To Dream Of Swallows Is An Ill Omen

Cherry

By onemorething

Tue, 22 Mar 2022
  • 1863 reads
14 comments
 

Do not dream of swallows, 

they are a flight of grief -

unless you are Alexander the Great,

who, busy besieging Halicarnassus, 

who, by midday and battle fatigued,

dozed in his tent 

who, when a swallow flew around his head, 

thought it brought reports of an assassin. 

 

Though I am not inclined to believe it, 

and besides, I do not tend to think of one swallow - 

such birds are tribal, and awake, awake —

today, this day of March cloud and cold sunshine, 

they seem more a paean of wind walkers

who will greet the Lencten of a leafless tree

dressed in its new buds,

their promise of chirrup and rattle,

the soil and plough, disturbances,

the poetry of a fresh greenness.

 

But I, rather seeking peace than warring,

and drawing up my treaties, 

when, too soon, I begin

to long for the quiet of Autumn,

when being solitary, 

it is not in my nature to flock,

then I am grateful that

I do not dream of swallows. 
 

 

Image is from here: https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:British_birds_and_their_eggs_(Plate_59)_(8452405873).jpg

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Comments

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

onemore this didn't seem to have posted properly?

 

Submitted by onemorething on

Yes, that's me - I typed in a new draft of it on my phone and then my phone froze and lost the whole thing! So am on my laptop now and hoping that I managed to type it in without losing it this time! 

 

Submitted by marandina on

"I do not dream of swallows." Probably just as well Alexander the Great did although one swallow doesn't make a summer or summat like that. A poem steeped in myth and legend with your customary mastery of phrasing :)

 

Submitted by onemorething on

Thank you, that's very kind. Not sure what I think about this one. Not helped by losing a draft and not being able to remember all of the changes I made. It was much better obviously...  Thank you for reading it. :)

 

Submitted by Di_Hard on

Are you still learning Anglo Saxon? I had to look up Lencten - had not known Lent originally meant Spring? But, on the same page ,https://www.wordsense.eu/lencten/  there was this :

"sunwlitig: sunwlitig (Old English) Alternative forms sunwliteg Adjective Beautiful with the sunshine" which I thought you might like (if you had not known it already)

Is frustrating losing a poem, but I love that the escaped words were about dreaming of swallows, that is poetic all by itself!

 

Submitted by onemorething on

Hi Di, yes, I am, in a dipping into it here and there sort of way. Love sunwlitig! What a lovely word. I may have to use it! And ah, well, my own fault, I should type my poems up properly really and not write new drafts straight onto the site. Words in flight! Thank you for reading it. :)

 

Submitted by celticman on

I do not dream of swallows either, But somethnng about an airplane crashing. I guess that doesn't make sense. Dreams don't. Your poetry does. 

 

Submitted by onemorething on

I would like to hear about any dream that made perfect sense. Perhaps they do, but I've never had one. Thanks for the cherries. :)

 

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

ok - how frustrating to lose it like that! A lot of our poets write straight onto their phones and then post which I always think is just brilliant (and puts paid to some people's criticism about seeing so many 'always on their phone' - you never know what they're doing!)

a paen of wind walkers is such a perfect description of swallows. They're very rare where I live and I miss them -  I think they're such graceful, beautiful birds. Thank you for this wonderful poem onemore

 

Submitted by onemorething on

Yes, I pretty much always write on my phone now. I know Drew does too - which is even more impressive, I think, as it's prose. My own stupidity, but only happened this once - I often write a new draft onto the site, not thinking that if I lose it then I've lost all my changes too and I don't remember much these days! They are very graceful birds. Am always fascinated by birds like swallows and swifts and are perfectly adapted to do almost everything in flight. 

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

It's so good to read a poem from you Rachel, it's been far too long. That last stanza really struck a chord with me, it summed up my feelings completely. Like you I long for the Autumn, not because I don't like Spring...but Oh! How I hate the sun in summer, when it's so strong, just one big headache for me.

I can't say I've ever dreamt of swallows, but I think they're such gorgeous birds, just can't see them as an ill omen myself. Long live the swallow, is what I say. wink

Thanks for sharing this poem which got me thinking.

Jenny.

 

Submitted by onemorething on

Thanks Jenny! Am really glad you enjoyed it. Not an ill omen to me either, they were in dreams in Ancient Greece and, like nightingales, their song was seen as a lament rather than joyful. Though their song is nothing like a nightingale's, more like chatter. I remember that we are kindred spirits of seasons. Always love Spring, but I know that without fail I will fall out of love with summer and want Autumn and Winter back again. Thank you for reading it. :) 

 

Submitted by Frances Macaula... on

Congratulations on the cherries!

Soundcloud:  https://soundcloud.com/search?q=FrancesMF

Submitted by onemorething on

Thank you! :)