For the past several months, I've dedicated most days to practicing and writing poetry. As I mentioned in a previous post, I've been writing poems since I was 10 years old, though I've never shared my work publicly. Lately, I've been focusing on incorporating metaphors into my poems, and I find this practice incredibly rewarding and enjoyable.
One of the poems I completed this past week is about retribution, inspired by a prompt from the Blockchain Poets community. Though I’ve never sought revenge in my life, I’d be lying if I said the thought never crossed my mind. Thankfully, it has remained just that - a thought - because I know that seeking revenge wouldn't bring me any peace.
For this poem, I decided to incorporate a metaphor. After some brainstorming, I chose the image of a poisoned blade. This idea struck me after reading a powerful quote recently, which resonated deeply and sparked my creative process.
Retribution is a poisoned blade, sharp and deadly, waiting to strike with lethal precision.
Here's the page from my notebook.
And here's the completed poem:
Retribution
This poisoned blade gleams
in your heart,
forged in fires of hurt,
its edge ragged with bitterness.
Years of wounds,
each deeper than the last,
have honed this blade,
its venom poised to strike.
You clutch it tightly,
chanting cold promises
of justice, of retribution.
Poison seeps deeper
into your soul
with every lift.
And you wonder—
will the strike heal,
or only deepen the wounds?
I felt the poem was incomplete without a visual representation. The idea was to illustrate the poem about the poisoned blade and its metaphorical implications. I planned to draw a heart pierced by a sharp blade, with poison dripping from the wound to indicate its bitterness. The background was a blend of fiery tones, symbolizing the fires of hurt and bitterness that forged the blade.
I used watercolor pencils to paint the background and black pens and markers for the stencil of the heart and blade.
Here are the progress photos:
And here is the completed painting:
What do you think of this poem and the painting?
That's it for now. If you read this far, thank you. I appreciate it so much! Kindly give me a follow if you like my content. I mostly write about making art, life musing, and our mundane yet charming family life here in Klang Valley, Malaysia.
Note: All images used belong to me unless stated otherwise.
Thank you for visiting and reading my post. I hope you like it!
It's a touching poem, really well done. I can understand that you felt the need to illustrate it, I think for an artist who write poems, words and images are like the 2 sides of the same feeling. ^_^
You captured that experience perfectly. When creatives have multiple mediums to express themselves, it's natural for us to extend our creative vision across all available channels.
Thank you so much 🙏
Whoa, @coloringiship. That is such a lovely poem. I love the painting too, especially the background. This post made my day, keep up the good work!
“Be grateful for what you already have while you pursue your goals.
If you aren’t grateful for what you already have, what makes you think you would be happy with more.”
― Roy T. Bennett.
I'm sorry I missed out on your comment and thank you so much for your kind words 🙏