If

red fruit: apple
Photo uploaded by beta karel.

 

If I brought you a cloak
    embroidered with stars
        a staff & a crown & a steed
            would you mount it?

If I laid out a carpet
    from my veins of bright red
        if I bled & I bled
            would you walk it?

If I sent you a bird
    with a song yet unheard
        if it came in a cage
            would you free it?

If I wove silk from corn
    if I turned wheat to gold
        would you wrap yourself up?
            Would you count it?

If I gave you a colt
    with a horn in his head
        would you hold out your hand?
            Would you feed it?

If I cast down my hair
    with its stiff strands of grey
        if I unwound the braid
            would you climb it?

If I offered my head
    on a carved wooden plate
        if I died, if I'm dead
            would you grieve it?

If I hand you an apple
    from my orchard of hearts
        -- it is ripe, it is red --
            will you eat it?

[ poem by SB ]

Comments

[Mage Bailey]

This is marvelous. Thank you. Have you read anything by Marion B at Open Diary?

[Vernon Lun]

If I told you this post moved me and it was perfect, would you believe me?

You should! Smiles!

You wrote me a poem
a list of gifts
I found it a moment of joy
and I thank you, Fran Sbrocchi

[Cathy]

Excellent as always. Love how you use a fairy tale theme for it.

[Nenequesadilla]

That was lovely, thank you.

[SB]

[Addendum added in response to a reader's question about whether the poem was mine, or the photographer's. It's mine. Also, I've revised this a bit since first posting, to strengthen the verbs.]

Mage: no, I'm not familiar with this person. Link?

Vernon, Fran, Cathy & Nenequesadilla: I'm so glad you liked this. It was one of those half-conscious gifts from the ether -- just, almost, asleep, and then that insistence that I must turn on the light & pick up the notebook --

[betherann]

Lovely poem. The rhythm is wonderful, especially in the final stanzas. Thank you for sharing this!

[SweetTalkingGuy]

More questions than answers, but so thought provoking!

[Jo]

I enjoyed all of this poem, particularly the last three stanzas.

[paisley]

wow!! i was all set to see like "henry wadsworth longfellow" or some thing following that one... excellent

[Rob Kistner]

Great read, both playful and poignant.

[...deb]

I read earlier in the week and this is a stronger strong version.

My favorite line: "with its stiff strands of grey" and my distinct pleasure in *not* reading "silky gold".

[Crafty Green Poet]

I love the rhythm here and the way the questions lead the reader

[Tumblewords]

**just, almost, asleep, and then that insistence that I must turn on the light & pick up the notebook *** I'm glad you did. This is a lovely poem.

[Linda Jacobs]

I love the look of this poem. It's like a stairway leading down into the heart of you!