1. Cinquain
The rock
Cold, unyielding
The best contribution
Sits watching a world in turmoil
Solid
2. Quatrain
Airs punctured by gasoline,
a perfume of our cancers;
shout out, the suffering scream
louder than any answers.
Once unseen, I will surprise;
smash me, I will not succumb;
bitter salts anaesthetise,
remaining forever numb.
Stagnant water starts to clear
passing through old time’s filter;
endlessly, year after year,
re-righting the Earth’s kilter.
I meditate in silence,
breathing calmly, taking stock;
to counteract the violence,
I am an island, a rock.
Submitted for a final AllPoetry assignment. I tried to incorporate the senses into this poem more than I would normally do. This whole poem is also inspired by an Alan Watts quote:
“As muddy water is best cleared by leaving it alone, it could be argued that those who sit quietly and do nothing are making one of the best possible contributions to a world in turmoil.”
For the last line – apologies to Simon and Garfunkel.
Syllable count per line – quatrain : 7
Rhyme scheme: Quatrain – alternating rhyme and Cinquain
Rhyme types: mostly perfect rhyme
Personification: I am a rock!
Senses: smell (gasoline/perfume), sound (shout/scream), sight (unseen) touch (smash me/numb), taste (bitter salts)
Alliteration: shout/suffering/scream, any/answers, unseen/surprise/smash/succumb
Assonance: shout out/louder, unseen/surprise/succumb, stagnant/starts, I/silence, meditate/in, counteract/the, am/an/a
Consonance: salts anaesthetise, re-righting
Metaphor/simile: The first stanza is a metaphor for the chaos of the world. ‘Once unseen’ – rocks are not something noticed but always there. ‘Bitter salts’ – lick a rock, it tastes salty. ‘Numb’ – rocks have no feelings. “passing through old time’s filter” – mineral water cleaned as it passes through rocks. “re-righting the Earth’s kilter” – no matter what mankind does, the Earth will sort itself out.
1994ever 