A Whispered Moment







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The Veil, Fernand Khnopff





I move through days

Of limned frost,

of silent rain.

Piecing moments of coherence

through the whispered voice

and a sharpened pencil;

making my sense

by leaving my mark.

Each poem

a little-used corner

of life—

Mine, or another’s—

And as I do so,

I see myself

on the periphery,

a veil between us.

Perhaps it must be so

for the whispered voice

to come in advance of life’s to-do list

and for me to incline my head enough to hear it.



copyright/all rights reserved Audrey Howitt 2013

Posted for dVerse Poets Open link Night

Comments

  1. So difficult to work around life's to-do list. This is a beautiful way of describing it, Audrey. k.

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  2. there will always be more to do you know...and sometimes where we want to be seems so out of reach...nice verse audrey

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  3. Oh, yes, poetry before the have-to-do stuff of life. It's like the difference between dinner and dessert. Loved this, Audrey.

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    1. Thank you! I have large chunks when that just can't happen--but I love it when it does!

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  4. Each little poem...I love that line. Reading this makes me want to write a poem about poetry. Now!

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  5. There are so many things that need to be done... a long to-do list.
    Beautiful verses. A lovely read indeed!

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    1. My to do list always seems to get in the way--sigh--and thank you!

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  6. aha! your consciousness is awake and you can hear it!

    Beautiful poem indeed :)

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  7. Stunning Audrey wow!

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  8. This is so very lovely. You have made a chore - a meditation.

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  9. I always smile when I read your poetry...it is wistful and thought-provoking and....enjoyable.

    Lovely work, Audrey!

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  10. Another magnificent poet's poem.... Well done...

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  11. ah - life’s to-do list can be a beast - not easy to find time sometimes to jot down the verses whispered in a silent voice... but we def. have to take the time - otherwise they may be lost forever..

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  12. I think we all do that.. create those little poems before the essential stuff... (or non - essential) Carpe Diem Cras

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  13. I think poetry must be near the top of a person's to-do list, something that is not put on 'life's back burner.' Poetry deserves an important place.

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  14. To-Do list.
    Elderly lady "of class" talking recently in a 7 AM "recovery" meeting:

    Topic hovered around procrastination.

    Sophisticated Lady blurted out,
    "MY BUCKET LIST
    HAS BECOME MY
    FU**-IT LIST!"

    123 ex-drunks laughed for many seconds.m

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  15. To-Do list.
    Elderly lady "of class" talking recently in a 7 AM "recovery" meeting:

    Topic hovered around procrastination.

    Sophisticated Lady blurted out,
    "MY BUCKET LIST
    HAS BECOME MY
    FU**-IT LIST!"

    123 ex-drunks laughed for many seconds.m

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  16. Oh, I love this:
    "for the whispered voice
    to come in advance of life’s to-do list"

    Life's to-do lists are deadening...

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  17. I like "a little used corner of life." I imagine it fold over (dog eared style) and written in the margins.

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  18. Love this Audrey! Often writing comes last but definitely shouldn't. Can't think of how many lines I thought of while doing something else and lost them when I finally sat down to write.

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  19. About the little corner, from the periphery ... useful feeling of veil as it helps us forget the lists and shoulds waiting and hear the whispers calling. Very fine.

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  20. I like the phrase a whispered voice as it seems the voice as hardest to find at times..but when found the list may turn into daydreams instead of pens...

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  21. Seeing oneself on the periphery-- such an apt description of the feeling-- and yet, it is so necessary for the craft. Once the magic of the periphery is discovered, it becomes a haven. ~jason

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  22. beautiful write... loved "making my sense by leaving my mark." smiles

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  23. Oh that dratted to do list.......but thankfully the poems are persistent!

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  24. This is what inspired my poem for OLN. Thanks, Audrey.

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  25. I love this part as it speaks to me:

    Each poem

    a little-used corner

    of life—

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  26. Yes, exactly what heaven said, that phrase just made me smile. I love this poem. Those whispered voices are the veils we view life through.

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  27. The veil between them is haunting... Breathtaking poem, Audrey.

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  28. Piercing, yet muffled and veiled at the same time...Skillful! ~jackie~

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  29. Thi is beautiful. I think we can all relate to those whispers. The muse speaks so softly sometimes. There are some great lines in this. Good writing.

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  30. Yes, Beautiful! ..love "limned frost"

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  31. liked the concluding 3 lines especially ~ M

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  32. the urges and insights of writing too often suppressed by the activities of life..like the poem

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  33. Piecing moments of coherence through the whispered voice and a sharpened pencil... I relate to your poem very closely. Well written.

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  34. `Each poem

    a little-used corner

    of life—

    love this!

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  35. reflections of our life indeed are present in poems that we write:)

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  36. How did I miss this one in my feedly? Dang...glad you came by! Fantastic write Audrey. Love the lines so many have quoted and your close. Wonderful, wonderful work!

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  37. lovely, atmosperic, soft and hushed

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  38. this is wonderful, Audrey. You create a subtle and believable atmosphere. so well done.

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  39. Oh, the veils...this is gorgeous, Audrey. There's a aura of mystery in this...but that is how it should be when something is veiled, right? Needless to say, I loved it.

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  40. "making my sense

    by leaving my mark."

    Yes.

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  41. This is so lovely:
    "I move through days

    Of limned frost,

    of silent rain."

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  42. A lovely title for a poem about poetry!
    "Each poem
    a little-used corner
    of life—
    Mine, or another’s"
    Sweet lines!

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  43. Beautiful and so thought-provoking. Loved it.

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  44. I can definitely relate to your lovely poem.

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  45. We do want to leave our mark - and yet we want to not wreck what's there! It's all so difficult. A lovely poem. k.

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  46. OH! MY! GOD! I just emailed you a SECOND ago on this very topic - the inner voice and inclining our heads enough to hear it. That is FREAKY! GREAT wisdom in this poem.

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  47. heya.....good to see you are back...
    smiles.

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  48. Beautifully crafted poem, Audrey. I do think we have to listen to that whispered voice whenever we hear it.....

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  49. Seems like something is always interfering with that "to do list"; sometimes to our regret and sometimes our relief. lol

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