This poem came to me in an old form as I looked about my old house. As plaster has the tendency to crumble, if not tended to, and will eventually give way structurally, so the forms of Art and Literature, if neglected, will give way to lesser, diluted reflections of themselves.
Since I tend to stick with rhyme and the structure it offers, many, no doubt, laugh at how very out of fashion I am. But I think there is a discipline in rhyme that lends itself to the uncovering of truth. This theory can be broadened to apply to our international experimental overdose of “content” on the internet, where everyone is a writer and no one can cling to the limelight for long. I hope you enjoy the poem. Thanks for coming by to read.
How bound we are by strictures of The New,
Enchained by pop in fact and pop in Art.
For all the older forms no one will view,
And architecture past will fall apart.
Unless a thought obtains that highest sheen,
That gloss of Newness, never glimpsed before,
It joins the trite, banal and yes, unseen,
Like wrinkled women round the catwalk floor.
So seek we Fashion, with its shorter bloom,
Attention-grabbing, even on the wane,
Rejecting those, like pillars in the room,
The plain and wise, who ever preach the same
Dull platitudes. The New reflects our Youth.
The matte and textured Old safeguards the Truth.
Copyright 2022 Andrea LeDew
For other writings about age and youth, read Old Junk and In Kind.
Noise
Convincingly argued and put into poetry, Andrea. It reminded me of J.S. Bach stating that the new “gallant” style his sons adopted was shallow. That style put Bach senior into the “no longer fashionable” category, but he was not discouraged and created some of the most glorious music ever composed after he became out of fashion. I don’t remember who said this with reference to Bach’s music, but it could have been said by you today:” Whatever is in fashion is perennially out of style.”
Well that’s good company to be in Margrit!! Thank you!
I’m dying to know what call for submission you’re referring to. I once heard a very well-respected writer say about a rejection he received, “They want writing that is upside down and backwards.”
I can’t find it Liz and even if I could I suppose a girl shouldn’t kiss and tell. The tweet wasn’t too outrageous but for some reason it struck a nerve. Belonging to two under-respected groups at once, stay at home moms and unrecognized writers, I feel the slight very keenly. Or maybe its just been a bad week!😊 Thanks for checking it out!
Oh, and if ever there was a week when the Truthwas on trial, it is this one!