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~ Chanti

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The Gardener
by ~ Chanti

Sunday, August 10, 2008
Rated "G" by the Author.

There is a little more to this write than may be immediately apparent on first reading. A dark and ominous canvass painted over with a pretty landscape perhaps? What do you read into it? ;)

Sunshine stretches
languidly
over the virid lawn
Dew-traced tips
sparkle, iridescent
as jewels
Footprints incongruously
emboss the velvet-
softness

Morning air,
richly charged
with ozone.
A fragrant olio
of subtle scents -
Sweet peas, jasmine,
pine needles

...and freshly ground coffee
filters between the seams

He squints obliquely
through the open door
Shadowed face
sketched
with anticipation
Skin draped in folds
like old fabric
decorated with pores
and errant tufts of hair.
Calloused hands,
like knotted roots, grip
the handle of the spade.
Nails encrusted with
soil and old blood.

Hears her
approaching footsteps
and smiles


Chanti 2008

 


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Reviewed by Walt Hardester 2/15/2009
Sorry I missed this one....Well done macabre scenario. Leaving much to the reader to fill in...

Walt
Reviewed by Sheila Roy 12/23/2008
Chanti,
I like how you bring this scene to life with scents and imagery. I really like your descriptions of the man. The contrast between the shadowed man and the brightly colored cottage is intriguing. I see why this picture inspired you. Great write:)
Sheila
Reviewed by John Leko 11/25/2008
...darkness and mystery to be found here...perhaps the gardener has just finished planting a black dahlia...to resurface as a blood turnip. ...excellent suspenseful images and write Chanti.
John
Reviewed by Robert Sheridan 10/11/2008
Chanti,

You have taken the reader on a vividly created poetic masterpiece - absolutely stunning write!


Best to you,

Lance
Reviewed by Jeff Mason 9/27/2008
Hmm... talk about 'organic' fertilizer.
I truly enjoyed the darkness of this. -- Jeff
Reviewed by john salmon 9/13/2008
sounds like he's been working 'the nightshift' and can't wait for a cuppa and his pit. wonderful poetry, the very best.
Reviewed by Glenda Bixler 9/6/2008
Ahhh, but there is only one thing I see...

The contentment of love...
Reviewed by SOULFUL SHEE G. Pulsing In Passionate Purple PassionS 8/26/2008
Nice to see you and feel you again Chanti - I found much in your lines of growing old, appreciation of knowing he could still garden, and the love he has, is still around...
I love the ominous feeling that hovers from picture, you, your undying crafty words ~
To work hard and appreciate Life and your love - is what I found wafting in your style!
WONDERFUL Poem! I love dark eerie thrilling writes...The picture is stunning!
Warmest Blessings, LOVE, LIGHT, and Inner Peace, Warrior Purple Passion Soulful Sheexooo

STay Positive!
Reviewed by Barbara Terry 8/25/2008
I like this mystery and suspenseful ending. It could mean a lot of things, like he is waiting for her to come in so he can murder her, or he is waiting for her because she makes his dinner, or he is going to tell her about her yard, and what it needs. So many things can be read into this. Thank you for sharing, Chanti.

May The Lord Jesus bless you, and those whom you love, and who love you, and be with you always, and at your side constantly. With much love in my heart, joy to the world, peace on earth, & ((((((((((MANY WONDERFUL SISTERLY HUGGGGSSSS)))))))))), your little sister, Barbie
Reviewed by Joyce Bowling 8/16/2008
Oooh...much mystery, much suspense....very intriguing my friend, you've got a way of catching one's attention..reminds me of something I would see on the old show The Twilight Zone...wreaks of murder, mystery, and an untold tale...maybe you'll have a continuing part II for this excellent write my friend!
Blessings,
Joyce B.
Reviewed by Edwin Larson 8/14/2008
Muwhaahaaahaaa....Umm the suspense and dark foreboding ...Excellent...as you lead the reader from life to death (or...worse) I know you were worried nobody would get it but it seems they did. ;) This piece has the flavour of Saki (H.H. Monroe), and as Roger says below, a bit of Hitchcock too.

God Snuggs, I love your mind...and the rest of you rocks too ;)

C. Chops
Reviewed by Roger Ochs 8/14/2008
A frightening write. Hitchcockian in its potential. My cuppa tea entirely.
Reviewed by Southern Comfort 8/13/2008
Sounds like after years of smiling and Yes Dearing, he has taken all he can take and will take no more and is about to squash the offending pest and plant her amid the flowers of his prized garden. Sometimes being married forever can grate on one's nerves. SC
Reviewed by Christine Alwin 8/12/2008
`A gardner working his hands to the bone,, his life is his pride of beauty he's created,,and hmmmmm?? His blossom he has waited for blooms finally, as he has waited for this moment to see his daughter once again. (?)
Reviewed by Lloyd Lofthouse 8/12/2008
"Nails encrusted with soil and old blood." Into this idyllic scene comes a killer smiling in anticipation as the next victim approaches. The poem sets the reader at ease and introduces evil with a subtle touch. The message: Never take anything for granted. Always be alert.
Reviewed by La Belle Rouge 8/12/2008
All I know Chanti is it gave me chills and is so well written. Perhaps he hears the ghost of the owner of the old blood?
Reviewed by Romantic Poetess Victoria L. McColley 8/11/2008
Chanti
I feel his long awaited for lost love has arrived :)
Or...
Maybe it is Mother Nature Approching....(rabbits, squirrils ect.)
But like Charlie (death) I think perhaps his celestial angel has entered his earthly life to take him to the empyrean garden of heaven...
Your Words Are So Beautiful & Flowing Like A Perfect Peaceful Harmony
I Just Love The Softly Fluid & Ellegance of Your Poetic Words
Poetess Your Are A Word Smith....
Embraced ~ Embrassι
Vickie
Reviewed by Charlie 8/10/2008
"death lurking behind doors" comes to mind. It reminds me a bit of David Hightower's poem, "Errand", only more ominous. I at first thought of the lurker as "Death", but with the blood and soil on the spade, I changed my mind. This "gardener" means evil, and this is obviously not his first "planting" either, as the blood and soil is "encrusted" on the handle. And the great give-away, is the last word... his smile. He plants death. But what shall he reap? --Charlie
Reviewed by Rose Rideout 8/10/2008
I see him as the hard working gardener who has lived and loved all those years waiting to make her his and his alone. He had spent his years creating beauty for her pleasure. Thank you for sharing Chanti.

Newfie Hugs, Rose
Reviewed by Regis Auffray 8/10/2008
You open the door to much imagination with your verses, Chanti. The stark contrasts capture the reader's attention and hold it and then make her/him think about all the possibilities of what has happened and what is yet to come about. The painting powerfully complements the whole creative offering. Thank you for sharing your gifts. Love, peace, and best wishes,

Regis
Reviewed by Felix Perry 8/10/2008
No one would know how long he had waited patiently in the wings, the poor boy grown to manhood subservient to the one he loved and her bastard of a husband. Living in the small servants shack he would hear the screams and crying night after night and his heart burned for the love of his life entrapped by only a marraige vow to another...till death do they part. Now maybe he could move out of the shadows and she would see him in a different light.

Great poem and picture Chanti and so glad to see your name up here again...you have been missed.
hugs
Fee
Reviewed by Debby Rosenberg 8/10/2008
your words repaint the portrait, perception could be an innocent gardener or an evil lurker
Reviewed by George Carroll 8/10/2008
Both the poem and pic are delightful
Reviewed by Michelle Close Mills 8/10/2008
This piece speaks to the greatest pleasures in every gardener's heart...an amazing bower that greets the one who tends to it, and someone who loves and tends to the gardener...a tremendously gentle piece that caresses the reader with it's beauty. Love you, Michelle
Reviewed by Amanda Risi 8/10/2008
Thank you Chanti,... for these delicate lines, ... Wondrous, enchanting. ♫ ♥
Reviewed by Karla Dorman, The StormSpinner 8/10/2008
Chanti,

So nice to be reading you again - what a delightful place, your garden. Well done!

(((HUGS))) and love, Karla.
Reviewed by Marcia Miller-Twiford 8/10/2008
Dear Chanti,
I find this poem to be totally charming. You write so well that I felt I was there watching him. BRAVO!
Blessings.
Marcia
Reviewed by Sherry Heim 8/10/2008
You paint a masterpiece with your words, Chanti. What beautiful images you have presented here for us.
Take care,
Sherry
Reviewed by Ron (sketchman) Axelson 8/10/2008
Lovely images..
x0x0x
Ron
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