Happy Poetry Friday!
I have been on a Billy Colins kick lately. I just read both Whale Day (Random House, 202) and Musical Tables (Random House, 2022).
Collins, former US Poet Laureat, stirs the ordinary with a pinch of wonder and a dash of humor in Musical Tables, a collection of short poems. He discusses the short poem as a form and gives over 100 examples that make one think, smile, frown, and occasionally laugh aloud. It is a very quick read!
As I read Musical Tables, I started thinking about the mental images that poems inspire. It occurred to me that one could create a “reverse ekphrastic” by using a poem to inspire visual art. I snapped a few pictures inspired by poems from this collection, selected a few from my photo library, and even borrowed a couple from Wikipedia.
What do you think of these pairings? A picture follows each poem.
Limits
Even on a calm day
if you remain quiet
and hold your breath,
you still will not
be able to hear
the singing of the clouds.
I couldn't pick just one for limits because all of these clouds seemed to be singing, just different tunes...
Look
The morning lake
was smooth as a mirror.
A few angels were even seen
flying down
just after dawn
to check themselves out.
The Dead of Winter
We will all die
in one month or another.
Many of the above
left us in December
while others will stay on
to see in the new year.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Trouble
was not
his middle name.
ENG 243: The History of Egotism
You will notice, class,
that Wordsworth did not write
“Edward, the butcher’s son,
wandered lonely as a cloud.”
[Photo: Wikipedia]
Here is what Wordsworth did say.
New York Directions
It’s down
in the village
between
Bleek
and Bleekest.
View from a Bridge
I never thought
of myself
as a little universe
inside a big one
until just now.
Poetry Collection
They mutter
in the alleys of the city,
the old ones
who were not selected.
The Exception
Whoever said
there’s a poem
lurking in the darkness
of every pencil
was not thinking of this one.
Disappointing Freak Show
A bearded man,
a one-headed chicken,
a sailor with a tattoo,
and a three-legged piano.
All poems © Billy Collins, Musical Tables, 2022. Photos © Tracey Kiff-Judson unless otherwise noted.
Please visit our Poetry Friday host, the patriotic, fighter-for-liberty-and-truth Denise Krebs at Dare to Care.
The Nevermores are reading Collins' WATER, WATER and so inspired by his narrative poetry.
Might be hilarious to find some photos for some of them!
You picked some great poems to find pictures for. It's hard to pick a favorite, but I think when I look at your cloud photos, I can hear their different songs. Lovely!