Still

as a cat
watching a butterfly
or a falling leaf
after a restless night
of heat
twisted
in the sweaty sheet
until the sky cracked
and light crept
under my half-
closed eyelids
now I am still
as the leaves and the grass
held by morning coolness

Kim M. Russell, 25th July 2019

Image result for Delacroix the unmade bed
Delacroix, The Unmade Bed, 1827 – image found on Pinterest

My response to Imaginary Garden with Real Toads Sanaa’s Challenge: Like starry blooms on a new firmament in July, also linked to dVerse Poets Pub Open Link Night

Sanaa says that there are many ways to describe stillness. She describes it as something that stretches itself to the most distant mountain-top, where footsteps crunch in the snow or a phenomenon that can match blackness under the blindfold. She has shared a poem by Neruda, called ‘I Like For You To Be Still’, which has a completely different and unique perspective.

Sanaa has given us the title of Neruda’s poem as a frame of reference to write poems in the form of our choice.

53 thoughts on “Still”

  2. This is gorgeously written, Kim! 💖💖 I resonate with the restless nights and sweltering heat .. love the image of the leaves and grass “held by morning coolness,” .. sigh .. we had a little rain here last night but it only lasted for a few minutes. Thank you so much for writing to the prompt. 😊😘

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  3. Can’t sympathise with you as it is winter here and I need the heater in the bedroom at night. However in another six months and I will feel this way…and worn out in the morning!

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      1. Doesn’t surprise me. The whole of western Europe is frazzling. They promised us it would be a bit cooler today with big storms in the afternoon. Instead we had 42° again and not even a whiff of a storm.

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  9. I am sorry for your heat. I know you all aren’t used to it. But I love the images of stillness in this – the cat is my favorite. Sorry you aren’t here to share our 105F days! and 90F nights. thank goodness for air conditioning.

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    1. Thank you, Toni. We don’t have air conditioning in our homes, only in cars and office buildings. We don’t even have a fan and I could do with one now!

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  12. Several of you responded to the Toads/Neruda prompt. I certainly enjoyed your take. I read it as hypnogogia–stillness before the stirring; loved the painting too.

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    1. There was no stillness last night, Grace. We had the most electric lightning storm and the ruble of thunder was so loud! This morning is fresh, clouds are clearing and the sun is breaking through again.

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  25. You had me with the title conjoined with the first two lines……still as a cat watching a butterfly….and then half-closed eyelids…cracked sky. And the shift to “I am still”…..wonderfully done.

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