Confession

Posted by Dave Bonta on August 23, 2007 (last modified at 9:50 am, 8/24/07)

      after the waterboarding

When a promise broke me
I was ready to confess
to the darkest thoughts
just to clear my head

I was ready to be lifted
by my own explosive charges
simply for the rush
of air back into my lungs

I was ready to hang
by my own rope
if only to feel the steadying
pull of the earth again

& I confess
their promise was nothing other
than that the atrocious weather
would change

& it did
I have been changed
into something
I do not know
__________

[Poetry Thursday - dead link]

The challenge this week was to begin a poem with the last line of another poem. I used the last line from today’s poem at Poetry Daily, Promise, by Judson Mitcham.

Filed in Personal/Political, Poems & poem-like things. Bookmark the permalink. Trackbacks are closed, but you can post a comment.Print Print

11 Responses to Confession

  1. This Girl Remembers says:
    August 23, 2007 at 8:22 pm

    Oh, just lovely! I read it through several times just enjoying the feel of the words. A moving piece.

    Reply
  2. Clare says:
    August 24, 2007 at 3:32 am

    Really nice flow and imagery. And the last lines “I have been changed/ into something/ I do not know” really touched me, deeply.

    Reply
  3. gautami says:
    August 24, 2007 at 5:28 am

    Like the promises and changing weather analogy..

    Reply
  4. Brett says:
    August 24, 2007 at 9:37 am

    Topical and important poem. I was moved by the part about the desire to feel gravity again, even if while hanging.

    Reply
  5. Dave says:
    August 24, 2007 at 9:55 am

    This Girl – Thanks. I enjoyed making the acquaintance of your own blog and stunning photography.

    Clare, gautami, and Brett – Thanks for the comments. I really labored over this one, and the subject is decidedly grim, so I’m awfully glad to hear that it resonated with you all.

    Reply
  6. Tumblewords says:
    August 24, 2007 at 12:47 pm

    Well done. Delicious flow and nicely rhythm’d.

    Reply
  7. dale says:
    August 24, 2007 at 7:24 pm

    Am I the only person who found this a distressing poem to read? :-)

    Reply
  8. Dave says:
    August 24, 2007 at 7:31 pm

    Tumblewords – Thanks.

    dale – I sure as hell hope not.

    Reply
  9. maria says:
    August 24, 2007 at 9:28 pm

    add me to the list of those for whom this resonated… I liked the fact that you did not use any punctuation (it made it “grimmer”; but then, grim has never been a problem for me)

    Reply
  10. Via Negativa » Blog Archive » Orange dog says:
    August 25, 2007 at 7:18 pm

    [...] Via Negativa « Confession [...]

    Reply
  11. Fred Garber says:
    August 28, 2007 at 1:26 pm

    I must confess that I like this poem. Confession whether coerced or not can be an agent of change.

    Reply

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