I visited Myra in Singapore a few years back. While I didn’t write any poetry while there, I brought home a few pictures and one of them was that of the Singapore River in the evenings. The picture drew me in and led me to a story which led to this poem. Happy reading.
Thanks to Elaine of Wild Rose Reader for hosting this week’s poetry Friday.
Gathering Books 
I haven’t read this, have I? I love the fourth stanza for reasons you must know already. Haha. This is beautiful, Mary. And I also love the way that you blend your original work with the images/photographs that you have taken of Singapore River. This is truly a lovely post. Tell me, why did we join Poetry Friday only now? I am sooo proud of you and Fats and how your writing skills have evolved over time.
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Nope. I don’t think you have. I’m not 100% sure. Well, I’m glad you liked the poem and loved the 4th stanza. LOL. My feelings towards poetry friday is mixed. While I like it, it also makes me wonder where has all the poetry gone. This is an old poem and after years of being prolific in the poetry front i can’t seem to write any new ones. There’s a mix of frustration at each poetry friday post. Hopefully, though it also induces me to write more.
Thanks much. This new friday thing constantly reminds me that i love poetry. 🙂
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such a lovely poem, it makes me miss Singapore. *sigh*
The more I read your poetry post the more I think of joining poetry friday to encourage my self back to writing poems. Great post!
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Thanks. I’m glad you enjoyed reading it and that is brought out some nostalgic feelings. You should join. It’s a lovely way of bringing out the hidden poet. 🙂
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Beautiful poem! I so admire people who can write poetry like this. I have written the occasional haiku, but beyond that, I am much more comfortable with prose. Thanks for sharing this.
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Hi Katie,
Thanks. I’m glad you enjoyed the poem. I used to say I’m more comfortable with poetry than prose. I’ve attempted a few stories but always feel they are half baked or too long (the side effects of writing poems). Nowadays, I’m not sure where i’m more comfortable in. To each her own, i guess. Thanks for dropping by. 🙂
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Just following on from the otehr comments – I like your poem because it tells a stoery but, as is poetry’s wont, leaves as many questions begging as it answers. I love the visceral quality of your allusions to the umbilical connections and the “vacant”-ness.
Here’s to your continued particiaption in Poetry Friday, and I hope you feel inspired to write more 🙂
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Hi Marjorie,
What a wonderful comment! I’m glad you enjoyed the poem and captured how I wanted it to be. When I wrote this poem I didn’t want to giveaway everything. I wanted readers to enjoy the story while at the same time attempt to fill in the holes. Oh, and i love you enjoyed the allusion to the umbilical connection…if anything that was one of my favorite parts to write.
Yes, i do hope i get more inspired to write poetry. Thanks again. Your comment is encouraging.
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This is haunting — the combination of the poem and the image. You told so much, and yet left so much for me to wonder…
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Hi Mary Lee!
I’m glad you enjoyed the image and the poem. I’ve decided to post most of my poetry fridays as an image for format sake, but for this particular poem it was the images i took from singapore that inspired the poem. I’m glad you felt that it was haunting, as in some ways it is for there is something unsaid in the poem that i hoped would allow the reader to fill in the gaps.
thanks again. 🙂
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Speechless with awe and shock…!
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What a wonderful and smile-inducing comment. Thanks. I’m glad you enjoyed this poem. When it comes to my writing I’m not as sure-footed as my poetry may seem. so thanks for the comment. I’m glad you enjoyed this. 🙂
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