A Lai for Bob
adenoidal snarl
it’s about a girl
mostly
but sometimes, the world
and how it turns, or
maybe
it’s a frantic swirl
of images, words
let fly
with venom and spite
an angry prophet
raging
but he’s more than that:
clown, joker, poet,
snide sage
in a feathered hat
an imp at sunset
dancing.
( a few notes on the form – each verse in a lai has nine lines arranged in groups of three; each group contains a couplet of 5 syllable lines and a single 2 syllable line; the rhyming pattern is aab aab aab; each verse can have different end rhymes but the pattern must be the same, for example…ccd ccd etc. I have been a bit loose with what constitutes a rhyme , so this poem is sort of lai-based, but I have tried to maintain consistency in terms of vowels and/or consonants.
For more detailed discussion on the form, check out here )
Participating in Open Link Night over at dVerse.
I like the thought of being more than a prophet, also an imp.
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Good old Bob–Dylan perhaps. I like the footloose rhyme schemes, it gives vitality to the piece. The last tercet is killer.
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Thanks Glenn !
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Love it… if I were Bob I would be honored.
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Thank you Bjorn!
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This is gorgeously rendered!! ❤️❤️
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Thank you Sanaa!
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What a character Bob is! Love the hidden faces under the angry prophet.
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He’s a complex man!
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Lovely poem. Enjoyable read. 🙂
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Thank you, much appreciated.
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Robert Allen Zimmerman acutely portrayed. Wonderful capture of his essence Jim – I truly dig this piece!
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Thank you Rob, mr. Zimmerman is a fascinating character!
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Ditto, Jim, an enjoyable multifaceted cameo. I tried to read the explanatory lai notes, but my head exploded. Nevertheless an impressive achievement. Mmm, apparently I don’t need my head to type. I’m not sure whether that is good or bad.
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Ha, thanks Steve, I was thinking of writing a book called “Poetry for Masochists” – a cranium busting compendium of cruel and unusual verse forms.
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😸
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it’s about a girl
mostly
is is mostly or is it always…love or lack of it plays such a big part in our lives….bkm
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yes, indeed!
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Excellent tribute poem to Zimmy. Masterful portrait to the living legend.
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