Baptism at Altamont

[lonndubh]

Ropy Knotty arms of a majestic Oak
Stories of hundreds of years
Seeping in at my back
Laughter of new love
Rushing waters below
Washing anger away
Leaving contentment in its way.

Emptiness
Finally
Thankfully
From the inside out
Hidden away
Prayering
Quivering energy
Wood quest cooing
Awakening unremembered memories

Gunshot
Midges
Fallen leaf
Ego
Through the open door
To call yourself poet
Claim the right
Only you can

[mat james]

Yes, Bravo!

...a Poet......

...free...

[carm]

Hi lonndubh…

I really enjoyed ‘Baptism at Altamont’, especially these lines and their positioning within the poem:

Stories of hundreds of years
Seeping in at my back
Laughter of new love…

and the long drawn out exhale, felt overall when reading these lines:

Emptiness
Finally
Thankfully
From the inside out

Does the ‘Altamont’ of your title refer at all to the rock concert held on Saturday, Dec. 6, 1969, at the Altamont Speedway in northern California, headlined and organized by The Rolling Stones? Just curious…

[lonndubh]

Hi Carm .Thank you for your lovely words .
No its not Speedway in northern California.Its a beautiful 40 acre public parkland in Co Carlow in Ireland
They have over 200 varieties of Snowdrops there so its great to visit just now

http://www.altamontgarden.com/Web%20Pag ... mation.htm

[carm]

Lonndubh writes of Altamont…

Its a beautiful 40 acre public parkland in Co Carlow in Ireland
They have over 200 varieties of Snowdrops there so its great to visit just now…

Thanks for your insight into the 'Altamont' of your poem titled 'Baptism at Altamont' and for the link, which lead me to this…

Altamont

Romatic gardens –
enchanting, each
and every combination.
Still – little known of
'the jewel in Ireland's
gardening crown',
where sculpted yews
can be found sloping down
to a romantic lake,
just as a profusion of roses
scents the air,
and a canopy of ancient oaks
leads to the majestic
River Slaney.

Found too,
within that tranquil
old world setting –
an abundance of birds,
and butterflies, and
especially evident
at this time of year,
the Galanthus…

.....

To a Snowdrop

Lone Flower, hemmed in with snows and white as they

But hardier far, once more I see thee bend

Thy forehead, as if fearful to offend,

Like an unbidden guest. Though day by day,

Storms, sallying from the mountain-tops, waylay

The rising sun, and on the plains descend;

Yet art thou welcome, welcome as a friend

Whose zeal outruns his promise! Blue-eyed May

Shall soon behold this border thickly set

With bright jonquils, their odours lavishing

On the soft west-wind and his frolic peers;

Nor will I then thy modest grace forget,

Chaste Snowdrop, venturous harbinger of Spring,

And pensive monitor of fleeting years!

– by William Wordsworth

[lonndubh]

Altamont

Romatic gardens –
enchanting, each
and every combination.
Still – little known of
'the jewel in Ireland's
gardening crown',
where sculpted yews
can be found sloping down
to a romantic lake,
just as a profusion of roses
scents the air,
and a canopy of ancient oaks
leads to the majestic
River Slaney.

Found too,
within that tranquil
old world setting –
an abundance of birds,
and butterflies, and
especially evident
at this time of year,
the Galanthus…

.....

This is lovely Carm
Your own take on it I guess

Yes, Bravo!

...a Poet......

...free...

hi Mat
the words of Me and Bobby Mc Gee come to mind

Freedom's just another word for nothing left to loose

[mat james]

nothing left to loose

Well if you loosen all, you truly are free.
Hippie girl

Mat