Barefoot Writer
My feet bare and cold but my pen is still warm
Been penniless at times, but not for long-term
The daily grind requires opening my mind
Some days I can see, on others I’m blind
My world requires imagination, and no set of rules
The weaving of words; not taught in school
A pencil my needle, some paper the thread
Thoughts in my head; I’ll seek to embed
It starts with a stich, with a knot on the end
Hopefully completed with a, “well penned”
But the case in point is not always true
Despite being creative and something brand new
For readers are fickle; just as the writer
Finding perfect words, lines that are tighter
Verses that flow like a sweet harmony
Being careful they don’t come across formally
And the rhyming, the rhyming, it becomes such a puzzle
It a balancing act; like standing on a bubble
So we think and reach deep in our memories
The writer’s vocabulary is much like a treasury
And often when the verse is done
We reread it and see its overdone and no fun
Delete, erase, or crumple the page
Falling back to its development age
Again with more words and phrases, and rhymes
And this might happen a hundred more times
For our craft, our life, it’s laced with perfection
As we’re not always sure of upcoming dissections
Butterflies in our bellies as we hit publish or send
Hoping the readers will see what we intend
But more often than naught, the views are low
We sigh and wonder how far we must go
To pen the perfect verse, the one that everyone would read
With the balance of drama, romance, and hope that they need
To fill in the spaces where life only leaves clues
This is my wish, along with some shoes…
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Well penned and thought-provoking Ralph, as we all consider how readers will respond to our musings, but in the end the perfection we seek is within us, not from the judgement of readers. The art we seek to master is never easy, and it takes many years to be in control of that fickle pen. Whether of not people understand of relate is up to individuals, and all we can do is try to better our work and its depth.
In our minds Ralph no matter what we write it never is good enough – we just keep writing and hoping that those that read our words will smile, cry, and ponder our meaning even if it is just for a few seconds. Nice piece my friend.
A very thought provoking write Ralph.. I can very well relate to almost everything you have written..the butterflies when I hit the publish button, the anxiety as to how my writing would be viewed and whether someone would be kind enough to read and give a feedback..and I keep on editing for a long time even after I publish..lol…thank you so much for sharing your words which I guess pass through most writers’ mind..enjoyed reading…
Amazing piece Ralph. I think we all relate to this well thought out piece my friend. I too get the butterfly gut when hitting publish, thinking will they like it, can they get the mood I was trying to set, do they understand the lesson I was trying to push, can they feel the tension I had in my pen while writing this verse. Then I think to myself does that even rhyme, or is it a sad attempt at rhyming. I think the biggest kick in the pants is when you put in so much effort trying to pen the perfect verse and it falls way short of your expectations. Awesome piece thank you for sharing.