05.02.2025 | dVerse Poets Pub | Meeting the Bar (MTB),

In response to: https://wp.me/p1GTyJ-8Qp

What the Wind Teaches

The wind leans first,
testing balance,
asking what we will hold
when ground turns unsure.

Danger is not always loud,
sometimes it whispers
through skirts, through breath,
through the space between steps.

Learning comes quietly then,
in how we slow,
how we angle ourselves
toward each other.

Care is a practiced motion,
a hand ready,
a body listening
before fear speaks.

And the wind,
having taught us this,
moves on.

➰️➰️➰️

Below is a revised version shaped to follow the cascade form for dVerse MTB.

What the Wind Teaches

The wind leans first,
testing balance,
asking what we will hold
when ground turns unsure.

Danger is not always loud,
sometimes it whispers
between steps.

Learning arrives quietly,
when we turn toward each other.

Care.

— Maggie
The Afterlove Voice 💫

Don’t think this form is for me ….


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17 responses to “What the Wind Teaches”

  1. merrildsmith Avatar

    This is such a wise, beautiful poem–though you didn’t follow the prompt to write a cascade.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Maggie Avatar

      Thank you so much 🤍 And thank you for pointing that out — I appreciate the careful reading. Forms still teach me as I go.

      Should I rewrite it to the correct form ?

      Liked by 1 person

      1. merrildsmith Avatar

        You’re very welcome.
        It’s a beautiful poem, but yes, you should rewrite it for the prompt. Thank you. Maybe you could have both versions on your page? It’s sometimes interesting to see various versions of a poem.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Maggie Avatar

        Now I hope it’s true to the form. 💜
        I didn’t link it up to Mr Linky, hope that’s ok?

        Liked by 1 person

  2. merrildsmith Avatar

    Ahh–I see what you did. It’s not really the cascade form–maybe another version of it?

    I actually do prefer your first one, but thank you.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Maggie Avatar

      Thank you — that’s really helpful to hear. I learned a lot from trying the form, even if I didn’t quite land it.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. merrildsmith Avatar

        You’re welcome. I’m glad you found it useful.
        If you read some of the others, you’ll catch on.
        I seldom write form poems, but it’s good to try something different. 😊

        Liked by 1 person

  3. kim881 Avatar

    I like where the image took you, Maggie, and the extended ‘leaning in’ metaphor, and these lines resonate with me:

    ‘Danger is not always loud,
    sometimes it whispers
    through skirts, through breath,
    through the space between steps.’

    I think the first stanza lends itself well to a cascade poem. Go on,. Have another go!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Maggie Avatar

      Thank you Kim 💜. Don’t think this form was for me , hehe. But it’s ok. I’m done wrestling staircases. I want wind again.

      Liked by 1 person

  4. Frewin55 Avatar
    Frewin55

    Whilst not the form, the first poem is a fine ekphrastic response to the painting, Maggie – it doesn’t matter where or how a poem comes – this is a keeper…

    Liked by 2 people

  5. Maggie Avatar

    Thank you so much Frewin 💜😃

    Like

  6. Dora Avatar

    I love both versions, Maggie, the cascade more concentrated perhaps but the first still taut with tension, both reflecting a gathered wisdom. 💞

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Maggie Avatar

      Thank you, Dora 💞 I appreciate that generous reading.

      Liked by 1 person

  7. lynn__ Avatar

    Beautifully ekphrastic poetry…even if not cascading :) I wish I were always brave enough to try!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Maggie Avatar

      Thank you Lynn 😊. It was my first try at this form, that i didn’t quite land .

      Liked by 1 person

  8. shaun tenzenmen Avatar

    The way this poem doesn’t follow the specific form is interesting in that there’s the seed of the idea of a type of erasure poem, where whole lines might be removed from an original to make a new poem (or version). I might investigate this idea with some older longer writes.

    Anyway, nicely done 👏

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Maggie Avatar

      Thank you Shaun . I hadn’t thought of it through the lens of erasure, but that’s a really interesting perspective. I appreciate you sharing it.

      Liked by 1 person

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