Not I(sle)
Not I(sle)
I will not go as I arise
to till another glade
though its clay be good for bean rows
and bees may have it made.
I don’t care to find some peace there–
it won’t happen if we’re there too–
not because we drop things–
but because I’m me, you’re you.
You’re sorry about the singing–
I know–you have explained–
and in bed, you hate that purple glow–
(though I dim my phone when you complain.)
Still, I’ll not go when I arise
for always night and day;
I want your side close-lapping
especially, by the way,
when I’m in the City,
upon the pavement gray,
also when in the country
where linnets’ wings hold sway.
I want your side close-lapping
as we shift limbs old and sore,
even through the fleece and flannel,
to feel your deep heart’s core.
*****************************************
poem of sorts of some number for April–for Brendan’s wonderful prompt on Real Toads about turning something on its tail, poetic surprise. I fear I’ve cheated a bit here, cribbing from one of my very favorite (and much mined) poems, The Lake Isle of Innisfree by Yeats. Recycling older pic too. (Any port in a storm.) All rights reserved.
Explore posts in the same categories: elephants, iPad art, poetry, UncategorizedTags: April 2016 National Poetry Month, elephants, http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com, manicddaily, Not going to Innisfree me poem, old romance poem
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ManicDDaily 
April 19, 2016 at 8:46 am
I really love how you used the rhyme here… it was like waves slowly lapping.. in a sense moving closer to that beating heart… the subtle details of making it contemporary like dimming the mobile phone.. Yet utterly timeless.
April 19, 2016 at 10:05 am
Thanks, Bjorn. k.
April 19, 2016 at 9:44 am
It is nice to be physically together and the mind moves in many directions.
Hank
April 19, 2016 at 10:05 am
Beautiful as a flowing river itself 😀
April 19, 2016 at 11:32 am
I love this so much, especially that stunning first stanza.
April 19, 2016 at 11:53 am
Thanks. k.
April 19, 2016 at 12:47 pm
Very lovely personal reflection on the classic Yeats–I like that you kept the meter and rhyming and even echoes of lines. This has some of the beauty of that resignation that comes with a yearning for lost places that one will never find again, and some of that life that recreates them in our minds, and both add together to make the whole thing magic.
April 19, 2016 at 1:38 pm
Your words flow so smoothly in this. The second stanza spoke to me as a cousin once said something similar to my late husband and I. You always knew when we were together because a room could not be quiet in our presence. The details like the linnets or the glow of the cell phone. makes it all so real, tangible – and yet magical.
April 19, 2016 at 5:54 pm
“also when in the country where linnets’ wings hold sway.” and “even through the fleece and flannel, to feel your deep heart’s core.” Just lovely
April 19, 2016 at 6:31 pm
a warm treasure to read
April 19, 2016 at 11:20 pm
Well cribbed! 😀
April 20, 2016 at 12:10 am
the first verse is really good. Well written
April 20, 2016 at 2:29 am
Beautifully evocative, the waves, the rhythm of life…
April 20, 2016 at 9:58 am
I adore the way you have turned the Yeats’ classic on its ear and made it all the more poignant and heart-felt.
April 20, 2016 at 7:15 pm
Thank you, Kerry.
April 20, 2016 at 3:04 pm
Oh gosh I just love it.