As I walk among the willows,
following the dried-up brook,
I stumble on its hidden hollows,
pebble beds and twisting roots,
and brittle leaves crunch underfoot.
Autumn leaves, a beetles feast,
release a sweet scent of decay:
pollen, dust and shrivelled weeds
waiting for the autumn rain
to come and flush them out again.
Kim M. Russell, 24th November 2018
My response to dVerse Poets Pub Meeting the Bar: Quintain
Grace was our host this Thursday and she wanted us explore the quintain, sometimes called a quintet, which is a poem or stanza with five lines. She said that It can follow any meter or line length and well-known examples are the limerick and the cinquain.
Grace acquainted us with the English and the 16th century Spanish quintain, also known as quintilla. These poems follow a rhyme scheme, but the pattern depends on the style.
Our challenge was to write a stanza or more of either English or Spanish Quintain. My poem consisting of two English quintains is a little belated as I have been spending some time with my grandson and my daughter on her birthday.
There’s a jaunty rhythm to this–another side of autumn, the decay underneath. I like that the rain will flush it away. 🙂
Happy Birthday to your daughter!
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Thank you so much Merril – we had a great time and I really didn’t want to come home but now I’m back I’m happy – it took me hours to get home due to a rail strike and signal failure. I’m going back again in December. 😉
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Sorry about the long day traveling home, but I’m glad you had a great time. We had family here for Thanksgiving, and this year my husband didn’t have to pick people up, so that was nice for him.
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😊
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I agree with Merril. Jaunty is the right word. I like the close rhymes too. They give the poem a sense of the unexpected.
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You have made me smile, Jane, even though I’m so tired I can’t move a muscle!
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Oh dear. We’ve just been watching an episode of Till Death Us Do Part, something that husband said made us think of it. Our youngest was in stitches. It hasn’t taken a wrinkle.
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I watched a film with Ellen and Steve last night that I would never have watched otherwise and thoroughly enjoyed it. It’s gentle British humour with Rob Brydon and a few other familiar actors called ‘Swmming with Men’. I haven’t laughed so much in ages.
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I hadn’t heard of it. I hadn’t heard of Rob Brydon either… My ignorance is breathtaking.
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This is such a wonderful set of lines… I was walking much the same, though since it was frozen all the scents were gone… but that crunch of leaves was still there.
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I love autumn scents!
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There is a very nostalgic feel to your poem. Walking in the dry leaves in the fall!
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Nostalgia for autumn – it’s already winter!
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Seems the cold is here to stay awhile!
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Thanks Dwight!
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Beautiful Kim, really captivating. I was tight there with you on the stroll. Grear little sendory feast… 🙂
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Thank you, Rob. 🙂
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Nice lines: “Autumn leaves, a beetles feast,
release a sweet scent of decay” I like the beetles’ perspective.
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On Thursday I was in a restaurant where the pillars were decorated with paintings of beetles. They are so beautiful and they do a great job of helping vegetation to decay.
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Very visual.Nice write.
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Thank you, Violet.
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Love the walk specially with autumn’s sweet scent of decay. Hope you had a good time with your family, specially the grandson Kim.
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Thank you Grace. I had a wonderful time with my family. Lucas isn’t quite nine months old and is crawling everywhere, eating solids, drinking out of a baby cup that he holds himself and waving when you say ‘wave’! He is not only pulling himself onto his feet but has started to push a little wooden walker with bricks in it. I can’t wait to go back on 9th December!
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Delightful, Kim…your poetry and hearing about your holiday with grandson!
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Thank you, Lynn. I’m very lucky to be going back in just under two weeks and they will be coming for a couple of days over Christmas.
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I usually think of the forest in a vertical orientation. Your poem got me looking at it from a horizontal one. Very nicely done.
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Thank you, Jade.
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Your poem reminds me of haiku in that you’re celebrating nature and your words are very much in the moment. Lovely poem.
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Thank you, Barry. Quite a lot of my poetry is ‘in the moment’ and I love writing about nature.
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