A “backwards poem,” to be read like Hebrew or Arabic, from right to left:
start a with wake I
voice your hearing
name my calling
remember I before
are you
here longer no
are you
gone long
still but
somehow
near so
or perhaps try it frontwards, left to right:
I wake with a start
hearing your voice
calling my name
before I remember
you are no longer here
you are
long gone
but still
somehow
so near
*******
many thanks to Katrina Morison for the “backwards poetry” inspiration during
the March Open Write at Ethical ELA
Image: Pillow. Playingwithbrushes. CC-BY
The annual Slice of Life Story Challenge with Two Writing Teachers is underway,
meaning that I am posting every day in the month of March.
This marks my fifth consecutive year.
lit bits and pieces 
Intrigued by the rhythm and flow of these two lines:
voice your hearing
name my calling
(I like them backwards more than forwards)
Kevin
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The meaning changes, doesn’t it.
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Fran, your writing so often touches a deep place in my heart. In this, reading backwards added a struggle that made the content even more impactful.
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Ah, I hadn’t even considered that the added struggle makes it more meaningful – thank you for sharing that observation, Diane, and for this gift of your words!
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The format changed my perspective and allowed me to hear the words more clearly. Intriguing. Impactful. Thank you!
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It really is interesting to see how the poem looks when you’re supposed to be reading it backwards – how meanings ebb and flow in different directions and rhythms. Many thanks for your words.
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I just loved the format – once I read the first two lines, it was almost natural to read the lines from right to left. Of course, I went to Hebrew school for several years. It’s a beautiful poem, Fran. Simple, tugs at the heartstrings. The words will linger on my mind long after leaving Slice for other tasks.
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Hebrew school – wow! My husband and oldest son studied Hebrew, son especially. So glad you found the little poem meaningful, Lynne – for it is true and came from the heart. Thank you.
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Thanks for sharing. That first line really grabbed me.
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Thanks so much for your words.
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I followed your direction, and read it right to left. It made me wonder if it caused me to pay more attention to each word, since that direction is not the norm for me. I must admit that the sentiment hit me harder with the second, left-to-right rendition. Must be another morning for memories…I had an awful one come to me while I was writing my morning page, but couldn’t bring myself to Slice about it today. Did this calling bring you solace, or unrest? The poem leaves me wanting to know more…
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Thanks for the observations about the reading direction, Chris – I know there’s a punch in the regular left-to-right version, I think because there’s nothing to cushion it like in the first version. So, regarding your haunting memory that came today, that you’re not yet ready to Slice about… I hope you will at least notebook it somewhere for a while, and let it lie there. I’ve done so with moments I can never share publicly; and then there are some I feel I can, at a later point in time, from a safer distance. The voice calling my name in this little poem is my father’s. No mistaking it. So clear, so vivid, so…present. Jolts me wide awake out of my sleep. It has only happened a couple of times since his death in 2002. There’s an initial inclination to respond – what’s he calling me for? – mingled with a startled excitement. Honestly, as waking realization settled in, it left me feeling a little bereft, thinking perhaps I dreamed something that seemed so very, very real. I feel the realness of it even now. I’d say it evoked longing more than solace.
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Wow, I’m surprised at how easily I read backwards! Thank you for sharing that beautiful poem!
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Many thanks for your words – it is an interesting form, isn’t it? Fun to play with.
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What a cool approach here! For what it’s worth, I always loved my Hebrew instruction, especially when practicing my writing. As a lefty, I finally got a turn seeing other people emerge with the ink smudges on THEIR pinkies dragging across the notebook. =))
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Such a beautiful language, Lainie; I can’t imagine writing it but I can feel your joy – so hard to be left-handed in a right-handed world, but then – justice!
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Always love finding new forms and inspirations – this one was fun and works really well with your words! ….but still somehow so near ….makes me think of my mother, who left us in 2015.
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I love the new forms and inspirations shared as well (many from you!) and I know from your writing that your mother is, indeed, so near…she shines not only in the winking of a star above, but in this work of your hands and heart – she’s in your words.
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This is a beautiful, yet haunting poem. I have never tried a backwards poem, but this makes me want to try it!
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I discovered during this exercise that the simpler I keep my lines, the better it works. Hope you will try it – and thank you, Trina.
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Simplicity makes the difference – way beyond poetry.
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Simplicity and conciseness are great friends to a writer. 🙂
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