.
The starlit sky is filled with smoke
______and men succumb
To dread, while folded hands invoke
______to overcome
This awful plight; yet prayers heard
______through fervid faith
Are breath for Satan. Death’s preferred
______to blows that scaith
And wake the human soul. If eyes
______could only find
A route where dreams of peace can rise
______against the wind.
.
.
Satyananda Sarangi is a young civil servant by profession. A graduate in electrical engineering from IGIT Sarang, his works have featured in The Society of Classical Poets, Snakeskin, WestWard Quarterly, Sparks of Calliope, Page & Spine, Glass: Facets of Poetry, The GreenSilk Journal and elsewhere. Currently, he resides in Odisha, India.
Thank you. I like this, especially the last quatrain, and the rhyming of find and wind.
Greetings Mr. Erlandson!
Thanks a lot for the appreciation. Well, the rhyming of find and wind came natural to me – I guess it’s embedded in my mind. W.B. Yeats often used the ‘find-wind’ rhymes; his writing has had some influence on me.
,But for those mornings when I find
The lapwing at their foolish dies
And the sheep bleating at the wind
As when I also played the fool.’
(from “The Hour Before Dawn” by William Butler Yeats)
Best wishes and warm regards.
Yeats is the real deal.
Thank you for your poem and especially for the dream of peace.
Dear Allegra ma’am, greetings!
The situation in Afghanistan is alarming. Putting aside the blame game that’s going on, if we consider the future of the country, one can only dream of peace.
Quite thankful for reading my poem – you’ve been one constant reader of my works. Grateful.
Best wishes and Regards.
Wonderful! I have seldom seen a more accomplished Alexandroid. My thanks to Mr. Mantyk for drawing it to my attention.
Hi, Mr. Carter,
I know this is an older thread, but I was excited to see mention of your name here, and then to find a reply from you!
I attended a reading of yours at Purdue University when I was an engineering student there in the early 1980s.
We students were allowed to read for you as well, and the moment when a line of my poem made you smile remains to this day one of the highlights of my life.
I hope you are well.
Greetings, Jared Carter Sir!
There’s not a bigger accomplishment than being appreciated for a form by the inventor himself. At first, the alexandroid to me appeared as crisp, subtle and skillful – I took an instant liking to the form. Glad to have your comment here, it made my weekend.
Thank you. Best wishes and regards
Dear Mr. Sarangi –
Your very sensitive poem is much appreciated. Americans are very ashamed for the mess. It is awful. How can it be an
accident?
Please,l share your fine work again.
Dear Sally ma’am, greetings!
Thank you for your kind appreciation. It means a lot. Keep inspiring young poets like us.
Best wishes.
Warm Regards
I’m not familiar with the word “scaith” at the end of the second stanza. Can you enlighten me? Did you mean “scathe?” But I agree with Jared that you have mastered the essential elements of the alexandroid.
That is a great alexandroid… and C.B. I found this:
scaith
n. A Scotch spelling of scathe.
More at Wordnik from The Century Dictionary.
So I guess that’s the spelling after the proper amount of whisky has been honoured.
Good whisky is better imbibed than honored, and the “proper amount” is as much as you can handle. Raised cups are better than crazed pups. Or so I’ve been told.
I’d rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy… that’s an old groaner..
From Dorothy Parker.
Dear Mr. Bryant, greetings!
Well I think that poetry has a greater effect than that of whisky! It’s always wonderful to have your comment here, I love that deadly sense of humor.
Best wishes.
Dear Mr. Anderson, greetings!
Well let me confess – I was thinking about you as I was writing this and it was because of the following comment of yours on my last alexandroid –
“The next time you write an alexandroid, remember: more enjambment! See the original article for Jared Carter’s (the inventor of the form) thoughts on this.”
Your words have always been a guiding light, thanks for the inspiration.
Satyananda, you have managed to take the heart-rending tragedy in Afghanistan and wrap it in the sensitivity and beauty of carefully chosen and adeptly woven words, while maintaining the integrity of a challenging form, and for that I commend you and thank you. I can only echo the words of the inspirational and creative Mr. Carter; “I have seldom seen a more accomplished Alexandroid” – very well done, indeed.
Dear Susan ma’am, greetings!
The alexandroid form has been close to me ever since I laid my eyes on it. We are heading towards a catastrophe – the crisis in Afghanistan is a threat to mankind everywhere.
Thanks a ton for your kind words. Keep inspiring. 🙂
What’s a better tribute to a good poem than writing another (though not so good) one!
In Bliss for now…
They say- in Greek and Latin works well but
our language suit not nice
Not sure- I must admit but seen lot glut
in times fresh in a trice.
So thought I- why not try this form now when
stars shine bright in my sky
and feeble venture one to pen begin
Voila! It’s not bad try.
May, nay nay, surely need more practice some
but virgin strives like this
for certain shall dispel all crumbs of glum
and for now, I’m in bliss.