Monday 2 July 2012

Sleep of Death


Ophelia by Odilon Redon

Oh my lord was thy affection
nought but a cruel ruse,
a cruel play upon this maiden,
was my love but to amuse? 
Oh my heart is heavy laden,
yearning for the want of you.

Oh willow will cast off my wanting,
still the melodies of my breath,
lay me in the muddy water,
send me to the sleep of death,
there I shall dream forever,
forever dream my dreams of you.

Anna :o]

With thanks to Tess at The Mag for the inspiration.

29 comments:

Frances Garrood said...

Lovely, Anna, as always.

drerhumu said...

Hamlet to Ophelia :"I say we will have no more marriages."

MIFFY said...

I felt quite emotional when i read this.Lovely.

Brian Miller said...

nice...this has a very classical feel with the language you have used...def stirs the emo...nice...

Berowne said...

Powerful word portrait of Ophelia.

Jinksy said...

I like the word play in the last two lines - captures the olde worlde feel of this poem...

Susan Anderson said...

This really works. I liked it!

=)

Anonymous said...

so emotional and full of wonderful language

<a href="http://zongrik.wordpress.com/2012/07/02/where-are-the-koi/>where are the koi</a>

Sreeja said...

Very emotional...nicely written...

Little Nell said...

I can really feel her despair here - poor Ophelia.

Donna B. said...

BRAVO! Bravo!

hyperCRYPTICal said...

Thank you for your kind comments folks.

Anna :o]

Daydreamertoo said...

Awww...it is such a sad story, isn't it. I agree with Brian, it has a nice classical feel about the language you've used which helps to make it even more evocative.
Lovely read :)

Laurie Kolp said...

Lovely old-time language in this tragic piece.

Kathe W. said...

so very very sad...well captured.

ninotaziz said...

I imagine, this would be even more tragic for an elf. Lovely, Anne.

Anonymous said...

Lovely. and love your font too, goes perfect with the poem.

Helena said...

You can feel the essence of Ophelia intertwining through the lines. Touching.

kaykuala said...

The vibrations of love cannot be ignored. Great verse Anna!

Hank

Anonymous said...

Well crafted, like the haunted pensive mood.

dental centre new farm said...

Fascinating, deep imagery in this poem. I like the way you use the classic writing. It gives depth to the poem.

Dr Henry Tegner said...

Thank you Anna. This is lovely - and moving. Yours is another blog that I must pay more regular attention to.

Jenny Woolf said...

What an elegant and rhythmical poem. I really liked this take on Ophelia, not to mention many other folk stories of unrequited love.

Luke Prater said...

Very Elizabethan and oh! the cruelty of love! Well-penned, sister. When you gonna come and post some more poetry on our board? Love your gritty stuff

Other Mary said...

Your poem reminds me that it's all about perspective. What to one person is just a side show, to another is the main attraction.
Thanks - I feel like that's important. And, this is beautifully written. 'Oh willow...'

truck loans said...

Beautiful. Simply amazing. The words you used moved mountains. Thanks for sharing.

hyperCRYPTICal said...

Thanks so much for your welcome comments folks.

Anna :o]

Laura Maria said...

Powerful piece full of emotion!

Sharp Little Pencil said...

"Was my love but to amuse?" So sad, the tale of Ophelia. As Noel Coward said, "But I believe/that since my life began/the most I've had is just/a talent to amuse... Heigh ho, if love were all."

The feel of this poem, masterful and classic. Intentional, yet wistful. Quite the feat! Amy