A Poem Lost – A Poem
The Meeting at the Bar prompt over at dVerse Poets Pub today is to write about creativity in some way. Host Anne Montgomery asks us “to think about a time when you’ve experienced or championed the immersion of creative flow; the agony, disappointment, or rejuvenation of a creative U-turn; how you incubate new ideas or divergent thinking; or examine creativity as a subject in your poem.” It made me think of the many poems that I’ve lost because I didn’t want to get out of bed and let creativity flow.
A Poem Lost
I lie in bed, curl up for sleep
Eyes closed, blankets pulled tight
Sleep eludes me, I lie awake
Words swirling in my head
There’s a poem forming line by line
The culmination of thoughts of the day
It’s a pretty good one, too
I should get up, write it down
I peak a hand out from under the covers
I’m reminded of how cold it is
Too cold – this poem will have to wait
I will write it down in the morning light
Still the words swirl and form stanzas
Stubbornly I refuse to rise and write
Morning comes
My poem is no more
It is lost in the night
Perhaps it went in search of warmer climes
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Oh, no, I’ll get up. At the very least, I’ll write a line or two. That’s usually all it takes to jump start my memory the next morning.
Good one, Linda!
I’ll get up if it isn’t cold, but I really hate to be cold. But I think I am going to put a notebook and pen by my bed so I can jot down a few lines the next time this happens. Peace, Linda
Thanks for sharing, Linda
I have had many a blog post go off “in search of warmer climes” as I tell myself I will remember in the light of day. Deception. It never works!
Blessings
ann
So true! Somehow, though, non-poetry posts stick in my head until I write them down. They are sometimes relentless in pursuit of being written. But poems are different for me. They are so easily lost. Peace, Linda
This is exactly why I keep a pencil and a notebook in my nightstand. Vital!
That is a good idea. I should do that. 🙂 Peace, Linda
I’ve killed some good ideas this way too. Haven’t we all? ;_)
Tony, I had no idea I would get this kind of response from others who have lost poems. I wrote this one in about 10 minutes after reading the dVerse post. 🙂 Peace, Linda
yes i have dreams that slip away too. they seem so vivid and tangible in the night. great poem.
Ha ha how often does this happen…cold or warmth…yeah words can wait!
Except they don’t wait! They are so impatient sometimes. 😉 Peace, Linda
How I know this feeling! It’s been happening to me for weeks and it’s soooo frustrating when I can’t follow through on my thoughts. Clearly expressed. Great job.
Thanks!
Wonderful Linda! I never remember like I think I will! 🙂 God bless you and all the poems that you do get down!
Deb, You do realize you were my inspiration to start writing poetry in the first place, don’t you? So God bless you for your inspiration and encouragement. Peace, Linda
haha I love this, this is how I usually go to sleep and rack my brains for the rest of the day
I’ve had that happen way often. Love this poem about the lost ones!
I know exactly what you mean!!! Sigh. I sometimes write poetry in my mind as I am walking the track at the YMCA. They are the ‘best’ poems, and I know I will remember them until I get home. But no, the poems disappear before I can write them down. Perhaps, as you said, they go to warmer climes too; and I guess i won’t blame them. Sigh.
Mary, I carry a notebook in my purse so I can jot down poems and blog post ideas that come to mind while I’m out and about. I should try the notebook on the nightstand method and maybe fewer would be lost. I’m actually heading down to Florida next week. Maybe I’ll look around and see if I can find our poems that have headed south. 😉
Peace, Linda
heh-heh ~ know the feeling ~ well-expressed 🙂
Oh! I know this feeling. One time, I laid there until midnight with Beethoven swirling in my head and I finally threw a blanket around me, stumbled out of bed, put my headphones on and wrote my “Ivory at Midnight” poem. Ever since then, if I feel a stanza forming I get up and write 🙂 Great job. It’s such a loss to loose a poem!
What a great story. I’ll have to come check out your “Ivory at Midnight” poem. (I assume it’s on your blog). There have been times when I’ve gotten out of bed so as to not lose the poem, but that is more likely to happen in the spring or summer. I should keep an easy to grab blanket on hand so I can throw it around me and go write those poems down. 🙂 Peace, Linda
Yes, so very true, we have to prioritize the creative process yet there are always the practical considerations. Sometimes the cold, sometimes work, sometimes other obstacles, and yet I too have wondered if the energy of the poem transfers elsewhere. Thanks so much for joining us!
Thanks for the great prompt! I can’t believe the number of replies I’ve gotten to this poem written in about 10 minutes. Perhaps I should remember that’s all the longer I’d have to endure the cold to get those late night ideas written down in draft form. 🙂 Peace, Linda
You have touched on a common experience here–the swirling words, the reluctance to leave the comfort of a blanket–perfectly rendered.
Absolutely know this feeling. Well caught! k .
ha…this happens often…i have learned to keep a notebook ont he bed side…and i dont even need a light…i just scribble it out and try and decypher the thought in the morning….smiles…there is no way i will remember it in the morning
Yes, I need to get a notebook by my bedside. The one’s I write in are all the way across the room. 🙂 Peace, Linda
I think we have some echoes in our poems about poetic opportunity. I like (and recognize) yours (all too well).