used with permission by photographer, Jaime Brandel
What is Black?Black is the nightWhen there isn't a starAnd you can't tell by lookingWhere you are.Black is a pail of paving tar.Black is jetAnd things you'd like to forget.Black is a smokestackBlack is a cat,A leopard, a raven,A high silk hat.The sound of black is"Boom! Boom! Boom!"Echoing inAn empty room.Black is kind-It covers upThe run-down street,The broken cup.Black is charcoaland patio grill,The soot spots on the window sill.Black is a feelingHard to explainLike suffering butWithout the pain.Black is licoriceAnd patent leather shoesBlack is the printIn the news.Black is beautyIn its deepest form,The darkest cloudIn a thunderstorm.Think of what starlightAnd lamplight would lackDiamonds and firefliesIf they couldn't lean againstBlack...~ Mary O'Neill
This poem is from a marvelous book called Hailstones and Halibut Bones by Mary O'Neill. The image is from an incredible photographer, Jaime Brandel.
13 comments:
Love you
Love the photograph and your Sunday poetry postings.
Love you
Rabbit
Rabbit♥
What an absolute delight to read this poem whilst listening to Michael Nyman's sountrack of the movie "Drowing by Numbers". Many thanks.
Greetings from London.
It's really nice to read this sunday poetry posts. Thank you for bringing poetry to our sundays! :)
Hailstones and Halibut Bones was one of my favorite books to read to my first graders. One year I found a film of it. That was back in the day when the library loaned books and films to even the Catholic school. If you google, maybe you can find it. Both the kids and I LOVED it!
I love this poem, too! I do a poetry unit with my fourth graders and we study colors, This book is perfect for it! Thanks so much for reminding me!
Big hugs,
Patti
So lovely, Relyn.
Black is beautiful :)
Thank you for stopping by my blog to say hello. You are and have always been a sweetheart!
Ahh, the kitty looks just like my Marvin. I just had to put him down to sleep :( He was 20 years old though...he had a good run of it.
Funny, sometimes I think I see him out of the corner of my eye walking through the house. Maybe I do...We never know, do we?
I send you lots of love, Relyn :)
Thank you for remembering me!
xo
Kelly
Beautiful both the poetry and the photograph.
What a great poem . . . and awesome photo to match!
loved the poem and thanks for the message. hugs
That poem is perfect Relyn!
Ah, a firefly would not be so brilliant without it's black backdrop. I still have yet to see one... some day. :)
Precious...
And isn't black, the combining of all colors, into one? Or maybe not. ,-)
"A gush of bird-song, a patter of dew,
A cloud, and a rainbow's warning,
Suddenly sunshine and perfect blue--
An April day in the morning.”
~~Harriet Prescott Spofford
This reminds me of a time last year when I was walking in the black night and suddenly there were fireflies all around me. Black does have it's own kind of beauty. Great photo too.
Thanks so much for sharing this wonderful poem !! As a result I went to my library this afternoon and found the book (1961) version and checked it out. I love the poems and illustrations ! I was told the book hadn't been checked out for several years so I'm hoping they will discard it and let me buy it. Thanks again for sharing otherwise I would never have known about it !!
Warm Regards,
Dawn (in Arkansas )
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