Riddle
What is he trying to say? Emily Dickinsonian.
Nonce Rhyme Sonnet 14
| I pass through a tunnel to sudden light, Like reaching a peak and seeing beyond. As a helpless infant, I lie in bed, Relying on others to care for me. Over years I learn and struggle and fall, Searching for that great zenith of my life. How will I know when I've come to the top? How will I know when I've come to the top? Searching for that great zenith of my life, Over years I learn and struggle and fall. Relying on others to care for me, As a helpless infant, I lie in bed. Like reaching a peak and seeing beyond, I pass through a tunnel to sudden light. |
A B C D E F G G F E D C B A |
-F. C. Stamps
2001
Background: Written in Hawaii as an experiment in nonce rhyme sonnets.
Turn
I've come to the bridge I cannot cross
I've come to the wall I cannot climb
So the bridges I've burned are a loss
And broken walls, a waste of time
I do not cross, nor go around
I can not climb, nor stand around
Clearly, guidance, I must seek
But in asking, I hear no sound
Slowly now, I grow weak
Finally, I change for where I'm bound.
-F. C. Stamps
January 10, 1994
Background: "Turn," "Unkown," "Lamentations," and "Verb is a Noun" were all written on the same day as English class assignments on poetry. However, they far exceeded the mere bounds of homework.
Unknown
A candle I see, not afar
Flickering, waving is its flame
By this I know it's not a star
I do not know the bearer's name
Passing me, he said a word
I turned, for I had not heard
He was not there, nor in sight
I don't know what I saw that night
There I stood, all alone
Wondering of the unknown.
-F. C. Stamps
January 10, 1994
Background: "Turn," "Unkown," "Lamentations,"
and "Verb
is a Noun" were all written on the same day as English class assignments
on poetry. However, they far exceeded the mere bounds of homework.
Us is Dust
Us is dust and you are nothing
Now which would you rather be?
Dust to dust and nothing is nothing
Nor will it ever be
We are all too soon to our graves
And only then do we realize
It is not the body's death we should fear
But rather living out poor lives
Now go this time in to the world
Never to return
Unless you need to hear a word
From me your friend again.
-F. C. Stamps
Background: This poem has no date on it because it was written and rewritten
over a period of time, its original date of writing having never been recorded
as I considered it incomplete at the time. Using the liberal style of poetry,
I substituted purposely the words "We are" in the first with "Us
is," a very grammatically incorrect statement, but it adds so much to the
line while still conveying the thought. The "you" spoken of in the
first line and the "you" in the second line are not the same person.
In the second line, the "you" is the directed towards the reader,
whereas the first "you" is an allusion to a third party. Thus the
"you" in the second line is italicized to add emphasis in the reading
of it. If the "Us" is the narrator and the "you" of the
second line is the reader, the third party spoken of must be someone else by
default. A careful reading of the first stanza reveals who that is. The second
stanza's message is so important. I can not emphasize it enough. The original
wording of the third line of the second stanza was "physical death"
instead of "the body's death." The last stanza I took from another
poem of mine which I had written many years before. This last stanza has an
odd rhyming pattern, the first line rhyming with the third line, the second
line rhyming with no other line, and the last line's last two words rhyming
with each other so that when read correctly a successful rhythm is achieved.
Poetry copyright © 1998 by F. C. Stamps