Passion for Perfection

He glows with bliss,
with an innate passion
for perfection.
Pressing fingers,
his caressing hand lingers,
a blessing on the wax sole
of her right foot.
Repeating movements endlessly
does not destroy the spontaneity,
the joy in recreating every day
a corps de ballet.

Kim M. Russell, 2017

Image result for dancer looking at the sole of her right foot degas
Dancer Looking at the Sole of her Right Foot by Degas, image found on metmuseum.org

My response to dVerse Poets Pub Quadrille: Bliss

Bjőrn is our host for the Quadrille this Monday and the word is ‘bliss’.

My poem was inspired by an article about the upcoming Degas centenary exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge and by Degas’ sculpture of a ‘Dancer Looking at the Sole of her Right Foot’. According to the article, Degas left fingerprints on his wax sculptures so clear it’s possible to gauge his age, posture and weight at the time of creation.

52 thoughts on “Passion for Perfection”

      1. I think that depends on the severity of the condition within the individual and the support this person is receiving. Some people with OCD are actively encouraged to surrender to spontaneity to help them step out of rituals they have created.

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      1. I do! I read every poem several times to get the full impact of it. Just once creates an initial response but to my mind reading a poem several times gives the whole experience. Of course, I don’t always read every poem several times, some of them I am content to read once and then leave it.

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  6. Very creative use of the quadrille. I used to sketch & paint some, but I always envied sculptors–their work in three dimension expands art to new heights.

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  19. Soooo late to the reading — apologies! Grandkids with us from Sunday til last night.
    I’ve seen some of the Degas sculptures and did not know this about him. A wonderful use of the word “bliss.” And how fascinating to learn this. hmmmm we also leave our “fingerprints” on the page with our scripts and thoughts….I suspect though, that unlike Degas, my bazillions of journals will be tossed when I am gone and my thoughts shall go up in smoke unto the heavens as I hope my spirit does 🙂
    Wonderful write, Kim!

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