Is in a pocket
In my heart.
Tucked into my heart,
I carry
What I ought.
What I do,
Is on my shoulder;
Like a boulder on my back,
I carry
What I do.
What I know,
Is in my hands;
In my open hands,
I carry
What I know.
But what I ought
Is in a pocket,
In a pocket of my heart;
I carry what I ought
In a secret part,
Tucked into my heart.
How clever, I like the sharp and repetitive lines ~ We do carry the heaviest part in our hearts ` Good to see you ~
ReplyDeleteWell done! Love the way you seem to play with the words and the repetitions. Thank you for sharing this.
ReplyDeleteLove this. Yes we do carry all of that stuff.
ReplyDeleteOh that ought-ness - it is closer than anything else. I like the repetition a lot - lovely & spare.
ReplyDeleteI love this ... carrying no more than you ought to ..
ReplyDeleteI believe this is an actual form, is it not? I do not follow these, have not been schooled, but I think this form is actually something like a Persian song form or something. Some kind of song form. I like it very much and I do not know if what I ought is heavier than what I do which seems heaviest here, but I agree that the deepest parts are weighty in other ways. A smashing piece of work, dear.
ReplyDeleteAlso, one of the better works concerning the Vietnam war was titled, "The Things They Carried." That memory echoes for me here.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE this! SO MUCH! Stellar!
ReplyDeleteWell done - and I agree with Christopher - it reads in a very polished way.
ReplyDeleteLove it....love the repetition
ReplyDeletelike a nursery rhyme, but for grown-ups, so it becomes nearly a mantra, or even a prayer ~ M
ReplyDeleteThinking around the subject - interesting. ♥
ReplyDeleteDrop the boulder and make it a stepping stone to your pocket and pull out your ought. i spent my life doing as others told me which way was right and left. It took awhile to realize their left was my right.
ReplyDeletea perfect quote to live by. your poem was a nice tribute to that statement as well. i really like the sound that flowed throughout. have a great night~
ReplyDeleteI like the internal rhymes, and the layers of this. Nice one, Karen.
ReplyDeleteWhat a glorious poem. I can feel that boulder on my shoulders, too. It's heavy!
ReplyDeleteWhat a glorious poem. I can feel that boulder on my shoulders, too. It's heavy!
ReplyDelete