Sinking Into the Night

I am willing to sink into the sound
of night’s changing secrets
where the world sees my breath
wipe away the tears mirroring its pain.
Smiles are caught on fire,
wooed by this poet,
but do not reflect the same.

Instead of playing under trees,
I allow everything to be swept away
by the winds
on the soft petals of a voice.
A voice that empties all its brilliance
into our sleep
comes to see our smiles rejoice.

Life is exhibited in dirt
from the bottom of my shoe
yet never utters a word.
Still, I will never wave goodbye
to thoughts that turn.
Does anyone ever really understand
the smiles a poet burns?

I welcome hands that hush the existence
of whispered memories
lighting candles dwelling in our minds.
If you knew what was on the line,
would you be willing to sink
into night’s sound
in kind?

Author's Note

Artist: Anka Zhuravleva

Reviews

[Crowley]

Its a place where truth and reality twist together. they say that you never really know someone until you have been down and out together...what are you made of...I have no idea, I have never travelled the road of truth and reality with you...but I am always game. Great stuff...really enjoyed it. May be off the mark, but it made me think.

[Mike Winegar]

I love the way you bring out the image of poets traveling roads most people tend to ignore with "Life is exhibited in dirt from the bottom of my shoe..." Never "...[saying] good bye to thoughts that turn" evokes (to me) the importance of keeping an open mind in order to consider one's experiences.

[Extant]

"Does anyone ever really understand the smiles a poet burns?"
Only other poets can ever understand, and the dirt on the shoes which we travel in. *Smile*
Your lines always hold wisdom, Neva, but this is different to me; suddenly I remember that I'm not the only poet out there and these battles of words and wits aren't simply my own. We all loose ourselves within the folds of night, but only those brave enough to fare the wars of words to come emerse completely into the dark, yet it is our only true haven. I think I'm talking too much so I'll cut it short with a brilliant and beautiful.

[Shep]

Love the picture, love the poem. It holds great meaning and great hope. Nicely done

[unknown]

I sink often and in a poet's world we often swim in many directions of life. We go the places that most wouldn't. We dig deep beyond what is on the surface. Enjoyed this one :)

[Dunlack]

I really admire your style it is one of a kind truly so...nice :)

[Teri B]

If only we could do as the woman in the painting, and float above it all...

[joshua deathdealer]

Defiantly a top favorite..awesome awesome write Neva..xx

[Marie Harrison]

Excellent poem
I've missed your poems

[R J Askew]

Excellent evocation of dark sensuousness and the the moodiness of the night. The inner state adjusts to and seems to absorb the mood of the night. This allows a reflective reverie to swell in the middle of the poem. I love the opening two lines. The sibilance seems mesmeric. i also love the whispering and lighting in the last verse. The question at the end makes it all more personal to the reader also.

[Enigma]

Its like being lured with soft spoken words and with a possibility of letting go of the pain we all contain within ourselves. And yet, there are ties that pull us back from this realm. I like the imagery, the brilliant use of metaphors and the question that the last verse poses in, more or less, a rhetoric sense, I believe. Well penned. :)