30 Comments
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Julia's avatar

Not a bot. Help.

Monica A Leyva's avatar

Roger, this pulled me in immediately. The quake feels vivid and terrifying, but the emotional core is what stayed with me. And that ending is perfect, tender, authentic, and beautifully human. Great work.

Monica

Roger Browne's avatar

thank you :) the more I do it, the more I love it, writing. feels like I’ve been gifted with something precious.

Julia's avatar

Indeed you have. Now... One ought to be present for the unfolding of such a beautiful gift hmmm?

Monica A Leyva's avatar

That is exactly how it happens.

williamphaynes/elliott's avatar

Unable to make a plan

I thought of the ocean

When youth was tethered fast

And we had time to laugh

Now there's an uncountable distance

And the stars are half-remembered gems

Mocking me in their silence

And I am just a memory

And you are just a ghost

Roger Browne's avatar

yeah, this grabs me!

Alicia's avatar

Yikes!!

Antonio Castellaneta's avatar

It feels like everything breaks, but what stays is just holding on to each other in the middle of it. That part stays with you more than the quake itself.

Roger Browne's avatar

ty, yep, what else do we have, hmm?

Gary L Taylor's avatar

That was a fantastic piece, Roger, I love how it came from that prompt into this life of its own. Great stuff.

Julia's avatar

Knock knock... Who's there.... It's a Moth. Tap tap tap at the window 🪟

Fragments and the Dark's avatar

This is really cool! 🥰 Was drawn in immediately! 🖤

Roger Browne's avatar

thank you. I’m surprised every day by where a prompt can take me :) 🫶

Fragments and the Dark's avatar

Absolutely… I‘m really glad we have such a great fantasy-machine in our heads! 😁

imi's avatar

This was so awesome! It is very intriguing like each verse revealing something new. That's how it felt like to me. I didn't expect it to go where it when I first started reading. Brilliantly done.

Roger Browne's avatar

nothing like a good disaster to focus your priorities :)

ThePoetGatherer's avatar

Roger,

this poem is actually riveting. The suspense you built and the fact that you managed to maintain the tension, is not a skill all writers, and even fewer poets, can claim. I am impressed. Deeply. And I am extremely glad to have read this excellent poem.

Roger Browne's avatar

thank you so much!

Aaliya's avatar

I felt every moment of that terrifying experience. The way you described the shaking and the urgency was heart-pounding. 😱

Roger Browne's avatar

I’ve been through a few, though none quite that terrifying :)

Aaliya's avatar

Wow you are amazing ♥️

Mara Ellison's avatar

This was gripping!!

Roger Browne's avatar

thanks, it literally gripped me, in the writing - stream of consciousness (and a little polish after) 🫶

Ginny Lynns (Remembring2Laugh)'s avatar

The most rewarding style! Loved it!

Roger Browne's avatar

thank you! 🫶