An example of Gloss Poetry
Epigraph:
Stop this day and night with me and you shall possess the origin of all poems,
You shall possess the good of the earth and sun, (there are millions of suns left,)
You shall no longer take things at second or third hand, nor look through the eyes of the dead, nor feed on the spectres in books,
You shall not look through my eyes either, nor take things from me,
You shall listen to all sides and filter them from your self.
Part I:
I stayed with Mr. Whitman that day,
And read his words with careful sway.
His wisdom flowed like a gentle breeze,
And through his vision, I found my ease.
We sat in silence, just him and I,
As he recited his poetry with a sigh.
I listened closely, my heart ablaze,
As he spoke of life, love, and all its ways.
He showed me that all there is, there was,
And all there will be, is right here because,
The present moment is all we have,
And in it, we can find our own path.
I learned from Mr. Whitman that day,
To live in the moment and find my own way.
His wisdom has stayed with me ever since,
As I strive to live a life of transcendence.
Stop this day and night with me and you shall possess the origin of all poems
Part II:
I followed in Mr. Whitman’s footsteps that day,
And found myself on a new path to pave.
His words guided me, his wisdom true,
And now I have the essence of all that is good, through and through.
I have come to see that we are the universe,
And the universe is us, for better or worse.
We are made of the same stardust and light,
And in it, we find our own shining might.
I have learned to embrace all that is good,
The beauty of the earth and all that it could,
The warmth of the sun and all it imparts,
I have the essence of it all in my heart.
I am grateful to Mr. Whitman for showing me the way,
To find the good in life and to live each day,
With an open heart and a clear mind,
I have all the good of the earth and sun intertwined.
You shall possess the good of the earth and sun, (there are millions of suns left,)
Part III:
Mr. Whitman’s words were a wake-up call,
A reminder to live life and stand tall.
To open my mind and see things anew,
And no longer take things at second or third hand, that’s true.
I’ve learned to experience things for myself,
To live in the moment and find my own wealth.
I no longer rely on the words of others,
But rather, I trust in my own endeavors.
I am open to everything now, it’s clear,
I no longer fear the unknown, but rather, I hold it dear.
I believe in what I experience, not just what I’ve read,
For everything else is merely a theory, it’s been said.
I am grateful to Mr. Whitman for opening my eyes,
To see the world in a new light, and to realize,
That I am in control of my own path,
And with an open mind, anything is possible, that’s a fact
You shall no longer take things at second or third hand, nor look through the eyes of the dead, nor feed on the spectres in books
Part IV:
I am but a messenger, a guide,
Here to share what I have inside.
But do not take my words as truth,
For you must find your own proof.
Generate your own hypothesis,
Run the experiments, see what you miss.
Gather the results and make your own inferences,
This process, you can repeat with patience.
We all have a lot of time, it’s true,
But time is also scarce, so what will you do?
Will you blindly follow what I say,
Or will you seek your own way?
Do not look through my eyes, it’s not fair,
To simply take things from me, without care.
Seek your own truth, your own path,
For in the end, it is your journey, not mine to have.
You shall not look through my eyes either, nor take things from me
Part V:
We are all different, physically and mentally,
Our compositions unique, our paths, differently.
So when we receive information, or wisdom, it’s true,
It comes from people with different views.
We must listen to all sides, with an open mind,
And filter out what does not align.
With our own beliefs and values true,
For only then can we grow and renew.
It’s easy to blindly follow what we’re told,
But true growth comes from filtering out the old.
And embracing only what will help us thrive,
As we journey through life.
So listen to all sides, without fear or doubt,
And filter them from your self, without a doubt.
For only then can you truly grow,
And find your own path, as you go.
You shall listen to all sides and filter them from your self.
What is Glose/Gloss/Glosa?
It is a Spanish poetic form. It starts with an epigraph from another poem or poet. These lines act as a refrain for the last lines of the stanzas or verses written by the poet.
About this Poem
This poem starts with an Epigraph from Walt Whitman’s poem ‘Song of Myself‘.
The first part of the poem begins with how the writer waited that day to read the poem by Mr. Whitman and got influenced by his work. This par ends with the first line in the epigraph.
The second part deals with how full of wisdom, Walt Whitman’s poem was and ends with the second line from the epigraph.
The third part emphasizes how the ‘Song of Myself’ was not imposing a thought process on the writer but, in fact, is guiding in making your own empirical observations and making inferences from the same. It ends with the third line from the epigraph.
Through the fourth part, the writer emphasizes that you should also not listen to her, but rather listen to your own heart and brain. It ends with the fourth line from the epigraph.
The fifth part is telling the readers not to keep all the information and dwell on the same, but rather filter it and keep the ones that help them grow. It ends with the last line from the epigraph.
A Note from the Poet
As I was reading about this poetic form, the only lines that came to my mind for the epigraph were the ones by Sir Walt Whitman. I am a huge fan of Sir Whitman and am greatly inspired by his work.
There are many poems, poets, and lines that have inspired me throughout my life. Some of them are from very famous poets, some not so much. But the reason, this poem struck my mind at the time of writing this is because the first part of the poem has these lines:
“I, now thirty-seven years old in perfect health begin,
Hoping to cease not till death.“
And (at the time of writing) I am soon approaching my 37th birthday, and hoping to leave behind all the illnesses, that have been a good companion for the last couple of years, and starting now in perfect health, hoping to cease not till death. It is just so inspiring and relatable. Though the version of this poem that I have read is often called its ‘death-bed version’.
PS: My favorite poet ever is Shel Silverstein. And my favorite lines ever from a poem are:
“The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.“
