In a dream I was a knight
made of flowers.
And on my tabard
where should rest the sigil
of a dead king
or heraldry of an unfeeling
God,
There is your face.
Silhouetted by your halo.
My errantry brings your grace
to fields afar that have seen
no hands more loving than
the plowman's
,who does the work
but not in love,
in hope
in foolish, romantic hope
that such reverence,
such courtly love
could make the plowman see
that there is love to be found
in the work
that there is something holy
in the deed.
That if I could be all that I am,
could not what he planted?
Because hands like tools planted me,
but it was loving hands that pulled me
from the earth.
A loving hand that twisted my stems
into arms,
that I could write these words
that tangled my roots
into legs,
that I could see what was beyond my field
that interwove my petals
into beating, bleeding poetry,
that I could shine the love breathed into me
back out.
Rhymes in Nine 2 10-11-24 Rhymes checked with www.rhymezone Picture #4
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fall Rhapsody
Fall rhapsody to BEGIN, TOLD IN scarlet tones,
A SERENADE for strings in a PARADE of russet GOLD hues -
A JUBILEE for acorns and for oaks in an autumn harvest JAMBOREE.
Maple LEAVES BLUSH in SHEAVES of firelight crimson choruses
Courtly LOVE sung like minuets OF twilight THRUSH vespers
MERRY harmonies of CRANBERRY aria odysseys.
Trees FESTOONED in UMBER pantaloons cast off MAROONED melodies
Twilight breezes FAN a cinnamon TAN pup in SLUMBER -
Orange opus CALLS when fall RECALLS harvest harmony.
Carriage drawn by four black steeds
Zombie coachman no blood to bleed
He is employed by Dracula
Who calls him fondly Tarantula.
Tonight he's on deadly mission
His masters suffering malnutrition
With fangs that ache, desperate for blood
He's practised in art of courtly love.
Tarantula picked up Dracula's date
Dressed to the nines her fate awaits
Beautiful woman if only she knew
Vampires entice and then subdue.
Charming Count's enigmatic smile
Teeth so white he does beguile
Taking her hand at table they sit
He really has most invasive wit.
Weaving his spell she quickly falls under
Satisfied Count made fatal blunder
He turned her into creature of night
She now bedevils him, wanting a bite.
I hear girlish laughter beyond the bagged onions.
Imagine her swimming naked among green ripples.
Her white arms are lily stems, hips as sleek as an otter
flow in a neon moonlight.
A sound system promotes discount cookies.
Visions of idealized females fill the dairy product section.
A courtly love of grapes spreads to the potatoes.
In the toy aisle, Avalon, Camelot, and Tintagel
appear in plastic miniature together with rainbow painted ponies.
Between the crisp covers of Guns & Ammo and Cosmo,
Annales Cambriae, Historia Brittornum,
and the writings of Gildas shimmer in periodic reality.
I should turn the old legends off, but the Kimble audio
keeps me walking with Malory and Tennyson.
In toiletries and cosmetics, I find her.
A teenager shyly laughing as she texts a boy.
My imagination reaches for the forbidden,
a fruit that was fresh this morning –
a thousand years ago.
Love Is courtly
boundless, warm, fervent
steadfast, spiritual, free
tough, happy.
Love is
...us
7/27/2021
Written words by James Edward Lee Sr. 2021©
I hear girlish laughter beyond the bagged onions.
Imagine her swimming naked among green ripples.
Her white arms are lily stems, hips as sleek as an otter
flow in a neon moonlight.
A sound system promotes discount cookies.
Visions of idealized females fill the dairy product section.
A courtly love of grapes spreads to the potatoes.
In the toy aisle, Avalon, Camelot, and Tintagel
appear in plastic miniature together with rainbow painted ponies.
Between the crisp covers of Guns & Ammo and Cosmo,
Annales Cambriae, Historia Brittornum,
and the writings of Gildas shimmer in periodic reality.
I should turn the old legends off, but the Kimble audio
keeps me walking with Malory and Tennyson.
In toiletries and cosmetics, I find her.
A teenager shyly laughing as she texts a boy.
My imagination reaches for the forbidden,
a fruit that was fresh this morning –
a thousand years ago.
Take a Step Forward and Don't Look Back
Drama of lover’s fears and tears.
I place my hands up to my ears,
Roll my eyes, and walk away,
Oh, why does it have to be this way?
Why can't things ever change for us?
~
I take a deep breath
And sneak out until the air clears.
Into the comfort of my room
And close the door
Where I find tranquility
And serenity of silence.
I lay on my bed with a good book
And open the door
Entering a fantasy world of
Medieval castles with Prince and Princess
Courtly manners and courtly love,
Knights with their codes of chivalry.
Fire breathing dragons and magic fairies,
Greek & Roman gods and goddesses.
~
You will never experience
All that is wonderful
If you keep focusing
On the bad experience
That’s behind you.
~
Where is the justice?
~
Take a step forward,
Forget the evil of the past.
Lay it all on a pyre
And put it a flame
And watch it all go up in flames.
Just walk away
And don't
Look back.
8/25/2015
I saw you today
the sun swirled around your beauty
and I envied it's chance to dance with you
in a glorious eddy of entanglement
I wanted to speak to you of love
but time and space seemed to always block my way
and others always seemed
to be there to build a wall between you and me
And so once again
I spent my day
just being with you
but never telling you of my thoughts
that have taken to slumbering in the refuge of my mind
Now those thoughts tell tales
that have no concerns for keeping silent
I saw you today
and birds sang of your extravagance
it was a melody that cradles one's soul
and draws water from one's eyes
I wanted to join in
but my cowardice
gave counsel
to spend my time looking on from afar
It told me it was far better
to boldly love you with the love of knights
Submissive squire on his foot
Helping his best knight, to put
On the weapons o’ not so cute
Beautified horses galloping,
The sharpen swords clanging,
And wooden poles jousting,
While this beauty, mocks by tear,
Huddling, silently, in her own fear
Because of her one and only dear
For her love,
She prays of-
“Use the speed o’ thy eyes, oh knight o’ mine
For a love to dwell, forever, in arms o’ thine!”
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