I asked three people to send their first reaction, thoughts and feelings to the picture that I took, all compacted into a poem. It surprised me to see just how different everyone's minds are- I was excited to see it plainly through people's poetry.
Fading light
The eyes,
They say they glisten in the moonlight.
A dancing sensation
that lights up the whole room.
Free, airy, full of light,
like a feather floating to the ground
Yet they are the windows into my soul
Twisted pain, and the tale of a little girl
That once was, and never more.
Your favourite colour was blue.
You danced and
Marvelled
at the deep sunset
So I gave you my heart and let you strip the red out.
But you didn’t know I was stripping it out too.
I sucked the life out of me but you did too.
- Phoenix Juniper
Burial
The beautiful view, a sense of security
Burying myself within the comfort of this tree
Looking identical to the one in the backdrop of the burial
At the top, blue
A blue sky, a central moon
Are you looking up at it too? Are we sharing this moment despite being worlds apart?
I’d like to think so
It’s easier than admitting the reality.
It’s comforting, denial.
Hints of red swirled into the stripes of pink
Self-explanatory.
‘Better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all’
Then why after everything
Why am I sitting here thinking of you?
Wishing I was empty minded.
Until of course, I become empty minded.
Is this comforting- always wanting more?
Yellow
Sunshine, innocence
Happiness.
I dropped them to trail my way back to childhood when I needed an escape
They embodied my heart and sunk into the earth
Searching for you
This isn’t comforting.
The beautiful backdrop
a false sense of security.
- Eleni Portou
Dawn’s tree
Out of everything in the world
I’m most jealous of a tree
Not for the reasons you think however
I’m jealous because every morning it gets to see
A gorgeous sunrise
One that misses me
I do see it now and then
But hardly ever can I admire
The beauty of the dawn
And colours and gradients that it forms
But the tree can see it
See it in its entirety
From its vantage point high above
And every morning
It will greet dawn
And watch the night sky fade into day
See the purple the pink and blue
And the gold of the sun,
As she guides the way
Every morning it does so
And every morning onwards
Whereas I
Only have the picture
To remind me of this time
When I saw what the tree sees
And thought “how I wish your view was mine”
- Mawada Najem
Untitled
Today I thought of us
under the ageing oak tree
Rouge and mauve bled into the sky as we held onto each other for warmth
Today I thought of us
engraving our names into the wood,
permanent memories carved in the form of a heart with our initials at the centre, showcasing our admiration for one another.
Today I thought of you
And fearing the day you won’t be by my side to lean on my shoulder when days get tough, I held your hand a little tighter and led you to the ageing oak tree.
- Jessica Rebelo
After seeing everyone’s poetic responses to the image I displayed, it was clear that everyone really relies on their experiences in regards to photos and even other poems. I found this really interesting to look at, as everyone gave a completely different response to the exact same image.
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