by

A Learned Girl #TankaTuesday

The Crystal Ball painted by John William Waterhouse

(A short break in the TBR Challenge reblogs for a little poetry)

A Learned Girl

She is fortunate to read at all. Her slender fingers stray from the pages, unblemished but for a random papercut. Beyond her window, other women toil until their skin toughens into leather, and raw knuckles wear down to bones. Their spines crack beneath the weight of necessity, poor lots destined from the day they were born. She is privileged. This she knows. Granted by happenstance her wish to learn the arts of anatomy and history and politics. To peruse through pages of poetry and philosophy, to dip her quill and tally accounts. She will excel in the learned world of power. But she is still a girl.

studies surrender

lost in red velvet daydreams

murmurs of passion

love’s silk breath blushes her cheeks

wishes in a crystal ball

*

Thank you to Colleen over at Wordcraft Poetry for the lovely image to use as an prompt for this week’s Ekphrastic poetry. Ekphrastic poems respond to a piece of art. I went with a tanka prose poem. It has one paragraph and one tanka with 5/7/5/7/7 syllables. 

165 thoughts on “A Learned Girl #TankaTuesday”

  1. Anonymous says:
    February 22, 2022 at 6:20 am

    This is exquisite writing, Diana. Like other fans of your prose and poetry, I had to look up the word “ekphrastic”, and of course, discovered Colleen’s site. I ordered a paperback copy of her book on syllabic poetry forms yesterday, and am looking forward to its arrival tomorrow!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      February 22, 2022 at 6:37 am

      That book is wonderful! It’s easy to follow, thorough, and a great resource. I have it and refer to it all the time. I’m so glad you enjoyed the tanka-prose poem. I like the form because it allows me to do both! Happy Writing. 🙂

      Like

      Reply
  2. mount(shikha) says:
    January 31, 2022 at 2:16 am

    Nice

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  3. Jeff Flesch says:
    January 30, 2022 at 2:14 pm

    You write so exquisitely, Diana. I’ve got to do a better job of visiting you. The tanka is lovely, and the prose beautifully descriptive, “To peruse through pages of poetry and philosophy, to dip her quill and tally accounts. She will excel in the learned world of power. But she is still a girl.” Such vivid description, feelings, and creating future in your words. Wonderful write, my dear friend.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      January 31, 2022 at 9:49 pm

      Thanks so much for the visit, Jeff. I know how hard it is to browse all the blog we enjoy. There’s not enough time in the day. So your visit made me smile. 🙂 And I’m glad you enjoyed the poem. I love writing these and am committed to doing them once a month! January – check! Lol. Have a wonderful day.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      • Jeff Flesch says:
        January 31, 2022 at 10:13 pm

        You’re most welcome, Diana. I appreciate you resonating with me about reading all of our favorite blogs. I’ve actually been discussing this with our dear friend, Cindy, and am thinking about creating a reading schedule. Anyway. We will see. Oh! I’m so glad to know this will be a regular feature on your site. I enjoyed this one tremendously, and look forward to the next one. Thank you, and to you. ☺️

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply
  4. CEDELLA says:
    January 28, 2022 at 11:57 pm

    Beautiful

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
  5. To Be Read Pile (D Wallace Peach Challenge) – priorhouse blog says:
    January 28, 2022 at 7:58 pm

    […] #TBR […]

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  6. A Learned Girl #TankaTuesday | THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON... says:
    January 27, 2022 at 3:11 pm

    […] A Learned Girl #TankaTuesday […]

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  7. Darren says:
    January 27, 2022 at 1:08 am

    What a fabulous piece of writing!

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
  8. shehannemoore says:
    January 26, 2022 at 2:02 pm

    Review for Catling’s Bane is on Goodreads and Amazon UK. x

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
  9. judeitakali says:
    January 24, 2022 at 10:10 pm

    A great intuitive take. 💖💖

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply
  10. dgkaye says:
    January 24, 2022 at 2:50 pm

    Wow, that’s quite a story and the perfect tanka to accompany it Diana ❤

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply
  11. Teri Polen says:
    January 24, 2022 at 7:00 am

    This is beautiful, Diana. This is my first time learning about Ekphrastic poetry.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply
    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      January 24, 2022 at 7:10 am

      Thanks, Teri. Colleen’s website has a wealth of information and this form really appealed to me (getting to write a little prose along with the poetry). I’ll be picking the image for next month, and I’m going “steampunk!” Have a great week. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  12. #TankaTuesday #Poetry Stars No. 257 | #EkphrasticPrompt – Word Craft: Prose & Poetry says:
    January 23, 2022 at 9:04 pm

    […] D. Wallace Peach […]

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

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