Sunday, January 8, 2012

Demeter and Persephone

It was a hard-fought labor
that gave her life.
And so it was
her mother's right
to fight again
to bring her back
from the murk,
the seductive depths.

To call upon the gods
to restore her.

To pull her up,
to drag her out.
To insist that she re-break the waters
and remember her name.
To cajole, to whisper,
to cry out, to claim
her daughter
for the light.

It was that maternal push
to never forget
to always remind,
to wail and to rage--
to blight the crops
if need be--
that brought her daughter out,
whole and free.

So when she was restored,
she knew what saved her.

Reborn at last
to her mother's arms
and walking once more beneath the sun,
her gratitude
held her
in check.

She couldn't explain.
She didn't dare share
how the darkness touched her,
or who she was
when she was lost
down there.









7 comments:

  1. Wonderful, Erin. I love the myths of Demeter and Persephone--so interesting. The only woman to venture into Hades to retrieve someone. And so much else that speaks to women, all of which you caught in these lines. Thank you.

    Good to see you back! Happy New Year!

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  2. Oooo this feels so personal, like a glimpse into Persephone's thoughts!

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  3. ds--Thank you. I've been haunted by this myth for a few months now. It's good to be back. Happy New Year to you!

    Jeanne--I'm glad it feels personal. Thank you.

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  4. Ooooh... Thanks for this piece! It inspired me to read an account of the myth - and what a gripping story it is.

    And by the way, do you know if the regulars of the now-defunct Read Write Poem and Big Tent Poetry have found another poetry site to share their creations? Or is everyone kinda spread over the various random prompt sites? It was quite a shock for me to come back to poetry after several months away, to find Big Tent Poetry closed.

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  5. Hi Sam! Glad you were inspired to read the myth. As for a poetry site, try We Write Poems. Many of the Big Tent and Read Write Poem people have moved over there, I believe. :-)

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  6. Erin! You were so kind to comment on my birthday poem on the 9th....and I am amazed at the wavelength of sorts after reading your marvelous work posted on the 8th! This poem is so inspiring in so many ways, not the least of which is that I, too, will now read about the myth behind it. I hope you are back to writing/posting your beautiful poems in your blog again!

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  7. Nice One Erin..
    With All Best wishes...

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