In the dusky woods behind the lighthouse,
legends flourish and tangle, thick as weeds.
Liars, poets and pranksters all espouse
fair warnings they know you’ll never heed.
You’ll wish your sword weren’t now a plow
if you should dare proceed.
She warns you not to leave the path
or wander into dark and mossy woods.
In nightmares, ignored warnings bloom like flares;
branches claw the clouds; darkness settles round.
Wandering till trees repeat and even prayers
unheard are lost, and rising, make no sound.
Faint steps—wolf or bear? Turn, but nothing there.
Each steps’ crunch—bones rattling underground.
Each step deals a lonely solitaire
against your faith in being found.
She warns you not to leave the path
or wander into dark and mossy woods.
Desperate, you forsake the trail.
Without a map, you seek a fairer route.
When after darkest days, you find a vale,
a bright respite from fear and pain and doubt,
you discover, then, that only when you’ve strayed
you find your truest way.
She lies about leaving the path
to trap you in the dark and mossy woods.
—
This is a bop style poem written for Read Write Poem’s share the bop prompt. Participants were asked to donate two lines of poetry, and then pick someone else’s lines to serve as the refrain in their own poems. The refrain in this one was donated by Christine Swint who writes at balanced on the edge. I loved the mystery of the “dark and mossy woods” and wondered what was off the path.
I didn’t know where it would go (neither the path nor the poem), but it was fun using someone else’s idea as a jumping off point. As I wrote, I found the poem wanting to rhyme, which I don’t usually do, but this is all about experimenting so I followed that path and wound up using a sonnet-like rhyme.
And, for those who may be interested, Deb at Stoney Moss wrote a very cool poem with the lines that I donated. Her poem is called “A Vulture’s Love Is True.”
Update: Angie at The Space Between Words also used my lines. Her poem is “cathartes aura bop.” Go read it.
James Brush is a teacher and writer who lives in Austin, TX. He tries to get outside as much as possible.
wow! It reminds me of that old show–“scared straight.”
Seriously, though…I love the whole message, the darkest-before-the-storm thing.
And nice rhyming, too. Subtle. Sweet!
The rhyming works, and the refrain *does* seem to ask for it. Nice!
There’s lots to enjoy, including the great lines about “Liars, poets and pranksters all espouse / fair warnings they know you’ll never heed.” Sets me in the mood for a tale and, with the spooky scene, I never know I am in for it or not, until I get to the great turn, right at the end.
(Thanks for the link, too! 🙂 )
I love how the woman was lying to trap the speaker. It adds a layer of mystery to the poem that made me go back to read it again. I love the crunch of the bones with each step. Great work, James. And your lines about the vulture have inspired more than one poem. It’s fun reading these.
Ooooh! Nice twist at the end, and very visual.
I see what you mean about the sonnet like rhyme, I felt a strong poetic voice kicking in, almost a different language, not timeless but Shakespearian, perhaps.
“only when you’ve strayed / you find your truest way.” — I love these lines. Beautiful poem. 🙂
Thanks, everyone. This was a fun one to do.