I walked alone
Through the graveyard.
Then, on reaching home
I pondered on lovers
And the dead.
The graveyard plot
Is cold,
Whilst love is hot.
Yet the dead
And lovers
Both have their bed,
Do they not?
I Walked Alone
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Author Archives: K Morris Poet
Past Time
A rhyme
Captures a moment in time
Of joy or pain,
Which will never come again.
The poet may change
His original rhyme
But past time
He can not change.
Abstract Art
My friend, whose name is Miss Heart
Is well known for her abstract art.
Her cousin Lou
Lost a shoe.
Now it’s part of Miss Heart’s art
Feisty
A young man named Guy
Liked to make women cry.
But pretty Miss Pearl
Being a feisty girl,
Poked Guy in the eye!
“Progress”
I think on those who obsess
Over what they label “progress”.
And, on hearing the wind sing
In the venerable old tree,
I laugh, for all must pass.
How to Publish Your Poetry
Former Foyle Young Poet Phoebe Stuckes has some useful advice on how to publish your poetry, https://ypn.poetrysociety.org.uk/features/how-to-publish-your-poetry-putting-together-the-first-book/.
The main focus of Phoebe’s advice pertains to being published by traditional means, as opposed to self publishing.
In contrast to the above, all of my books have been self published.
Earlier this year I wrote a guest article on how to produce a Selected Poems, which can be found here, https://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/2020/02/11/why-produce-a-selected-poems-guest-post-by-kevin-morris/
In Praise of the Poetry Anthology
I have long been a fan of the poetry anthology. Indeed it was through such anthologies as Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch’s “The Oxford Book of English Verse”, and Francis Turner Palgrave’s “Golden Treasury”, that I first began to explore poetry for myself. (I had already had a love of the art form implanted in me by my grandfather and my school teacher Mr Delacruz).
I own a number of poetry anthologies, including Helen Gardner’s “The New Oxford Book of English Verse” (which replaced Quiller-Couch’s “Oxford Book of English Verse), and ”The Penguin Book of English Verse”, edited by John Hayward”.
The joy of leafing through an anthology for me resides in the fact that it introduces the reader to new poets and reminds him/her of old favourites. If one likes the work of a particular poet, it is easy to purchase their individual works or find their poetry online. My copy of Gardner’s “The New Oxford Book of English Verse” is so well thumbed that the braille has become rather faint in places!
This post on the Interesting Literature website contains recommendations for 5 poetry anthologies, https://interestingliterature.com/2016/08/best-poetry-anthologies/.
I was interested to read in the above post, that an updated edition of “The Oxford Book of English Verse”, edited by Sir Christopher Ricks, is available. Where it to be available in braille, I would certainly buy a copy. Unfortunately it is not, so I shall console myself with Gardner’s excellent “New Oxford”.
(A number of my own poems appear in “Croydon Poetry Anthology 2019/2020”, which can be found here, https://www.lulu.com/en/gb/shop/croydon-poets/croydon-poetry-hour-anthology-201920/paperback/product-rjpqzd.html).
Sincerity
When a young lady named Ria
Said, “sir, is your love sincere?”.
I said, “you are pretty
And I am quite witty.
But I’ve never been called sincere!”.
“My Madonna” by Robert W. Service
I recently took down from my bookcase Robert Service’s “The Spell of the Yukon”. Amongst the poems contained in that book is “My Madonna”, and reading it reminded me of this article, hence the reblog. Kevin
In “My Madonna”, by Robert W. Service, the narrator describes how he “hailed” a prostitute “from the street” and painted her portrait. Having added a halo to the original painting, the poet/narrator sells the portrait, which now hangs in a church” Where you and all may see”.
It is merely my interpretation, but the line “ And I sold her and took my fee”, suggests to me a connection between the subject of the painting (a prostitute) and the poet (over and above the obvious fact that he painted her portrait). Both are selling something. In the case of the “Madonna” this is sex, while the poet is selling the prostitute’s painting and, in a sense the girl herself.
You can find the poem here, https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/46644/my-madonna
For The Love Of Poetry
Yesterday, I came across an article by Melik Kaylan entitled “For the Love of Poetry”, https://www.forbes.com/2009/04/06/memorize-poetry-education-opinions-columnists-thomas-hardy.html.
Kaylan offers a spirited defence of traditional (rhyming) poetry, and of the benefits flowing from memorising it.
I vividly recollect learning Alfred Noyes’s poem “The Highwayman as a child, and reciting it to an audience, https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43187/the-highwayman. Noyes’s poem has a wonderful rhythm and I can still recall large chunks of “The Highwayman”.
I believe that being introduced to relatively simple (rhyming) poetry as a young boy kindled in me my love of the art. Had I been faced with free verse poetry at the same age, I am not sure that my love of poetry would have developed as it has.
There is (as I’ve said here before) much great free verse poetry. However my personal preference is for poetry that rhymes, or has some kind of meter to it. I also remain a traditionalist in that I agree with Kaylan as regards the benefits of memorising poetry.
As always, I would be interested in the views of my readers.
Kevin
K Morris - Poet 