Gentle Reader . . .



Gentle reader, perhaps you've some time for a rhyme,
Sitting down in your chair, feeling loose and relaxed?
Why not linger right there for some rhymes of our time?
Have no fear that your brain will be heavily taxed.
Motley verses are ordered without any plan --
It's my adage for life to mix whimsy with grit.
So, on one page, there's nonsense of which I'm a fan,
On the next, crusty thoughts from old age I submit.

In this text, I present silly stuff and satire.
Alongside, I acknowledge meek Nature's broad drifts
That sustain and enrich, though our minds scarce enquire
What these are, or the worth to us all of those gifts.
I write also of war to remember the bold.
Likewise, illness and God prompt poems to type.
I have learned that the simplest of ways are the gold
We should find while we're young to enjoy when we're ripe.

About this poem

This is part of the preface to my collection of 32 poems, 'Rhymes of Our Times', available on Amazon, Kindle and elsewhere

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Written on December 20, 2021

Submitted by johnc.22519 on February 11, 2022

Modified on March 22, 2023

51 sec read
115

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABABCDCD EFEFGHGH
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 831
Words 166
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 8, 8

John Cotter

Retired environmental scientist who has lived in UK and Australia. more…

All John Cotter poems | John Cotter Books

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Discuss the poem Gentle Reader . . . with the community...

3 Comments
  • Soulwriter
    Thanks for sharing. I look forward to reading more by you.
    LikeReply2 years ago
  • johnc.22519
    Thanks for the nice lines of encouragement, Doug.
    LikeReply2 years ago
  • Dougla$Irishman
    This poem is a rare find
    It makes old hearts to bind
    Living the great life we had
    The good always out weighed the bad !

    Write on my friend and tell me more.
    LikeReply 12 years ago

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"Gentle Reader . . ." Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 26 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/120128/gentle-reader--.-.-.>.

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Do not go gentle into that good _______. Rage, rage against the dying of the light
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