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The Battle of the Words

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Meet Al-Mutanabbi, the subject of my thesis, and if I am lucky, also of my subsequent PhD. I owe the man a lot, he was a fascinating figure :)

The desert knows me well, the night, the mounted men, The battle and the sword, the paper and the pen. - Al-Mutanabbi to Sayf ad-Dawla *** Sanddune ripples, air tears through sand. Paralyzed desk waves in oak patterns pen pierces swelled surface in desperate hope for inspiration Gallop resonates: his court his caravan my pen his sword my words not mine I write his life 5, 6, 7, 8 lift, blow scratch, tear plié, fold this empty paper in 4 The saddle bag The back pack Sails the desert through waves too far to remember or falsely related to distorted time dimensions, simmered mirages Reach up, make words land on my hand 5, 6, 7, 8 jam... (What is home anyway but a bunch of false memories) *** June 26, 2017 Copyright © Darren White

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Muhammad Imtiaz

Date: 2/23/2018 12:24:00 PM

Hi Darren you have a great art of perfection of words........... thanks muhammad

Darlene De Beaulieu

Date: 10/15/2017 6:12:00 PM

You have a good imagination my friend. have a nice evening my friend.

Darren White
Date: 10/16/2017 2:17:00 PM

Thank you, Darlene :)

Freddie Robinson Jr.

Date: 7/12/2017 5:21:00 PM

Very avant garde poetry, Darren. You stretch the mental muscles w/this piercing poem of a muse's constant battle for creativity to prevail. Outstanding write. Keep up the good fight, my friend. Love always

Darren White
Date: 7/12/2017 11:43:00 PM

Thanks Freddie, and you have understood this poem extremely well :)

James Swartz

Date: 7/6/2017 4:14:00 PM

Wow. This might be my favorite poem ever. Too perfect.

Darren White
Date: 7/7/2017 12:22:00 AM

That is a wonderful comment James, thank you so much!

Gregory Richard Barden

Date: 7/2/2017 9:46:00 PM

So creative and imaginative ... wonderfully penned and phrased to perfection. Loved this.

Darren White
Date: 7/3/2017 12:00:00 AM

Thanks Greg, I loved writing this combo ow=f writer's block, and my thesis :)

Funom Makama

Date: 6/30/2017 9:57:00 AM

This is fantastic, so fantastic. Coming to this page feels predestined because I feel so satisfied. Thanks for the wonderful share.

Darren White
Date: 6/30/2017 10:07:00 AM

Thank you so very much, I am happy you like this :)

Arthur Vaso

Date: 6/28/2017 11:12:00 PM

There is no sandstorm here, yet there are tears in the wind, beautiful poetry and what else can one expect from such inspiration. This is amazing.

Darren White
Date: 6/29/2017 12:55:00 AM

Thanks my friend. Those lines are wonderful, that little clip is too, and it's very inspirational :)

Paul Dandrea

Date: 6/28/2017 2:03:00 PM

I watched the video. Facinating piece of work visually as well as spoken word. Is that your voice reading?

Darren White
Date: 6/29/2017 12:53:00 AM

Paul, no I wish! I do try from time to time to read, but no, I clam up entirely, doesn't work.

Ingrid Showalter Swift

Date: 6/28/2017 12:06:00 PM

Darren I saw your writing today in my email box and love your poetic voice...you write with titanic passions! Bravo!

Darren White
Date: 6/29/2017 12:53:00 AM

Ingrid, thank you! Glad you like it. :)

Maureen McGreavy The Insolent Rib

Date: 6/28/2017 7:30:00 AM

Oh my. Fave. This, this one ripples through my very soul dear poet.

Darren White
Date: 6/28/2017 7:50:00 AM

Happy you like it ma mo, also happy it is a fav for you!

Paul Dandrea

Date: 6/27/2017 11:54:00 PM

there's something deadly serious in this poem. It's like a warrior who gallops towards his enemy to finally finish the business between them. Very lean, nothing spare.

Darren White
Date: 6/28/2017 12:05:00 AM

I think you summed up the whole of the metaphor there! That was exactly right :) Thanks my friend.

Jeremy Smith

Date: 6/27/2017 10:43:00 PM

It looks like your past the writers block :)

Darren White
Date: 6/28/2017 12:05:00 AM

Hehe, no, but at least I put it into words.

White Wolf

Date: 6/27/2017 10:39:00 PM

You never cease to amaze and dazzle me with your work, Duir! An outstanding piece to add to my crane bag!

Darren White
Date: 6/28/2017 12:06:00 AM

Wow, that crane bag of yours is getting full!

Maria Williams

Date: 6/26/2017 10:51:00 PM

Love your analogies to nature – Sand-dune ripples (do you crumple sand colored paper through?) – Frustrated pen thrusting like the knight’s sword into the grained oak desk .Tsk Tsk!!Calls for sand papering now. Then there’s that exasperation - ‘lift, blow scratch, tear’, the ballet step of ‘plié, fold’ – the intangible images in the ’simmering mirage’s. Very clever my friend. Did you say your Muse had left you?!?! - I wonder? PS Darren, it’s so weird – both writing about the opposite side of the Muse at exactly the same time - You in this, and me in ‘My Shadow Muse’ – Alas! She disappears with the shadow, then appears!!... Maria xx

Darren White
Date: 6/27/2017 1:41:00 AM

You understood the analogies very well :) Thank you my friend. I will have a look at your poem now.

Chris Green

Date: 6/26/2017 7:21:00 AM

Whoa, now this is really cool, quite abstract but a single thread seems woven throughout. Some sadness and desperation but still a stead fast delivery that concedes to the talent in every phase.

Darren White
Date: 6/26/2017 8:54:00 AM

It is abstract indeed isn't it.... I extended that metaphor of the pen that has nothing to write on and about all the way through the desert and I even danced there for a bit :) Thanks my friend!

Tim Smith

Date: 6/26/2017 7:14:00 AM

Wow, you captured the essence of the quote so we'll...great poetry

Darren White
Date: 6/26/2017 8:51:00 AM

One enormous battle... That poet (al-Mutanabbi) wielded both pen and sword, such was the life of the right hand of a prince back then. Made for fascinating poetry... And inspiration for word-desperate poets like myself ;)