Lost Metaphors



Off course
metaphors,
they show up and then
whoosh
already  gone,
because the poet
just didn’t hold on.
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Submitted by ludy_b on April 27, 2021

Modified on May 02, 2023

5 sec read
134

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCDEFG
Closest metre Iambic dimeter
Characters 102
Words 18
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 7

Ludy Bührs

The topics she writes about are very diverse, so are the poetry styles she applies. As a Dutch translator and poet, having lived in Cambodia's capital city Phnom Penh for 2.5 years, in 2008 she published "Op de ruïnes van een rijk" (On the Ruins of an Empire) ISBN 978-90-8834-483-1 with 60 poems based on her experiences there. In 2007 she received a Certificate of Accomplishment as one of The Best Poems and Poets of 2007 issued by poetry.com and the International Library of Poetry for her poem Choked Truth, her own translation of "Verstikte waarheid", one of the poems in the book. Born in 1956, she still works as an independent translator, translating from English into Dutch. more…

All Ludy Bührs poems | Ludy Bührs Books

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2 Comments
  • luisestable1
    What kind of reading should one give to this? The intention is not so obvious, but one could come to the idea that the metaphors as they come to the mind the poet or writer loses clear vision of them and they are gone. Of course, this depend how one sees the whole thing. Perhaps what you want us to think is a bit forced here and more clarity is needed. 
    LikeReply2 months ago
  • karlcfolkes
    This ‘off course’ poem is so unlike your typical style of conveying a message of resilience, hope, and even new possibilities. What motivated this? What message are you trying to share this time that seems to be metaphorically ‘lost in translation’? P.S: I am patiently poetically holding on. 
    LikeReply2 months ago
    • ludy_b
      This poem is just word play. When I wrote it, I was thinking about how a poet sometimes tries to steer a poem in a certain direction and fails, as if riding a wild horse, Karl. :-)
      LikeReply2 months ago

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"Lost Metaphors" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/98552/lost-metaphors>.

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