April Challenge, Day 7. 'Today's prompt is to write a "ramble poem." That is, I want you to write a poem where you just start rambling without worrying about where you're headed. Very interesting things can happen in these poems. And don't worry about the interesting things, because they tend to just happen if you let yourself ramble.' – Robert Lee Brewer.
I want to mention how people can be flowers,
and I am led to this thought by the many times I see
the words 'Dalia Lama'. Note the spelling. My mind supplies
an 'h' and there he is, I see him, his bald Buddhist head
sticking out of a circle of bright yellow petals, his spectacles
reflecting their golden light, and of course he is smiling.
Who wouldn't be smiling, at the centre of one's flower self?
And I too am a flower. 'Rambling Rose,' the man sang
on the radio when I was growing up. My name was Rose.
Not really, but everyone called me that, shortening the full name
my mother gave me because it was so beautiful. 'I wish
they wouldn't call you Rose,' she said, but in those days they all did.
Rambling Rose was glamorous, forbidden. This I understood,
though not why. I was young. Tibet hadn't happened yet, nor my life.
© Rosemary Nissen-Wade 2008
9/4/08
Linked to Poets United's Poetry Pantry #303 (22/5/16)
That must have been annoying to have your name shortened, but I do understand the reason; and I am sure those who shortened it had good intentions! Ha, fortunately I have a name that cannot be shortened & for which there is really NO nickname. ("Dalia Lama" WOULD annoy me as well!)
ReplyDeleteMuch to my mother's delight, my second husband, Bill Nissen, insisted, 'She has a beautiful name; it shouldn't be shortened,' and since then I've always been Rosemary, which is my own preference too. People do mean it affectionately when they try to shorten my name – and it's a very Aussie thing to do. I have also had 'Rosie' and 'Rozza'. These days I just say, 'My friends call me Rosemary', and they take the hint.
DeleteI ADORE this poem!!!!!!!!!! Absolutely love it. Not least because the Dali Lama is in it:)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Sherry. :-) (PS Dalai. LOL)
DeleteOy, yes, it is......brain-warp.
DeleteWow.. Tibet hadn't happened yet, nor my life.. such a drift of thought, drags the reader along.
ReplyDeleteHa, I was rather proud of the 'throwaway' feel of that. So glad you liked it!
DeleteI'm grinning from ear to ear, Rosemary. And just so you know, I will always see a flower when I see the Dalai Lama. Love this poetic ramble. Might have to try it one day.
ReplyDeleteP.S. I completely understand your mother's annoyance. Why ruin a perfectly good name by chopping it off. I don't care much for nicknames *cough*.
Come to Australia and we'll turn you into 'Magz'!
DeleteNow I will search for flowers in everyone too, love the thought.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this poem :D and yes one's name should never be shortened or nicknamed when it is so beautiful (especially yours) Beautifully expressed.
ReplyDeleteLots of love,
Sanaa
yes, very interesting things happen in your "ramble poem". it's very coherent, for one, the thoughts lead from line to line.
ReplyDeletei once tried a version of this "ramble" thing. just write what comes to your mind in 5 minutes. anything. well, it did turn out readable. :)
and bless Tibet!
A beautiful rambling rose of a poem. You told us a lot about yourself in just a few words. Love the ending. The world is full of mystery.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful ramble - which really isn't a ramble but a well gestated and planted thought - i smiled at the image of the D(h)alia Lama and the notion of being our own flowers..and our life not becoming yet when we are young.. maybe that's one of the better parts of life..learning as we go along and inhabiting our names..
ReplyDeleteThere are worse flowers to be called!
ReplyDeleteA rose by any other name would smell as sweet. How effective your poem is to connect the beauty of the rose with the beauty of the Dali Lamas striving for peaceful life on this planet for us all.
ReplyDeleteSometimes it is the reader who cleverly makes such connections. (Smile.)
DeleteHi, Rosemary. This 'ramble' doesn't seem at all impromptu or quickly fashioned. It feels to me like a well finished product, developing an idea in a smart and artful way.
ReplyDeleteSteve K.
No, I really did just ramble – but after decades of crafting poems, it becomes second nature and happens as one goes along.
DeleteRosemary, I think you should ramble more. I like the idea that we are all flowers unique yet beautiful in our way. I think I might like to try a ramble poem. Thanks for the introduction!
ReplyDelete"Who wouldn't be smiling, at the centre of one's flower self?"...indeed...
ReplyDeleteThis is a great style of writing, the ramble. I like it mainly because it feels so conversational, like you're just sitting there talking to the reader. Close and personal.
ReplyDeleteThis poem is superb. It reveals the flower you In a most natural manner. What beautiful thoughts come through your ramble.
ReplyDeleteI love that you see dahlia in Dalai - and you definitely put the rose in Rosemary (which is for remembrance).
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful insightful piece that actually sent my mind cascading into the "flower people" in my life. I realized that I think of myself as a pansy - though I'll take a bit of time (a)musing my mind on that one. For starters, though: I've always loved their little gobsmacked faces staring up at me . . . Well, perhaps my reasons aren't all that complicated after all. HA!
ReplyDeleteRambling Rose was glamorous, forbidden.
ReplyDeleteThis I understood, though not why. I was young.
Tibet hadn't happened yet, nor my life
Rambling Rose was perfect, Rosemary! The tragedy that had befallen on the Tibetans was conveniently forgotten. One just could not fathom why! It was a pity!
Hank
Wonderful!
ReplyDeleteZQ
Flowers are everywhere Rose! Lol!
ReplyDeleteI like Rose petal but Rosemary is a lovely name.
ReplyDelete