The Passion & The Pain
by Pete Marshall
As fires drove an incessant burn
that pained the very path of life
silhouettes flashed across the heart
and warmed themselves upon a knife
who’s hilt was jewelled with sapphire & pearl
and blade was tipped in purest gold
her breath blew air across its spine
as mercury dripped in eyes of coal
An image spurned in mirrored light
reflecting back upon his soul
as nights were dark the bed was cold
and earth was where she slivered home
the blade would shine and captivate
exploring eyes and pain alike
the pearl was smooth and creamy pale
but hard to touch in stubborn light
The sapphire burned upon a wound
that filled the room in crimson red
and spread across the unkempt sheets
and tore at flesh no longer dead
the air was breathed in gasps of joy
as earth lay fresh upon the ground
the jewels were shared between two hearts
the blade lay spent within the mound
**************
Today I offer a symbolic tale of passion & pain, that so often comes together after emotions have run high, for One Shot Wednesday, part of One Stop Poetry, a great platform for poets from all over the world to unite, explore and promote poetry of all genres. One Shot opens tonight at 10pm UK time, 5pm EST
72 comments:
Pete this is beautiful.
Truly wonderful work, Pete. Imagery is vivid and full of flash and color, and you tell the story so well.
the passion and the pain - wonder why they so often come together...beautiful poem pete..full of imagery
nice. wonderful imagery pete...passion and pain are lovers themselves...each taking their nip and tuck at times...of course there is the sexual imagery of the knife as well...nice one shot!
The imagery in this was marvellous.
I love this Pete!wherever there is passion, there is always pain..Epic as usual poet..:)
I said I'd write comments today that I would want to hear but Pete, honestly,how does one have anything to say about your work but splendid, brilliant, beautiful, multi-layered leaving one breathless, and in awe.
this had everything! Gorgeous imagery...the knife especially. Well written.
Lots of imagery, felt very intense. Well done again.
Nice use of ambiguity with words like "mound." (Or is my naughty mind reading something into it?)
Dramatic, vivid, easy-to-follow "plot" and natural flow.
Dramatic, vivid, easy-to-follow "plot" and natural flow.
dramatic indeed, loved this pete ;)
For some reason passion and pain always goes hand in hand...full of imagery so well crafted my friend. Wonderful One Shot Brava!!
delicious - simply delicious!
Spectacular Pete, such is life, these contrasts between pain & passion. This was so beautifully done, and rather haunting in some manner of vivid historical impressions. Very engaging, stunning work! ~April :)
Really beautiful imagery ... very evocative. Thank you!
"her breath blew air across its spine..." Vivid, intense, sensual and passionate. A masterful poem...I'm in awe.
~Shell
Beautiful. I sense the passion and pain in your heart and familiar to all.
You told me your post for today was "good." Understatement of the year. A very telling poem with lyrical flair. Welcome back, Pete
Also, was just checking out your One Shot Archive. Be proud of those early posts, my friend :)
The whole thing was a Jewell....
You are the master of poetic and passionate tales! Hats off!
This was great. Incredible imagery!
Wow! I was captivated. :)
beautiful rhythm and some wonderful images of the knife the "mercury dripped in eyes of coal" nice Peter you are a alchemist from a previous life -- were you a student of Merlin? ....I feel it in a lot of your writings....bkm
Pete I have enjoyed your poetry since the beginning. You have hit a new hight with this. emotion and pain are on the forefront this Wednesday - glad I missed that memo
I am proud of your work my friend
Moonie smiles
did you know we have a competition closing on Friday??? Oh you do!!!
thankyou for your comments everyone but yes i would like to add a footnote to this poem....with most of my work i like the initial impact of the poem to be easily understood but then the layers need to be explored....there is obvious sexual imagery in this piece but beyond that there is more...the two signs are gemini & virgo who's elements are air & earth..their stones are pearl & sapphire...mercury is heavily associated to both these signs..coal comes from the earth and so forth...this is just a snippet of its meaning which i hope helps the reader to explore the poem more...cheers Pete
The blade of passion and pain. Wonderful work!
I loved the line "as mercury dripped in eyes of coal".
This is wonderful writing!
I got lost in the Passion and the Pain. Silhouettes flashed across the heart and warmed themselves...
This is quite breath taking. You paint such a vivid scene with your words. Well done.
Christine
I enjoyed it throughly... your words like "The sapphire burned upon a wound
that filled the room in crimson red" took me to the next level of imagery... I enjoyed it so well...thanks for sharing...
ॐ नमः शिवाय
Om Namah Shivaya
Twitter: @VerseEveryDay
Blog: http://shadowdancingwithmind.blogspot.com/
Wonderful poem...
Exquisite!
Wysteria
Beautiful, beautiful, such imagery - and so vivid, so passionate. Marvelous construction.
passion and pain, sapphire and pearl... love the contrasts... so much color imagery with the gold-tipped knife, eyes of coal, and the crimson red blood... very visually alluring, with a feel of premodern times... enjoyed reading this very much.... glad you are back. :) heartspell
Powerful, Powerful, Powerful imagery that made me fall right into it. Haunting.
Acid trip good stuff.....
Lady Nyo
This is a gorgeous piece, Pete, both in the flashing colorful images and the rhythm and pace the words have. Really great One Shot, my friend.
Wonderfully vivid imagery throughout
This offers so many layers of understanding, Pete. I think it's one I could read again and again and come away with something new each time.
Victoria
Not sure why exactly... The first two lines of each stanza really grab me. The whole piece is marvellous. Love and Light, Sender
Nice One Shot, Pete... full of intriguing imagery.
A totally orgasmic sumptuous experience! Delving into your poetry is like delving into an adventure. Passionate, amazing. I'm knackered now :) Excellent write!
Great one shot - talking of passion and pain - sister and brother ;)
thanks for stopping by my place
Really vivid and intense.
brilliant. i love this line: but hard to touch in stubborn light
... something about stubborn light...
you woo with your words, friend.
Yowza! Way to make it hot and intense all together.
I read this one ever so slowly as to savour every word.I'm a gemini.And all my life I felt torn between two sides of me.
Passions and Pains.You can't appreciate passion without experiencing pain.A powerful mixture!Brilliant work.Was a pleasure reading it!
This is a marvel of a poem, deserving several readings to catch all the details. Fine One Shot!!
"the air was breathed in gasps of joy" beautifully written! full of vivid imagery... a pleasure to read.
Now that is a well crafted lyric.
Splendid.
Wow. Pretty involved there. I need to go back and read it again. It reminded me of the combination of sex and violence. These things seem opposite (like pleasure and pain) but they also fit so well together. And you showed that in your piece.
Wonderful imagery here.
Very vivid imagery, weaving a torrid tale. I liked this very much.
symbolic, not so much... passionate? absolutely! V.cool!
Very beautiful, Pete!
as with many of your writings, I find myself unable to grasp it intellectually at first, but my soul seems to know exactly what your words mean the first read through...this poem in particular bypassed my brain - and went straight to my heart.
Some say good poetry makes you think but for me great poetry makes me feel something without knowing why and this one did that just that. Awesome oneshot!
The glare off your blade made me blind....
Brilliant stuff...
Regards~ Sayandeep
I'm speechless, and fascinated to the max. Very very amazing peice.
Thanks for sharing... . S. Sharp.
Very visual and eloquently done. Great shot~~~~
simply beautiful.
love to see it burn in a favorable way.
thanks to you all for your wonderful comments
you cannot have one without the other...the subtleties are perfect
great to see your words again
Peace
wow bro talk about a blast from the past...i am excited to see you around the pub...and on my bookshelf soon, right?
i have learned at my age to avoid passion because the pain just isn't worth it anymore.
I am glad you linked this up as your writing is beautiful and flowing. The imagery is gorgeous like fine wine on my lips ~
I love this ~
What I love about this is the power of your metaphors; your words, jewels on black velvet. Each thing of beauty calling up something cold, chilling, dying -- yet filled with a pure last breath. WOW!
new to me... wonderful choice of words and passion
more than a year..still remembered it..and yes- the passion and the pain...still..
I'm a Gemini woman married to a Virgo man. Need I say more....?
Yes - a good allegory of passion - a timeless theme
Wonderful. You have a new follower. This piece has a sense of truth, and the cadence makes it flow down the page easily. Thanks.
Namaste..........cj
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