Alternating Current, either Turbulent or Serene
On the beach, you asked the man in grayish windbreaker:
‘How do you define ‘The Will’?’
He drew a sine-wave with his finger in the sand, then wiped it away
With waves at his command. A capful of vinegar, and seething calories of vegetables
In your stomach, turning and burning, gave you the illusion
Of snakes slithering away somewhere behind. Last night on your way home,
There was a repeat of the scene, in which she refused to allow you
To touch her rain-drenched violin. ‘Keep your distance, am I clear?
Only one of the strings is the zero line, you just can’t tell which!’ She smiled weirdly
And ran upstairs. The string which snapped during the performance
Dragged along behind her, was as thick as a towrope. Confused, standing still there,
You tossed a coin into the air, and heard it
Droning fast, with strong and weak beats, alternating,
A downpour and a flood – overflowing in different directions.
Fourteen days are needed to dry your nets, and clear
All water-level data. Landforms, temperature, light from above
And your masculinity, will be turned inside out like a coat
On the other side of the globe.
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Submitted by catherineink on May 26, 2016
Modified on March 14, 2023
- 59 sec read
- 86 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AXXXXX XAXXA XXXAX XX |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic octameter |
Characters | 1,125 |
Words | 198 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 5, 5, 2 |
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"Alternating Current, either Turbulent or Serene" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 11 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/44799/alternating-current,-either-turbulent-or-serene>.
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