Tempered by a Previous Life

Lead me naked,

  Blinded and bewildered--

But please don't

  Lead me too far from this--

      (A second chance at life couldn't compare--

      And yes, I’ve been there)

If I were to ever feel

  Tempered by a previous life,

I assume it

  Would feel exactly like this--

      (As if from an example I greatly admired,

      I feel completed and inspired)

So leave me fettered,

  Mocked and baffled--

But please don't

  Leave me too far from this--

      (When faced with all else,

      I will survive)

Reviews

[KAOlmsted]

You went a little Gloria Gaynor at the end there *laugh* and then didn't stick with the format of rhyming in the parentheses, but I enjoyed this piece a great deal. I'm not a big fan of rhyming poetry anyway ;-) Your first stanza is outstanding. Thanks so much for sharing this with us, Louis. I look forward to reading more from you in the future.

-kimmer

[Pryde Foltz]

Nice. Your word choice is exquisite and your writing lean and poignant. As a result you give clear meaning and create fantastic rhythm. Looks good on the page too.

[Fabian G. Franklin]

There's nothing like a connection of souls in thought. Empathy transcends time and space. We measure the speed of light but not the speed of love; the speed of our lives is rarely taken account of. I enjoyed this piece. I have been tempered by a great many previous lives and inspired by them as well. I find them in books of poems, art and history. And I meet with them there as if I shared their days. It's good to be a survivor.