Sunday, February 24, 2013

Mockingbird


"Mockingbird upon the wire
sings his heart out with desire
and still he sits there all alone
without one song to call his own"


Kelvin S.M. 2012 "Resting" used with permission


















Multitudes of notes are learned,
octaves high to deeper trills,
casting forth in perfect pitch
keeping time, each refrain builds;
intent to sing each perfectly,
never noticing in youth--
galvanized, a local star,
building up a repertoire
ignoring just one basic truth:
relegating to this choice
deterred the chance to find his voice.

© Ginny Brannan 2013

For d'Verse Poetics: Dominant Impression in Artistic Description, hosted by Kelvin S.M., with recognition and special thanks to him for allowing us to choose one of his images as a source of inspiration!

14 comments:

  1. ...ah, even the mockingbird himself, in some way or another, dreamed of a solo repertoire... desiring to be known not for someone else's voices but rather for his own original tone... to sing his heart without a song to call his own is quite too sad... i wonder how it feels like to be a mockingbird... singing songs that will never be your own... great offering Ginny... it suits to the art you've chosen... smiles...

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  2. Really great poem, i like the way you see the song, really works well on a lot of levels. A lesson in life

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  3. oh heck...no song to call his own.. makes me sad...that's what seeking for perfection does..we hear all those fantastic musicians and suddenly our own attempts seem so small.. a felt piece.. really i think it was much easier before CD's and YouTube and everything..now you have me ranting..ha...smiles...see, your piece made me think...

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  4. ...and it's also not about imitating others..learning from them, yes..but then...with shaking knees find our own way...true for all kind of arts me thinks...

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  5. that would be so sad to lose ones voice or have no voice to call ones own...while mimckery is great flattery what then do you have to say when you stand on your own...

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    Replies
    1. Written on common knowledge of our northeast mockingbirds. It makes for good metaphor, good storyline. Just an FYI (as I know you're a teacher-- In reality, they really do have a song of their own, captured here:
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-mOsezFIgw

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  6. Hi Ginny!

    ignoring just one basic truth:
    relegating to this choice
    deterred the chance to find his voice.

    The art and words complemented each other - your voice sings here!

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  7. Something lost in the exchange, eh? A costly bargain. Nice

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    Replies
    1. Have learned that the older the male mocking bird, the longer the song. And that impresses the females. So perhaps what he loses in individuality, he gains in other ways!

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  8. Lovely rhyming voice, a perfect rhythm and a good punch line ;-) great

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  9. SO IT IS!!!
    I'm in awe of acrostic poets.
    Just today I happened to think that I should try: couldn't do it.
    Also like some of your rhyming combinations, like 'star' and 'repertoire'

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  10. A rhyming acrostic - poet awe :-)

    Too many of us spend so much time trying to be someone we aren't instead of finding our own voices and singing our own song. It's sad, really.

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  11. Hmmm, the moral is that none of us should be mocking birds, eh? We each need to find our own voice, our own song. The first four lines were my favorite.

    Iliad Keys

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  12. i heard a program on the radio where they said that birds sing a different tune if they are alone or in a group. they were singing more complex tunes in groups of four or more. i dont remember what kind of bird they were listening to as galahs come in large flocks so can't get very complex calls to match surely. this bbc article might be of interest
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/18766653

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Thank you for reading my poetry and sharing your thoughts.