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Sunday 10 October 2010

Disturbing the Fields ..... and "Found Haiku"

Was it welcome, the intrusion? A relief perhaps
from boredom? Or a son-and-father moment
interrupted, lost for ever? A blip, they thought,
but no great deal. A thing with heft,
metallic - obviously that, for interrupting
the magnetic field of their detector.
They'd visited the field so often in the past,
had swept it side-to-side and up and down
and long ago convinced themselves that it was bare
of artefacts worth finding. But still they'd gone
on sweeping, since they liked the view.

A small disturbance to a Cumbrian field.
No more than that. A head. Victorian, they'd thought.
Well, no. As it turned out, First Century - perhaps.
A Roman bronze, a mask, a helmet for the cavalry.
And beautiful, complete and haunting. Certainly,
a face to reckon with. One to disturb the status quo.
Two thousand years entombed in local soil, they graced it with
a local name. Their hope, that it would bring in visitors.
They raised the cash in bucketsfull. More than enough.
Way, way beyond the likely price. But it had powers
beyond their dreams, that ancient head disturbing,
mesmerising, gripping man across the globe. Outbid,
the soil of Cumbria not rich enough... the last
disturbance..? That will be abroad - maybe.

Found Haiku


Your love is sunlight,
transcends prison walls and bars,
strokes each pore of my skin


Part of a letter from Liu Xiaobo, the Chinese activist serving 11 years in prison to his wife Liu Xia.

20 comments:

Rachel Green said...

Beautiful poem

Christine said...

Yes. Good.
I read today that Liu Xia has also been arrested.

Jim Murdoch said...

And what was that 'local name'?

Carl said...

Wow to both!

David Cranmer said...

Very impressive prose, Dave.

CiCi said...

Beautiful, strong love, sustaining the horror of prison.

Gerry Snape said...

what a great subject.You have opened up the whole story inside it and made it come alive in the rhythm.

Madame DeFarge said...

Beautiful haiku and let's hope he gets released sometime soon.

Strummed Words said...

How lovely and how sad. Thanks you for printing it. I hope he will be released before very long.

Kathe W. said...

thank you for the Haiku. and thanks for your comments on my blog.

Linda Bob Grifins Korbetis Hall said...

powerful,
thanks for the explanations.

Tommaso Gervasutti said...

"Disturbing the dust..." for some reason reading your poem the powerful first ( Burnt Norton ) of Eliot's Four Quartets came to my mind, well it often echoes in me, is it not what we are also made of? Echoes, quotes, flashes crowding like bees the space near our heads?

It's good to remind as many people as possible of Liu Xiaobo. I am deeply surprised and a bit angry that Cuba is supporting China on condemning the Nobel Prize for Peace he has received. I wonder if Che Guevara would agree with Cuba and China this time! I think not, I want to think not.

Conda Douglas said...

Enjoyed them both, Dave.

The Weaver of Grass said...

That Chinese haiku is very humbling Dave.

As for the mask - wasn't it beautiful? What a pity it had to make so much money - do hope it doesn;t go abroad.

Windsmoke. said...

The Haiku at the end is fitting considering that his wife Liu Xia has been put in detention by the Chinese Government. Both of them should be released as soon as possible they've done nothing wrong as far as i can work out.

Dianne said...

always up for a love poem, and a true story at that! Thank you, Dave, and for the magnetic story.

julie ridley said...

Wow...

Dave King said...

Leatherdykeuk
Many thanks.

Christine
Thanks, but that is sad news.

Jim
Crosby Garrett, a village close by the field where it was found, I believe.

Carl
Thanks. Thanks.

David
Much obliged. Cheers!

TechnoBabe
Indeed, yes.

Gerry
That's a great compliment. Thanks.

MadameDeFarge
Yes, I wonder if the award will help or hinder that.

Strummed Words
Amen to that!

kathew
And my thanks for your visit and comments.

Jingle
Good to have you aboard.

Tommaso
Burnt Norton had not occurred to me, but I can see how the echo might be there - a very pale and distant one, of course. An echo of an echo. Thanks for the comment, though.

Conda
Thanks a lot Conda.

The Weaver of Grass
Thanks for the haiku comment, and yes, I hope very much that it doesn't go abroad.

Windsmoke
Two amens are in order here, I think!

Dianne
A great love story at that - and the Haiku jumped out of the page at me. Extraordinary, I thought.

Julie
Thanks!

Karen said...

Great story, Dave, and excellent haiku.

Unknown said...

Your poem sets out the circumstances admirably, Dave. And how right about it having 'powers beyond their dreams'? I particularly like the last half of the second stanza. The haiku is fine too.