Please, do that! It's really one of the most exquisite things I've read. It's so uncommon to find poetry about moments of joy of such depth. Usually, poets are not the happiest bunch of people.
Portia, you are so right about that. Poets are usually more at home in a world of doom and gloom. And I'm actually in the process of writing a collection titled Songs from a World Gone Wrong, about a world that is forgetting the things that truly matter, such as love, kindness and compassion for all living things. But on the positive side, I have finished another collection titled Book of Desire, from which this poem is taken.
In that sense, Substack has changed my life. I feel now as if I belong to a community of similar people, who feel and understand things deeply, and want the world to be a bit better than it is - something we can look upon 'with eyes still open to astonishment'.
Wow, what a well-deserved write-up on your piece Martin. I don't usually have too many elegant words but I can share I do love it. And to Johhny - very nice work. It's all very lovely indeed and an honor to be here to witness.
Martin, this poem accompanied by music is a ray of light that stands out among the billions of photons and rays of the sun. Congratulations to you and Johnny. My favourite part:
Your comments, my friend, are becoming more eloquent and poetic every time I read them. Your inner poet is always breaking through. Thanks so much for this one.
thanks for shoutout Martin. Always good to work with good prose/words. Looking forward to doing more. If anyone else wants to know what their prose might 'sound like' then reach out, I dont bite (well, only on a full moon).
It's good to hear from you, Johnny. Yes, we will certainly keep the good work going. What people may be hearing here is the sound of the future in which the technical skill of AI is combined with all the true feelings of a human being in order to create something of great beauty.
Well I ain’t the worlds biggest fan of AI, but what I do know after 30+ years of working in tech is that its coming, whether we like it or not. Grab it, Change it then its yours. I love it for catching up via ‘voice conversations’ with my gaelic, a bit of spanish, etc - yep, all by voice on desktop or phone. Basically 'real time' conversations back and fourth with the AI. Including translating ancient texts from Latin, Greek, Hewbrew into english etc. Effectively, you are speaking/interacting with the smartest person in the world (technically). But It’s a bit like the Tin Man, it has no ‘Human Heart’.
Well done to you on all your achievements, Johnny. Let us always use what we have to enhance ourselves and the world around us. Let us take what we are given and breathe into it a soul.
Thank you so much for your comment, Alo. I try to read my best to read all comments, but sometimes I'm just not aware of them. Yet it does make me happy when somebody calls my work beautiful because there is, in my opinion, too much doom and gloom in the world right now, and I see one of my tasks as reminding readers of the awesome beauty that is there also.
Agreed, Martin. Thanks for your thoughtful (and unexpected) reply. I didn't mean to comment twice! Although, your poem probably deserved the double accolade <3 I too aspire to see and bring out the inherent and sometimes hidden beauty that still exists in the world, in many shapes and forms... It's lovely to be connected on here.
Thank you so much, Maureen, for commenting. I really appreciate it, and I'm so glad to have you. By an odd coincidence, I was on Erik's site a minute ago, commenting on a new and wonderful poem of his. Isn't Substack a great place to be?
Good morning to you, too. But it's really the afternoon here, because I'm in Ireland, far away (thankfully) from all the divisiveness of American politics. And it's lovely and sunny here today. Happy day!
Extraordinary poem Martin. I felt like I could jump right into the words like jumping into waves at the coast on a warm day.
I recently had the good fortune to visit Ireland for the first time and found it an enchanting country with an enchanting coast. Easy to see how Yeats felt the fairies were alive and active and surrounding him all the time. Cheers.
Thanks you for commenting, Jed. The poem is very real and alive because everything in it - the speaker, the woman, the ocean, the waves breaking, the chance meeting of two illicit lovers after a long interval - is very real and alive, like Ireland itself, and I think you have somehow picked up on all of that. It's in there somewhere. Now let me tell you something - the fairies are still alive and active and surrounding me instead of Yeats seeing that his spirit deserted us for Byzantium.
You made my day with this response sir. It is not easy to find, in my neck of the woods, a friend who would understand what we are talking about here. You are in good hands with those fairies. It moves me to hear it. And cracks me up to to imagine Yeats gallivanting in Byzantium. I think you are probably right about that though. I "hear it in the deep heart's core" ;)
Luckily, for you I have included the lyrics. I have more recordings to come in which the voice is much clearer and the lyrics take precedence over everything else. One of those is my own personal favourite, so it will be interesting to hear what you think of that. Thanks for commenting, Tom.
I like gasp, which I just listened to again a couple times. I kept wanting to hear the final line delivered with a more poignant sound., to hear it drop into a much deeper strain, so that the heartbreak behind the impossible vision would hit home harder. In the final line of the written poem I hear longing echoing off every part of the universe, filling all space and time with a wildly inconsolable sense of loss. Possibly I have misunderstood it.
You have read it very well. It's open to interpretation. Many readers see it as a poem about finding moments of unexpected joy. I never close off possible meanings if I can help it.
Singers have less scope for doing this. They have to convey what it means to them or it will have no power at all.
None of my poems has ever been sung. Two have been recited though. "Tom of Bedlam" recited my Time In Eternity poem, and when I heard his recitation, I was surprised at the perfect inflection throughout. He's an able reader.
I have always preferred reading poetry, to listening to it read. Recitations go by too fast. When the words are in front of me they can't run away the way they do when recited. In compelling poems, I want to study and savor the language and meaning. I want the words to stay put.
This is truly lovely and elegant. I love that the editors took the time to praise what they loved in your poem, and to share how you helped define for them what they were looking for. That's marvelous.
Thank you, Jeremy. Some poets and editors have been very kind to me and I really appreciate it because I have a musical ear and tend to listen to my inner voice while I am writing. Of course, what I write is a bit outside the current of modern, overly-prosy poetry, and many of the mainstream journals have no time for it.
I liked your poem and I'll watch out for your posts from now on.
Martin, this is phenomenal. You were right—this one does indeed have a bit of a Celtic air to it, and I absolutely love it! This is one of my favorites so far. So, so beautiful!
Hello, Shannon. I've just come to my computer this very moment, and I see that I've missed you by only a few minutes, so hopefully you are still there.
Thank you so much, my friend, for listening to the audio and for your kind comment. I think I have a nice collection of songs on Substack at this stage, and more are in the pipeline, including 'Song at Nightfall' - which is now called 'Night Falls', and is my own personal favourite.
I am still here, my friend! You’re most welcome! I was happy to do it. I agree that you currently have a fine collection of songs here on Substack, and I look forward to seeing what you will post next. I am greatly looking forward to hearing “Night Falls”, given that it is your personal favorite. So far, my absolute favorite has been “Song of the Wind”. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve listened to it at this point. It’s hauntingly beautiful and even makes me a little emotional at times. Bravo!
I think of 'Song of the Wind' as my Wuthering Heights poem, and I imagine Ostara to be Cathy singing. When I do post it, I will include an image of Cathy on the wild moors. But I'm in no hurry to post it for a while at least.
I think your poem/song does indeed capture something of the haunting quality of Wuthering Heights. I will look forward to you posting it when the time is right.
I like the idea of giving readers and listeners time to find their way to my work and taking their time to think about it and feel it and comment. I really do appreciate them.
There is a delicacy to the imagery and rhythm which captures my imagination. Though there is a softness, a gentleness to the poem, this rests on an armature of sturdiness.
I have already commented on this fabulous peom, Martin - I went back and listened to the song: stunned and amazed by the frightening beauty of Ostara, the musical AI performer.......
Thank you for commenting, Leon, and for listening to the audio. In the right hands, I think that AI can be a great aid to creativity . But human feelings must always be present in great art or it won't move what is in our hearts, or in our souls. In the 'Gasp' audio, the voice and the words blend seamlessly into one.
Martin, this is a gem.
Thank you, Portia. I think your words might encourage me to create a whole necklace of similar gems, with Johnny's help of course!
Please, do that! It's really one of the most exquisite things I've read. It's so uncommon to find poetry about moments of joy of such depth. Usually, poets are not the happiest bunch of people.
Portia, you are so right about that. Poets are usually more at home in a world of doom and gloom. And I'm actually in the process of writing a collection titled Songs from a World Gone Wrong, about a world that is forgetting the things that truly matter, such as love, kindness and compassion for all living things. But on the positive side, I have finished another collection titled Book of Desire, from which this poem is taken.
Wonderful news! And, at least, sad poems make you feel less alone.
In that sense, Substack has changed my life. I feel now as if I belong to a community of similar people, who feel and understand things deeply, and want the world to be a bit better than it is - something we can look upon 'with eyes still open to astonishment'.
Wow, what a well-deserved write-up on your piece Martin. I don't usually have too many elegant words but I can share I do love it. And to Johhny - very nice work. It's all very lovely indeed and an honor to be here to witness.
I feel honoured too, Cynthia - honoured to have readers/listeners who like and enjoy what we do.
I felt like I was on the rugged West Coast of Wales, looking across the Irish Sea.
If that is so, I think this poem/song is achieving it purpose. Thanks, Eric.
Martin, this poem accompanied by music is a ray of light that stands out among the billions of photons and rays of the sun. Congratulations to you and Johnny. My favourite part:
"but here you are, as the night undresses
in an alcove of dreams and moonbeams,
uttering the long tidal gasp
of a longing echoed from every shore."
Your comments, my friend, are becoming more eloquent and poetic every time I read them. Your inner poet is always breaking through. Thanks so much for this one.
I have to thank you for that lovely comment
I'm simply stating what is true.
thanks for shoutout Martin. Always good to work with good prose/words. Looking forward to doing more. If anyone else wants to know what their prose might 'sound like' then reach out, I dont bite (well, only on a full moon).
It's good to hear from you, Johnny. Yes, we will certainly keep the good work going. What people may be hearing here is the sound of the future in which the technical skill of AI is combined with all the true feelings of a human being in order to create something of great beauty.
Well I ain’t the worlds biggest fan of AI, but what I do know after 30+ years of working in tech is that its coming, whether we like it or not. Grab it, Change it then its yours. I love it for catching up via ‘voice conversations’ with my gaelic, a bit of spanish, etc - yep, all by voice on desktop or phone. Basically 'real time' conversations back and fourth with the AI. Including translating ancient texts from Latin, Greek, Hewbrew into english etc. Effectively, you are speaking/interacting with the smartest person in the world (technically). But It’s a bit like the Tin Man, it has no ‘Human Heart’.
Well done to you on all your achievements, Johnny. Let us always use what we have to enhance ourselves and the world around us. Let us take what we are given and breathe into it a soul.
A wonderful collaboration with Johnny adding an extra dimension. I’m looking forward to more!
Hi Monica, I'm so glad you enjoyed it. And I can promise you that more of a similar quality are on the way. Possibly two more by Christmas-time.
Beautiful
Thank you so much for your comment, Alo. I try to read my best to read all comments, but sometimes I'm just not aware of them. Yet it does make me happy when somebody calls my work beautiful because there is, in my opinion, too much doom and gloom in the world right now, and I see one of my tasks as reminding readers of the awesome beauty that is there also.
Agreed, Martin. Thanks for your thoughtful (and unexpected) reply. I didn't mean to comment twice! Although, your poem probably deserved the double accolade <3 I too aspire to see and bring out the inherent and sometimes hidden beauty that still exists in the world, in many shapes and forms... It's lovely to be connected on here.
Yes, it truly is. Substack has so many wonderful creative people who write things that really stir your soul. Thanks for connecting.
Beautiful.
I must check out your website.
Martin, this poem and song are so lovely! I'm glad to have found you through Eric Rittenbury/Poetic Outlaw.
Thank you so much, Maureen, for commenting. I really appreciate it, and I'm so glad to have you. By an odd coincidence, I was on Erik's site a minute ago, commenting on a new and wonderful poem of his. Isn't Substack a great place to be?
Oh, what synergy! Yes, Substack is magical! Especially the poetry. And good morning Martin.
Good morning to you, too. But it's really the afternoon here, because I'm in Ireland, far away (thankfully) from all the divisiveness of American politics. And it's lovely and sunny here today. Happy day!
Yes, it sure is a hot mess. Rainy and downright poetry-reading kind of Sunday morning here in Kentucky. xo
Extraordinary poem Martin. I felt like I could jump right into the words like jumping into waves at the coast on a warm day.
I recently had the good fortune to visit Ireland for the first time and found it an enchanting country with an enchanting coast. Easy to see how Yeats felt the fairies were alive and active and surrounding him all the time. Cheers.
Thanks you for commenting, Jed. The poem is very real and alive because everything in it - the speaker, the woman, the ocean, the waves breaking, the chance meeting of two illicit lovers after a long interval - is very real and alive, like Ireland itself, and I think you have somehow picked up on all of that. It's in there somewhere. Now let me tell you something - the fairies are still alive and active and surrounding me instead of Yeats seeing that his spirit deserted us for Byzantium.
You made my day with this response sir. It is not easy to find, in my neck of the woods, a friend who would understand what we are talking about here. You are in good hands with those fairies. It moves me to hear it. And cracks me up to to imagine Yeats gallivanting in Byzantium. I think you are probably right about that though. I "hear it in the deep heart's core" ;)
I forgot to ask you, Jed. Where are you from?
The sounds and speed accelerate appealingly, in the modernly intensifying style. I can make out none of the words though.
Luckily, for you I have included the lyrics. I have more recordings to come in which the voice is much clearer and the lyrics take precedence over everything else. One of those is my own personal favourite, so it will be interesting to hear what you think of that. Thanks for commenting, Tom.
I like gasp, which I just listened to again a couple times. I kept wanting to hear the final line delivered with a more poignant sound., to hear it drop into a much deeper strain, so that the heartbreak behind the impossible vision would hit home harder. In the final line of the written poem I hear longing echoing off every part of the universe, filling all space and time with a wildly inconsolable sense of loss. Possibly I have misunderstood it.
You have read it very well. It's open to interpretation. Many readers see it as a poem about finding moments of unexpected joy. I never close off possible meanings if I can help it.
Singers have less scope for doing this. They have to convey what it means to them or it will have no power at all.
None of my poems has ever been sung. Two have been recited though. "Tom of Bedlam" recited my Time In Eternity poem, and when I heard his recitation, I was surprised at the perfect inflection throughout. He's an able reader.
I have always preferred reading poetry, to listening to it read. Recitations go by too fast. When the words are in front of me they can't run away the way they do when recited. In compelling poems, I want to study and savor the language and meaning. I want the words to stay put.
Have it come thru as clearly as the Cowboy Junikes always did.
This is truly lovely and elegant. I love that the editors took the time to praise what they loved in your poem, and to share how you helped define for them what they were looking for. That's marvelous.
Thank you, Jeremy. Some poets and editors have been very kind to me and I really appreciate it because I have a musical ear and tend to listen to my inner voice while I am writing. Of course, what I write is a bit outside the current of modern, overly-prosy poetry, and many of the mainstream journals have no time for it.
I liked your poem and I'll watch out for your posts from now on.
Thank you, Martin.
I, too, often feel like an outsider where contemporary poetry is concerned.
I'm delighted I found your work.
That goes for me too.
Martin, this is phenomenal. You were right—this one does indeed have a bit of a Celtic air to it, and I absolutely love it! This is one of my favorites so far. So, so beautiful!
Hello, Shannon. I've just come to my computer this very moment, and I see that I've missed you by only a few minutes, so hopefully you are still there.
Thank you so much, my friend, for listening to the audio and for your kind comment. I think I have a nice collection of songs on Substack at this stage, and more are in the pipeline, including 'Song at Nightfall' - which is now called 'Night Falls', and is my own personal favourite.
I am still here, my friend! You’re most welcome! I was happy to do it. I agree that you currently have a fine collection of songs here on Substack, and I look forward to seeing what you will post next. I am greatly looking forward to hearing “Night Falls”, given that it is your personal favorite. So far, my absolute favorite has been “Song of the Wind”. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve listened to it at this point. It’s hauntingly beautiful and even makes me a little emotional at times. Bravo!
I think of 'Song of the Wind' as my Wuthering Heights poem, and I imagine Ostara to be Cathy singing. When I do post it, I will include an image of Cathy on the wild moors. But I'm in no hurry to post it for a while at least.
I think your poem/song does indeed capture something of the haunting quality of Wuthering Heights. I will look forward to you posting it when the time is right.
I like the idea of giving readers and listeners time to find their way to my work and taking their time to think about it and feel it and comment. I really do appreciate them.
So beautiful, eloquent and poignant!
What a lovely compliment! Thank you for taking the time to comment.
There is a delicacy to the imagery and rhythm which captures my imagination. Though there is a softness, a gentleness to the poem, this rests on an armature of sturdiness.
That's an interesting perspective, Bob. Thanks for commenting.
I have already commented on this fabulous peom, Martin - I went back and listened to the song: stunned and amazed by the frightening beauty of Ostara, the musical AI performer.......
Thank you for commenting, Leon, and for listening to the audio. In the right hands, I think that AI can be a great aid to creativity . But human feelings must always be present in great art or it won't move what is in our hearts, or in our souls. In the 'Gasp' audio, the voice and the words blend seamlessly into one.