Edward Burne-Jones, The Wedding of Psyche, 1895, Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.

Something old, something new
Something borrowed, something blue
And a sixpence in her shoe.
--a Victorian rhyme 

i.
Something old

Granite boulder sits
at delta’s mouth through seasons
a silent witness
who compiles earth’s histories
in its slow return to dust.

ii.
Something new

Death makes way for life
one’s exhale other’s first breath
do not fear endings
relax and refresh your cup
with fragrant hot tea.

iii.
Something borrowed

Lend without worry
need has its trajectory
motile as its will
germinant on fertile ground
or blown chaff, seeking purchase.


iv.
Something blue

Cloud puffs drift away
curtains open, palette plays
of smudges and bright
moods of seasons dependent
on weather inside and out.

v.
sixpence in a shoe

Maintain steady gait
not hobbled by worthless coins
complete your journey
first step important as last
as you take your final sleep.

Dora is today’s host of Dverse’ Poetics Tuesday. Dora says:

So let’s play with this bit of rhyming folklore and see where it takes us. Your challenge? Pick one of the following two options:

1) Use one (or more) of the five phrases in the Victorian rhyme either as a title for your poem or within your poem. You can write about marriage or not. The subject of the poem is wholly up to you.
OR
2) Riff off this rhyme. Let it take you wherever it takes you, from the romantic and sentimental to the fantastic or macabre. What charms or rites, humorous or serious, would you include for a particular occasion’s success (or failure)? What ritual or recipe for good fortune, peace, or harmony? For writing? Just put it in a poem, narrative, lyrical, or anything in between. And good luck!