go gently my loves
you need not fight for
the light to come
remember what you
know to be true
you can trust that the
sun will find its
way to fill the sky
as it has always been
symphony
of rain
whispering
stillness
come sleep
it is time
to dream
deep is the water
cold and wild as it
wanders over mossy
stones, earth brown
dark and thick with
greening
a life that
lingers from
less to nothing
is a long, slow
eternity of almost
~kat
Magnetic Poetry Online – the Love, Original, Nature, Poet Kits
Today’s Word of the Day is silver-tongued. Oh dictionary.com you make this too easy! To be silver-tongued means to speak persuasively; eloquently: a silver-tongued orator.
It’s origin according to dictionary.com:
Silver-tongued may be named for the pleasing resonance of a silver bell. Even more pleasing and eloquent, therefore, would be chrysostom or chrysostomos “golden-mouthed,” from Greek chrysόstomos, from chrysόs “gold” and stόma “mouth.” As an epithet, chrysostom is reserved for the ancient Greek philosopher and historian Dio (or Dion) Chrysostom (c40–c115 a.d.), but in particular for the Greek patriarch and Church Father John Chrysostom (c347–407). On the first page of Ulysses, the unreliable, malevolent narrator refers to Buck Mulligan, who has gold fillings in his teeth and a very bawdy wit, as chrysostomos. Silver-tongued entered English in the late 16th century.
The art of eloquent speech is in short supply these days. We communicate in so many ways that are anything but silver-tongued. We have short attention spans that beg to be titillated by tweets, 60 second sound bites, text speak, ads that must grab our attention in the first three seconds, slang and abbreviated grunts!
But thankfully, beautiful words are not completely gone. In fact, when we hear a silver-tongued speech we rush to listen, inspired. ‘President Oprah’ had a very nice ring to it this week, even if only for a few days.
Notice, I did not refer to our current prez. He is what might be described as a silver-tongued devil (someone who, through flattery and slick speech, seeks to deceive others for their own gain.) Thanks to “45” we had a sad reality check this week. He reminded us why a majority of us didn’t vote for him, while reinforcing for the umpteenth time that he really is a racist, misogynistic, nationalist who is in the White House for his own self-aggrandizement. And all this while dragging us through the cesspool of his depraved mind adding another nasty word to our list of ‘not presidential’ diatribes, derogatory remarks and name-calling! Ugh! We are so fucked. (I considered toning that last word down but I am afraid another nicer word just won’t cut it…nope, fucked is the only way to say it…😳) Did I mention I didn’t vote for this guy? I didn’t vote for this guy.
But I digress, and I am sorry for that. Digressing is the last thing any of us should be doing. We need to hold fast to our love of beautiful words. We need to think them and write them and speak them. We need to speak to each other, face to face with the kindness and dignity due every human being.
I believe in the power of words. I believe in their beautiful ability to transform, uplift and affirm. And I’m rooting for the silver-tongued angels among us to win this war of words.
So I’ll close with a Lune, which is a short Haiku with the form 5/3/5. Sometimes brevity is the way to go!
let us strive to be
silver-tongued
angels not devils
~kat
photo by Hans Vivek via Unsplash
It was more than a “clean up on aisle 3” type of request which is why the police were called and the sanitation crew ordered to wait outside for their arrival.
This was the 10th time in as many months that they had been called to the Utopia Night Club on Main to clean up the mess, interestingly, always the day following a full moon.
It was particularly gruesome and troubling that splattered everywhere was not the usual animal blood, but human.
~kat
For Sonya’s Three Line Tale Challenge based on this photo by photo by Hans Vivek via Unsplash.
Captain…not my Captain
it’s not in the cards
call it kismet; call it fate
but inspiration
can’t be gleaned when kibitzers
boasting genius are in charge
~kat
Another “fun with synonyms” exercise for Colleen Chesebro’s ‘Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge’ using synonyms of the words: destination: kismet, fate, in the cards and guide: captain, genius, inspiration, kibitzer.
About the challenge: Each Tuesday I will provide a photo prompt. Your mission, if you choose to accept the challenge, is to tell a story in 280 characters or less. When you write your tale, be sure to let me know in the comments with a link to your tale.
A final note: if you need help tracking the number of characters in your story, there is a nifty online tool that will count for you at charactercountonline.com.
I will do a roundup each Tuesday, along with providing a new prompt. And if for some reason I missed your entry in the Roundup, as I have occasionally done, please let me know. I want to be sure to include your tale.
Finally, have fun!
And REMEMBER…you have 280 characters (spaces and punctuation included), to tell your tale…and a week to do it. I can’t wait to see what you create this week.
Image from Pixabay.com
Starting us off…
“What have we got?” Lt. Jones asked the trooper.
“Witness says this puddle here swallowed a truck.”
“Hmmm, well there are no tracks on the other side,” Jones stated as he stepped into the puddle and disappeared.
“Oh no! Jones!” The trooper called dispatch. “We’re gonna need backup.”
(280 Characters)
From D. Avery at ShiftnShake:
He backed away from the puddle. He hadn’t heard from his friends at the cabin since before the snow. He had an idea where they might be.
From Reena at ReInventions:
The message accompanying a snapshot of the road …
“I believe in the Devil now. The Fire of Hell burns beneath this road, and melts the snow. The size of the puddle increases gradually. I am terrified.”
My reply:
“Is it snowing in Sulfur Springs?”
(243 characters)
From Fandango at This, That, and the Other:
“Did you hear what happened to Alan on New Year’s Eve?” asked Jen.
“No, what?” inquired Mary.
“He got so drunk at Carol’s party that he drove his truck into a sinkhole that formed in the middle of the road.”
“Oh my God!” Mary gasped. “Is he okay?”
“He is, but his truck, not so much.”
(280 characters)
From Kathryn at Another Foodie Blogger:
Our quiet walk along the snowy forest road was suddenly interrupted by a mysterious bubbling sound coming from ahead. Imagine our surprise when an amphibious vehicle popped out of the ground and drove on past us, filled with revelers oblivious to their remarkable arrival.
272 characters
From Di at Pensitivity101:
‘You don’t understand!’
The witness was getting quite agitated.
‘Nothing went IN, you fools. Something came out!’
111 characters.
Photo by Eddie Garcia on Unsplash
An Interview with Mother Teresa
“How did you do it? How did you survive amidst so much suffering?”
She smiled, eyes twinkling, “Peace begins with a smile you know.”
In that moment peace washed over me.
She added, “I have found the paradox that if I love until it hurts, then there is no hurt, but only more love.”
(278 Characters)
~kat
like mercury colliding... 