Trigger

Trigger

Willie Nelson, an icon in the country music field, is growing old. The years of smoking pot are catching up with him. When he sings, he struggles to catch his breath for the next line.

He plays an old beat-up Martin guitar that he calls Trigger. It looks about as rugged as he does. A hole is worn through the body from his fingers scraping it as he picks out the melodies. Willie has a luthier who works on Trigger, gluing the cracks and keeping it playing. Willie says, “I’m going to keep on playing Trigger until one of us dies, and I think Trigger will outlast me.”

Now he is old and gray, and his guitar is much the same. He says, “Everything I do is stitched with its color. Even the ashes falling from the end of my joint are gray!”

***

Watercolor Painting done today of Willie Nelson playing Trigger: Dwight L. Roth

Today at d’Verse Lisa gave us a Prosery challenge to write a 144 word story that included the following line:

Everything I do is stitched with its color. – from poet W.S. Merwin’s poem, “Separation”

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The White Knight’s Demise (a nonsense poem)

A strange wild song full of chocolaty words

keeps running through my head

Not creamy and smooth, but totally absurd

Leaving marshmallow sweetness, yet filled with dread

*

Three voices combine in syrupy harmonies past

Music of gumdrop size notes and candy corn tears

Floating like an epilogue to through the looking glass

Running slug streaks on the window of my ears

*

The voice of the lobster belts out his song

A sea dirge for the aged aged man

Covering a multitude of sins as sweetness drones on

All caramel and chocolate just for him

*

But it’s too late now, The White Knight’s Song

It’s just four sticky riddles, all in the golden afternoon

*

Photo: Dwight L. Roth

At d’Verse, Sanaa gave us two options for our prompt. We could pick three titles from a list of Lewis Carrolls poems and use them for inspiration, or we could write a poem about candy but using it in an untraditional sense. I took the liberty to carry the prompt to extreme and used Carroll’s poem titles and candied words to write a nonsense poem in semi-sonnet from. The poem titles are dark highlighted, and I used more than three!

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Lifting Glad Voices

Colorful music

A clef full of melodies

Transporting the soul

Calling us to join the song

Raising voices one and all

Treble Clef Painting: Dwight L. Roth

Play Me Some Real Music

Where have all the Bass men gone

Those with deep lowdown voices

Sounding like echoes from a fifty-five gallon oil drum

Deep vibes rattling speakers and vibrating the floor?

 

Where are all the Baritone voices

with their rich celloed smooth tones

that entered deep into the souls of listeners?

 

Seems all we have these days are high pitched

parakeet voices singing in falsetto

lacking depth and sounding like untuned violins

singing so high it sounds like someone

is squeezing them just a little too tight.

 

Where are the real men who can sing four-part-harmony

With blends so sweet they sound like one voice

Take me back to men like Johnny Cash

and the Statler Brothers

To Tennessee Ernie Ford singing, “Big Bad John”

Songs from Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard,

and Kris Kristopherson…

and the Oak Ridge Boys and Alabama singing…

“Play Me Some Mountain Music…”

 

I long for real music once more

Music that stirs me deep down in my soul

Music with substance that actually says something,

*****************

Today at d’Verse we are doing stream of consciousness writing. This is something I really enjoy and do most of the time when I write. I was going to post a photo, but Word Press, for some reason, has switched me to this awful block style and I have not figured out how to load them. So all you get today is words!! Well I finally got a photo of my first guitar loaded. That was many years ago and I am still playing some!

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A New Day

The sun is shining

Birds are singing in the trees

I will sing with them

*****

Photo: Dwight L. Roth

 

 

The Spirit of Christmas

When spirits join in perfect harmony
There is Peace
The joy of sharing one’s soul
Brings Balance
Spirits rise in joyful song
Experiencing Community
When spirits find joy in self-less giving
There is Gratitude
When God’s Spirit touches our spirit
There is Agape Love

Photo: Dwight L. Roth

Posted on d’Verse for the prompt Spirit. We are to write a quadrille of only 44 words using any form of the word Spirit.  To me, soul and spirit are very hard to separate. Today I have looked at spirit from several different perspective.

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She Sings

 

She sings
Though she cannot speak.
Halting words
say
“Hel-l l lo”
But as the music plays,
Oh… can she sing;
Every word plain and clear
smooth as jazz
she sings
with
a smile
spreading
across her face the words pour out
filling
her soul
with a rhythm,
and yes,
with spoken words
clear and unchained;
For the stroke
did not
affect that side of the brain.

***

Photo: Dwight L. Roth

 

The Joy of Friendship

Today, I am grateful for friendship. Over the years I have had some of the best friends anyone could ever want.  Friends come and go, but the feeling of connection is always there. In the photo above are two friends who live down the street. Danny is my age and is blind, and David lives right across the street from him. They both wanted me to teach them to play the guitar, so last January we started to get together twice a week.  We play and sing all of the old songs of our past. David learned very quickly, but Danny has taken longer due to his sight disability. We have adapted, by letting Danny play the home chord all the way through the songs, while David and I play all the chords. The clash of chords is not noticeable most of the time. We have great fun together.

Grateful for friendship

Young and old bring me much joy

Thanksgiving is here

****

Photo: Vera Payne

Today at d’Verse, Frank asked us to write a Haibun using a form of gratitude as our prompt. There are so many things in my life that I could be grateful for, but right up at the top is friendship. My connection between friends is second only to family.

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When It’s My Time

When it’s my time // let it be a celebration
Not down and sorrowful;
A reminder of all the good things life offered
And the things I chose to accept.
Let it be filled with music and guitars
Singing the old songs that stirred my soul.
Make it a time to remember the good times;
Stories shared that warm the heart.
Celebrate my passing with joy and happiness;
Friends and family coming together as one
Finding strength, joy, and hope.
Let tears mingle with laughter and song;
Knowing that I had a great life
Filled with great family and friends.
As my spirit rises to join the Spirit of God, my creator,
Know that life goes on // both here and there.

*****

Photo: Dwight L. Roth

 

Peace of Mind

“What brings you peace of mind and cleanses your spirit?” This was our question for the d’Verse Poets Pub poetics this evening. For me it is not just one particular thing. I love sitting under the trees and watching nature hum all around me. Music soothes my soul, both listening and playing music on my guitar with others. I love going to the Nursing Home each week where I read stories and play music and sing with them. I always come away renewed! But, I have found that posting on my blog each day brings me the most peace of mind. If I have been busy all day, all that mind clutter goes away when I sit in my chair and begin writing a poem and finding a photo or two that I can add to it. Sometimes it is the other way around. If I have no particular inspiration, I look through my photo files and am always able to find inspiration. Connecting with all of you is most rewarding. It is not so much the likes on my posts, but the comments and personal interactions that make what I do here worthwhile. So, for that I say thank you for your support and encouragement.

Sharing thoughts with you
Connecting with such great friends
Brings joy to my soul

Photo: Dwight L. Roth

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