{This poem is a response to What Pegman Saw, an internationally-inspired writing prompt.
We are in Manitoba this week. Learning that most of Manitoba is flat prairie, I felt a kinship to these Canadians, being myself from Florida, a very flat state.
So here is my poem about a panicked flatlander’s fear of rough and hilly ground, among other things. The town names mentioned are actually in a hilly part of South Carolina.
Thanks for the prompt and for stopping by to read!}
Twixt Pomeria
And Prosperity,
I got lost.
Twixt ancestry
And posterity,
The road dropped off.
Round and round in blank confusion,
Down each hill, a bleak illusion,
Puddles, rainbows, disappearing
As you reach them. Eyes grow bleary,
Jumping, jumping at my shadow:
How my timid terror shows.
Onward, onward, still no landmarks,
Downward, down. The GPS barks,
Gears are slipping, Gears are grinding,
Brake, to stop my life’s rewinding.
Christmas ribbon-candy roads:
Of my terror, no one knows.
Little girl, as in a womb,
Residing here, this fleshy tomb:
Hear her anxious, hear her screaming!
Rollercoaster keeps careening,
Pitiless and cold, austere.
Closer, closer toward my fear.
Copyright 2019 Andrea LeDew
Absolute poetry in motion! I didn’t want it to stop, I was happy careening of the screen! You are so talented.
Thank you so much Kevin!
Beautiful poem!
Thanks bear!
The rhythm here really adds to the anxiety level, well done! It reminded me of Poe’s the Raven, It doesn’t hurt that I’m not so great about highway driving as it is, and I absolutely hate winding twisting roads and cliffs. SHIVER!
Well, Poe is good company, indeed. Thank you.
I used to laugh at my mother, for being afraid when I got to the edge of a cliff, that Id tumble off.
Now I’m the one panicking, imagining the worst missteps (or mistakes while driving,) and bracing myself for the impact of a car I can’t even see yet.
Must come with the territory of motherhood I guess.
My mom was the same. She used to say, “Get away from that ledge, I’m afraid of heights.” Or, “Put a sweater on, I’m cold.” And now I find myself saying the same things, but I don’t even have the excuse of motherhood!
As someone who once rode in a school bus into the New River Gorge of West Virginia–feeling the tires kiss air on some of the more washed-out portions of the dirt road–I think you captured perfectly the terror that can be held careening through unfamiliar land. Your rhythm and language is lovely!
Thank you Karen! So glad you liked it, hope I’m not resurrecting bad memories!
if you are close to Virginia let me know and maybe you can come and spend the night here in Richmond – email me if you are interested – or we could meet for lunch if that is too personal – but we are pretty close to NC
Thanks Prior!
Love the rhythm of this. The clippedness. I’m with you, careening down a twisty turny road
Thank you crimson! That’s a great word “clippedness.” Hope you don’t mind me, taking you for a ride.:)
Not at all 🙂
I remember driving through the prairies thinking they weren’t that flat! It was a beautiful drive. And there is nothing more thrilling than when the road “disappears” beneath your tires!
I havent been there so I couldn’t say. And like rollercoasters, hills are an acquired taste, I think! Especially on roads with no ahoulder and blind drops and curves. ?
That’s an interesting take on the prompt. I’d never thought people might feel threatened by hills!
Perhaps it’s more accurate to say that any strange environment can exacerbate deep-seated fears that people already possess. ?
I had some anxiety with the slopes in San Francisco – especially with a stick shift car – whew
You got it! Did I neglect to mention the stick shift? ?
haha
Dear Andrea,
I did try to comment on this yesterday. Perhaps it will work today. 😉 The difference between Kansas flatlands and Missouri’s hills is much like this. Love the verses…particularly the GPS barking. Well done.
Shalom,
Rochelle
Thank you Rochelle. I’m so glad you liked it.
As for the GPS, it always starts directing you at the worst possible times, as if to rub it in, that you’ve made a wrong turn. And while driving, I can never seem to turn the danged thing off! ?
What happened that prevented your commenting? I’ll be sure to look into it, if its on my end!
Gremlins? I’m not sure. Worked fine this morning. I tried to comment on Kelvin’s story twice yesterday and gave up. Tried it again this morning and, voila, no problem.
Well done on the hills and I like how you connected the flat Florida lands (below sea level eh?) with the flat prairies and then took us on those hills with all those metaphors and figurative details for readers to take away what they will (my take on this – )
Thank you prior for reading so attentively and broadly. The free-falling feeling of navigating steep slopes seemed to me to approximate that lack of control that accompanies many fears.
and I read this again coming back here today – and found this woulds also be a powerful read aloud – with the way you broke up the lines
have you heard of the book “sleeping preacher”? your piece here reminded me a little of her dense poems.
also – just had a student tell me last month that he was driving int he blue ridge mountains and had to have his wife drive – the hills began to overwhelm him –
and so your piece here also connects to that literal fear some have with those hills and winding roads
Been spending lots of time in the NC mountains visiting my recovering Dad, so yes, I know what he’s going through. Doesn’t hit everyone the same way, but i think the twisting and plunging can bring on something like vertigo. And if you’re already on edge…
Thanks so much for the second read. I did try to make the pace mimic the gathering speed of a car plunging down a steep slope, and twisting and turning. Being lost, on top of it all, so to speak, in an area with mountains on all sides, so there is no way to gain perspective and re-orient, can be particularly maddening.
Dear Andrea,
It would be a jolt for someone not used to hills. 😉 I remember the shock of a boy from Wichita who visited when I was a kid….one of my brother’s friends. Kansas City is quite hilly unlike flat Western Kansas. Well done. I liked the GPS barking.
Shalom,
Rochelle
Found your elusivecomment and so glad I did. It somehow ended up in the spam folder. Sorry.
I think I nearly pulled the handles off the car, the first couple times I rode the hills as a passenger. Slowly getting used to it.:)