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There Lies a Woman

Ludy Bührs

There, in front of the old pagoda, lies a woman.
She blocks the driveway quietly on her side.
The local traffic passes by like a hoodlum.
They seem to think here ignoring is right.

There, in front of the old pagoda, lies a woman,
smartly dressed in accordance with fashion,
but the ashen face keeps away the footman.
No eyes to look at her with compassion.
 
There, in front of the old pagoda, lies a woman,
severely wounded, and probably dead.
The head rest on her arm, stiffened by then.
One look and forever this image is etched.

There, in front of the old pagoda, lies a woman.
No monk is watching over her with respect.
Even the Buddhist here seems lost in nowhere.
He just waits for the money he may expect.
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Submitted by ludy_b on May 02, 2021

Modified on April 10, 2023

39 sec read
588

Quick analysis:

Scheme Axxx Aaaa Axxx Abxb
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 699
Words 133
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4
Full analysis for There Lies a Woman »

Ludy Bührs

 · Amsterdam

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…

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Discuss the poem There Lies a Woman with the community...

9 Comments
  • Amirhosein_aj
    Amirhosein_aj
    It was interesting and special
    LikeReply 12 months ago
  • TRRavenscroft
    TRRavenscroft
    Well done.
    LikeReply 16 months ago
  • nwafor_a
    nwafor_a
    O the mood of the verse sets me down. I pulled myself and read the second time. It is a good piece.
    LikeReply 18 months ago
  • BU3
    BU3
    ludy_b, I enjoy your poems. This one triggered many haunting images of Vietnam. The bodies lying along the roadsides are scenes you never forget. Wow! This write hit hard for me.
    LikeReply 12 years ago
    • ludy_b
      ludy_b
      This was in Phnom Pehn, on an ordinary day, and this image is what hit me when driving by on my way to a market. I could still draw the scene of her serene body, the monk and the traffic passing by.
      LikeReply2 years ago
  • DrShiv
    DrShiv
    This is how most religious followers are irrespective of faith.
    LikeReply3 years ago
  • gordonm.11201
    gordonm.11201
    Nice piece penned so well Ludy, good imagery too.
    LikeReply 13 years ago
  • Soulwriter
    Soulwriter
    I'd love to know what inspired this poem - a political scene, a personal experience...
    LikeReply 13 years ago
    • ludy_b
      ludy_b
      This was inspired from seeing with one's own eyes
      LikeReply3 years ago
    • Soulwriter
      Soulwriter
      Wow. Intense. :( The world is complex.
      LikeReply 13 years ago
  • UJ
    UJ
    For me this tells a story of a homeless lady being ignored in the streets. Even when she dies, no one notices or respects her. It's sad to think that this probably happens more often then we'd like to believe. 
    LikeReply 23 years ago
  • Soulwriter
    Soulwriter
    Thanks for sharing this.
    LikeReply 23 years ago
    • c.r.stratton80
      c.r.stratton80
      Please check out my poems if you will and let me know what you think
      LikeReply3 years ago

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"There Lies a Woman" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 19 Jan. 2025. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/98922/there-lies-a-woman>.

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