Tag: senses
At first, it was my taste buds failing
Watts Right – 27th May 2025
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.
The Common Sense – 27th January 2025
Hold your tongue to acquire
The knowledge you may desire
Make understanding your peer
With the open eye and ear
The spell to be found under
Is the rosy smell of wonder
Practice equals progress
For the taste of sweet success
Found from this point hence
The sense to make some sense
The reason to keep growing
The pursuit of further knowing
Pay Attention – 29th September 2021
Are you listening carefully
To the big world around?
Are you looking where you’re walking
Or just staring at the ground?
Notice all the details
Little things easy to miss
Be grateful with all your senses
From which to bring you bliss
Breathe deep the air in thanks
Test everything you touch
Taste each gift of food
With the passion you love so much
Gratitude Journal
I am so happy and grateful for the buttery smell this morning as Amy prepares for a busy day baking cinnamon scrolls.
Today I’ve been feeling a little antsy though I’m not sure why. I think maybe yesterday I spent too long sitting and my lower back and thighs felt sore and then I woke up with a stiff neck again. I wasn’t looking forward to another day of sitting, whether at school or at House.
So, as I was going for coffee I decided to head to 22 Grams and read there for a bit, before heading to House. How lucky I am to be able to go to two cafes before even going to work!
There’s talk that we’ll have no holiday this time and that’s kind of a bummer if it happens, but as Dylan said, it’s not exactly like we work that hard anyway. He and George don’t put in the same sort of effort as I do from what I can see and I don’t mean that as a comparison but as a statement that for them they are very relaxed about their classes and the work the students put in. I can’t help myself being fully invested in helping my students.
Nearing the end of the semester, I’m relaxing too but even though I can sit around doing as I like most of the day, I would rather be able to do that at home. Having said that, I probably wouldn’t get as much done, such as reading, blogging or even writing this!
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