You've heard of The Bluebird of Happiness.
You've heard of the Pigeon of Discontent.
You've heard of the White Dove of Peace.
You've heard of the White Dove of Peace.
The Blackbird of Remorse
With steely eyes, it watches you
Despair mistakes and endlessly rue
The choices made, now viewed aghast;
Right at the time but time has passed.
The bird is harsh and oft untrue
In the scorn it piles on you
For things you cannot now undo.
It cares not and attaches fast,
With steely eyes.
What’s done is done, the options few
To retrace our steps and start anew.
You can but endure the questions asked
By the watching, critical cast:
These birds don’t leave, they just accrue.
With steely eyes.
Despair mistakes and endlessly rue
The choices made, now viewed aghast;
Right at the time but time has passed.
The bird is harsh and oft untrue
In the scorn it piles on you
For things you cannot now undo.
It cares not and attaches fast,
With steely eyes.
What’s done is done, the options few
To retrace our steps and start anew.
You can but endure the questions asked
By the watching, critical cast:
These birds don’t leave, they just accrue.
With steely eyes.
.
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© 2012 J Cosmo Newbery
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Love this one.
ReplyDeleteIf only we could see the future with the clarity of hindsight.
I've known that bird at times. Yes, the steely eyes are inescapable!
ReplyDeletePerhaps the Blackbird of Remorse is better than the Chicken of Despond. Your call.
ReplyDeleteThere's a reason we bake them in a pie!
ReplyDeletexxx
Oh, that's creepy and authentic. Great writing!
ReplyDeleteoh I know the feeling ... very beautifully captured ... loved it.
ReplyDeleteYour words strengthen the steely eyes ... loved it :-)
ReplyDeleteOh yes. And that beak is just perfect for tattooing the message into our hearts.
ReplyDeleteThe black bird gives a chilling effect. It's best not to get on its wrong side. Just act normal. No remorse due to account for! Nice write Cosmos!
ReplyDeleteHank
Not a little scary for a rondeau. Those eyes unforgiving as they are, will have to attest that your form is great in this poem.
ReplyDeleteHaunting words. Yes, I'm familiar with that bird and you did a great job describing him.
ReplyDeleteGreat use of the image ~ the bird with steely eyes, remorse is always at the back of our mind ~
ReplyDeleteOh those eyes would haunt for sure and, if they were accusing...yikes
ReplyDeleteGripping read!
Sometimes I think poetry was invented just so we could write about love and regret.
ReplyDeleteI think we all go through such remorseful stages...so this bird looks familiar. How beautifully expressed:) Loved this!
ReplyDeleteVery powerful... a magnificent personification of remorse... those steely eyes and the idea that "These birds don’t leave, they just accrue." What a powerful way to put it. I always look forward to reading your poems.
ReplyDeleteI like the switch of convention: We do not look back with remorse--it looks at us!
ReplyDeleteThat's an accrual I carry on my ledger. This was a great portrait. Very ominous.
ReplyDeleteBeautifully done!
ReplyDeleteLet's remember the positives of remorse. You're not saying you regret the decisions so those decisions had to be made, which means you had the strength to make them. Remorse just lets you know you're human and perhaps allows you to find a better way to do things in the future.
ReplyDeleteYes, true enough. I don't honestly believe it is possible to make a wrong decision at the time. Later you may wish you had done otherwise.
ReplyDelete"Regrets are the natural property of grey hairs" Dickens ..not that I'm saying you are old!:)
ReplyDeleteYour insight is as keen as the eyes of that baleful bird, really good.
ReplyDeleteTerrific Write! I love the introduction and the flow of the piece itself, taking the reader through the inevitable facets of regret.
ReplyDelete