A Poem

Let me preface the process of this, and why I chose such a traditional or 'rigid' form of poetry. First, I prefer to explain this in terms of painting. If you are starting off, no one teaches you how to paint Picasso or Dali first off. We start with traditional realist methods to portray reality to encourage creativity in looking at objects and people so that the artistic process can go forward with skill instead of just some mad conception of what they want to portray. Otherwise you end up with crap like this:

Without craft and skill, then your poetry can suffer. And so, I wrote this poem in the most traditional of forms: a sonnet. Now, typically, there are only two versions of a sonnet, English and Italian. They both have 14 lines, and their differences lie in the rhyme scheme and stanza breaks.

Here is an example of an English Sonnet: {A,B,C,D, E, F, G added}

Shakespeare's Sonnet 34

A Why didst thou promise such a beauteous day, B    And make me travel forth without my cloak, A    To let base clouds o'ertake me in my way, B    Hiding thy brav'ry in their rotten smoke? C   'Tis not enough that through the cloud thou break, D   To dry the rain on my storm-beaten face, C   For no man well of such a salve can speak, D   That heals the wound, and cures not the disgrace: E   Nor can thy shame give physic to my grief, F   Though thou repent, yet I have still the loss, E   Th' offender's sorrow lends but weak relief F   To him that bears the strong offence's cross. G   Ah but those tears are pearl which thy love sheds, G   And they are rich, and ransom all ill deeds.

There are four implied stanzas, ABAB, CDCD, EFEF and GG. The A lines rhyme with A lines, the B's with B lines and so on. Each line is also in iambic pentameter, which means there are five feet of Iambs. These are a bit confusing to the layman. An Iamb is a metrical foot consisting of an unstressed then a stressed syllable.

An example of a single word iamb is outdoors. outDOORs. The 'door' section has the emphasis.

So one of the lines would be read, with emphasis on the italicized, 'and they are rich and ransom all ill deeds.'

I decided to follow this form, I don't feel like delving into the Italian sonnet. To sum up, it is also an iambic pentameter meter with rhyme scheme [ABBAABBA][CDCCDC] The final parenthetical can often vary.

So my sonnet is more similar to the English form, with one difference: It is iambic tetrameter, meaning there are four feet of iambs instead of five. The rhyme scheme is also ABAB, CDCD, EFEF, GG instead of the other way. I liked it because it moved it faster, but after thinking about it and the subject, it may have been wiser to use the pentameter for its dwelling power. My mind works better in tetrameter, though.

Now, I'm using this traditional form as a stepping stone to a free verse version of a poem to conceive my thoughts on the event, which was in Damascus, VA at a party. The woods erupted with literally thousands of fireflies, and it just was something I never think I'll see again (which is an element I want to add)

But anyway, here is the first draft of this iambic tetrameter English sonnet that I call "Herald's Sparks."

While walking down the grav'ly road
with friends beside and night so close
the party lights behind us glowed
and waxing night arose.

The three of us we gently wait
in grass so cool and softly rolled
down to the forest's pillared gates
where twinkling stars above patrolled.

And waxing eyes begin to see
the twinkling stars below the skies
emerging from the blackened trees
a host so bright - a thousand flies

Parading as some distant king
girdled with light will morning bring.

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