls and shadows; black white and grey would remain.

Sunday, 7 March 2010

Hello Readers!

Thanks for joining me on this journey, since that's what this is really, for both you and I. One can only hope that we both enjoy exploring all the alleyways, avenues and pathways of what goes on in the mind of someone who has that strange proclavity to write. But you could argue that we're all writer's these days, right? I suppose I just want to take it that one little step further.
You'll no doubt learn about what I'm looking into, my current ideas and thinking and what I'm raking around that strange creative cosmos called the imagination for as well as my passions both good and bad. You decide which are good and bad. I'm madly in love with Romantic poet, William Blake for example. Yes, I know, a dead poet! But he intrigues me and beguiles me too. I'm curious about Leonardo Da Vinci too. See, I keep going for older men! Well dead men. Not great material for dating but pretty good for the creative and restless mind.
I guess I should begin by saying a little bit about myself. Seems like the obvious thing to do, doesn't it? I mean isn't that what we do when we read a novel, get to know and explore a whole new set of characters or the at least the main protagonists in a story, movie, play or in a TV series? I'm interested in creative writing in most of it's forms. given that I'm essentially a very visual writer I can't really see me ever writing for the radio, I'm afraid. That requires a special skills set that I'm not fully convinced I possess. I get a real thrill from writing and it's probably when I'm doing something creative that I actually feel more alive than at any other time in my life, save for being with those I love and care about. I write, because yes, I enjoy in immensely but also because I have to write and I have something to say. Whether someone wants to listen to it or read is another matter entirely, isn't it? I just have to hope that they do and will do so in the future. I studied creative writing and English Literature as a mature student at university but really I've been into creative writing for a long time now. Perhaps being half Yorkshire makes me feel I have something to say since I've observed since moving to Yorkshire that folk from this part of the country aren't backwards at coming forwards with their thoughts and opinions so maybe through some informal form of osmosis from living here quite some time I've caught some of that desire to speak my mind when the need arises.
Just to get the proverbial ball rolling, I've been giving the art of writing and reading some thought. You see in a sense I'm on the inside looking out and you're on the outside looking in. We work from two opposing positions and yet they seem to compliment each other wonderfully. But then writers also have to readers too. Perhaps there's a basis of thought there that we are those strange creatures who do morph between two distinct states of mind. Hopefully as you read this your imagination is being promted by the text from this faceless scribbler, whilst I'm trying to imagine that you're sat there reading this. I'm trying to imagine whole hoards of people reading this but that might be stretching things a little too far and especially at this early stage. Speaking of early stages, I hope you'll forgive the layout on the page. I'm new to this whole blogging craze but I hope to improve and we one day go from the proverbial black and white to colour TV. HD and 3D might be pushing things however. I'm given to believe that you can add images and links to other pages and sites. *Note to self: Must look that one up!* Have I mentioned that I have a nutty, daft sense of humour yet? I won't say anymore and let you discover that and more besides for yourselves. I say, yourselves; when in fact there could be an audience of one out there. Hey, if there is then that's fine too. I quite like the initmacy of speaking directly one to one so even if the crowd explodes to two readers, please just imagine that I'm speaking to you - because I am.
Here in this space you'll probably see me post bit and pieces of ideas, thoughts, inspiration or current bits of projects floating around in my mind - that's why it's called, "Writer's Bloc! (Inside a writer's mind) after all! Above all I hope it's fun to come and have a little meander.
So, without further ado, I'll leave you to live your life and I wish you all the best gifts that life can bring. Please feel free to endure/enjoy any mutterings, scribbles and nonsenses, as and when they arise here at your leisure.
As always, thank you for taking time out of your day and reading. Bless you! Hope to see you soon.