Impermanence and The Dishes (Wednesday Writing Essentials)

you have given dishwashing an exqusisite painting flare of human relationships~ =)

Thank you so much for the lovely comment Purrrrrrrrrrr.

Thank you for posting this gem to GutterGirls~

Nice, Atticus.

Hey Ron, good to see you. I replied to your comment earlier and it disappeared! Anyhow, Thanks so much for the comment and for coming by to read!

Love, it is the little things perceived in grand majesty. well done.

Thank you Nancy

Ahhhh.... The quixotic nature of setlled love. This poem reflects the sensitive beauty of seasoned love. I remember that. Great poem. It has surprising depth for a theme apparently lighthearted.

Hey Umar, Thank you so much for the wonderful, and poignant comment.

Tender and profound, Atticus. Great theme.

Thank you Stirling

Because all of life is referential, if you know where and how to look! As you do, Atticus!

Indeed it is! Thanks so much for coming by Andrea! I appreciate the comment.

oh my oh my....are you a poetic mathematician? Me thinks so, with this incredible poem...superb.....

Featured in the Triple Name Club.

Thanks so much for the feature Kathryn and, of course, your very kind words.

My honey does the dishes for me often and I'm always grateful. I think your poem has universal appeal. It can be about seasoned or new love. We are the later. Thank you, Atticus!

Thank you Jennifer. Yes it can. ~I share your joy.

I'll never look at my dishwasher the same way again!

Nor will I. Thank you so much for reading and commenting Ruth.

In a short space you created a feast for thought.

Thank you Little Red. :-)

Came back to read again.........

I have no idea of the answers to the questions posed. But I like going from the intangible to the awakening last line. Good one, Atticus.

Thank you so much John. I'm not sure there are really any answers. ;-)

Pass me the tea towel.

You are welcome to dinner at our house any time Magi!

You are most kind.

John Locke in Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690) states that everything we know is from experience. He identifies two fountains of all knowledge - “the observation of external sensible objects”, and ” the internal operations of our minds perceived and reflected on by ourselves.” As one settled in a comfortable relationship, you extend the personal experience doing the dishes as you would as if you were reporting the fact of occurrences upon sensible objects such as news of events, scientific reporting, TV, Radio, gossip, blogging, etc. But then we see the internal operations of your mind and we smile.

elizabeth, Thanks so much for your thoughtful response to my poem. Thank you for noticing that I often incorporate multiple "ways" of thinking in my poems. :-)

You are most welcome to help with my dishes, but no peaking into the dishwasher for you! lol

Seriously, I strongly suspect you have a great marriage, because you see things so differently than most. Nothing is old or common with you. Cool!

Thank you Lynn, I'll be over as soon as I'm done with ours. ;-)

Great marriage? The best.

You posted this one at the last minute, I discovered! Glad you did, too.

I feel two ways about this. If I don't read too closely, I definitely get the same sense as many others who commented here, that of a warm, comfortable, committed marriage. But when I pick apart some of the images, I find myself in consternation. Have you written in a mixture of experimental poetry as well as snippets of narrative poetry?

The image of filling an ice cube tray does not connect me to snowflakes. Except that H2O is involved in each. So in all respect, I found this niggled in my head as I read the rest of the poem.

The next analogy also gave me more pause than it should have. I'm perhaps too concrete a thinker and found the images too disparate for me.

otoh, there is something about this poem that I love. I want to write a love-poem like this, too! Thank you for writing to the prompt. I look forward to your next submission.

Susan, In addition to my attempts to use the imagery in a very loose visual "painterly" way. The elements themselves have some specific symbolic meanings. I wanted to write a love poem without saying love; talk about "love, marriage, and death, without saying the words. (Also I'm a little strange and associations come quite freely to me.) If every snowflake is different, then so is every ice cube, particularly if you don't tilt the tray under the faucet to fill them up evenly. Thanks for your kind comments on my poem! I appreciate the critique very much indeed.

I'm smiling. Like you, I am a bit odd in my thinking. My son Will often teases me about the associations I come up with.

:-)

Atticus, ut-oh! This will blow your mind then - they found two identical snowflakes! Obviously, doesn't happen often, but.... ;)

I had the same difficulty following this poem as did Susan, but I'm left with a wonderful impression of the mystery inherent in long-term relationships. To be able to hold on to this is rare-- your wife is lucky.

Ann, Thank you so much. ~I am lucky. One key to this poem is the "Buddhist" concept of Impermanence. If that helps any. I'm so glad you enjoyed it!

I think to follow this poem is easy if you see through the passage of light shown by this poetry.
This is in a different way exploring the potential pieces to befit the puzzle of life.
Amazing poem.

years after years

Thank you Kushal You are very kind.

Oh wow. This is so delightful. A slice of life and love and something more.

Thanks Sheila. I appreciate the kind words.

I wish I could offer you a critique, Atticus, but I really saw nothing I could possibly suggest you improve. This is a poem I'd pause over if I read it in a review. The musing quality of this is such a gift of intimacy, a window cracked into the mind of another person... it's my favorite sort of poetry.

Corinna, I value your support as much as your perceptive and astute critique. You encourage me. Thank you so much for the very lovely affirmation of my poem.

You're very welcome, Atticus. When's your chapbook coming out? :)

Yea, that's something I really want to do. I need to review some poems and revise some others. And yours?

We're in the middle of that process too. With luck, I'll be able to scrape something together by the end of the year. Thank heavens for Lulu.com, because the publishers sure aren't biting. ;)

I made James sit through two hours of "Look at this graphic! How about this for a cover?" last night. He's very patient.

LuLu.com is great. I haven't ever used it but I've seen some of the books they put out. Fantastic for the price! Take it from me I know - (My day job is Pressroom Manager for a large commercial printer.) I want to buy a copy when you get yours together please.

Thanks for the info Tony

I've published using LuLu and I've been satisfied with the quality and price. The thing you'll miss is the distribution support you'd get with a publisher.

Also, why don't some of the Gatherers publish something together? Just a thought.

Oh, I'll definitely let y'all know when it's ready. It'll be under $10 too, because Lulu is just that awesome. ;)

Do you mean distribution support as in getting the word out that your book exists, Umar? I think they have a marketplace on Amazon now, and it seems pretty popular.

A yearbook of Gatherites' work would be interesting! Literotica has something like it, although it's contest-based.

I think that is a wonderful idea Umar. It would take a lot of coordination though. Something to think about!

This is excellent in its fusion of the natural and domestic as phenomena of time, and moreso in its celebration of the present moment. You carve the now like a gemstone, and hold its facets up to the light. Each moment is uniquely arranged and will not return; each passing present displays "the difference among snowflakes." It's really a lovely poem, Atticus, and I don't have anything to recommend.

James, You know how much I value your opinion and your poetic responses. Thank you so much for your kind comments on my poem.

On second reading, I think I'm tuning in to this a bit better.

The female-imposed order within his household is invisible to the narrator. He cannot distinguish it from chaos, and he marvels at how his wife and her invisible order are an anchor in the chaotic impermanence of life.

Interesting that you picked up on one of the subtle undertones of this piece Ann. Actually the poem started in my head because my Becky always fills up the ice trays with the faucet running too strongly and she never tilts the tray. Consequently every ice cube is a different size. Primarily, this poem is a celebration of my love for the uniqueness of every moment with her. Thanks for revisiting!:-)

This is the third piece I have read today that has the theme of impermanence. Hmm.

I smiled when I read the ice cube tray image because I noted something similar with my partner. That kind of observation has a tender in the moment feel to it. I like the playfulness of the last line which reminds me of the ending of some Sufi teaching stories.

Thank you so much for reading Peregrine. The Sufi were undoubtably teaching us to "get on with the moment."

I keep coming back to read this Atticus, this time startled I'd not already commented. The poem's been in my heart, nudging at my own lengthy marital entwine-ment. I love the conversation that's followed as well.
James' gem of "each passing present" is so key to marital longevity and your poem. Your speaker's thoughts towards the picture askew, "on a nail firmly anchored"... and "the inescapable impermanence of us" stay fired with 'cherish the time spent well together'. Thoughts of ice well thawed.

This is one for, 'Ade's favorite poems to sing aloud'.
Thank you!

You know that's going on my resume' Ade.

:-)

Great mind-twist. The juxtaposition of abstract connections, then stark reality. the graphic image of the pomegranate torn apart by mockingbirds is stunning. This could be a metaphor for a person picking (nagging) at your brain...but that may be just my warped view..enjoyed

Thanks Richard. I appreciate Your notice of the mockingbirds. Actually I was thinking of them as the symbol for innocence and the pomegranate as the symbol for eternal life. ;-)

Well, missed that one ...should have guessed that it was more esoteric. That is the fun in poetry is guessing the meanings of words and the metaphors. But mockingbirds are such squaking territorial birds.

I love this, Atticus. It is the little reveries we have in life that bring us into a full reality, or is it just the opposite?

Thanks so much Anne. It is good seeing you around. Who knows what direction wisdom travels.