On a street of mellow autumn, gold leaves have turned deep orange
As harvest season offers vibrant hues, and cold that makes you cringe
And wild, bitter orange sunsets, are caught between plummy days
Categories:
bitter orange, autumn, beauty, color, happiness,
Form: Sijo
he’s a raver, deep from marrow, born
who screams at moons to curse the morn
and though his flesh is bloodless, torn
he woos the beast inside him
for night alone won’t hide him
he creeps the nettles, scratched and red
to find the temptress for his bed
but with the madness in his head
those angels - dark and ruddy
find all their wings, now bloody
oh, once this manic’s dreams were pure
of maidens, graced with grace, demure
their loins, quite worth a birthing’s cure
but he drowned all such humors
his passions, turned to tumors
those virtues, pure, were sacrificed
for panicked potions - poisoned, iced
no hellion’s draught had e’er sufficed
to scald his veins through rapture
death’s tonic, claimed for capture
but there beneath a gold doubloon
the grip of dripping deviled moon
that man left all his senses strewn -
hopes hanging on a door-hinge
with high-priced bitter orange
there are no versions of the truth
no happy end, this saddened sleuth
what waste, the years of wondrous youth
those scores of bugles, blaring
changed to a dirge, despairing
bright eyes, a-dead and staring …
bright eyes … now dead.
( Painting by Achille Chiarello )
Categories:
bitter orange, dark,
Form: Rhyme
you sing ...
from the mocking mask of the
ashen August moon
you laugh ...
from the tummy tickles of
braided pigtails and jelly shoes
you cry ...
from the mud-streaked and blistered
bloat of hunger
you whisper ...
from the ruined truth of a
deathbed admission
you whisper, yet ...
from the ruined lies of passion
pledged in pity
you scream ...
from the thin, bitter, orange film
'neath my tongue
you breathe your last ...
from a gasping bite of the cruel, crushing
winter wind ...
and a prayer for ... release.
Categories:
bitter orange, analogy, life, wisdom,
Form: Free verse
January.
I now perform the annual alchemy,
my purpose :
to capture Spanish sunshine in a jar.
Seville :
white fragrant flower to bitter orange sphere.
Childrey :
sugar, water, shredded peel to liquid gold.
Now attend
and carefully stir the boiling cauldron,
Shakespearian
witch-like, the transmutation is complete.
Scottish myth.
Her courtiers cry “Ma’am est malade”, forsooth,
Mair’s headache
cured with orange confiture, a royal preserve.
At breakfast.
The early morning sun aslant the glass,
light shining
through shredded peel makes goldfish in the swim.
Marmalade.
The bitter-sweet tang melds with buttered toast.
Marvellous
flavour. What better way to start the day ?
Categories:
bitter orange, food, fruit, january,
Form: Free verse
By the blank firing squad we waited as the soldiers
loaded brass tacks and high angled themselves in
line. Filling the glass lungs stood before that
apathetic gaze, full by the noon day's glare.
Bitter Orange cast across the
metaphors imagery climbing ever higher ;
shadows play on the ground
beneath our feet finding a dance partner
among the gun barrels.
All acrawl beneath the skin , cockroaches bury deep
of the American flag passed from this British Eagle
after liberty w-/ out much royalty to country. English stereotypes
spitting on the union jack discuss Page Three monologues
& the latest Styrofoam protests. Just say a word and Mean it.
Only impressive once the Media took hold in a slow zoom on
the Flash Mob mentality breaking out in frustration.
At a country riddled w-/ apathy and unrequited
eyeball kicks locked in judging show cycles , especially
in ink, grasping for the straw to break the camel's back.
If only to go over the edge , finally going Mad ,
always, teetering on the brink . One foot in the gutter
& in the other in Flintstone-esque traffic. Now
I'm sure no one's written that before . Left right
on my mark, Aim &
Categories:
bitter orange, angst, confusion, death, depression,
Form: Free verse
Daylights departure comes near
Her colors are aroused on a pallet premier
A dab of crimson and bitter orange too
Mixed in with a paisley powdered blue
Heavenly kissed dusted yellow
A peculiar quiet covers the countryside mellow
A blushing sundown has graced our presents
Evening breezes whispering summers events
Deep emerald lawns and well groomed trees
Busy dancing crickets chirp with ease
Eager bats take flight for a feast
Nature stirring its pollen released
Familiar kept associations of seasons in our minds
Tranquil warm zephyr continues it’s unwind
Bountiful maples call shadows in the twilight
As two lovers hold close under the emerging moon light
Categories:
bitter orange, nature, people, seasons
Form: Rhyme