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| My Photo taken at Caesar's Palace - Las Vegas |
She walked in sacred groves of oaks,
An earthly goddess of the night.
Both calm and wise she would alight,
And there she charmed the woodland folks.
She needed neither spell nor hoax
Her soul deflected any slight;
She walked in sacred groves of oaks
An earthly goddess of the night.
Her looks alone could seem like smotes
Fearing excess would bring a blight,
She trod a world of dust and smoke.
Her quiver armed with arrows bright,
She traveled night with speed, uncloaked.
Alone, she walked in groves of oaks.
In Memory of Diana Guthrie Frazier
Gay Reiser Cannon * All Rights Reserved
I am honored to be a colleague and part of
One Stop Poetry which I believe is a place
where poetry, art, and artists share their work in ways
not experienced before; building a community that
may allow more readership and viewership than
print media ever offered and at the same time
affording that attraction of talent to talent that
inspires by association, competition, and aspiration.
We have those who are part of and support this
community to thank for our
winning the 3rd annual Shorty award in Art
and for making this a new way of seeing what we all do
available as we go forward into the future.
Gay
This is beautiful and a gorgeous tribute to your friend Gay. Let's hope she finds the serenity she deserves in that woodland oak x
ReplyDeleteI love the mythical as you weave it into homespun reality here. I think you may have written this quickly--it has a very spontaneous feel. The last verse gives an archaic flavor that harks back to older usages and more formal bardery. Regardless, the rondel flavor is strong and rhythmic, and the feel of an actual personality in the guise of a myth here is very real.
ReplyDeleteThank you Shan and Joy. I started it yesterday and meant for walked and talked to end the B lines and then found there weren't many rhymes, and found oak had more but they didn't seem to fit. However the lines they forced were extremely apt for a woman who used her "look" to let you know she didn't think what you said or did was appropriate. I had to smile at myself when I composed it. Yes, the free lines seem to capture her. Poor dear I hope she is in a better place. Thanks again.
ReplyDeleteI'm a couple steps behind Hedgewitch. I think the myth is so stark and clearly rendered here I found it hard to see the person. I read it through the first time trying to match my recollection of the myth to the lines and found it on the whole identical. OK, this is Diana/Artemis. That you dedicated it to Diana Guthrie Taylor at the ned didn't do much to change my reading. Maybe some toning words could assist the calibration toward elegy, "She walked in sacred groves of LOCAL ((or a town's)) oaks'; 'There she charmed OUR woodland folks." See what I mean? I just didn't quite catch the person because she was too mythical. Sorry to pick, the gal must surely have been a surpassing divine person ... Sorry for your loss ... Brendan
ReplyDeleteThis is beautiful, Gay. I think Bren makes good points but perhaps you were elevating her with the elegy-- a good thing. xxxj
ReplyDeleteI'm loving your remarks Brendan. She wasn't much of a person folksy person. She was shy and reserved and reserved for nature itself. She lived with a man for 66 years and resented him every day because he never explained why at their most desperate point of marriage, he went out for cigarettes and didn't come back for a year. He adored her and had no clue to who she was. She was adoring of her grandchildren and great grandchildren but she found affection was best expressed by traveling and showing someone something she admired in nature. I thought while researching the mythical Diana, that this one was particularly aptly named. The solitary nature lover was really who she was.
ReplyDeleteI suppose I could have added that she should have been a vestal virgin. I think the only man she ever cared for was her only son whom she (and everyone else including me) spoiled and continues to spoil mercilessly or mercifully whichever is most appropriate. She did feel as though she was a protector of women and an independent soul who chose to be a Republican in a state of Democrats (New Deal); yet when that reversed she held her ground and voted Republican against all calls to change by her husband, children and grandchildren. She was stubborn, but she loved "culture" and fine and beautiful things. She would like being compared to a goddess. Her near ninety years would have justified that to her.
A mythic figure, indeed ... the poem fits, the divine raiment shining fully through. If you ever get the chance, I'd like to see the same poem in reverse -- what it took for a mortal to be so divine. All of what you just said. - Brendan
ReplyDeleteI hate that my comment regarding Garden.. to you has dissolved in mist. I liked what I said. It was personal and at the same time eloquent. Gone, now. Lost to the deities of cyberspace.
ReplyDeleteNice work. Very smooth.
ReplyDeleteWonderful!You write Rondels really well.
ReplyDeleteThanks for correcting me!I have done the corrections ...cheers!
Flawless Gay... just wonderful !
ReplyDeleteJL&B
And now someone I never knew seems real within my experience of your writing, which is to me one of the best reasons for writing a poem - and to manage it via such a tricky structure - bravo!
ReplyDeletethere is a softness to this although I feel rondels can
ReplyDeletebecome quite harsh...the contemplative nature allows
me to see beyond the rhyme, very fine ~
The word 'smote' niggled me - surely the verb is 'to smite (something)' ?
ReplyDeleteBut I love the picture conjured up by the lines:-
"She walked in sacred groves of oaks
An earthly goddess of the night."
Gay, this is just stunning! What a wonderful tribute to the legacy of one who was obviously very respected and much loved by you. Your imagery is mythical, much like the muse, and the form is perfection (In my humble opinion) An absolutely wonderful write, and brilliant when read aloud :)
ReplyDeleteshe must have been a very special person gay - wonderful tribute - and yes - i so love your rondel - i just get wrapped in the words because your flow is so steady and confident (if you know what i mean) i feel the safety of someone who knows a lot about life and love and connecting to people. so good to know you gay
ReplyDeletegreat tribute, Gay... love the mythical feel, & flow. :)
ReplyDeleteThis is magical. I can imagine the scene and I love these lines:
ReplyDelete"She needed neither spell nor hoax
Her soul deflected any slight;"
Thank you for share your tribute.
Blessings. Soraya
Technically perfect Rondel, and quite enchanting in its imagery and language. With Rondels I always feel the urge to put the B refrain on the end after the final repetition of the A refrain (thus making it a Rondel Prime, or "French Sonnet", as it has 14 lines), though I can see here it makes sense not to. Well chosen refrains and end-rhymes are the key, aren't they? Nicely done Gay, I like. I wonder how this would look sans caps at beginning of line, though? The old form and classical theme/old-fashioned language perhaps suggest use of caps but I almost always find they impede transition from line to line a little (especially if you have run-ons).
ReplyDeleteLovely.
Diana has always been one of my favorite Goddess'. Well captured!
ReplyDeleteLove this style.
ReplyDeleteHow could I not love this. She feels real, very beautifully written.
ReplyDelete((gay)) you made the right decision in being there...and this is a gorgeous tribute to her...we are blessed to have you in the fold...
ReplyDeleteI love the name Diana - at beautiful tribute to your friend...and so happy that One Stop Poetry won...together you all challenge us to do our best and become better writers...bkm
ReplyDeleteA beautiful, moving tribute Gay, perfect in form and pleasing to eye and to ear...but I am sorry to hear of your friend, and your loss. It is never an easy thing...never.
ReplyDeleteThank you everyone who wrote here today and all of you for being my friend. It was hard on two fronts this week. I wanted to write a new poem for today and had several suggestions in addition to some ideas that have been banging around for months. Somehow those never get finished or if they do don't arrive as expected. I know I'd have had a wonderful time in New York; I wouldn't have wanted to leave. I never like to leave anywhere I am. At my age, you'd think I know why but wherever I am is where I want to be. That's a little crazy..but I love those major cities!! Good on us and good on the panel for presenting it to us and good on us for having such fabulous people supporting us every week. It is a true blessing.
ReplyDeleteNothing lives long
ReplyDeleteOnly the earth and the mountains
White Antelope, “Death Song of the Cheyenne” (1864)
A lovely tribute, Gay...and a lovely rondel.
ReplyDeleteI have little exposure to rondels, but your writing here, in this form, strokes my interest.
I will attempt one, or two, but they are classical.
Beautiful, and she sounds like a beautiful woman...strong.
Gay,
ReplyDeleteYou make a Rondel look easy! I loved the touching tribute. Your poem flowed so beautifully. I also liked the nice photo in the beginning. It went perfect with the poem. Thank you for sharing such a lovely poem.
A beautiful tribute:
ReplyDelete“She walked in sacred groves of oaks,
An earthly goddess of the night.
Both calm and wise she would alight,
And there she charmed the woodland folks.”
this stanza says it for me…a peaceful walk amidst the oaks…a beautiful, calm, wise, charming woman who was obviously in touch with life.
Well done, my friend.
What a touching tribute to Diana. May we all see the gods and goddesses that walk amongst us.
ReplyDeleteHer looks alone made some feel smote.
ReplyDeleteShe feared excess would bring a blight.
An excellent rondel, and a perfect form for a tribute to a woman made goddess. For me the two lines I'm quoting hinted at Diana in the flesh: would a goddess 'feel' and fear'?
All in all, for me, a deeply satisfying poem. Thank you, Gay!
She walked in those groves of oaks, and she hunted. Love the repetitive lines, love the poem.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful image of a friend that obviously meant a great deal to you. I know several other posters have mentioned the lines about walking in the grove of oaks, but I have to say it is one of those lines that says so much more than the words that make it up. Fantastic read, great submission. Hope all is well & take care,
ReplyDeletecrb.
This piece feels dense with craftswomanship, Gay; I enjoy your dedication to meter and rhyme-scheme. Is this a particular form? I notice the abab quatrains with the refrain to end on making the last a quintain. The technical diligence enhances the content, as it should be with good form poetry; 'smote' perhaps the only end-rhyme that made me stumble a little.
ReplyDeleteFine piece and touching dedication.
Warmest Salad
Luke x