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The Things That I Have Done

August 27, 2011
By Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
More by this author
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;il piu nell&#039; uno,&quot; (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)<br /> <br /> &quot;Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality&quot; ~Emily Dickinson<br /> <br /> &quot;The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain&quot; <br /> ~Kahlil Gibran

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I have sung and strung old harmonies
With the symphony of stars
I have exchanged wise words with setting suns
Smoking ablaze cigars
I have wept alongside dying trees
Our tears joined in with endless rain
I have shared the pleasure with hellish men
Of going hopelessly insane
I have raged and roared my heart sore
Beneath the storm-filled skies
I have dared to love a feral girl
Who would not meet my eyes
I have kissed a corpse with passion
On sheets of silver sand
I have been set afire with joy
In a fertile, elfish land
I have danced a winter ritual
With a pack of wolves who grin
I have hanged a villain on a silken noose
As penance for his sins
I have soared as high as hopeful dreams
On a mare with eagles’ wings
I have sat upon the crescent moon
To listen to the nighthawk sing

Is this the person who I am?
Is it Adventure to whom my life I owe?
Really, I’m just a commoner
Who has dreamt of being so

© Brandon W., Redwood City, CA

The author's comments:
This is an old poem which I had entered into Teenink long ago. But I had to delete it in order to submit it into a school contest (where it was promptly rejected). I realize now that I simply have to return it to my 'collection.' To any old hats, sorry that it's nothing knew. To any new hats, do tell me what you think of my little poem.
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JOIN THE DISCUSSION

This article has 19 comments.

leafy said...
on Apr. 19 2012 at 6:13 am
leafy, City, Other
0 articles 0 photos 682 comments

Favorite Quote:
Gil: I would like you to read my novel and get your opinion.&nbsp;<br /> Ernest Hemingway: I hate it.&nbsp;<br /> Gil: You haven&#039;t even read it yet.&nbsp;<br /> Ernest Hemingway: If it&#039;s bad, I&#039;ll hate it. If it&#039;s good, then I&#039;ll be envious and hate it even more. You don&#039;t want the opinion of another writer.&nbsp;

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What- what is this? Another lovely poem by the Feathery Bard? Nah, it can't be, he's already reached his max...

Haha just kidding, this piece is just as lovely as your others - which, to say the least, is excellent.

What a shame it got rejected, though. If they had known it was you, the Silent Raven, maybe they would have changed their minds :)
The Silent Raven said...
on Jan. 21 2012 at 1:15 pm
Ahhhh, you must think me horrible for not replying to your beautiful comments until this rainy January afternoon. Well, I'm not really great at giving that sort of advice (mine is too ambiguous), and it's probably too late, but I would say that adventure lies not in traveling distances nor in taking risks but in the mind and heart. Living 'carpe diem' can lead one anywhere, and let one become anything, if he is open to it. To value one's life as it is meant to be valued, that is adventure, even if it's only at home. Urgh, that was lousy, I know. :( I'm tired, though...
RedFeather GOLD said...
on Dec. 15 2011 at 7:53 am
RedFeather GOLD, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
12 articles 0 photos 155 comments

Favorite Quote:
Prose is like walking but poetry is like dancing.<br /> &mdash;Paul Valery, poet (1871 - 1945)

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You're a magician with words, raven. That's all there is to it. It's very relatable. I have to show this to my brother - he's going through a rough time right now and is wishing for nothing else but adventure in his life. I went through that stage to, so I also find this very relatable, but I don't want him to travel along the same path that I took, so I'm trying to help him in everyway that I can. You seem to know alot, so do you have any suggestions?

I don't see how one of your poems could be rejected though. I've seen a lot worse work up on TeenInk that make no sense and don't really seem like poems at all, but they're still up. Maybe someone hit the rejection button by accident.

Rayne GOLD said...
on Nov. 25 2011 at 12:19 am
Rayne GOLD, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin
17 articles 0 photos 46 comments
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This is relatable to me as well, I like the idea. Favorite.
Thesilentraven PLATINUM said...
on Sep. 16 2011 at 7:10 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;il piu nell&#039; uno,&quot; (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)<br /> <br /> &quot;Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality&quot; ~Emily Dickinson<br /> <br /> &quot;The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain&quot; <br /> ~Kahlil Gibran

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Ah well, thanks for saying that.

The winner of the contest is my arch enemy, however. That angered me slightly, but then I let it go; and my happiness returned. :)

A_shy_dove GOLD said...
on Sep. 16 2011 at 8:56 am
A_shy_dove GOLD, Hubli, Other
10 articles 1 photo 76 comments

Favorite Quote:
Never compare your life with others, as you have no idea what their journey is all about.

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I just don't understand why they rejected it.
Thesilentraven PLATINUM said...
on Sep. 10 2011 at 4:00 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;il piu nell&#039; uno,&quot; (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)<br /> <br /> &quot;Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality&quot; ~Emily Dickinson<br /> <br /> &quot;The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain&quot; <br /> ~Kahlil Gibran

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I'm so glad to hear that Hannah!
HannahPaige SILVER said...
on Sep. 9 2011 at 8:46 pm
HannahPaige SILVER, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania
8 articles 0 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;One can&#039;t complain. I have my friends. Someone spoke to me only yesterday.&quot; -Eeyore<br /> <br /> He said it better than I could have.

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I adore this poem. It flows so perfectly and has such an endearing tone. It's so relatable and just made me smile. Great work.
Thesilentraven PLATINUM said...
on Sep. 3 2011 at 1:25 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;il piu nell&#039; uno,&quot; (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)<br /> <br /> &quot;Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality&quot; ~Emily Dickinson<br /> <br /> &quot;The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain&quot; <br /> ~Kahlil Gibran

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Thanks so much, Dove! You're always so kind.
A_shy_dove GOLD said...
on Sep. 3 2011 at 6:54 am
A_shy_dove GOLD, Hubli, Other
10 articles 1 photo 76 comments

Favorite Quote:
Never compare your life with others, as you have no idea what their journey is all about.

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Wow!!!!! your poems leave me in awe...
Thesilentraven PLATINUM said...
on Aug. 31 2011 at 3:00 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;il piu nell&#039; uno,&quot; (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)<br /> <br /> &quot;Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality&quot; ~Emily Dickinson<br /> <br /> &quot;The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain&quot; <br /> ~Kahlil Gibran

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Ooh, I can't wait to read it!
Aderes47 GOLD said...
on Aug. 31 2011 at 4:08 am
Aderes47 GOLD, Cambridge, Massachusetts
11 articles 0 photos 897 comments

Favorite Quote:
You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have truly lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love. <br /> Henry Drummond

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Yes, failure is a part of life. And Carpe Diem is a tough one, easier for some, harder for others. Just uploaded a new poem and I think you're going to really like it! It's dedicated to mi corazon, of course, and some words are in Arabic(because he speaks Arabic and translation is definitely included)
Thesilentraven PLATINUM said...
on Aug. 30 2011 at 9:04 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;il piu nell&#039; uno,&quot; (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)<br /> <br /> &quot;Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality&quot; ~Emily Dickinson<br /> <br /> &quot;The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain&quot; <br /> ~Kahlil Gibran

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I'm glad that there's somebody still around to remember it. It was shuddering on my shelf, fearing that it had been forgotten, when I saved it from such a fate and returned it to where it belonged. I cannot believe I would have traded The Things That I Have Done for anything.
savetheplanet PLATINUM said...
on Aug. 30 2011 at 8:59 pm
savetheplanet PLATINUM, Anaheim, California
45 articles 9 photos 564 comments

Favorite Quote:
It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

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I'm going to try submitting it again and seeing what they do.
IamtheshyStargirl PLATINUM said...
on Aug. 30 2011 at 5:10 pm
IamtheshyStargirl PLATINUM, Lothlorien, Utah
44 articles 16 photos 2206 comments

Favorite Quote:
Boredom instigates extreme creativity. <br /> ~Amoniel<br /> <br /> "Bowing gratefully to all of my subjects, 'thank you. Thank you. The pleasure is mine." Nah, I'm just kidding. We're all kings together.'" <br /> ~Thesilentraven

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It took me a few lines, but I do recognize it :) How comfortably familiar it is, like a lost friend returned, an old memento found. 
Thesilentraven PLATINUM said...
on Aug. 30 2011 at 4:43 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;il piu nell&#039; uno,&quot; (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)<br /> <br /> &quot;Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality&quot; ~Emily Dickinson<br /> <br /> &quot;The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain&quot; <br /> ~Kahlil Gibran

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How unfair of them!

Well, anyway, your latest poems have been quite good, which compensates. :)

Thesilentraven PLATINUM said...
on Aug. 30 2011 at 4:39 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;il piu nell&#039; uno,&quot; (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)<br /> <br /> &quot;Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality&quot; ~Emily Dickinson<br /> <br /> &quot;The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain&quot; <br /> ~Kahlil Gibran

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Thanks, Aderes. :)

It's quite all right, I think. I've gotten rather adept at handling rejection (maybe through practice!), much more so than I used to be. And I have encouragement from people like you, which certainly helps. :)

Carpe diem, yes? Easier imagined than done, I've found.

savetheplanet PLATINUM said...
on Aug. 29 2011 at 11:26 pm
savetheplanet PLATINUM, Anaheim, California
45 articles 9 photos 564 comments

Favorite Quote:
It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

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I really like this one. :)  Actually, it IS possible to be rejected.  I just was.  I'm very upset.  It's the poem that they posted before but anonymously, then I deleted it and resubmitted it and apparently it's not good enough for their website. D:<
Aderes47 GOLD said...
on Aug. 29 2011 at 11:10 pm
Aderes47 GOLD, Cambridge, Massachusetts
11 articles 0 photos 897 comments

Favorite Quote:
You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have truly lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love. <br /> Henry Drummond

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Oh, raven, your genius never ceases to amaze me! 

I'm so sorry that it was rejected- but I have a feeling great things are to come for you! :)

Fits with my life perfectly, for I wish to really LIVE.