Left Behind
The water nearly still
except for the wave
of a koi’s tail, I realize
it’s not my face reflected
on the surface, but your own
nearly obscured as it lies below,
your hair undulating as the koi
weaves its way through
before drifting away,
strength and perseverance
leaving you behind and me
to wonder why you didn’t follow,
as I wake.
This is my response to Poets, Start Your Engines, the opening day prompt for National/Global Poetry Writing Month at napowrimo.net. The prompt is to write a poem based one of the book covers illustrated at Public Domain Review’s article on “The Art of Book Covers.” The book cover here is … Charles Kingsley. The Water Babies. London: Macmillan and Co., 1886.
rivrvlogr 
Wet dream. Awesome.
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Thanks!
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A dream of reflections in both senses of the word.
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Thank you. It’s interesting how recent experience and writing can affect a poem.
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You’re welcome.
Well, we write what’s in our hearts and minds . . .
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Indeed.
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A beautiful poem, Ken. It’s a master at work when a poem does a mega reveal in the closure.
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Thank you so much, Gloria! 😀
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That’s a beautiful dream…the perfect book cover for you. (K)
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Thank you. With hundreds of dives in the Niagara River, I may have seen that fish!
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“as I wake” evokes an image of the wake that follows watercraft, on an interesting emotional level. I love this poem.
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Thank you. Aren’t words wonderful?
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lovely write!
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Thank you!
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I really enjoyed this poem. Beautiful, particularly the ending…
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🙂 Thank you.
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