Your character's theme poems?

So I discovered this beautiful poem not too long ago, and although my character is absolutely not given to poetry, it nonetheless communicates something very fundamental about her I think (and quite apropos of the current situation!)

Anyone else ever found poetry that really goes with your character? I love poetry, and I'm always keen to discover more 😍

Sea-Fever

By John Masefield

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;

And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,

And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide

Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,

And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,

To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife;

And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,

And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over.

I have no poems to contribute at the moment, but just wanted to say that was beautiful. 🥹❤️ Thank you for sharing!!

That was wonderful to read! I have a lack of reading poetry in recent times, but this gives some inspirations <3

I'm a poetry noob but I loved that opening read, thank you heaps for sharing! It's got such rhythm and life to it. And I wholeheartedly agree, the Inaya energy strong. It's like a glimpse at the uncomplicated essence beneath all life's complications.

I didn't have anything to contribute to this thread until pofMarwa recently introduced me to the most perfect poem for Rakim. It's about a tenacious thief who's abandoned by his tribe and lives as a misanthropic exile in the desert. It's honestly uncanny, and the poem itself is beautifully constructed. Here is some context from pofMarwa: 

        "I was listening to a podcast about Jahili Arabic poetry a few days ago and they recited a few translated verses from the Lamiyyat al-Arab by al-Shanfara, who is considered one of the more famous vagabond poets (sa'alik)..."

The poem is a couple pages long so I won't post it in its entirety. But you can read it in full here and here are the first two verses for the vibe:

Sons of my mother, get your camels up!
        For I choose other company than you.
Go! You have all you need: the moon is out,
        The mounts are girthed to go, the saddles too.
The world will keep a good man safe from harm,
        And give him sanctuary from ill-will.
Yes, by your life! The world has room for one
        Who seeks or flees by night, and uses skill.

I have some nearer kin than you: swift wolf,
        Smooth-coated leopard, jackal with long hair.
With them, entrusted secrets are not told;
        Thieves are not shunned, whatever they may dare.
They all are proud and brave, but when we see
        The day's first quarry, I am braver then.
When hands go out for food, I am not first:
        The first one is the greediest of men.
That is how much I condescend to them;
        The better man is he who condescends.

I am so digging a thread that has POETRY in it! I absolutely love seeing what's been shared so far.

This is one that makes me think of Demetrius, from a beautiful book of poetry called Talking to the Sun that I've had since I was a kid:

* * *

The Most Beautiful
by Guido Gozzano, 1883-1916

1
But most beautiful of all is the Un-found Island:
The one that the King of Spain got from his cousin
The King of Portugal with the royal seal
And the papal edict written in Gothic Latin.

The Young Prince set sail for the fabulous kingdom,
He saw the Fortunate Isles: Iunonia, Gorgo, Hera
And the Sea of Sargasso and the Sea of Darkness
While looking for that island . . . But the island wasn't there.

In vain the big-bellied galleons with swollen sails,
The caravels in vain put up their rigging:
Despite the papal guarantee, the island disappeared
And Portugal and Spain are looking for her still.

2
The island exists. Appearing now and then in the distance
Between Teneriffe and Palma, veiled in mystery:
". . . The un-Found island!" The wise Canarymen
From Picco high above the Teyde point it out to the foreigner.

The pirates' ancient maps make mention of her:
"How to Find It Island," "Wandering Island"--
It is the charmed island that slips through the seas;
Sometimes the navigators see her nearby . . .

They graze with their prows that happy shore:
Amid flowers no one has ever seen the highest palm trees sway,
The heavenly forest, thick and alive, sends forth its fragrant odors,
The cardamum tree is crying, the rubber trees are oozing . . .

She is noticed first by her perfume, as a courtesan is,
The Un-found Island . . . But, if the pilot goes toward her,
Quickly she disappears, like a mirage,
Tinting herself with blue, the color of faraway.

I am obsessed, these are incredible!

This line in particular from the Lamiyyat al-Arab resonates so so much, oh my GOODNESS:

One baleful night, the bowman burns for warmth

His bow and shafts, with which he would have shot.

... it's such an absolutely brilliant encapsulation of so many things. The potent imagery, the message of how stupid it is to cast aside something (someone) so useful and so valuable for so little cause, and in the very same breath his own high opinion of himself. I'm in love.

And oh wow, what a sublime and poignant wistfulness The Most Beautiful invokes, genuinely hit me hard and took me outside myself. Amazing. ❤

Thank you for sharing, this has been a favorite of mine since I can remember my mother teaching me. Sakina would have never heard of it, but it surely does suit Inaya.