safe
am I;
green velvet
glove cushions me.
protected from harm,
the fires in the hearths warm;
seamless clay walls and chimneys,
each story’s windows caulked and locked;
a fortress, constructed brick by brick.
sleep comes easy without anxieties,
yet why are my dreams about escaping?
sometimes, when awake, it’s hard to breathe
in the stale air’s monotony.
culling potential threats, there’s
nothing left but me,
oh my; my worst
enemy.
i am
safe?!
Sarah is today’s host of dVerse’ Poetics. Sarah says:
Choose one of the 5 given images by artist, Lee Madwick and write a poem inspired by it.
I’m linking this up to dVerse’ Open Link Night LIVE, where Bjorn hosts.
Tao Talk 
Interesting ekphrastic.
Much💛love
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Thank you, Gillena!
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Oh.. not just ekphrastic but concrete as well… love how the comforting walls seems like a prison after a while.
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Thanks much, Bjorn, and thanks for seeing what I was getting at. And thank you for being a gracious host at OLN LIVE. I like the idea of a group magnetic poem and hope we can sort out some of the technology to make it happen. Still trying to figure out how to have the LIVE on my computer vs. my phone and still have sound…
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Ekphrastically spot on, Lisa and GREAT choice of form, excellently rendered. Thanks.
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Thanks, Ron. Glad you liked it.
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That home does appear to be wrapped up as tight as a drum. Too tight, perhaps? I enjoyed your reading.
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Thanks, Ken. I would go nuts in a home that literally looked like that one. Living in a figurative one like that is enough of a challenge.
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Those walls can be difficult to breach…
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Sometimes we build walls just to see who might be willing to break them down. A lovely poem.
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You’re right. Thank you for reading and your sensitive comment.
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This is absolutely stellar, Lisa! 💘💘 I can picture the windows caulked and locked… it makes me ponder upon the level of comfort … and what it means to breathe freely. The sense of comfort in one’s home… too much or too little?
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Sanaa, thanks much. I’m glad it made you ponder ❤
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That image is quite something. I would get nightmares living in a place like this. I love that Sting tune!
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Yes it is quite unnerving to me also. I love that Sting tune and the whole album it is on.
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It fits the picture perfect. For some reason the house reminds me of something from Beetlejuice.
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You know, Max, it does have that kind of feel to it. Could be one of those places where everything seems picture perfect on the outside, but inside is where chaos and madness reign. Or maybe some jolly ghosts come in to lighten up the place 🙂
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Yes it does…out of any Tim Burton movie.
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Interesting thoughts Li! Sometimes we are our own enemies
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For sure, Sadje.
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🙏🏼
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Well done. Sometimes safety can be a total trap.
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Thank you, Suzanne. FYI, I’m going to be sending out some postcards in the next week. Knowing your housing situation, should I send yours to where you are now?
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A darker golden cage, perfect ekphrastic, gave me a chill!
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Irene, so glad you enjoyed the poem, thank you.
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Wonderfully done, Lisa. From safety to prison-like. All is not as it appears from first glance.
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Thanks much, Dale. That image cried out to me.
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With good reason!
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A gorgeous form which you handled exquisitely … my heartfelt suggestion ~~ get the heck out of your house, onto your bike, out into nature! LOL.
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Helen, thank you so much. I’m out and about all of the time, so don’t worry, ok? It’s getting out of my mind that is the biggest problem.
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Such a deeply thoughtful response to the image and I can totally see it. On first sight, one may feel cosy and cocooned in this house and then of course, you can see how it becomes a beautiful prison. Really enjoyed this, Lisa 🙂
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Thank you, Sunra. Sorry you didn’t get a chance to participate in the LIVE event yesterday; you would have heard me read it 🙂
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Oh that’s a shame. No, I couldn’t make it at all yesterday. Though I was hoping there’d be a recording on the dVerse page but there doesn’t seem to be this time.
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I missed the first part and so didn’t hear why it was not recorded. Maybe next time?
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The form worked wonderfully to make this a concrete as well as ekphrastic! Almost all the images took most of us to the exploration of darker spaces. I love this, Li.
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Punam, thanks much 🙂
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You are welcome.
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How often our worst enemy becomes ourself! Well done, Lisa. That is a haunting picture.
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For sure. And all of the images are haunting in their own way to me.
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Yes!
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I apologize for this very late response, Lisa! It was great to hear you read this. I love the question at the end. It seems like this person is trying to convince themselves that everything is OK. Wonderful response to the image.
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Thank you, Merril. Ron convinced me to add the exclamation point.
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You’re welcome. 🙂
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