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Poetry posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 

By Chance or Appointment - 14. Tinnitus

Here is another free-written experiment. Any errors you detect are my own.

Tinnitus

 

With the phoebes fledged,

their parents pack their bags for a long trip south,

I’m alone again

with the ringing in my ears,

that eternal music

which suffocates every solemn silence

and colors soft southern zephyrs

carrying suggestions of rain

and the implication of thunder

on dusty ozone-tanned arms;

There are mathematical abstractions for them all,

every harmony formed by the stillness of green leaves,

each slow syncopation of cricket, cicada and katydid,

the consonance with slow, knowing smiles in an August afternoon -

Anticipated, remembered, and chanted,

reverberating in the vaulted ceilings of my brain

but which never stop their singing,

never cease insistent clamor

pealing without mode or scale,

constant through strife and season, slashing sleet and steaming sun

perhaps the distillation

of crystal raindrops beaded on colored maple leaves,

midmorning bread baking

and children laughing,

sung by watchful angels to echo where I can hear.



Thanks very much for indulging me by reading this poem. Please leave any thoughts you have or reactions you want recorded. I value them all.
Copyright © 2022 Parker Owens; All Rights Reserved.
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Poetry posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 
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Parker Owens
  • Popular Comment
1 hour ago, raven1 said:

This poem's impact on my senses left me stunned!  The contrasting sounds, visual events and smells that flowed from one line to the next were mesmerizing.  The title was in the background and merged with the timeline.  A very unique poem with great emotional and sensory impact. Beautiful and brilliant! 

I’m glad you could connect with this poem, as you might experience these sensory changes as I have. Thanks so much for your thoughts and comments. 

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pvtguy
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The imagery is so experiential!  My tinnitus is also a measure of my sugar level (I am diabetic) - the loudness indicates a rise in my glucose level!  Your description:  reverberating in the vaulted ceilings of my brain, is so aurally rich to me!  I want to turn the volume down but the reverberation keeps echoing. 

Thank you once again for sharing these wonderful poems.  They are, indeed, powerful!

 

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Parker Owens
2 hours ago, Mikiesboy said:

i hope you don't take offence to this, but honestly, i enjoy your unstructured poems more. The skyscrapers and sonnets and things are wonderful but this touched my soul. Thank you.

You made me smile to read this.  That this touched your soul will reverberate in mine for a long time. I confess to feeling like a tightrope walker without a net when I write unstructured poems; your comment makes me feel like Wallenda over Niagara Falls. Thank you. 

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Parker Owens
2 hours ago, Valkyrie said:

I don't think I've ever read a better description of the effects of tinnitus.  As someone with tinnitus and noise sensitivities, this poem truly spoke to me.  Thank you for sharing :hug: 

Thank you for your thoughts on this. It’s  hard to describe such an intensely personal and yet continuous experience. I’m glad it can speak to you too. 

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Parker Owens
  • Popular Comment
1 hour ago, pvtguy said:

The imagery is so experiential!  My tinnitus is also a measure of my sugar level (I am diabetic) - the loudness indicates a rise in my glucose level!  Your description:  reverberating in the vaulted ceilings of my brain, is so aurally rich to me!  I want to turn the volume down but the reverberation keeps echoing. 

Thank you once again for sharing these wonderful poems.  They are, indeed, powerful!

 

I’ve never observed what amplifies or dulls the sound level. I’m fascinated that sugar can do this for you. Now I’m going to have to pay attention! Thank you so much for your reactions and for reading. 

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AC Benus

My friend, when you showed me this poem a couple of weeks ago, my feedback that it was sublime seemed to stun you into silence. 

I hope all these other readers feeling the same way validates my original points of praise :)

'Ringing in the ears', both literally and metaphorically, is an utterly brilliant concept. About a third of the way in, on my initial reading, the import of the poem suddenly hit me. From there, I was overcome with emotion.

The heart of this poem shares a very relatable topic in my own life. So I thank you for putting into words something I've never even considered broaching in poetry!

I love it   

  • Love 4
Parker Owens
1 hour ago, AC Benus said:

My friend, when you showed me this poem a couple of weeks ago, my feedback that it was sublime seemed to stun you into silence. 

I hope all these other readers feeling the same way validates my original points of praise :)

'Ringing in the ears', both literally and metaphorically, is an utterly brilliant concept. About a third of the way in, on my initial reading, the import of the poem suddenly hit me. From there, I was overcome with emotion.

The heart of this poem shares a very relatable topic in my own life. So I thank you for putting into words something I've never even considered broaching in poetry!

I love it   

You're right that I was initially stunned. Thank you for your most kind words. So much of what we know and experience about ourselves, tinnitus included, echoes in the background of our lives. Sometimes these cannot be ignored, at other times, they are simply woven into the fabric of our existence. I am so glad that this poem spoke deeply to you.

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