I lost myself amongst the scarlet sage
in the peaks and valleys of the Dancing Range
where the red earth is cracked with heat and age
where the hills themselves whirl in fiery rage
where my love bewitched by a tyrant mage
was broken, his desire to assuage
I hunted them daily in this moving maze
of shifting hills and surface crazed
every dawn the landscape rearranged
to bewilder the hunter until deranged
to trap me in this rolling cage
of shifting hills and surface crazed
of endless paths endlessly paved
reaching only the ends of this mage depraved
I searched shapeless valleys I scoured the peaks
climbing and descending weeks and weeks
his lair it seemed I could not find
until I had a change of mind
was this real where hills could rise
where valleys could twist before my eyes?
was I confused by spell or malign charm
was it my brain doing much of the harm
could I separate my thoughts from my pain
logically concentrate to search again?
I sat a day to plan my way
to find a new route to my prey
a map I would make to display
a grid of my searching every day
the shifting landscape I would ignore
only compass and distance would I score
disoriented I would be no more
I would come upon mage's door
for three days I laboured under blazing sun
everything turned but I was not spun
I found what I wanted I knew I had won
a door in a hillside that must be the one
I steeled my nerves and I drew my sword
I gritted my teeth and charged the door
it shattered as inside I bore
shocking the mage to his very core
taking full advantage of his acute surprise
I smote him between his evil eyes
and so the tyrant mage fell and died
as behind him the love of my life I spied
we fell into each others arms
the death of the mage broke the wicked charm
on my tears of relief she was free from harm
shifting hills and valleys were at once becalmed
Melissa introduced we poets to artist Alma Thomas for this week’s dVerse prompt. We were charged with choosing one of her paintings and writing what the work evoked for each of us.
poetography.ink 
wow – this is an epic saga and you managed to rhyme it too – I like how the art becomes the landscape, hills, valleys, a amaze – and of course the happy ending of hero saves his love from the mage
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What an epic poem, Sean! I enjoyed the rhymes.
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Thank you Punam. Call me old fashioned, but I do like rhyme when it seems appropriate.
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You are welcome. I am old fashioned like you too. I love to rhyme whenever I can.
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An epic adventure! I especially like this stanza in relation to the painting:
”every dawn the landscape rearranged
to bewilder the hunter until deranged
to trap me in this rolling cage
of shifting hills and surface crazed”
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The painting has such a dynamic feel to it. The deeper I looked, I could almost see it moving and fell it drawing me in.
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I loved this tale! Glad it had a happy ending and how you rhymed all the way through is amazing.
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Thank you, I agree the challenge of a rhyme is always one worth engaging with when the opportunity presents.
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I’m glad the evil tyrant fell and all was well because I do love a happy ending!
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I am glad with you Jennifer. I hoped to find the happy ending right from the outset, but one never knows for sure …..
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This is a terrific story telling with rhyming verses to boot. Enjoyed this one!
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Glad you enjoyed it Grace. The art inspired some serious and fun writing from so many of the dVerse poets.
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Sean, I have to say you made this an unexpectedly exciting read, turning the red of the art into the ready heat of adventure, a poetic tour de force. The landscape of the poem, and indeed the battle against malevolence somehow rooted in the surface of this heated earth, reminded me so strongly of Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian! Your poetry utilizes the same metaphorical force of the terrain. Such a wonderful poem.
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Thank you Dora, it was such a good prompt. The art was inspiring. Landscapes make for powerful metaphors don’t you think? Even abstract ones. I just finished Cormac McCarthy’s dramatic novel – very sobering. I will have to look out for Blood Meridian too.
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