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Pablo Neruda was born on 12th July,1904, in Parral, Chile. His poems can be described as subtle and elegant, as well as being vigorous and original which brings focus upon themes such as nature, love, politics, and human condition. As I was going through some of Neruda's poems, I came across one that completely blew me away:
If You Forget Me
I want you to know
one thing.
You know how this is:
if I look
at the crystal moon, at the red branch
of the slow autumn at my window,
if I touch
near the fire
the impalpable ash
or the wrinkled body of the log,
everything carries me to you,
as if everything that exists,
aromas, light, metals,
were little boats
that sail
toward those isles of yours that wait for me.
Well, now,
if little by little you stop loving me
I shall stop loving you little by little.
If suddenly
you forget me
do not look for me,
for I shall already have forgotten you.
If you think it long and mad,
the wind of banners
that passes through my life,
and you decide
to leave me at the shore
of the heart where I have roots,
remember
that on that day,
at that hour,
I shall lift my arms
and my roots will set off
to seek another land.
But
if each day,
each hour,
you feel that you are destined for me
with implacable sweetness,
if each day a flower
climbs up to your lips to seek me,
ah my love, ah my own,
in me all that fire is repeated,
in me nothing is extinguished or forgotten,
my love feeds on your love, beloved,
and as long as you live it will be in your arms
without leaving mine.
Our frame of reference is the title of Neruda's poem. Choose your own form or write in free verse, if preferred. I look forward to reading what you guys come up with. Please do visit others and remember to comment on their poems. Have fun!π»
Who can say no to (dancing with a little) Neruda, right? Thank you so much for the chance, Sanaa.
ReplyDeleteHave a fantastic Thursday, everyone!
Yayyy!π Thank you so much, Magaly π heading over to read you!π☕
DeleteWow! what a beautiful poem! Very inspiring!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing that wonderful poem by Neruda, Sanaa, and for hosting today.
ReplyDelete@Sherry; Thank you π so glad you liked itπ☕
ReplyDelete@Kim; Happy Thursday π heading over to read youπ☕
Will be back later... lovely poem to write from... Neruda is always inspiring.
ReplyDeleteHello Sanaa! I hope it's okay that I posted my poem I wrote for another prompt back in September, about this very poem by Neruda.
ReplyDelete@Bjorn; Thank you π heading over to read you now!π☕
ReplyDelete@Linda; I don't usually accept previously written poems but I'll make an exception.. πjust this once π☕
Loving this prompt! Good job, Sanaa!
ReplyDeleteI'm off to celebrate my birthday... I will visit and comment tomorrow after welcoming in my 53rd year....
ReplyDeleteI like this prompt, Sanaa. If I don't use it this time I might on a Tuesday. We stopped at Pablo's Valparaiso (Chile) home for about a half hour a year ago. It was rectangular in several shapes and had been turned into a musem. We and another lady had rented a taxi for the afternoon.
ReplyDelete..
Thanks for hosting, Sanaa!
ReplyDeleteI went for a non-Neruda style verse — a halfway-done ghazal as a reply or perchance a question to this one. Hope that's alright. :-)
@Anmol; Ofcourse it’s alright π I absolutely loved it! π☕️ Thank you so much for writing! π
ReplyDelete@Vivian; Thank you π so glad you enjoyed it π☕️
@Margaret; Yayyy π Wishing you all the happiness in the world. Happy birthday ππΎ
what a poem to spur us on with Sanaa! - the title so evocative and touched a nerve though I took my own style path rather than Neruda's
ReplyDelete@Laura; Thank you π heading over to read youπ☕
ReplyDeleteThis is one of my all-time favourite poems, Sanaa. Such a lovely prompt. I will definitely be back early Saturday to attempt a suitable response. We've had a heatwave all week, and I am totally drained right now. i will read and respond in the relative cool of morning. have a lovely Friday everyone.
ReplyDeleteYou have chosen a great poem. I created a cento from it which changed the entire meaning. Enjoyed writing this one.
ReplyDelete@Kerry; Thank you π hope the weather is better now. Happy Friday!π☕
ReplyDelete@Rall; Thanks for joining usπ☕
Such a beautiful poem. I dedicated my poem to my father who watched my mother forget him as Alzheimer's consumed her. Thank you for the prompt.
ReplyDelete@Susie; *Hugs* I am so sorry for your loss.
ReplyDelete@Margaret, I tried to read your page, but got one of those permission denied replies from blogger. Sorry.
ReplyDeletewierd let me know if that continues... I have no idea why,.
ReplyDeleteOh, coming late to this party. I promised myself I would have a rest from writing to prompts, just see what would come on its own – but something made me check in on the garden today, I saw Neruda, and....
ReplyDeleteRichard Hexam ... please link your specific post to Mr. Linky.
ReplyDelete@Rosemary; Thank you π heading over to read youπ☕
ReplyDelete@Margaret; I deleted Richard's link as his poem did not comply with the rules of my prompt. π
@Margaret I too am locked out of reading your post.
ReplyDelete