That's really beautiful. :) Very deep and moving, and touches at feelings I know well myself. Great work!

Thank you

Actually, it's been posted a few other places...

Back in the 90's I put out two issues of a webzine and included it (with your permission!) along with a couple other of your poems.

Also seen it on the web over the years on a few different websites, including a guy on a vampire website who seemed to be claiming it as his own, though apparently they're all down now.

But it's still my favorite dragon poem after all these years.

You put it in a webzine?!... I knew you back then?!...

... sheesh. You know that comment, "If you remember the 60s, you weren't there"? I don't remember most of the late 90s. Almost a complete lacuna. The eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, quite literally.

Hmm. I might have to go trawling the 'web, then. Because while I have no problem with people using it (I think it's a little too late to publish it, except as a retrospective), I would prefer that they did so with my permission and with attribution - as you did, of course, and as KaniS (I believe) continues to do.

I probably didn't go by Cassander back then. Alas, I think it was during a particularly embarassing period name-wise... my poetry peudonym was "Leaf Elfwine" and my webzine was "Frolicks of the Soul".

It was supposed to be a fantasy and nature themed zine, but I now notice that four of the contributors were otherkin, two dragons (you and me) and two elves. Two others might have been as well, another elf and dragon. That's easily a majority of the zine right there.

For what it's worth, I also used "Is It...?", "So Many Words", and "Song of the Earth" by you.

I made one other poem from the zine into a song, a poem by one of the elves about the experience of being such, essentially.

But we didn't really know each other. I found your poetry on the web and emailed you asking if I could use it. You said yes and that was pretty much it. Maybe one email for each issue or something?

*chuckle* Ah, I remember you now. *nod* Funny how the waves of time move us apart and back together.

Also, for whatever it's worth, this poem made me realize I wanted to be creamated. Had never thought about it before, but when I read this, it just seemed fitting.

And the feeling of standing by a cliff or anywhere there's a really strong wind that rushes by and the desire to just stretch out and soar up into the air... I think you really captured that here. The personification/deification(kamiization?) of the wind just fits perfectly.

It's funny... the manner of the disposition of my remains remains (har har) of almost complete disinterest to me. If I'm honest, I think that I'd rather lie down beneath a tree and let some good come of what's left. And no, I'm not being morbid - I don't think I am, anyway. Whatever happens, however this flesh is disposed of, it will become dust one way or another

Beautiful. Nothing much I can say, air has never been my element. I like ground.

Good work. Keep it up... well, that sounds a bit weird, on a poem written over a decade ago... but good work, at least.

Thank you. *bows his head in respect* Thank you. I am glad you found pleasure in my words.

Absolutely love it. Flows so smoothly.

Thank you, man. *hug*

A beautiful piece. ^_^

*noses softly and purrcroons* Thank you, Miss Searska... I'm glad you enjoyed it.

A lovely, sonnet-like piece, with its recurring refrain. Words that whisper and tug, as does the wind. Memories, old and longing, stirred in this old woofie's heart. A high place, a bare sky, a wind ruffling and combing my fur, touching my cheek to dry the tear there... I remember. And gladly. Thank you, good dragon.

*smiles* Thank you, gentle wolf. It's an honour to know that my words can still touch hearts and minds and souls, even after all this time. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

I was pointed to this poem after posting an artwork today that oddly is along the same lines. May I link to this from the image description?

Surely, yes, you may, and thank you. It would be an honour.

*reminds you that SeHT gave ya permission*

Glad ya liked the recommendation, too.

So, I've been studying and thinking about meter a bit recently and when looking over this poem, I noticed a couple interesting things you did:

v v / v / / v v /
And I turn my face into the wind
v / / v / v / v /
And stretch forth my arms as once I did
v / v / v v / v v / / v
So long ago, and imagine myself lifted
/ v v / v / v / v /
Into the air, and free again to fly

You start almost every line in the poem with an unstressed syllable, either an iamb or an anapest. But you start the last line above with a stressed syllable (a trochee instead of an iamb) which has the effect of reinforcing the fact that your state of being has suddenly changed and you are now flying. Nice.

One more:
v / / v / v v v /
I could fly forever and a day,
/ v v / / v /
Watching the land pass below,
v / v v / v v* v /
A part of the wind, and yet apart.
/ / v / / /
Those days are long gone now,

*"yet" could probably also be considered stressed, which is actually how I've already read it.

As you talk about flying, you are mixing plenty of unstressed syllables in with your stressed syllables, moving at a smooth (if varying) iambic-like pace. But then when you get to the last line and suddenly the speaker comes back to the present where he isn't flying, it's all 5 stressed syllables with two spondees and one iamb. "Those days" and "long gone now" very effectively returns the poem to the tedium and land-based nature of the present. Very, very nice.

stupid HTML... let me try again:

.v....v..../......v...../....../..v.. v....../
And I turn my face into the wind
.v........./........../........v...../......v.../.......v.../
And stretch forth my arms as once I did
v....../.....v../....v.....v../...v.....v.../....../...v
So long ago, and imagine myself lifted
/..v...v....../.....v/...../.....v.../....v..../
Into the air, and free again to fly


v..../......./.....v../..v......v..v.../
I could fly forever and a day,
.../.......v/...v....../......./.......v../
Watching the land pass below,
v.../......v...v/...../........v.....v*..v../
A part of the wind, and yet apart.
.../........../......v....../......./......../
Those days are long gone now,

*smiles* I'm glad you enjoy my poem. This is still one of my favourites, even though it's very old now... nearly 20 years, erk!

I don't recall, when I wrote it, consciously fitting it to metre. The words simply came and I laid them out as they seemed to wish so to be, and... well, there you are. That's just how it is. Sorry I can't give you rhyme and reason, if you'll pardon the expression. *hug*

I hope your surgery goes/went well. Get better soon, m'friend.

All poems have meter... whether it is regular or not is another matter.

So no, your poem doesn't quite feature regular meter as such. But the way you use stressed and unstressed syllables indeed has meaning, whether you were conscious that you were using them that way or not. Going from all the quick short syllables while flying to heavy stressed syllables of "Those days are long gone now" when back on the ground is quite striking.

And my surgery went well. Thank you.

Good to hear it. *smiles and nuzzles gently* Keep getting better, m'friend.

Thanks.