Renga – Swan Dive (qbit/Jilly)

~ qbit

Our swan meets Nikki Papandreou,
The Greek Olympic diver

Brandishing a cygnet ring
Bargaining with Poseidon’s wave

“Nikki” she laughed, “suburban demi-god.”
“Prove your flipcraft of the Argonauts.”

Oh, Siren, thought he, in the face of her derision
Fifty heroes shall stand and see

A white Medusa, her neck a downy serpent –
“For Lysistrata and the Amazons!”

“Apply the wrench, my lovely wench”
The Golden Fleece denied

Head over heels, they mirror the gods
Unbounded by the sea or heaven

A Promethean dive from dizzying heights
a mythological echo and splash

Their wild swan chase to raise Atlantis,
Oysters, smoked in their beds

Ocean crossroads deal carved in stone
Volcano ash scatters the sweetest atone

Conspirators: qbit, Jilly
qbit’s Renga Challenge – Swan Dive
For Jilly’s October Casting Bricks

56 thoughts on “Renga – Swan Dive (qbit/Jilly)”

            1. Sent me down the rabbit hole! From MW: “Middle English prelat, fromAnglo-French, from Medieval Latinpraelatus, literally, one receivingpreferment, from Latin (past participleof praeferre to prefer), from prae- + latus, past participle of ferre to carry— more at tolerate, bear.”

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    1. Done!! I really like the way the volcano blows up, and leaves us in antiquity. Almost like Pompeii. We started in the “present”, but like the Greek Gods, now long lost like Atlantis.

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      1. By my count, there are no less than 15 allusions packed into this, including Robbins, Shelley, and various Greeks, both present and mythological. Fun stuff! Agreed – always do what those 4AM dreams tell you to do. 🙂

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        1. Hahaha. You did a great job turning a show’s ear into a silk purse. It was a tough prompt. Looking back, I don’t think I made enough of the opportunities you created in your first stanza.

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            1. Well, I guess not everything has to be as amazing as Rasta Bones, Playing Fetch With Knives, and abroad of Ashes. We have a high bar!! BTW, Madaket would like to try another four person Renga. I’ll come up with something, unless you have an idea.

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              3. So, here’s an idea for the four person Renga that I wrote while administering the SAT in a math classroom today (strange vibe for me):
                “A circle within
                The well of infrequent tongues
                Radius opens”
                You can host or hand it off to one of us. Whichever…
                Unless you have some other direction?

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