Friday, November 27, 2009

a fragment before midnight



a fragment of your voice
fell behind my eyes
amethyst eyes
that hear like ears of flesh
it fell and lingered there
and with my eyes
amethyst eyes
that hear like ears of flesh
i heard you say
this is how i love you
i had not heard that part before
had not heard the how
i grasped with such speed like
trees racing
past my car with six windows
past my coach with six horses
racing and wanting to fly
on a tarmac of black and white
before midnight struck
and the pumpkin and mice appeared

but you said
forget this car and these windows
forget this coach and these horses
they are merely a pumpkin and mice
scurrying in a fairy tale of
uneven proportion
remember only this
these six words that will remain
this is how i love you
they are not six horses that
at midnight disappear
remember only this
these six words that will remain
this is how i love you
and brand them on my naked flesh
that, even if you, my princess,
should burn to cinders and
become stardust in the air
i, your prince,
shall have them yet

but i know the cinders possess
like ancient trees with twisted roots
and although we dream of
magic wands and golden nights
they will possess this time again

i am a mangled layer of skin
flat upon the tarmac of black and white
amethyst-eyed and berry-mouthed
like a silent-movie star
sleeping and dreaming
with my glass slipper
tucked beneath my head
sleeping and dreaming
by the crashed cars with
soaped-over windows and
six layers of fresh paint that
don't hide the dents outside
or the cinders within

i am a mangled sheet of vellum
flat upon the tarmac of black and white
underneath a dry sky that is you
and my dreams are my quill
drawing upon me
a catalogue of confetti
an inkblot of confusion
propelling me like a compulsion
into the darkness of
an unjeweled midnight
where an invisible wand strikes
and we all become
pumpkins and mice

36 comments:

Caio Fern said...

did you make the fall of ilusions a very sensual thing ? !!
hahahh!!!
you're incredible .
i could describe all my sensations about this now .... but i am shy at this moment . hahahh!!!
i loved Nevine .
thank you for this briliant work .
have a great weekend !!
kisses !!

Shadow said...

this is a poem of love, in proportions i have not read before. i'm speechless and breathless. and please write some more...

Martin said...

Truly beautiful.

S. Susan Deborah said...

I wish it was written for me . . .
Love poems are timeless and personless. They are universal.

Joy always,
Susan

Betty Manousos said...

Nevine, your writing has been an inspiration to me. And i always feel better after reading your posts. You're awesome my sweet.
Have a lovely and safe weekend!
love and
hugs hugs

Anonymous said...

The magnitude of such profound love...surreal. I was taken there for a moment, as I read. Powerful! Thank you, Nevine for sharing your brilliance with us.

Yes, my Thanksgiving Day was great! Thank you for visiting :)

Anonymous said...

i enjoyed this. thank you.

Nevine Sultan said...

Caio - One of the biggest pleasures of reading poetry lies in its allowing us to interpret it as we wish. I'm happy you enjoyed this, Caio. A lovely weekend to you too!

Shadow - How should I take this, coming from you? I'm flattered and floored. Thank you, Shadow - you're too sweet.

Martin - I appreciate that very much.

Susan - Yes, there are words we read sometimes that we wish had been written for us. I'm glad this evoked that feeling in you, Susan. Thank you for your kindness.

Betty - Thank you so much, and I wish you a great weekend, as well!

Roxy - And thank you for your always encouraging comments. I'm happy to hear you enjoyed your day!

raskolniikov - Thanks for stopping in for a visit, and for enjoying what I wrote.

Owen said...

Nevine... honestly... this is worrying... this is now so powerful as to be able to light up an entire hemisphere of the planet, like the sun does. If the power companies figure out how to harness the energy here you are going bankrupt entire sectors by causing coal and nuclear fired power plants to close down, they won't be needed, your writing shines bright like a thousand stars ... even wind powered generators may not be needed if your power is harnessed...

This is big... this is huge... this is gigantic... this defies comprehension. Reading this I get the same feeling I get when I go into the Louvre and stand before the Winged Victory of Samothrace... One knows when one is in the presence of pure blindingly beautiful light given off by great art. Could I but write reviews for the NYT, for the New Yorker, for Rolling Stone, I would urge people everywhere to come here and read this. And the previous posts.

But such is not my lot in life at present, for the time being I can only scurry about like the mouse that I have been transformed into suddenly, wondering how to get back inside the pumpkin...

Had I a hat on I would take it off to you.

Had I a bottle of champagne I would open it for you.

Had I a head I would bow it to you.

Had I a song I would sing it for you.

Had I a voice, I would thank you...

Had I two fingers, I would type out the most beautiful tribute imaginable to you... if I only knew what that might look like...

Nevine Sultan said...

Owen - How do I respond to this almost Shakespearian comment, really? You flatter me, and I really do appreciate your enthusiasm. And I know you are sincere. Consider the hat and the champagne and the song and the tribute all done and received. Your comment has left me smiling and ready to start my day with a punch! Thank you for your always kind presence, Owen. I appreciate you.

Madame DeFarge said...

After such eloquent praise, saying that I enjoyed it seems almost rudely simplistic. But I did enjoy it and I felt the passion come through the words.

Rikkij said...

Nevine- I've read through this many times, now. I'm not yet sure if his love is good or only good for him. Seems so possessive. Not sure she is ready for his declaration. Wish I knew more precisely what he meant by "how" This is truly an excellent journey. Well done~rick

Renee said...

Nevine a fairy tale that speaks the truth.

You have the heart of the fifth star I saw in the sky last night Nevine.

Love to you dear friend.

Renee xoxoo

Cynthia said...

stunning in her entire being, this poem opens
herself and tells all: how the vulnerable
one, lover yearns to believe, the grasp in
faith her lovers words. this is how I love
you - like a verse from a bible that carries
across the threshold of life and to the end
of it, and just that the end, how to take
the end too - without dying yourself.

GYPSYWOMAN said...

breathtakingly beautiful! it flows and breathes and feels and transports and dances - just beautiful, lady!!! loved it! a stunning piece!

Judith Mercado said...

“amethyst eyes
that hear like ears of flesh …”

I almost stopped there to savor that image but forced myself to read on. The rest of the poem did not disappoint. Reading your poetry, acknowledging your technical skill, is a sensory experience. As the quote suggests, it may be because you use our senses in such original ways that one can’t help but be carried along into images with enhanced dimensionality.

Nevine Sultan said...

Mme. DeFarge - There is nothing rudely simplistic about any comment. I appreciate all comments (well, as long as they're gentle), and you know I truly appreciate yours. Thank you, as always.

Rick - I don't know why you fancy yourself confused; you get it entirely. Yes, he wants to possess her, but she does sense it, hence her knowing that the "cinders possess" and her knowing that she can't win. And yet, she dreams, but still, she knows that it's all a dream. Thank you, Rick, for always getting it.

Renee - And you have the heart of an angel. Love to you, too.

Cynthia - Yes yes yes! She so wants to believe. And you so understand what I write, Cynthia. I always appreciate your visits. Thank you.

Gypsywoman - "... transports and dances..." I love that! Transporting is what I try for the most - transporting to the moment of... As for dancing, well, who doesn't like that? Thank you so much, Gypsywoman.

Judith - Your attention to the technical as well as the sensory detail is something I appreciate greatly. I try to capture the truth of a moment in a variety of ways, and your comment is very reassuring that I succeed. Thank you for being such a meticulous and critical reader, Judith.

Craftsman of light said...

What an emotional architecture, to flirt with the complexities, to lose into the labyrinth with well mapped words.... 'this is how i love it!'

Once again you display your great dexterity!
Bravo, Nevine! Vraiment magnifique!!
Mercie beaucoup!

Anonymous said...

Well Nevine I have to admit I am quite embarassed and ashamed that I have nothing more to give than my humbled praise for your work. After reading the most creative and intriguing comments from your readers. Whether it's six words or three, when they tumble from a lover's lips they unravel the finest thread of one's innermost desires and credence leaving one bare in essence before his eyes.

Calli said...

This is my first visit, Nevine, and what a visit it has been!
This is superb writing!

Truly enjoyed and will visit again for sure~

thank you~
Calli
ps~ I am very drawn to the painting as well...very intriguing!

Nevine Sultan said...

Craftsman - Tu es vraiment gentil. C'est moi qui te remercie, pour tes mots, pour ta gentillesse, mais surtout pour ta présence. Je t'apprécie, Craftsman. :-)

Sharla - Nothing to be embarrassed about, my dear. Your so-called humbled praise is very much appreciated, and you know it. Thanks for always being here!

Calli - Welcome to my nest of dreams! I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed your visit, and even happier to know you will be coming back. Thank you, and I will be looking forward to seeing you here.

steveroni said...

First visit also for me...and I am so humbled, I feel I should not trod here again, for fear of some sort of desecraton which might ensue.

This postem is so exquisite that I am left without words. Believe me, that is better than all the words I might conjure.

This is an experience, rather than a read....
Thank you for putting yourself out here for us. Hopefully I'll quell my fear of returning.

Nevine Sultan said...

Steve - I am the one who is humbled by your comment. You are so very sweet, and a visit from you is no desecration. I am so happy you enjoyed my writing, and I do hope you will not be afraid to return. Be an adventurous soul... as I'm sure you are!

Anonymous said...

i too descend from that golden land. my father is egyptian and my mother english. i do like the picture of alexandria you have posted on the right. it took me back to summer vacations when i was a child. thanks.

Anonymous said...

Sounds like the how comes and goes. Elizabeth Barret Browning counts the ways. I guess the number changes.

laughingwolf said...

feed the mice to the cat and make a pie of the pumpkin... that way some hungers are assuaged

Rick said...

Such an elegant tapestry of love and defeat so delicately woven with strands of unfulfilled desire. What a magnificent pleasure it is to come and visit you here.

A Cuban In London said...

This is one of the most intense poems I've read in a long time. And I read a lot. What caught me from the word go was the 'how'. We usually explain the 'why'. Why do you love me? Because you have beautiful eyes, because you have an open mind, because...

But rarely we hear about the 'How do you love me?' Even after reading your latest offering, I am stil bemused. How do you love a person? By doing the housechores? Is that enough? By giving them flowers?

What a post! What a post! Many thanks.

Greetings from London.

Dulçe ♥ said...

Wow! How happy am I to have found you lady poetess.
This writing about love has no definition or any similarity to what I've read before.

Great work dear ♥

Nevine Sultan said...

Raskolniikov - Golden land indeed! Those photos hold tender memories. I do hope you won't be a stranger here.

Jason - The how does come and go, and is never truly defined. Browning is very specific, while our Prince Charming is being elusive. He says "this is how" but never actually defines it. What is "this"? It seems she never finds out...

Laughingwolf - An original comment, laughingwolf. But I've learned to expect nothing less of you. :-)

Rick - The pleasure is mine entirely. I'm so honored by your visits.

Cuban - Is anything ever enough with love? I think not. We always want more and more and more. But that's what makes of it our lifelong obsession. Thank you, Cuban, for your always wonderful comments!

Dulce - Welcome! And thank you so much for your kind words. I'll be seeing you at both your place and mine.

Anonymous said...

I loved reading this, much the same as the way I always feel after I enjoy your fine words.

Secretia

Nevine Sultan said...

Thank you, Secretia. That's sweet!

Stacey J. Warner said...

wow, truly captivating too many perfect prose to list...

much love

Nevine Sultan said...

Thank you, Stacey!

heavealie said...

believing in someone,in his words that all that matters is love and not other material things in life and combining it with fantasy that even if all this disappears those words will remain true for the rest of their lives and no one can change that.in this world even though fairy tales seem far fetched we still sit below the blue sky and imagine ourselves reaching for that fairy tale world where the words of prince assures that our love will remain forever!!finding that assurance in real life from our loved ones,everyone looks for those six words.coz they will never dissapear and remain there forever.excellent and beautiful you have combined love with fantasy which only makes us see a vivid picture of your words.well written and maybe reading reading your poems will help in further improving myself and learning from you.keep writing!!

Nevine Sultan said...

Heavealie, thank you for your sweetest and most insightful comment. You are so right in everything you say! I'm glad to know there are people out there who share my inner world. Thank you for your presence.