An Ernest Whirl

Aug 24

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Each little breath-of-a-poem begins with a phrase purloined from A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway.
 


 
~~ 1 ~~
 
stretch of river bank
near the precipitous cliff—
her quavering heart
 
~~ 2 ~~
 
a bleak, windy stretch
with nothing to sustain her
but some cheap red wine
 
~~ 3 ~~
 
this cold afternoon
even the pigeons stutter
as they try to coo
 
~~ 4 ~~
 
Even the false spring
baffles the chestnut seller
on the rue Ampère.
 
~~ 5 ~~
 
pitiful old man
pushing a rickety cart
filled with rotting grapes
 
~~ 6 ~~
 
crowded market street—
her longing for fresh scallions
draws her to one stall
 
~~ 7 ~~
 
all of the sadness
leaking into her old bones
with the autumn rain
 
~~ 8 ~~
 
in the clear sharp wind
crows practising a language
to mock passersby
 
~~ 9 ~~
 
a cold windswept street—
running down a flight of stairs
to meet her lover
 
~~ 10 ~~
 
saddest part of town—
the absence of a taxi
to whisk her away
 
~~ 11 ~~
 
the public bathhouse—
through a rift in the west wall
old men ogling her

 
© 2014 by Magical Mystical Teacher
 
 
More Poetry Pantry #215
 
More The Sunday Whirl, Wordle 175

Posted on August 24, 2014, in 5-7-5, Ernest Hemingway, The Poetry Pantry, The Sunday Whirl and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. 32 Comments.

  1. oldegg | August 24, 2014 at 5:41 am

    How sad most of these are. Where were the young men ogling the in No 11; surely the old men had seen their fill?

    Reply
  2. Björn Rudberg (brudberg) | August 24, 2014 at 5:46 am

    I love it when you go gritty and sad.. All those are excellent – but the man with rotting grapes.. That’s an image making me shiver.

    Reply
  3. Sumana Roy | August 24, 2014 at 6:21 am

    everyone’s trying their way to heat up…nice set…didn’t know whether to laugh out loud or be sad @ no.11…

    Reply
  4. Mary | August 24, 2014 at 6:22 am

    A fine set here! Must really be cold if the pigeons are stuttering.

    Reply
  5. Grace | August 24, 2014 at 7:15 am

    Love your haiku specially number 7 ~ I need to sharpen my haiku pen, smiles ~

    Reply
  6. Gillena Cox | August 24, 2014 at 7:16 am

    luv #9, surely love will keep her warm; have Sunday

    much love…

    Reply
  7. Rallentanda | August 24, 2014 at 7:44 am

    I like the stuttering pigeons cooing with the cold. No 11.The old pervert one was creepy but effective!

    Reply
  8. ZQ | August 24, 2014 at 8:32 am

    Always enjoy my visit… and blowing my mind 🙂

    Reply
  9. G L Meisner | August 24, 2014 at 9:50 am

    Very well done, I enjoy poems that are inspired by literature and Hemingway fits the bill.

    Reply
  10. keiths ramblings | August 24, 2014 at 10:33 am

    Usually one little piece jumps out at me, but this week I don’t have a favourite – in fact they are all my favourites! Nicely done. Glad to see you too found this week’s hidden Wordle words!

    Reply
  11. Misky | August 24, 2014 at 11:06 am

    Number three is delightful.

    Reply
  12. jae rose | August 24, 2014 at 11:17 am

    There is a permeating sadness but also perseverance and being which although tough is admirable an affirming…

    Reply
  13. arushiahuja | August 24, 2014 at 12:24 pm

    what a beautiful series of Haikus… i love the old man and his rickety cart one… its sad and also makes me a nostalgic at the same time !

    Reply
  14. 1sojournal | August 24, 2014 at 1:53 pm

    Really love how you bring a scene and an individual alive, one small detail at a time.

    Elizabeth

    http://soulsmusic.wordpress.com/

    Reply
  15. James Jamztoma Toma | August 24, 2014 at 2:23 pm

    “Saddest part of town/ the absence of a taxi/ to whisk her away– I think I can relate to this haiku because it happened to me some time ago and it was not pretty… anxiety, worrying, creeped out… yes I was. But nice set of haikus. You have a talent for them I can see.

    Jamztoma
    Jamztoma.blogspot.com

    Reply
  16. Loredana Donovan | August 24, 2014 at 6:31 pm

    These are all very good ~ hard to pick a favorite ~ but the one with the autumn rain is a classic haiku. The homeless man pushing the cart is a strong image, too.

    Reply
  17. seingraham | August 24, 2014 at 8:16 pm

    These had me laughing through my tears mostly…I too love number 3, but number 7 is my absolute favourite.

    http://thepoet-tree-house.blogspot.ca/2014/08/of-rifts-cliffs-and-brittle-bone.html

    Reply
  18. vivienne blake | August 25, 2014 at 12:59 am

    These are really good. Number 8 is my favourite.

    Reply
  19. kaykuala | August 25, 2014 at 7:00 am

    The opening haiku is itself a remarkable take and ushering the many others that follow of similar feel. Great write MMT!

    Hank

    Reply
  20. LauraALord | August 25, 2014 at 9:23 am

    Amazing imagery! Well done!

    Reply
  21. Bastet | August 26, 2014 at 2:58 am

    all of the sadness
    leaking into her old bones
    with the autumn rain

    seems like it written for me this summer … lovely series.

    Reply
  22. Torie | August 29, 2014 at 10:29 pm

    These are all very wonderful! My favorites are #2 and #7. Very good writing indeed!

    Reply
  23. Splendid Empress | August 30, 2014 at 4:39 pm

    I absolutely love this. You have inspired me to give it a try – I hope you will not mind if I choose another book and use the words from 8/31/14 to attempt my own version of a “whirl.”

    Reply
  24. Love Happy Notes - Daily Fun and Inspiration | August 31, 2014 at 4:59 am

    I love ‘even the pigeons stutteras they try to coo’.

    Reply

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