I drift in peace as time yields up its last control. (Form: Inverted Refrain)
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Summer's End Softly, wisps of sound pierce the veil that holds me captive for my crime. My failing body is my jail; my sole offense - I've past my prime. There's no escape. I won't prevail against the ravages of time. For solace I seek days long past: remembered romance, summer days when all tomorrows stretched out vast far beyond my temporal gaze. Sweet memories, recalled at last; the end of time is lost in haze. Rolled up white sleeves on tight tee-shirts holding Camels – a badge of youth. Be-bop music and poodle skirts - a time when people spoke the truth. A lover's kisses soothed all hurts; friends could be counted on for ruth. Warm memories speed through my mind like fast cars racing toward a goal. A final breath – I leave behind my shackles as I free my soul. I drift in peace, no more confined, as time yields up its last control. Notes: An entry for "Stormy's poetry newsletter & contest" [ASR] Word Bank: summer romance poodle skirts white tee-shirts fast cars ruth - compassion or pity for another. Form: The Inverted Refrain consists of four 6-line stanzas, for a total of 24 lines. The first four lines of a stanza create a statement from which the last 2 lines extract the meaning, and invert the way it was said. The last two lines of each stanza, which are the 'inverted refrain', are indented as a couplet. The Inverted Refrain is a rhyming poem with a set meter and rhyme scheme as follows: Rhyme scheme per stanza: Lines #1-4 are abab; Lines #5 and #6, the two inverted refrain lines, can be ab or ba. Meter: 8 syllables in every line. Thank you for taking the time to read my story. Please, as long as you're here, leave a comment. Criticisms, thoughts, reactions - yes – even words of encouragement or praise – are all equally welcome Ken |