Monday, November 23, 2015

Wild Poppy Comments

Rating: 5.0

A man with a gun whispers
in a field of wildflower and tall grass.
I listen,
like skipping stones by moonlight.
...
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Brian Mayo
COMMENTS
Bri Edwards 16 August 2021

I guess i liked this a few years ago. now...? but, i'm not too bright. ;) bri

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James Sanderson 07 July 2021

Thought you should know I found this poem through minecraft fanfiction. Don't know how that makes you feel but hopefully it's a good thing?

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Bri Edwards 15 March 2017

in case it ain't there: to MyPoemList and i'm swiping it for my/our March 2017 showcase. Thanks. bri :)

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Bri Edwards 24 July 2016

'Wild Poppy' revisited. did pamela proofread her comment in light of your poem, i wonder. i neither saw nor heard any whispering wildflowers. more like a murderer or lousy hunter whispering i gotcha now! . yes, an exclaimed whisper. and upon second reading (today's reading by me) [and BEFORE i read your response to my earlier comment; ya know i never would have seen it IF i hadn't come back half a year later and looked] i thought about grain. i don't remember what kind of grain i thought of the first time. wheat? barley? but this time i thought grain was used to refer to buckshot. ok, gunpowder. i suppose you could be saying the exploding gunpowder made an explosion which rattled an eardrum. but fall and hit make me think of a pellet of buckshot. i did NOT think of grains through an hourglass. i tend to think NOT in symbolism. btw, i didn't mean (i don't think) in my first comment that i had fallen into that trap with this poem. i know i have for some others. ...................................I listen, like skipping stones by moonlight. .......i STILL don't get this. did you find a rib in your garden as well. perhaps one of adam's, which god dropped and could not be bothered to pick up? ? bri :) thanks for your earlier response. i send mine directly to the poet as a message, as you may know.

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Pamela Sinicrope 16 March 2016

I came back to this poem again today. There is something mythic and mesmerizing about this one. Whispering wildflowers and skipping stones in moonlight. It has such a musical quality to it and the scene is just chilling. More like an opera than a symphony...one that happens in just a few seconds. Timeless.

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Bri Edwards 15 December 2015

people sometimes tend to throw their own interpretation into a poem comment. ……………which I guess is pretty normal, especially when the poem is so ……….hmmm? unclear? [[they often also mistake fiction for nonfiction and assume the author is telling a true ‘story’ about her/himself. I’ve fallen into that trap! ]] I liked your response to one of the comments you received: your response: “ Brian Mayo (12/4/2015 11: 18: 00 PM) Saving Private Ryan? Thanks for the nice comments. I chose a poppy only because I recently had discovered one in my weed infested garden, had no idea wghere it came from, and thought it was cool. It looked like a purple, coconut flaked snowball” [minus five points for the “wghere” typo] did you actually give the poem’s poppy a color designation? ? let me see. NO; I thought not! a bit spooky (the poem) . just a bit from this side. is there really a gun? and what’s with the grain falling? ? as poetry, I guess this will have its fans. but you might not make it as a news reporter. well, maybe you would, on second thought! I’m glad this is “Free Verse”, as I wouldn’t give ya but two bits for it. hee-hee. and does the torrent wash the soil off of your shallow grave, dear sir? ? ? bri :)

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Brian Mayo 16 December 2015

BREAKING NEWS; THIS JUST IN: Man Actually Believes Poet's Mother Was A Possum Story At 11: 00 Yes, there was really a gun... in my imagination... when I wrote the poem. Save your two bits for a shave and a haircut. Grain- -both hourglass and gunpowder. Isn't that what was called to mind? The torrent can do whatever you wish it to do. Maybe it's a flood of emotion... Maybe it's where the stream narrows... Maybe it's where I took a leak. Har Har

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Chuy Amante 05 December 2015

and the daisies shout out hey, where did that poppy come from? lovely verses, they'd make Atlas Shrug!

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Amitava Sur 30 November 2015

A very thought provoking write Look for me after the rain where the dirt road ends .... very nice

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Simone Inez Harriman 29 November 2015

WOW...stunning write. Although the red poppy has become a symbol of war remembrance the world over.. in New Zealand it is most commonly seen around Anzac Day,25 April. So this poem is very symbolic and special to me. Thank you....10

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Brian Mayo 04 December 2015

Always nice to hear from you. Your appreciation of my poem makes me happy.

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Pamela Sinicrope 29 November 2015

So I really loved this write... It's like nothing I've ever read before! I've read it multiple times and I catch my breath each time. The poem, written from the point of view of the man about to be shot reminds me of a scene from a WWII movie where two men engage in a sword fight and only one comes out alive... It was a sickeningly violent yet quiet and intimate scene... Kind of like this short seemingly unassuming poem. The figurative language here is really beautiful and descriptive... For such an ugly theme....'like skipping stones by moonlight'. The way he hears the gun and the bullet... WOW! The final lines really got me too... The wild red poppy pushing through... What does that mean? Red for blood and death... But why the poppy? I looked up poppies to see what their symbolic importance is..but I'm but in curious on your take. GREAT poem!

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Brian Mayo 04 December 2015

Saving Private Ryan? Thanks for the nice comments. I chose a poppy only because I recently had discovered one in my weed infested garden, had no idea wghere it came from, and thought it was cool. It looked like a purple, coconut flaked snowball.

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Kelly Kurt 23 November 2015

Poignant, well written and moving. Thanks, Brian

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Brian Mayo 04 December 2015

Right back at ya, Kel.

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Rahman Henry 23 November 2015

Extraordinary poem. Brilliantly illustrated. I love this poem........10+++++++

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Brian Mayo 04 December 2015

Thanks, Henry.

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Brian Mayo

Brian Mayo

Grand Rapids Michigan
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