The RetroLounge Daily Poem Thread (Tue 7/11/06)

[RetroLounge]

From the Book of Rope

First, there is love. Secondly,
the square knot, a perfect binding
of two equal loops, useful

for fastening gifts to each other
or, in the extreme, for closing bandages
over wounds, expected or not.

The sheet bend hooks unequal partners,
originally a rope to the twisted end
of a sail, something fastened against wind.

The bowline's loop won't close, good
for saving yourself in mountain climbing,
or, in general, being lifted up, lowered.

Hitches bind us to things, thwarting
our drift, boat to tree, a horse to any rail—
two half hitches, hundreds of half hitches.

In the book of rope, three tests
for every knot—is it easy to tie?
Will it stay tied firmly in use,

and will it be, finally, easy to untie?
Which knot have we chosen?
And what else sadly should we know?

Robert King

********************

RL

If you have a request for a certain Poet, post their name in the thread and I will find a poem by them and post it...

if you want to see some of my poetry, see the blog at:
http://www.myspace.com/retropaul

[miss_american_pie]

1. Nice

:hi:

[RetroLounge]

2. Good morning!

:hi:

RL

[Sugar Smack]

3. I'm tying an Angler's Loop to our room in the Keys.

It's too beautiful here in Florida to leave.

;-)

[RetroLounge]

4. ...

:hug:

:hi:

RL

[Sugar Smack]

5. Dupe

:blush:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

6. Ah, my dear RetroLounge.....

How beautiful, and how sad.......

"and will it be, finally, easy to untie?
Which knot have we chosen?
And what else sadly should we know?"

These final lines are very sad to me....the unravelling of a marriage, methinks.......

Very beautiful, however.....

I thank you, as always!

:loveya: :hug:

[RetroLounge]

7. Yes, it spoke to me too...

:hug:

RL