Crows Calling at Night

Crows in the boughs remind her
of her distant home, the man
she left behind. Perhaps he listens
to the patter of the rain,
the cawing of the roosting birds,
and thinks of her. So alone,
she lies down on her bed,
her crow black eyes like stones.

Kim M. Russell, 20th April 2021

Two Crows and Half Moon by Ito Sozan | Bird art, Crow, Japanese art

Image found on Pinterest

My response to dVerse Poets Pub Poetics: China – Kingdom of the Poem

Laura tells us that today is UN Chinese Language Day, and we have a Chinese- based Poetics prompt. She says that ‘long before Shakespeare and Milton, poetry held a place of esteem in Chinese culture’, and she shares translations of classical Chinese poems by five of their renowned poets.

Our challenge is to select any ONE of the given poems and imagine what the poet has painted, what impressions are conveyed. Then we should either reinterpret the poem in our own style or, for those of us who prefer a classical form, re-interpret the poem in the Chinese LUSHI style. I chose ‘Crows Calling at Night’ by Li bai and the Chinese LUSHI style.

45 thoughts on “Crows Calling at Night”

  3. This is incredibly, incredibly gorgeous in its use of imagery, tone and lush language, oh “Crows in the boughs,” is just wonderful and rolls right off my tongue 😀 I love how you have associated them with memories and have struck a comparison with “her crow black eyes like stones..” Genius! 💝💝

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      1. I seem to remember reading about the ravens returning to the Tower of London a year or so ago. Well it made the keeper of the Tower happy anyway. 🙂

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  9. I agree with all the comments above, Kim. Lovely and sadly beautiful–and those crows eyes at the end.

    I also have to say you are superwoman. Wow! I don’t know how you are doing AND reading all these prompts, plus Top Tweet Tuesday today. Kudos and congratulations!

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    1. Thank you so much, Merril! I didn’t feel like superwoman last night when I crawled into bed. I need to get off my derriere today, get out and stretch my legs! But it looks like rain this morning. Typical, after wall-to-wall sunshine yesterday!

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      1. You did a great job! I haven’t finished reading dVerse poems from last week. 🤣 Hope your weather cooperates. The sun is out here now, but we’re supposed to maybe get thunderstorms.

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  21. wow, Kim. Your 2nd poem could be the response to this one – you’re prescient! and yes, this is melancholic compared to the fine Poe-ish turn of the 2nd. ~

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